Download The Effects of Drug Use - Father Michael McGivney Catholic

The Effects of Drug Use
Ecstasy
BBC News
Monday, 18 December, 2000, Ecstasy
brain damage link
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/1076381.stm
Evidence is mounting that regular use of the drug Ecstasy
may cause long-term brain changes.
Studies in monkeys have already suggested that the drug is
toxic to the neurons in the brain, but human evidence has
been mainly anecdotal.
All were subjected to tests involving the supply - or
lack - of tryptophan, a chemical which is key to the
production of seratonin, another chemical known to
have profound effects on mood and memory.
It was the ex-users who stood out in the tests,
performing much worse when they were deprived of
the chemical, and much better when it was given.
Professor Curran told BBC News Online:
"When combined with the animal studies, the evidence
is certainly growing that there are long-lasting effects.
"We know it has these effects on the brains of
monkeys, and human brains are not that different.
"It's certainly a worrying finding."
Medical News Today
Article Date: 06 Aug 2005 - 0:00 PST
Drug addiction - Death by Ecstasy
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=28694
Scientists have identified a key protein
involved in one of the most lethal side effects
of the popular but illegal drug ecstasy.
Most ecstasy-related deaths are caused by an
increase in body temperature, or
hyperthermia, which leads to organ failure.
Coroners report: 18-year-old female who attended a RAVE
PARTY between the hours of 2230 and 0230 hours at a vacant
lot.
Mother of decedent picked her up
at which time the decedent
appeared to be under the
influence. Mother drove straight
to Good Samaritan Hospital
where decedent told staff that she
had taken 3 Ecstasy pills at the
party.
Decedent kept in ER and monitored until about 0800 when
she was released with doctor telling the mother that she
would probably sleep for 18 hours and wake up with a
headache. Decedent unable to get to car on her own and
seemed to sleep the entire trip home to Sylmar. Decedent
put to bed and checked on every 30 minutes or so by family.
When checked on at about 1600 hours she was found not
breathing so family called 911. Decedent taken to Olive
View Hospital where she was declared dead in the ER at
1701 hours.
In this story the young girl died after being sent home
from the hospital. The doctors failed to realize the actual
lasting effects of ecstasy and thus were unable to help this
girl. If our own doctors don't even know how to handle a
drug like ecstasy, just imagine the state of affairs our
youth are in. They need the correct knowledge in order to
make the right decisions.
…, often the drug has other things added into it. Things like
rat poison, sedatives and other chemical combinations. While
it is the drug ecstasy itself that does the most damage,
nowadays kids don't know what they are taking.
About 8% of high school seniors surveyed had tried
Ecstasy at least once in their lives.
About 5.5% of 19-22 year-olds surveyed had used
Ecstasy in the previous year.
Ecstasy-related emergency room
incidents increased nationwide
from 250 in 1994, to 637 in 1997,
to 1,142 in 1998, to 2,850 in 1999.
Links Human psychopharmacology of Ecstasy (MDMA): a review
of 15 years of empirical research
by Parrott AC. Department of Psychology, University of East
London, UK.
http://www.mdma.net/toxicity/damage.html
Abstinent regular Ecstasy users often display reduced levels of 5-HT, 5HIAA, tryptophan hydroxylase and serotonin transporter density;
functional deficits in learning/memory, higher cognitive processing, sleep,
appetite and psychiatric well-being, and, most paradoxically, 'loss of sexual
interest/pleasure'. These psychobiological deficits are greatest in heavy
Ecstasy users and may reflect serotonergic axonal loss in the higher brain
regions, especially the frontal lobes, temporal lobes and hippocampus. These
problems seem to remain long after the recreational use of Ecstasy has
ceased, suggesting that the neuropharmacological damage may be
permament.
Ecstasy Effects
http://www.ecstasy-effects.com/
Ecstasy, a street name given for the chemical MDMA, is a
synthetic, psychoactive , neurotoxic drug with many
negative effects. Ecstasy has similar structure to
stimulants, like cocaine, and hallucinogenics like LSD.
…Here are a few [negative effects] that may come as
quickly as the first dose and increase with continued
usage.
Confusion
Sleep problems
Anxiety
Teeth clenching
Blurred vision
Acne like rash
Brain damage
Depression
Addiction
Paranoia
Nausea
Chills and sweating
Liver damage
Aggression
In addition to these consequences, impaired
memory and long term reduction of serotonin
and dopamine can disrupt normal brain
activity in the ecstasy user and cause learning
disorders and emotional problems.. Erratic
mood swings and depression can lead to
isolation from friends and family that do not
use. Often decreased performance on the job or
in school occurs from ecstasy abuse and
financial problems increase as well.
