COCAINE

Cocaine is sold in powdered form.  For usage, it is generally put on a smooth surface, such as a mirror, and cut with a razor blade.  'Fluffing up' the powder provides a means of dividing out lines.  'Lines' of cocaine are measured out and each line is then sniffed into a nostril with the aid of a makeshift straw such as a dollar bill.  This process of 'snorting' is the most widely used method of consuming cocaine, even though it is sometimes injected directly into the system.

Effects

Consistent use of cocaine heavily drains financial resources and leads people into alternative, often illegal, means of obtaining money to support their habit.  Frequently, cocaine users also risk, literally, losing their nose.  Cocaine constricts blood vessels which dry up with repeated exposure.  This exposes the cartilage and nasal septum which eventually begins to dissolve.  If caught in time, surgery can repair the damage.  If not, the user risks the collapse of their nose.  Injecting cocaine can be fatal.  A little less than a gram of injected cocaine can send the body into convulsions.

Another danger of the drug is through free-basing.  Free-basing (smoking) of cocaine is done by separating the active drug from its salt base.  This is done by mixing cocaine with diethyl ether and sodium hydroxide.  The salt base dissolves leaving granules of pure cocaine.  These granules are then smoked in a pipe.  The vapors, when inhaled, go straight to the lungs and are absorbed immediately into the body, which produces a dramatic and intense high.  When cocaine is smoked  it can hit the brain in 8 seconds!  The high lasts for about ten minutes and then another hit must be taken to sustain the sensation.  This constant use in why free-basing is so highly addictive.

 

 

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