Alcohol

Alcohol is one of the most widely used drugs in this society. It is accepted as a part of social life. Its use is widely promoted via sponsorship of sporting events. Advertising infers that drinking is the path to happiness, success, romance, etc. There are references to alcohol and its effects from earliest known writings. Alcohol is consumed in the beverage form and sold legally in this state to persons over 21.

Alcohol is absorbed directly into the bloodstream through the stomach and small intestine. It is distributed by the blood throughout the body, affecting literally every organ it touches in a matter of minutes. Enzymes in the liver metabolize alcohol at a rate of 10-15 ml (less than one half ounce) per hour. Hence, only time can sober someone up. Coffee, cold showers, or exercise do not work.

The warm glow of disinhibition, "letting go" is a major desired effect of alcohol. People feel more sociable and talkative with small amounts of the drug. Alcohol is a relaxant, so many people drink to unwind from the demands of life. Because alcohol has been around for so long, its effects are well-known.

Two key concepts to understand in dealing with alcohol use and abuse are impairment and tolerance. They are both problems in themselves and signals of possible additional difficulties.

IMPAIRMENT refers to the deficits in performance, judgment, memory, and motor skills which occur because of alcohol consumption. Impairment becomes noticeable at blood levels of 0.05%, which can occur when as few as two drinks are consumed in an hour by a 160 pound person. The deceptive part about impairment is that, by definition, impaired judgment cannot recognize its own impairment. The individual thinks he or she is functioning well, when actually s/he is not. Later, there is impaired memory of the impaired performance.

TOLERANCE means that a drug loses some of its effect with repeated use, and that higher and higher doses are needed. It is the body's way of adapting to having a foreign substance in the system.

People develop a high tolerance to alcohol when they drink a great deal over an extended length of time. "WHILE TOLERANCE MAY SEEM TO SOME TO BE A DESIRABLE STATE, IT SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASES THE RISK OF ALCOHOLISM AND LONG-TERM HEALTH AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS". For example, a heavy drinker could still be lucid at 0.25%, whereas the average person would barely be able to function. Even so, the heavy drinker would be extremely dangerous on the highway.

Thirteen percent of male and five percent of female college students nationwide are alcoholic. Persons are considered alcoholic if they exhibit three or more of the following symptoms for more than one month, or if the symptoms get repeated over a longer period of time:

1.Alcohol is consumed in greater quantities or for longer periods of time than the person intended; 2.The individual has a persistent desire to control or eliminate drinking, or has made one or more unsuccessful efforts to do this (for example, there are resolutions to "cut down," but these efforts disappear after a period of time); 3.Considerable time is spent in obtaining, using, or recovering from alcohol and its effects; 4.Intoxication or its aftereffects (e.g., hangovers) frequently occur at times when the person is expected to fulfill work, family or school obligations; or there is physically hazardous use (e.g., while driving); 5.The individual gives up or reduces social, recreational or job-related activities because of alcohol use; 6.Drinking continues despite the knowledge that alcohol causes the person to have social, psychological or medical problems; 7.Significantly increased tolerance has developed; 8.Withdrawal symptoms occur when initially attempting abstinence (e.g., flu-like symptoms, headaches, gastrointestinal distress, sweatiness, mood swings, irritability, anxiety); 9.Alcohol or other drugs are used to ward off the withdrawal.

Other long-term medical problems include high blood pressure, increased risk of heart attack, pancreatitis, various cancers, cirrhosis of the liver. Chronic heavy drinking in men is associated with testicular atrophy and breast enlargement. In women, as little as one drink a day greatly increases the risk of breast cancer. Drinking during pregnancy can cause birth defects and mental retardation.

Alcohol is also fattening. One glass of wine daily added to the diet can result in a weight gain of ten pounds a year.

Cocaine and Crack

Cocaine is an alkaloid extracted from the leaves of the coca plant. It is a stimulant and euphoric substance that has powerful effects on the human brain. The practice of sniffing ("snorting") cocaine actually dates back to the beginning of this century as knowledge spread about cocaine's ability to induce feelings of well-being and increased energy. At that time, cocaine was also available in over-the-counter tonics and potions.

Crack is cocaine that has been processed so that it can be smoked. It is generally sold in small quantities and distributed in small glass vials or small plastic bags. When crack is smoked, it produces an immediate, short-lived effect. Intravenous use ("shooting up") also results in rapid onset of effects, while the effects of sniffing are delayed several minutes.

