Cocaine Addiction
Alyson Jones
Department of Psychology, Liberty University Online
Psyc 305: Overview of Theory & Treatment of Substance Abuse
Professor Robert Clark
April 26, 2021
What is Cocaine?
It is believed by some biologists that cocaine is a member of the plant species
Erythroclon Coca. The plant produces a toxin to protect itself and a long time ago early settlers
ate the leaves of the plant because it caused them to be able to stay awake and work for long
periods of time. In 1855 a scientist named Albert Neiman discovered and isolated a compound
from the leaf that he named cocaine. Some scientists still aren’t positive if chewing the cocaine
leaves causes addiction to cocaine though (Doweiko, 2018).
In the 1980’s cocaine use became increasingly popular as people started to discover the
effects it had on the brain, like inducing euphoria. In the 1960’s drug users were warning each
other about the dangers of amphetamines as that was the drug of choice. This possibly led to the
spike in cocaine use in the 1980’s since cocaine gave users the same euphoric feeling that
amphetamines did, but with less danger.
Cocaine Abuse
According to a study done in 2020 there are 3000 people each day who start using
cocaine in the powder form (Chandra, 2020). The use of cocaine manipulates the dopaminergic
motive system, which is the system that deals with motivation, which also includes the
hypothalamus. When someone is using cocaine, it creates a feeling of euphoria and releases
dopamine into the brain, creating a “feel-good” vibe. This causes the user to want to feel that
more often, so they continue to use the drug, which in turn leads to a drug craving later on
(Zhang, 2018).
There are several ways in which cocaine is abused. It can be inhaled through the nose,
which is done by arranging the powder onto a glass surface and dicing it up with a razor blade
into short thin lines and then inhaled through a paper tube. This method of abuse allows the user
to feel the first effects within 30-90 seconds. Peak intensity of the drug happens about 15-30
minutes after inhalation and the effects last for about 60 minutes. This method is usually only
seen in casual or inexperienced users as it is not a highly effective way to ingest the drug
(Doweiko, 2018).
Another way that it can be abused is by injection since cocaine powder is water soluble.
When cocaine is administered via injection to the veins, it takes less than 30 seconds for the drug
to reach the brain. Even though this method allows for the user to feel the effects quickly, it
doesn’t last as long (Doweiko, 2018).
One other way cocaine can be used is my smoking it. The form of cocaine you smoke isa
solid form called the cocaine base, or crack. It has been called crack because of the sound that it
makes when it is smoked (Doweiko, 2018).
Depending on how the drug is administered the reactions are different. If it is
administered in lower blod levels, such as under the tongue, there is no “rush”. This would mean
that the effects are an increased libido, increased energy, and slight arousal. In higher blood
levels, such as through injection, users feel a “rush”. The “rush” is an intense feeling of euphoria
that happens almost immediately after use. After a few seconds the “rush” fades to feelings of
excitement and lasts for about 20 minutes (Doweiko, 2018).
Side Effects of Cocaine Abuse
The main side effect of cocaine abuse is death. About 40-50% of al deaths related to illicit
drug use is related to cocaine abuse. Death can occur so quickly with cocaine use that they
cannot even be taken to the hospital.
Another side effect of cocaine abuse is addiction. Cocaine addiction happens fairly
quickly in comparison to other drugs like alcohol. However, not very many people are actually
addicted to cocaine. Only about 6% of people who use cocaine become addicted to it within the
first year of use.
Cocaine use also causes respiratory problems when the cocaine is smoked. Smoking
cocaine can lead to wheezing sounds while breathing, chest pain, and also pneumonia. It is also
believed that the damage done to the lungs when smoking crack is permanent. People who inhale
cocaine also can experience damage to their respiratory system including sore throats and nose
bleeds.
Cocaine abuse and addiction also takes a toll on the users emotional state. They can feel
states of depression and anxiety. Most of the time they experience anxiety and then in turn try to
calm their anxiety by using sedating agents like marijuana and alcohol. The depression usually
occurs when the user is experiencing withdrawal. Cocaine abusers are also at a higher risk of
death from suicide. 10% of cocaine deaths are due to suicide and 20% of cocaine deaths are due
to homicide. There have also been times where when cocaine is used for long periods of time
people believe they have insects in their skin and will resort to cutting themselves or burning
themselves to get them out (Doweiko, 2018).
Conclusion
Knowing that cocaine comes from a plant that was just creating a way to protect itself, is
very interesting and crazy to think about. Now, that plant is a dangerous drug that gets abused
daily and causes people to overdose and die. Even though people know the dangers associated
with the drug it is still a widely used and abused drug, today.
References
Chandra, M., & Anthony, J. C. (2020). Cocaine dependence: “Side effects” and syndrome
formation within 1–12 months after first cocaine use. Drug and Alcohol Dependence,
206, 107717. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2019.107717
Doweiko, H. E. (2018). Concepts of Chemical Dependency (10th ed.). Cengage Learning.
Zhang, S., Zhornitsky, S., Angarita, G. A., & Li, C. S. R. (2018). Hypothalamic response to
cocaine cues and cocaine addiction severity. Addiction Biology, 25(1), e12682.
https://doi.org/10.1111/adb.12682
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