The above brain scans show the amount of serotonin activity over a 40-minute
period in a non ECSTASY user. Note the white color within the brain scans,
indicative of serotonin activity.
Consider the following scan of ECSTASY users.
The above is are brain scans of an ECSTASY user. Dark areas in the
MDMA (ECSTASY) user's brain show damage due to chronic MDMA use.
Note how little serotonin activity there is compared to the non
user
Non User
User
Low levels of serotonin have been associated
with several disorders, notably clinical
depression, bipolar disorder, and anxiety
disorders.
In short, psychiatric disorders
Leah Betts (November 11, 1977 - November 16,
1995) was a schoolgirl from Latchingdon in Essex,
England. She is notable for the extensive media
coverage that followed her death several days after her
18th birthday, on November 11, during which she took
an Ecstasy tablet, then collapsed four hours later into a
coma, from which she did not recover.
Cathy Isford was on the verge of realizing her
dreams. About to graduate from high school, serving
as a teacher's aide to help achieve her goal of a career
in teaching, and caught up in the excitement of
planning her wedding.
She and her fiancée had given up raves and party drugs
because one night, when they left a rave party they noticed
a line of ambulances outside, waiting to rush drug victims
to medical attention. For two years, she stayed away from
anything unhealthy. But then, as her senior prom
approached, against the wishes of her fiancée and friends,
she decided to take Ecstasy one more time for prom.
She was one of 38 prom-goers that night to take Ecstasy. The other 37 woke up
the next morning to celebrate a new day. Not Cathy. Her desire to make her
prom special by taking designer drugs sunk her into a coma four hours after
she took the drug. She never regained consciousness. With her family, fiancé
and friends at her side, she fought to survive, but by the second day she was
declared brain dead, and there was nothing anyone could do but mourn.
She was buried in her prom dress.
Ketamine (Special K, or K)
http://www.voiceofthevictims.com/druginformation.htm
Ketamine (K, Special K, Vitamin K) was developed
in the 1960s. It is used as an animal tranquilizer by
veterinarians and as anesthetic by physicians. In the
late 1970s, Ketamine emerged as a recreational
drug. Today, it has resurfaced on the rave scene and
is popular with both teens and young adults. It is a
strong hallucinogenic drug that impairs perceptions,
increases feelings of euphoria and distorts users'
sense of time and place.
http://www.dancesafe.org/documents/druginfo/ketamine.php
Ketamine belongs to a class of drugs called
"dissociative anaesthetics," which separate perception
from sensation. Other drugs in this category include
PCP, and DXM.
Ketamine usually comes as a liquid in small
pharmaceutical bottles, and is most often
cooked into a white powder for snorting.
WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS?
At lower doses it has a mild, dreamy feeling similar to nitrous
oxide (laughing gas). Users report feeling floaty and slightly
outside their body. Numbness in the extremities is also common.
Higher doses produce a hallucinogenic (trippy) effect, and may
cause the user to feel very far away from their body. This
experience is often referred to as entering a "K-hole" and has
been compared to a near death experience with sensations of
rising above one's body.
While in a K-hole it is very difficult to move. People usually
remain seated or lying down during the experience.
http://www.voiceofthevictims.com/aboutketamine.htm
Along with GHB,
Ketamine has
long been a drug
of choice for
rapists. It
dissolves in any
liquid and can be
slipped into an
unsuspecting
victim's drink,
after which he or
she could be
unconscious for
hours.
http://leda.lycaeum.org/?ID=9299
Brain Damage
Dissociatives definitely cause brain damage if used heavily.
One sub-anaesthetic "line dose" of ketamine is probably at
least as damaging to your brain as a few day "bender" on hard
liquor, and possibly more so because it affects specific areas
of the brain.
The risk of brain damage is worse the longer you stay high at
any given time; constant moderate-dose use is probably just as
damaging as a brief, high-dose use.
Reaching the anaesthetic level is exceedingly hard on your
brain.
In addition to brain damage, these drugs can also trigger
psychosis, limbic seizures, temporal lability, depression, and
other neurological and psychological diseases much more
frequently than other types of drugs.
People who have used dissociatives heavily have shown
clear evidence of brain damage.
… one cannot ignore the fact that most everyone who
uses dissociatives both frequently and heavily ends up
with some sort of neurological or psychological
problem, ranging from impaired memory to a
schizophrenia-like syndrome. Many of the impairments
correspond exactly to the areas of the brain damaged in
lab animals.