The onset of the high, or rush, from cocaine and crack is reported by users to be intense and pleasurable. Some users have called the rush "an orgasm of the brain." The rush lasts only a few seconds, followed by a 20 minute high. Individuals report an increased sense of well-being and self-confidence, along with a decrease in fatigue and hunger. Some people report that they experience cocaine as an "aphrodisiac". There is a social aspect to cocaine use as well, as cocaine is frequently obtained from "friends" and consumed in small get-togethers.

Cocaine (and in particular "crack") is one of the most addictive drugs known to humankind. Laboratory studies have shown that animals, when offered the option to self-administer cocaine, will continue to administer the drug until they die, ignoring their needs for food and water.

It is reported that as many as one out of every three crack users become addicted to cocaine. There is no scientific way to predict who will become addicted. However, there has been a good deal of news media attention given to stories of successful people who have lost themselves, their jobs, fortunes, and families because of their involvement with cocaine. The problems cocaine causes in people's lives are so severe and the pull to use the drug again is so strong that it generally takes people two years of rehabilitation to recover from a cocaine addiction, once they seek treatment.

Crack is a very rapidly addicting form of cocaine, with addiction often becoming apparent within a matter of weeks. Some users have reported becoming addicted after their first experience with this form of cocaine. Thus crack is an especially dangerous form of the drug.

Cocaine can be quite toxic to the cardiovascular system and cause death. Death occurs from one of two primary effects. Cocaine can cause a spasm of the coronary arteries, which supply the heart with blood, and cocaine can also disrupt the rhythm of the heart by interfering with its electrical conduction. There is no way to tell who is sensitive to these effects. As in the cases of these athletes, being in excellent physical shape is no protection. Furthermore, what is a non-lethal dose for one person may be lethal for another, and this makes the question of dosage a risky one for the novice users. In high dose or prolonged use (binges) users often exhibit extreme irritability (which may explode to violence), and paranoia.

While the high from cocaine is generally well understood by the general public, less well-known is the withdrawal or "crash": fatigue, prolonged sleep and severe depression. These symptoms escalate as the frequency of use or the dose increases, leading many people to use the drug again soon. This sets up the addictive cycle, and people have been known to go on "cocaine binges" to cope with such crashes. During a binge, an individual may use up hundreds and even thousands of dollars' worth of cocaine, and put them selfs in significant risk. For those injecting cocaine, this could mean 10 or more injections in a night, with increased risk for AIDS if sterile needles are not used. To complicate matters medically, users often consume large quantities of alcohol to handle their crashes.

Other "Speed" Drugs

Two other stimulants are known to be abused locally. They have many similarities to the cocaine drugs, but have some important differences. Methamphetamine (meth, crank, crystal) has the stimulant properties of cocaine, but lasts from four to six hours. It can be taken orally or injected. Recently a drug called "ice" known in Japan and other countries has come to Oregon. Ice is a smokable form of methamphetamine, just as crack is a smokable form of cocaine. The effects of ice last for a long time, 14 hours or more, with a similar potential for addiction, irritability and paranoia as cocaine.

The other stimulant of concern is a prescription drug called Ritalin (Methly Phenidate). It is prescribed by physicians for hyperactive children, but is often diverted by drug abusing parents. This drug is a powerful stimulant. When abused, the tablets are crushed and mixed with water, then injected. The problem associated with Ritalin abuse, besides the typical stimulant problems, has to do with the chemicals used to make the tablet. Talc (like talcum power) is used to hold the pill together. Talc does not dissolve in the body or bloodstream, and can clog veins, causing embolisms and strokes.

LSD

LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is an extremely powerful hallucinogen--100 times as potent as psilocybin and 4000 times as potent as mescaline. LSD or "acid" saw its heyday in the late 1960s and early 1970s but is still used today. It is usually taken orally, in tablets, capsules or on blotter paper.

The attraction. The effects of LSD begin within an hour of ingestion and last from 2 to 12 hours. The effects taper off gradually. Users provide a variety of reasons for taking the drug, including a desire to experience something profoundly beautiful, a wish to achieve a transcendent state, enhance their creativity or take a vacation without going anywhere.

Sights and sounds may be merged and intensified, and the sense of time may be altered. Visual hallucinations often occur and can be novel and fascinating . Because LSD diminishes an individual's capacity to differentiate the boundaries of one object from another, and oneself from the environment, some users report a pleasant feeling of oneness with the world.

