Cocaine Use Increasing
Cocaine use is on the increase apparently – nearly 350 000 people use cocaine every month in the UK alone. This is due to a number of factors – reduced cost, increased supply and a certain tolerance in society towards drug use, especially cocaine with its ‘celebrity’ status.
Unfortunately of course, with increased cocaine use generally there comes an increase in the number of people becoming addicted, especially to crack. Health and support services are doing their best to respond to this, but there are as yet no commonly used pharmaceutical substitutes to aid withdrawal (unlike heroin, which has a whole range).
Having said that, research suggests that a new anti-epilepsy drug (Vigabatrin) has shown effectiveness in blocking cocaine cravings.
Contrary to popular opinion, cocaine is also far more damaging than heroin. The range of physical complications is huge – from gastrointestinal perforation (ouch) or haemorrhage to heart attacks, lung damage (especially from smoking crack) or respiratory failure, strokes and seizures. It’s not a pretty picture. BBC NEWS – Cocaine stomach problem warning.
Then there’s the psychological side-effects like paranoia, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, auditory hallucinations, sleep disturbance, sexual dysfunction and irritability or aggression.
On top of the problems associated with cocaine on its own, whilst high users will also tend to smoke and drink alcohol far more than they would normally. The combination of cocaine and alcohol produces Cocaethylene, which causes more cardiovascular damage than either drug alone. Alcohol also increases the toxicity of cocaine on the liver.
Recovery from cocaine addiction is no easy task, due mainly to the enduring physiological nature of cravings. However, natural herbal supplements have been found to reduce such cravings.
Cognitive behavioural therapy or counselling is also particularly effective in breaking those associations which produce cravings and hence relapse. So don’t give up hope if you are already using too much cocaine, dramatic changes are not impossible, but they do take some hard work.
