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Crystal Meth: A Dangerous High
by Juliet Eastland, 02.20.07
While the drug may temporarily increase libido, long-term use can reduce men's sexual functioning. |
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"Invincible, happy, powerful, funny, sexy."
"The bad feelings magically disappear."
"Wonderful."
These are Paula, Lauren, and Jared (names have been changed) describing getting high on crystal.
"Depressed, panicky."
"Immobile for days, crying in my room, sleep-deprived, paranoid."
"Suicidal, out of my mind."
These are Paula, Lauren, and Jared describing coming down off crystal.
What It Is
"Crystal" is a type of methamphetamine ("meth"), an extremely addictive stimulant. Researchers call methamphetamine use "one of the largest drug problems in the U.S.," with crystal use in particular increasing in both club scenes and rural areas. Crystal is smoked, snorted, injected, or swallowed, and is also known as "crank," "ice," or "glass" because of its resemblance to glass shards or blue-white rocks. It's easily manufactured using ingredients such as battery acid, antifreeze, drain cleaner, and pseudoephedrine or ephedrine-based cold medications. With withdrawal symptoms worse than cocaine's or heroin's, crystal is one of the hardest drugs to kick.
What It Does
Like all stimulants, crystal affects chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters, producing a powerful "rush" of euphoria and energy. This is followed by a pleasurable "high" that can last up to 12 hours. During this period, users can lose their inhibitions. People on methamphetamine are more likely to engage in high-risk sexual behavior, resulting in higher HIV rates for users. While the drug may temporarily increase libido, long-term use can reduce men's sexual functioning.
Coming down from a crystal high — "crashing" — is excruciating. Panic, depression, and anxiety are common. Users may stay awake for days, experiencing paranoia, aggression, and hallucinations. Repeated use dampens the brain's capacity for pleasure, meaning users must take more crystal to experience the same high. Ultimately, methamphetamine can damage brain cells and blood vessels, causing stroke, heart attack, or death.
Three Stories
Paula initially resisted crystal. But she had just graduated college, and was spending weekends partying with friends who snorted crystal for energy at clubs. Finally, she says, "peer pressure wore me down." Paula loved crystal's high, but crashing made her so agitated she had to take sleeping pills. It took five days to relax — just in time for the next fix. The cycle was exhausting. Desperate, Paula started substituting alcohol for crystal. She finally kicked drugs altogether with therapists' help. Nonetheless, she says, "I continued to crave crystal for years."
Lauren tried crystal after a miserable breakup. She loved the "euphoria," and was pleased at one of crystal's side effects: weight loss. But the more she snorted, the more "sickly and weird" she looked. She was also behaving unhealthily. "I definitely lost my inhibitions" on crystal, she says. "I was much more likely to have unsafe sex." Then came the crash, a "tailspin of depression that lasted even longer than the high." Even so, Lauren craved crystal "more and more and more." Fearing addiction, she entered therapy and withdrew from drug-using friends.
As someone who has "always had somewhat of an addictive personality," Jared was at particular risk. After he left his rural hometown for college in the Northeast, he was introduced to crystal by other gay men he met online looking to "PnP" ("party and play"). Soon he couldn't go six weeks without craving the drug. For two years, he endured a rollercoaster of 12-hour highs, followed by three-day comedowns. Once, Jared landed in the hospital because he was still experiencing sleeplessness, heart palpitations, and hallucinations three days after snorting crystal. "I thought I'd overdosed," he says. After another crash, he attempted suicide and spent a week in a psychiatric ward. Crystal, Jared says, intensified pre-existing mental-health issues and brought him to a "new level of self-destruction." Now 21, Jared's been drug-free for six months with the support of family and counseling.
Getting Help
If you or a friend are using drugs, you're not alone. There are places that can help. Paula, Laura, and Jared kicked their crystal use. You can, too.
Or better yet, don't start. |
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