Ketamine can cause extreme physical and mental
problems including delirium and amnesia.
It can have irreversible effects on the human motor system,
impairing a person's ability to walk and perform simple
tasks.
http://www.cathysprom.com/designer_drugs.htm
Taking Ketamine just one time can cause fatal respiratory problems
and severe brain damage. Erin Rose's heart stopped for 18 minutes,
leaving her with the mental capacity of a young child, impaired
speech and damaged motor skills. Through months of
rehabilitation, she is finally able to walk and talk again.
Ketamine can be mixed with other street drugs,
intensifying the dangerous nature of its
effects. Ketamine, which comes in a powder form, can
be sprinkled on tobacco or marijuana or mixed with
other powerful drugs like LSD or speed
(Methamphetamines).
DXM
Dextromethorphan (DXM) is a hallucinogen most closely associated with ketamine and
PCP. Unlike any other hallucinogen, DXM has different levels of effects, known as
“plateaus” with different effects that range from the “drunk” and “stoned” feeling of the
first plateau to complete body/mind disillusion and hallucination of the fourth plateau.
The risks of injury or death from DXM raise with the levels of usage, making DXM a
very dangerous drug.
The risks
Nausea, itchy skin, hallucinations, disorientation, and loss of
motor skills are the primary risks from DXM
Even with a small dose, DXM impairs a user’s motor skills, at
higher doses it causes the user to be completely immobile, making
it a popular choice with rapists.
Like ecstasy, DXM impairs the body’s ability to
control its temperature, DXM use can result in
heatstroke, this risk is greatly increased when
mixed with ecstasy.
Permanent serious brain damage can occur from DXM
including: impaired memory, control of your behavior,
learning, visual perception, and multi-sensory thinking as
well as other permanent damage including: psychosis,
limbic seizures, temporal lability and depression.
DXM can result in coma or death.
Crystal Meth
Methamphetamine (crystal meth) is a psychostimulant drug
used primarily for recreational purposes. It causes euphoria and
excitement by acting directly on the brain's reward
mechanisms, thus making it highly addictive.
Methamphetamine rapidly enters the brain and causes a
cascading release of norepinephrine and dopamine (and to a
lesser extent, serotonin). Users may become obsessed or
perform repetitive tasks such as cleaning, hand-washing or
assembling and disassembling objects. Withdrawal is
characterized by increased sleeping and eating, and depressionlike symptoms, often accompanied by anxiety and drugcraving.
The Faces of Meth
Marijuana
http://www.marijuanaaddiction.info/effects-of-marijuana.htm
Effects of Marijuana on the Brain:
Researchers have found that THC changes the way in which sensory
information gets into and is acted on by the hippocampus. This is a
component of the brain's limbic system that is crucial for learning, memory,
and the integration of sensory experiences with emotions and motivations.
Investigations have shown that neurons in the information processing system
of the hippocampus and the activity of the nerve fibers are suppressed by
THC. In addition, researchers have discovered that learned behaviors,
which depend on the hippocampus, also deteriorate.
Recent research findings also indicate that long-term use of marijuana
produces changes in the brain similar to those seen after long-term use of
other major drugs of abuse.
The Psychological Effects of Marijuana
•Erodes logical thinking.
•Hallucination
•Loss of Ambition
•Personality Arrest
Let’s consider each one individually.
Erodes logical thinking.
•All XYT is M
•WX is M
•Therefore, WX is XYT
•All Chickens are born from eggs.
•All Turkeys are born from eggs.
•Therefore, all Turkeys are Chickens.
Invalid reasoning. Bad logic.
Hallucination
Auditory hallucinations can range from primitive noises such
as bangs, whistles, claps, screams, ticks, and others to speech
and music. Commonly people who have auditory hallucinations
hear voices which utter short comprehensible phrases.
Sometimes the person may recognize the voice as one of a
family member or deceased friend and sometimes it may be the
voice of a stranger or even God. The voices or sounds can be
thought to originate from anywhere. The walls, the ground, trees,
a shoe are all possible origins of hallucinatory sounds.
Loss of Ambition
One becomes
disenchanted with life.
Bored easily. Would
rather sit around and get
high. Loss of desire to
achieve.
Personality Arrest
Otherwise known as “emotional retardation”.
One remains the psychological age at which one
started to use.
43 year old user is 15 years old emotionally and
psychologically.
As non users develop emotionally
The user suffers
arrested emotional
development