Methamphetamine Harm Reduction
From the Freenet site: Methamphetamine Harm Reduction
A freesite for information and harm reduction strategies for Methamphetamine users.
Route of Administration (ROA)
Listed from least harmful to most harmful.
METHOD: Wrap the dose in a small amount of tissue paper and take with water.
The longer (days) someone uses Methamphetamine, the higher the likelihood that they will progress to more harmful ROAs.
Not as effective unless taken on an empty stomach.
Results in a pleasant and long-lasting high with good body effects.
Onset is slow. Hours can pass before wanting to take another dose.
Bioavailability is less than other methods so increase the dose a little.
Potentiating: Baking soda in water reduces stomach Ph and increases digestibility. (Good)
Potentiating: Zinc (NOT RECOMMENDED, uncomfortable)
METHOD: Crush a dose into powder and mix with Saline solution. Insert an oral syringe into the anus and release. Do not insert dry.
TIPS/NOTES: Rectal drug administrations have fast onset and high bioavailability.
Methamphetamine is corrosive to body tissues. Repeated doses may cause tissue damage.
The authors have no experience with this method.
METHOD: Cover the drug with something like currency or heavy paper. Press a card down flat on top of it and scrape over the covering to crush it. Once satisfied with the sound, remove the covering and complete by chopping into a fine powder.
No drug loss from flying fragments, less evidence of use in the area.
DRAWBACKS: This ROA is addictive and hazardous long-term.
Enough usage will cause inflammation, tissue damage, and halted mucous production (very painful).
Can cause âPerforated Septumâ or, a hole in the nose.
Insufflating Methamphetamine is painful.
Use the plugging method nasally to reduce irritation and dryness.
Keep Saline spray available.
Manually clean your nasal passages to reduce tissue damage.
Use nasal irrigation to flush Sinuses. Use a 50/50 mix of pure Sea Salt and Baking Soda. A proper amount will be comfortable, too much or too little will cause some burning. Works better than sprays.
Nasal decongestants create dependency after about 72 hours of use and can cause congestion. Use sparingly.
Steroid allergy mists can reduce inflammation. Packaging for these products recommends only short-term use. Steroid therapy may be harmful long-term.
Crush into fine powder. Avoid chunks.
Use this ROA sparingly, see other methods above.
Participants should each use their own tube to reduce infection risk.
Somewhat long-term to medium-term high, less than oral administration.
METHOD: Takes practice to learn.
Turn the pipe while smoking, this helps heat the drug evenly and conserve.
Simmer, do not boil. Keep the color clear, too much heat makes it darker.
Learn from an experienced smoker.
DRAWBACKS: Highly addictive ROA. Causes habitual and frequent dosing.
You will not realize how high you are getting. Some users get Amphetamine psychosis.
Pipes can be hard to clean. Broken pipes create additional evidence. Purchasing pipes will affect your reputation and also informs strangers of your drug use. Most pipes are poor quality.
Uses supplies very quickly.
See methods above for alternatives.
Methamphetamine residue will collect in your mouth and on your teeth. Clean your mouth.
Avoid this ROA. Famous Methamphetamine chemist Uncle Fester writes that if insufflation is not enough and a user must smoke Methamphetamine then they need to quit.
Try to coat the pipe evenly when preparing a dose. Carefully heat it up enough to begin melting it, then turn the pipe around while it cools.
Some batches will have impurities that show up as black speckles when smoked. Toxic. Choose another ROA until you get a cleaner batch.
Highly bioavailable method of administration
This section is not specific to Methamphetamine, but to needle use in general.
METHOD: The substance, in powdered form, is measured and and dissolved in an aqueous solution such as water and then drawn into a syringe. The injection site will be identified and is typically somewhere in the arms, hands, legs, and feet. A tourniquet, such as a belt or a strap, is often wrapped around the limb between the torso and injection site to restrict blood flow and make the vein larger. The hypodermic needle is inserted and its placement tested by drawing blood into the syringe. The tourniquet is loosened, and the injection is performed. Air entering the bloodstream can be fatal and it is good practice to force air bubbles out of the syringe by flicking the syringe and using the plunger to push any collected air out of the needle.
Intramuscular injection is an alternate method of administration. It may not be suitable for Methamphetamine, but is a notable ROA. The risks and method are different for this type of injection, and it is notably painful.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intravenous_therapy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intramuscular_injection
NOTE: The amount and quality of the drug, the amount of its dilution, and the rate of administration are all crucial for a needle user to get a dose that is greater than threshold and less than an overdose. Users also need sterile, functional needles and must be able to administer their dose safely while minimizing harm. They will also need to be able to care for and revive victims of overdose. Drug users, especially those in poverty, can experience a variety of serious problems but intravenous drug users are at particular risk.
