Commonly Abused Drugs

Cocaine is an illegal stimulant that is known to significantly elevate the user's mood, leading to temporary euphoria and increasing his or her energy levels, self-esteem and alertness for short periods of time, then ending in an unpleasant crash. Along with its derivative crack cocaine, cocaine is one of the most addictive substances.

Once a user's high has subsided, he or she will typically experience at least a few of the unpleasant side effects of withdrawal. These include the development of tremors, paranoia, increased heart rate, elevated body temperature, high blood pressure and vertigo. Even short-term cocaine use can be dangerous. An overdose can result in respiratory arrest, cardiac arrest, strokes or death. Despite common misconceptions that cocaine is safer than other illicit drugs, more than 4,500 cocaine-related deaths were reported in the year 2011.

Behavioral therapies that have proven effective in treating cocaine abuse include cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), contingency management, the Matrix Model and community-based recovery groups like the 12-step program. No pharmaceutical interventions are currently approved by the FDA to treat cocaine addiction, although clinical trials are being conducted across the country in an attempt to develop an effective medication that could help.

Methamphetamine is a chemical stimulant like amphetamine, the active ingredient in many of the prescription medications used to treat ADHD and narcolepsy. Also referred to as “meth” or “speed,” methamphetamine can be ingested via smoking, swallowing, snorting or injection. No matter how substance users ingest this dangerous, illicit drug, it can produce serious side effects.

Speed affects users by increasing the amount of dopamine available in their brains. This release of dopamine leads in the short-term to increased energy, decreased appetite, improved alertness and attention, increased blood pressure, rapid breathing, irregular heartbeat and increased body temperature. It also reinforces the drug-taking behavior by affecting the reward processing areas of users’ brains, often leading to addiction.

The long-term effects of methamphetamine use include extreme weight loss, intense itching, dental problems, anxiety and confusion, insomnia, paranoia, hallucinations and violent behavior. Ongoing use can also cause problems with coordination and verbal learning, although some of these changes are reversible with long-term abstinence. Overdosing on meth can lead to serious conditions such as heart attacks, strokes, and kidney failure and can ultimately lead to death. While no medications are approved by the FDA to treat methamphetamine addiction, many forms of behavioral therapy have been proven effective in aiding those who want to get off of this drug.

There is an unfortunate misconception today that marijuana is safe for recreational use. While it's true that more states than ever have legalized this drug for both recreational and medicinal purposes, it's important to realize that legality does not necessarily indicate safety and that prolonged use can still lead to the potential for developing a marijuana addiction or dependency.

Like alcohol and tobacco users, even those who use marijuana legally can wind up addicted if they are not careful. Of the more than 20 million American citizens who reported current marijuana use in the year 2015, an estimated 4 million were found to have marijuana abuse disorder. Many others combine marijuana with alcohol or other illicit drugs with serious consequences. In places like Louisiana where marijuana remains illegal, even the consequences of regular use can also be severe.

While marijuana overdoses are not fatal, they can induce unpleasant symptoms such as anxiety, paranoia, hallucinations and respiratory problems. These issues are more common and pronounced in the use of marijuana edibles than they are in smoking the substance.

Long-term marijuana use can also lead to mental health problems, acute respiratory infections, and chronic cough. Withdrawal symptoms include irritability, insomnia, anxiety and decreased appetite. Although there are currently no medications approved by the FDA to treat marijuana addiction, behavioral therapies tend to be effective.

While prescription drug addiction can take many forms, opioid painkillers tend to receive the most attention from the medical community. This is because those who become addicted to prescription medications like oxycodone, hydrocodone, and morphine can wind up turning to street drugs like heroin when their prescriptions run out.

Although short-term, responsible use of prescription opioid medications is a great way to deal with pain, long-term use almost always leads to physical dependency and addiction. This, in turn, leads to chronic nausea, constipation, liver damage, and sometimes even permanent brain damage or death by overdose.

For those who doubt the connection between pain pills and addiction, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimated that nearly 4 million Americans abused prescription pain relievers in 2015. This doesn't take into account the number of users who switched from prescription opioids to heroin during the year. Common treatments for prescription opioid abuse are the same as those prescribed for heroin addiction.

Benzodiazepines are prescription sedatives that act as central nervous system depressants. They are often prescribed to patients suffering from anxiety or sleep disorders.

Although benzodiazepines do not, on their own, provide feelings of euphoria, they are often combined with other substances such as alcohol or other illicit drugs. Taken alone or with additional substances, benzodiazepines can cause drowsiness, confusion, dizziness, concentration problems, memory issues, low blood pressure and slowed breathing. Combining these prescription sedatives with other drugs, especially alcohol, can be fatal, as this can further slow the user's breathing and heart rate.

Prescription sedatives like benzodiazepines are not as commonly abused as opioid medications. That does not mean there are no treatment options available. The best way to find out about treatment plans for benzodiazepine abuse is to enroll in a program that offers a customized treatment plan.