The description above is one side of the coin, the so-called "good trip." The other side of the coin is the "bad trip," in which hallucinations, loss of boundaries, and perceptual changes are experienced as unpleasant and scary . This can cause paranoid feelings, extreme anxiety and/or panic, and in some cases a psychotic reaction, triggering a process which, in some, is not always reversible. There is no way to predict which individuals will have good or bad trips. Even expe rienced users can have an unanticipated bad trip, some even requiring psychiatric hospitalization.

Another problem with LSD is the occasional occurrence of flashbacks, strong evoked memories of the LSD experience. Flashbacks often cause fear in the user and are especially dangerous if the individual is driving a car or operating machinery.

Short-term effects on the body can include increased blood pressure, rapid heartbeat, muscular weakness, trembling, nausea, chills, hyperventilation, and impairment of motor coordination.

Another drug, PCP (Angel Dust) is sometimes marketed as LSD. It is cheaper and easier to make, and it is potentially lethal.

Ecstasy

Like cocaine, Ecstasy (3,4 methylenedioxymethamphetamine) is not a new drug. It was synthesized in 1914 by a pharmaceutical company for use as an appetite suppressant, but was never marketed. It has been "rediscovered" in recent years and goes by the name of MDMA, ADAM, XTC, X, "the love drug," and the "hug drug." It is chemically similar to but less potent than MDA.

The drug is taken orally and produces a high which lasts two to four hours. After the initial onset of symptoms, which can be seriously unpleasant, some users report a period of relaxation and emotional openness, where problems seem to disappear and the user feels receptive to those around him. He or she may feel self-assured, friendly, and sociable. Such feelings are, of course, obtainable without drugs, but Ecstasy seems to provide a shortcut for some who may have problems in these areas. Users report that the drug has a "mind-expanding" effect without the extreme reactions found in some of the hallucinogens, such as LSD.

One of the problems with Ecstasy is the initial onset of symptoms, which usually begins with a jittery feeling accompanied by teeth-gnashing, sweating, blurred vision, and an increase in pulse rate and blood pressure. These latter two symptoms have been implicated in seizures and heartbeat irregularities, and the drug effect on certain brain centers has led to psychotic reactions in some individuals (hallucinations, paranoid delusions, misinterpretation of reality). There is no way to predict in advance who will be affected in this way. Because this drug appears to have milder effects than some of the other drugs discussed, some users double or triple their dose, creating serious medical problems. Repeated use of the drug produces tolerance (that is, the drug becomes ineffective), and it can produce a crash.

A recent study found that one of the by-products created when Ecstasy is metabolized is a toxic substance harmful to nerve endings. This seems to cause Parkinson's disease-like symptoms in persons as young as 30 years of age. These symptoms do not appear immediately, but may occur after a period of time. They are apparently non-reversible.

Mushrooms

There are a number of plant materials which have LSD-like effects and which come under the heading of mushrooms or "shrooms" as they are often called. These include the psilocybe mexicana and several other species which have the active ingredient psilocybin. Mushrooms are generally dried and then eaten. Mescaline originally came form the "buttons" which grow on the top of peyote cactus. Several varieties of psilocybin mushrooms grow and are illegally marketed in the Northwest.

The initial effects of psilocybin are experienced in 30 minutes and the high generally lasts several hours. Small doses can reportedly produce feelings of physical and mental relaxation and pleasant changes in mood and perception. Larger doses can produce marked changes in perception, with the user experiencing effects similar to those found with LSD.

With mescaline, the effects appear slowly and last from 10-18 hours. Commonly reported effects include euphoria, heightened sensory perception, visual hallucinations, alterations in body image, and some muscular relaxation.

With regard to perceptual processes, the unpleasant effects of these drugs are similar to those found with LSD. In addition, psilocybin can cause dizziness, light-headedness, abdominal discomfort, numbness in the mouth, nausea, vomiting, shivering, facial flushing, sweating, and fatigue. With mescaline, nausea and vomiting frequently occur, and high doses can produce low blood pressure, cardiac depression, slowed respiration, and headache. These side effects have the potential to be medically serious.

Both psilocybin and mescaline can be manufactured in the laboratory.

Marijuana

Marijuana consists of the dried leaves and flowering tops of the hemp plant (cannabis sativa). The plant's principal psychoactive ingredient is delta-9 THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). Hashish or "hash" is the dried resin from the tops and leaves of the female plant. It contains a higher concentration of the THC and is therefore more potent. Both marijuana and hash are usually smoked.

