If you do attend rehab, continuing treatment afterward (aftercare) is important to help you avoid relapse. At the same time, you might develop what’s called sensitization to the drug. That means it takes less of it to cause negative effects like anxiety and convulsions. If you keep using cocaine, your brain’s circuits become more sensitive. This can lead to a negative mood when you don’t take the drug.
But we need much more research into whether the vaccine is safe and effective over the long term. Counseling and other types of therapy are the most common treatments for cocaine use disorder. Sessions with a trained therapist can help you make changes to your behaviors and thought processes. You may need to stay in a rehabilitation center (also known as rehab) for intensive therapy and support.
Other Harmful Effects of Cocaine
For example, cocaine acts by binding to the dopamine transporter, blocking the removal of dopamine from the synapse. Dopamine then accumulates in the synapse to produce an amplified signal to the receiving neurons. This is what causes the euphoria commonly experienced immediately after taking the drug.
What are the effects of cocaine?
In 1903, this ingredient was removed, but the drink still has coca flavoring. The symptoms usually begin about 6-12 hours after your last use. You may develop depression, unpredictable mood changes, paranoia, or even violent behaviors toward yourself and others. You could have hallucinations, meaning you see or hear things that aren’t there. These behaviors can be scary for you and your loved ones. These unpleasant effects often make you want to use the drug again.
Can cocaine cause death after one use?
Long-term side effects may include serious and potentially life-threatening medical issues like heart failure, stroke or infections. Tolerance develops as a result of the body adapting to repeated substance use over addiction recovery group activities time, to the point where a person needs increasing doses to feel the same desirable effects. Tolerance builds as the body becomes so used to a substance that it no longer responds to it the way it initially did, and, as a result, the desired effects become blunted.
How quickly an addiction develops may also depend on the form of the drug. Crack foods that contain alcohol cocaine, processed from cocaine hydrochloride, may cause addiction within 2–3 weeks of using. In some cases, addiction may develop after the first use. After taking cocaine, people may experience its effects immediately. Cocaine can affect judgment, which can result in high risk or dangerous behaviors.
Using cocaine may change how people’s brains work and increase their risk for many serious medical issues. Finding the do alcoholics get red noses next high may seem like the most important thing in their lives. But the impact of cocaine use can last for months, years or a lifetime.
Physical Signs
Some research has suggested that cocaine damages the way immune cells work in your body, which could make HIV worse. Use of cocaine is less common in the U.S. than misuse of prescription painkillers (reported by 2.4 million people in the 2021 survey), or use of hallucinogenic drugs (2.2 million). A cocaine binge is when someone uses cocaine repeatedly in higher and higher doses. People may take the drug until they run out or become exhausted. For example, large doses of cocaine may cause unpredictable or violent behavior. Cocaine may increase the speed some people can do straightforward physical or mental tasks, while others may experience the opposite.
- NIDA also notes that a cocaine overdose can be intentional or unintentional, and can occur even on the first occasion of use, or at any time thereafter.
- You could have hallucinations, meaning you see or hear things that aren’t there.
- Cocaine is a central nervous system stimulant that temporarily increases dopamine in the brain.
- This article lists the physical, behavioral, and psychological signs of cocaine use and the symptoms of cocaine intoxication.
- However, cocaine and its derivative, crack cocaine, are widely used as illegal recreational drugs.
- Your chances of getting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, are higher if you use cocaine.
It may be fatal if people overdose or mix the drug with other substances. People with cocaine use disorder may benefit from community-based programs. Researchers are evaluating drug treatments that help people stop using cocaine. The most important part of any treatment plan is to give up the drug right away. Many people who are addicted to cocaine go through a phase called withdrawal when they first do this. Withdrawal can be difficult, so it may be best to do it with the help of a medical professional.
Cocaine is an addictive substance that triggers the brain to release a chemical called dopamine, which produces a euphoric high. This high can be addictive, causing people to consume more and more of the substance. Another reason cocaine can lead to substance use disorder is that each time you use it, your body builds a tolerance. That means you have to use more and more of the drug to get high.
Cocaine Overdose Symptoms
If you or someone you know has problems with cocaine use, seek help from a doctor or mental health professional. Long-term side effects of cocaine can be wide-ranging and harmful, impacting physical and mental health in a variety of ways. Specific routes of cocaine administration can produce their own adverse effects. They also may experience allergic reactions, either to the drug itself or to additives in cocaine, which in severe cases can result in death. Cocaine is an addictive stimulant drug that can change lives and be life-threatening.
LGBTQ adults are also more than twice as likely to have a substance use disorder. If people have concerns about cocaine use in themselves or others, they can contact a healthcare professional, substance use disorder helpline, or support group. Review authors suggest that genetics is a significant risk factor for addiction in every major class of addictive drugs and is one of the main risk factors for cocaine addiction. Clearly, the long-term risks of cocaine use far outweigh the immediate benefit of the short-term high. If you’re ready to regain your health and create a better outlook for your future, we can help you. If you or a loved one has a substance use disorder, help is available.
We strive to create content that is clear, concise, and easy to understand. The effects generally last between 15 and 30 minutes, but shorter with crack. Crack is the street name for a type of cocaine that has had the hydrochloride removed, making it possible to smoke. When Coca-Cola was first produced, it contained 9 milligrams of cocaine per glass.
