Heroin

Drug addiction is a state of periodic or chronic intoxication produced by the repeated consumption of a drug (natural or synthetic). Its characteristics include: an overpowering desire or need (compulsion) to continue taking the drug and to obtain it by any means; a tendency to increase the dose; a psychic (psychological) and generally a physical dependence on the effects of the drug; and detrimental effects on the individual and on society. Heroin as well as some other drugs are of the most well known types of drugs.

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Heroin is a semi-synthetic opiate derived from morphine. Intravenously-injected heroin causes a rush of powerful euphoria lasting a few minutes, followed by sedation lasting a few hours. When injected intramuscular or insufflated, there is a slower onset and a less intense peak of effects.


Heroin is primarily produced in Colombia, Mexico, Southeast Asia , and Afghanistan. Depending on how it is processed, it ranges from a thick sticky "black tar" to a brown, tan, or white powder. Street material varies greatly in potency from as high as 95% purity to as low as 5 or 10% purity. Heroin is most commonly injected (intravenously, intramuscularly, or subcutaneously), smoked, or insufflated (snorted).
The effects of heroin vary greatly depending on the quality of material, route of administration, the person, and the dose.

 Possible effects may include feelings of euphoria and well-being, relaxation, sedation, and analgesia. Negative effects may include nausea or vomiting , constipation, dizziness, and blackout.

Heroin use can cause death by respiratory failure. Several factors can increase the risk of overdose, including the strong tolerance effects that develop with repeated use. Tolerance effects wear off over time, and users who take a break may find that a previously-safe dose is now dangerously large. The purity of street heroin is also highly variable (and may have risen in recent years) and users often do not know how much heroin they are taking.Street heroin is frequently impure, and some adulterants are dangerous. Several hundred heroin users died in 2006 in the U.S. after unwittingly taking heroin cut with fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opiate.


Repeatedly snorting heroin can cause severe damage to the nose, especially with long term exposure. Smoking heroin can cause breathing difficulties. All methods of using heroin have resulted in deaths from depressed breathing and general autonomic suppression from overdoses.

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/heroin/heroin_basics.shtml

Cocaine

Cocaine is a naturally derived CNS (central nervous system) stimulant extracted and refined from the Coca plant grown primarily in the Andean region of South America. Cocaine is typically a white-ish powder with a bitter, numbing taste. It is most often insufflated (snorted), though it can also be injected and used orally.

While powder cocaine can be smoked to some effect (despite common belief otherwise), it is a very inefficient method of ingestion. Because of the high temperatures present when smoking, powder cocaine tends to burn rather than vaporizing. For this reason, freebase cocaine, also known as crack in its street form, is created from powder cocaine for smoking. Freebase cocaine vaporizes at smoking temperatures providing more effect with less material, as well as faster onset and a more intense high than powder cocaine.

As with many substances, the effects of cocaine depend greatly on the person and the dose. Possible effects include feelings of well-being, decreased appetite, stimulation, sexual arousal, and increased focus. Negative effects can include increased body temperature and heart rate, agitation and anxiety, paranoia, dizziness, nausea/vomiting, violent behavior, kidney failure, seizure, stroke, and heart attack.

Street cocaine is quite often impure. The more direct the route of administration, the more dangerous this can be. Injecting impure cocaine can be deadly. Repeated snorting can cause severe damage to the nose. Smoking of freebase cocaine can cause breathing difficulties.

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/cocaine/cocaine_basics.shtml

Cannabis

Cannabis is a leafy plant which grows wild in many of the tropic and temperate areas of the world. It is cultivated both indoors and out for the production of its flowering tops. The most commonly used form of cannabis are the leaves and flowering tops (buds) which may be either smoked or eaten; It also comes in a more concentrated resinous form called hashish, and as a sticky black liquid called hash oil. There are three distinct species of cannabis: Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis.

The primary effects sought by those using cannabis recreationally are euphoria, relaxation, and changes in perception. Effects vary depending on dosage, with effects at low doses including a sense of well-being, mild enhancement of senses (smell, taste, hearing), subtle changes in thought and expression, talkativeness, giggling, increased appreciation of music, increased appetite, and mild closed-eye visuals. At higher doses, visuals may become more prominent, sense of time is altered, attention span and memory are frequently affected, and thought processes and mental perception may be significantly altered.

Negative effects can include paranoia, dry mouth, respiratory problems and nervousness/racing heart. Other effects may be negative or inconvenient in certain settings or situations including reduced ability to concentrate, impaired memory, tiredness, and confusion. Side effects tend to increase with lifetime use: as users age, they often report the anxiety-producing and uncomfortable effects increase and the euphoria decreases.

http://www.erowid.org/plants/cannabis/cannabis_basics.shtml

Psilocybin Mushroom

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There are dozens of species of psilocybin or 'magic mushrooms' belonging primarily to the genuses psilocybe, panaeolus, and copelandia. The effects of their ingestion resemble a shorter acting LSD (type of drug) trip, producing significant physical, visual, and perceptual changes.

Nearly all of the psilocybin containing mushrooms are small brown or tan mushrooms easily mistakable for any number of non-psychoactive, inedible, or poisonous mushrooms in the wild. This makes them somewhat difficult, and potentially hazardous, to identify. The primary distinguishable feature of most psilocybin containing mushrooms is that they bruise blue when handled.

In the beginning stages of onset, Mushrooms are likely to cause a sort of undefineable feeling similar to anticipation or anxiety. There may be a feeling of energy in the body, and the sense that things are different than usual. As the effects intensify, a wide variety of perceptual changes may occur; pupil dilation, visuals, mental stimulation, new perspectives, feelings of insight, quickly changing emotions (lots of laughter), possible paranoia and confusion. More advanced users may seek spiritual awareness or a sense of universal understanding through their use of mushrooms. Closed-eye visuals are extremely common with psilocybin mushrooms. Open-eye visuals are common for some people and are more likely at higher doses.

Many people experience nausea or vomiting during mushroom experiences, epecially with higher doses. Other possible negative effects include anxiety and unwanted or frightening thoughts and visions. Mushrooms, though perhaps to a lesser degree than LSD, can precipitate strong, temporary changes in an individual's experience of life and reality. It can be a powerful psychoactive experience, especially at higher doses, which is significantly affected by experiences, set and setting.  It is important to be prepared for the possibility of encountering difficult or frightening mental states.

http://www.erowid.org/plants/mushrooms/mushrooms_basics.shtml

Speed:Methamphetamine

Methamphetamine is a stimulant chemical commonly used as a recreational drug. It is legally prescribed as a treatment for ADD under the brand name Desoxyn, for both children and adults. On the street, it is generally found as an odorless, white or off-white, bitter-tasting powder, though it is also found in pills, capsules and larger crystals. It is frequently snorted, but is also used orally, smoked, and injected.

Methamphetamine production is a relatively simple process, especially when compared to many other recreational drugs. It is frequently reported on in the media when home meth-producing labs are busted.

It's use generally increases the heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and rate of breathing of the user. Chronic use can lead to what is called 'Amphetamine Psychosis', resulting in paranoia, auditory and visual hallucinations, self-absorption, irritability, aggressive and erratic behavior, and picking at the skin. This can be magnified by lack of sleep which often accompanies heavy use of meth.


Methamphetamine is an anorexant, meaning it causes most people to lose interest in food. This is considered a benefit for many light users, but in regular or heavy users can lead to malnutrition. Methamphetamine is also believed to be neurotoxic.

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/meth/meth_basics.shtml