When smoked, the effects of marijuana produces a feeling of euphoria which gives rise to a tendency to talk and laugh more than usual. Color, sound, and taste, touch and/or smell may be enhanced and experienced as pleasant and fascinating. Muscular relaxation may occur, as well as a sense of well-being and relief from tension.

Cannabis impairs the ability to perform complex motor tasks such as driving a car. It also impairs short-term memory and logical thinking. At very high doses, effects can be similar to those of hallucinogens, and the user can experience confusion, restlessness, hallucination, paranoia, and anxiety or panic. These problems have become more noted in recent years, as the strains of marijuana now available are many times more potent than the marijuana of the early 1970s.

Heavy use appears to interfere with brain cell functioning, producing problems with sequencing ability, time sense, depth perception, memory storage, and recall. Chronic heavy users sometime demonstrate apathy, loss of energy, confusion, and memory problems.

Long-term use of THC is also associated with lower sperm counts in males and alterations in sperm shape and mobility. In women, irregularities in menstruation and ovulation occur. Pregnant women who are heavy marijuana smokers have higher levels of miscarriages, still-births and genetic disorders.

Marijuana smoke contains more cancer-causing agents than tobacco smoke. Laboratory studies have shown pre-cancerous cellular changes in the lung tissue of long term users.

Warning Signals

Signs That The Chemical Has Taken Control

The following symptoms and behaviors, when related to chemical use (including alcohol, of course), indicate that a person has seriously overindulged. Beyond this, these symptoms could indicate a more serious problem or addiction:

MEDICAL

Accidents or injuries Nausea and vomiting Mysterious bruises Gastritis Blackouts (cannot remember something while drinking) Passing out (unconsciousness) Emergency room visits

ACADEMIC/EMPLOYMENT

Academic failure/poor work performance Missing classes/absenteeism from work Not living up to one's potential Difficulties with deadlines or procrastination

SEXUAL

Impotence Sexual assault Inability to resist unwanted sexual advance Engaging in sexual activities that are contrary to values

SOCIAL/PSYCHOLOGICAL

Loss of self-respect Mood swings Panic and unexplained fears Depression Property damage Paranoia Fights and arguments Social isolation and withdrawal Problems with legal or college authorities Causing emotional pain to friends or loved ones

DRINKING/USING BEHAVIOR

Sneaking drinks or drugs or using alone Hiding bottles/drugs Consuming more than intended Inability to predict how much one will consume Using again right after sobering up Using to relieve anxiety, insomnia, pain or depression Using to feel more confident in social situations Spending substantial amounts of money on alcohol and drugs Preoccupation with next high Centering one's recreational activities around chemicals Family members or friends expressing concern about one's drinking or other drug use Feeling annoyed or angry when one's chemical use is discussed Inability to carry out an intention to "cut down"

State Laws

The following chart describes the penalties for POSSESSION of key drugs (the schedules are more inclusive) according to the Federal Drug Schedules:

Max. Prison Time Max .Fine SCHEDULE # Class

Heroin, LSD, other hallucinogens

marijuana, others 10 years $100,000 SCHEDULE II Class C Felony

Methadone, morphine, amphetamines

cocaine, PCP5 years $100,000 SCHEDULE II Class A Misdemeanors

Non-amphetamine stimulants, 1 year $2,500 SCHEDULE IV Class C Misdemeanors

some depressants1

Valium-type tranquilizers, some

less potent depressants 30 days $500 SCHEDULE V Violation

Dilute mixtures, compounds

with small amounts of controlled drugs None $1,000

Delivery of less than five grams or possession or less than one ounce of marijuana is a violation. established mandatory evaluation, education and treatment services for those under 18 years old. If services are successfully completed, the charge will be dropped.

Alcohol is an illegal drug for those under 21 years of age. For a driver under 18 ANY detectable amount of alcohol (above .00 BAC) is grounds for losing the license.

That pretty much sums it up for psychodelic drugs. I hope this proved to you that if you use a psychodelic drug that you should stop, unless it is alchol because it is not as bad as LSD, pcp, or anything you have to inject or snort. So I sign out with I hope you learned something, I mean you had to you could'ent have know all of this information.

Biblyography

Name Year Type

Microsoft Encarta 96' Encyclopedia

Dartmouth collage 95' Brochure

White House 97' Internet