Syringes are designed to be disposable. They are immediately contaminated and fail quickly, but users will be forced to reuse them as much as possible. Dull needle points are more difficult to insert into the injection site, more easily creating track marks and increasing likelihood of tissue damage.
Veins will become unsuitable if overused for injections. In time sites will be difficult to find and hard to reach. Vein inflammation (Phlebitis) can occur because of infection or the presence of drug solutions and/or needles. Long-term, frequent use of this ROA will build painful scar tissue and make injections difficult. âTrack marksâ will become less visible with time if needles are no longer used, but they donât heal completely.
Syringes are hard to acquire. In most locations, sales are routinely denied to suspicious customers and are likely to be reported. Some locations are safe and provide clean syringes to users, but they are monitored by law enforcement.
Intravenous administrations provide a direct route for impurities and pathogens to poison and infect a user and should be avoided. Likelihood of severe health problems are extremely high, and they can be irreversible and/or fatal. Moisture introduced to injection sites while washing greatly increases the risk of infection.
Extreme public disdain for the practice. Users are demonized and marginalized.
Law enforcement and health services will quickly become aware of users. The likelihood of interaction with these officials is high to near-certain, depending on the length and frequency of use.
Personal behavior and community opinion may force needle users into association with only other people with the same habit. Depending on the situation, it may progress to also include health officials, rehabilitation industry, and law enforcement.
See the methods above for alternatives.
Reports of burning discomfort on injection, especially if the injection site is missed.
The condition meth mouth is generally most severe in users who inject the drug, rather than swallow, smoke, or inhale it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methamphetamine
Bioavailability is 100% for intravenous injections.
Onset is about 15-30 seconds after administration.
Many problems Methamphetamine users have are caused by malnutrition and poor self-care. These problems will not go away. It is your responsibility to address them as they arise, or else things will get worse. Methamphetamine creates so much pleasure for users that they are unaware of the damage they are doing to themselves. Once it wears off, users will start again to notice the pains, stresses, and problems created by their self-neglect. Avoiding this awareness is a common reason to get more drugs.
If you spend a lot of time being suspicious of traffic, looking out the window, etc., you need to take some time off. Eat some food, get some rest, unwind. Unfortunately, some people get into that state of mind very easily. This is related to Amphetamine Psychosis. It might be time for you to find a new drug if it happens to you.
Drink water and fluids that contain electrolytes, like Gatorade. Methamphetamine users need Gatorade for the same reason athletes do.
Avoid sugary drinks and, in some cases, Alcohol. Sugary drinks are bad for oral health. While mixing Alcohol with methamphetamine is not as risky, drinking with some other types of amphetamines can make the heart work so hard that it kills you.
Obviously, you will not be eating much. Even when you do eat, you will likely favor poor quality food. At the least, try to eat properly when you are not using.
Methamphetamine (and drugs in general) alters the bodyâs nutritional needs. That, combined with a diet that is low in quality and quantity, nutrient balances can be affected quite strongly. You need to learn how to have a proper diet and what vitamins and minerals you need. Calcium, vitamin C, vitamin D, and B vitamins are all important and can be found in food as well as supplements.
It has been suggested, based on animal research, that Calcitriol, the active metabolite of vitamin D, can provide significant protection against the DA- and 5-HT-depleting effects of neurotoxic doses of methamphetamine. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methamphetamine
Keep powdered protein supplements available. They are easy to consume even if you are not hungry.
Methamphetamine use slows food digestion.
Be aware of body odor. Keep your hair, crotch and anus, armpits, mouth, and feet clean.
Moisturize your body shortly after you bathe. This will help reduce itchy skin. Your skin will absorb lotions and oils easier if the skin has been wet recently.
Amphetamines are known to have been an instrumental factor in heart attacks.
Enjoy your high, but you have to take a little time for maintenance.
Stimulant users tend to fall into certain patterns of behavior over time. Think about your habitual behaviors and decide what fitness routines you could implement to offset the toll on your body. Strenuous exercise can raise heart rates dramatically, so perform them in your âoffâ time. You donât want to pop!
Find out about relaxation techniques and implement them.
MentalAmphetamine/Stimulant Psychosis
Psychotic behavior is extremely likely to result in interactions with the authorities. Be careful!
Drugs in the class of amphetamines, or substituted amphetamines, are known to induce âamphetamine psychosisâ typically when chronically abused or used in high doses. Common amphetamines include dextroamphetamine, cathinone, DOM, ephedrine, MDMA, methamphetamine, and methcathinone though a large number of such compounds have been synthesized. Methylphenidate (a cocaine analog) is sometimes incorrectly included in this class, although is nonetheless still capable of producing stimulant psychosis.
Stimulant psychosis, also known as stimulant-induced psychotic disorder, is a psychosis symptom which involves hallucinations, paranoia, and/or delusions and typically occurs following an overdose on psychostimulants. The most common causes are amphetamines, including cathinones, as well as certain dopamine reuptake inhibitors such as cocaine or methylphenidate.
The symptoms of stimulant psychosis vary depending on the drug ingested, but generally involve the symptoms of organic psychosis such as hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, and thought disorder. Other symptoms may include mania, erratic behavior, and aggression.
The symptoms of acute amphetamine psychosis are very similar to those of the acute phase of schizophrenia although in amphetamine psychosis visual hallucinations are more common and thought disorder is rare. Amphetamine psychosis may be purely related to high drug usage, or high drug usage may trigger an underlying vulnerability to schizophrenia. The disorders are often distinguished by a rapid resolution of symptoms in amphetamine psychosis, while schizophrenia is more likely to follow a chronic course.
Along with a clear consciousness and prominent extreme agitation, symptoms of amphetamine psychosis include:
auditory and visual hallucinations (Hearing and seeing things. Lack of sleep can cause minor visual distortions and/or noticing things that seem to be moving just outside oneâs field of vision. Simple hallucinations such as those do not indicate psychosis. However, things such as seeing and talking to people that are not visible to other people is a symptom of psychosis and cause for alarm.)
grandiosity (an individual thinking they are very special, different from others, and being unrealistic about their past or future achievements.)
delusions of persecution (The individual thinks that harm is occurring, or is going to occur. The individual thinks that the perceived persecutor has the intention to cause harm.)
delusions of reference (an individualâs experiencing insignificant events or mere coincidences and believing they have strong personal significance.)
Treatment consists of supportive care during the acute intoxication phase: maintaining hydration, body temperature, blood pressure, and heart rate at acceptable levels until the drug is sufficiently metabolized to allow vital signs to return to baseline. Typical and atypical antipsychotics have been shown to be helpful in the early stages of treatment. This is followed by abstinence from psychostimulants supported with counseling or medication designed to assist the individual preventing a relapse and the resumption of a psychotic state.
even at a small dose, the psychosis can be quickly reestablished.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stimulant_psychosis
Methamphetamine causes strong hormonal changes and will affect sexual behavior. The strong pleasure signals brought on are going to lower a userâs defenses to risky sexual behavior.
sometimes even orientation
Methamphetamine users and addicts may lose their teeth abnormally quickly, regardless of the route of administration, from a condition informally known as meth mouth. The condition is generally most severe in users who inject the drug, rather than swallow, smoke, or inhale it. According to the American Dental Association, meth mouth âis probably caused by a combination of drug-induced psychological and physiological changes resulting in xerostomia (dry mouth), extended periods of poor oral hygiene, frequent consumption of high-calorie, carbonated beverages and bruxism (teeth grinding and clenching)â. As dry mouth is also a common side effect of other stimulants, which are not known to contribute severe tooth decay, many researchers suggest that methamphetamine associated tooth decay is more due to usersâ other choices. They suggest the side effect has been exaggerated and stylized to create a stereotype of current users as a deterrence for new ones. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methamphetamine
Dentists may be required by law to report Methamphetamine users to law enforcement.
Users need to take meticulous care of their mouth with both hygiene and nutrition to prevent tooth decay, gum disease, and tooth loss.
Minimal care includes avoiding dry mouth. Your mouth needs saliva to stay healthy, decay potential increases without it.
Many toothpastes now include a synthetic material called nanohydroxyapatite. It will remineralize your teeth and is effective to prevent tooth decay. Start using it before you develop problems and use it often.
Find or buy Ramiel Nigel - Cure Tooth Decay.pdf if this key does not work.
If your gums get irritated and/or your mouth feels like garbage, try swishing some Sea Salt in warm/hot tap water a few times. Baking soda is optional, but it will help regulate your mouthâs Ph balance. People tend towards acidic Ph.
Dental guards are available for people who grind their teeth while sleeping.
Withdrawal and Ceasing Use
Letâs face it, people should not use Methamphetamine. However, this drug is a career for many people. Even people in their seventies might use it.
ABOUT: Withdrawal intensity varies with length of use (months, years) and amounts used. Effects can progress from needing sleep and boredom/apathy to mood swings and uncontrollable rage and panic. At high levels of addiction a user may need up to 5 days of continuous sleep, be prone to outbursts of screaming and violence, cry uncontrollably, and consider or commit suicide. If they are able to stay off Methamphetamine, they should stabilize at around two very difficult weeks.
TIPS/NOTES FOR HIGHLY ADDICTED USERS:
Sleeping may be difficult after around 72 hours. Find a sleep aid.
Have something for stress relief available. Be aware that almost nothing will work very well. It will only help a little.
If you detox by yourself, it is a good idea to avoid social contact. Emotional volatility will be extremely high.
Do not kill yourself when detoxing. Methamphetamine may have become the most important thing in your life. Give yourself time to recover.
Users might choose or be forced to go into rehabilitation. There are different levels of drug rehabilitation. Detox is treatment for the symptoms of withdrawal. Treatment programs are longer and encourage long-term sobriety by education and other means. You will not be able to leave easily. Treatment organizations are community groups that are available to the public, including anyone in treatment programs. Visits to treatment organizations may be forced or voluntary.
Treatment centers (ârehabâ) are overwhelmingly based on the 12 step program. Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous are examples of 12 step groups.
Treatment Organizations12 Step Groups
USE CAUTION 12 step groups are autonomous social groups who meet to admit past, current, and future behaviors and experiences. These groups encourage frequent meetups and demand it of voluntary, active members. Â They also have their roots in a controversial religious club known as the Oxford group. Some people like 12 step groups very much. They become long-term members and feel that they are part of a family. Others completely avoid being with involved with the 12 step groups and think of them as a cult. 12 step literature is available in many printed languages and available in bookstores, online, and at meetings. For a critical viewpoint of the 12 step groups, look for the âOrange Papersâ website, last known to exist at www.orange-papers.org or www.orange-papers.com. 12 step groups have a symbiotic relationship with the criminal justice system.
Al-Anon/Narc-Anon/Alateen
WARNING Al-Anon Family Groups are a âworldwide fellowship that offers a program of recovery for the families and friends of alcoholics, whether or not the alcoholic recognizes the existence of a drinking problem or seeks help.â They also are part of the Scientology organization. Scientologyâs recruiting efforts are strong in prisons.
âModeration Management is a secular non-profit organization providing peer-run non-coercive support groups for anyone who would like to reduce their alcohol consumption. MM was founded in 1994 to create an alternative to Alcoholics Anonymous and similar addiction recovery groups for non-dependent problem drinkers who do not necessarily want to stop drinking, but moderate their amount of alcohol consumed to reduce its detrimental consequences.â
There are other organizations, but you will have to find them yourself. Many of them have been formed as alternatives to Alcoholics Anonymous. One is even done by mail, rather than meetings. Even if you do not choose to adopt a program of treatment, you would benefit by seeing whatâs available. Better to learn by choice than being forced to as a drug offender.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is scientifically proven. Results can be effective and lasting.
If you have been awake for 48 hours or more, avoid going out in public. As time increases, your functioning will become increasingly impaired. High arrest risk.
You are engaging in highly illegal behavior. This part of life is not a social club. Most drug users either act like teenagers or they go to jail often.
Arrest risk is increased if you are traveling with Methamphetamine while intoxicated. Be as sober as possible when making purchases.
Establish relationships with and do business with only 1 or 2 contacts. Build trust with them rather than collecting drug dealers. If you ignore this advice, your risk of attracting informants and stings are high.
Guard your contacts. Do not mention anything about them in conversations with others unless all other participants already know them. Only you should be meeting your dealer to do business. The exception to this is if your companion has a pre-existing relationship with the dealer. Donât introduce new clients unless you have a good reason and existing trust in them. Donât increase informant and sting risk.
Do not make purchases or sales in public places like parking lots. High risk of surveillance and arrest.
Donât steal from people to get money for drugs, especially people you know. Everyone needs support networks. You wonât keep friends if you steal their cameras.
Meth users have a bad reputation. Remember, you must be honest if you want to live outside the law.
If you smoke, you should buy quality pipes and keep them working as long as possible. As stated above, buying pipes is not good for your reputation and it creates evidence. Keeping a clean pipe is easy if you know how to do it.
Strike lighters leave soot on the pipe. Jet lighters can overheat and destroy the drug.
If drug garbage accumulates it will contaminate what you put in it later. The pipe needs cleaning once brown filth has accumulated and the taste goes bad.
Eraser pads are ideal for cleaning a pipe. Eraser pads are household cleaning product made of rough foam, and are perfect for the job.
Cleaning solutions will not work very well, what does the job is abrasion. If you want to try anyway, rubbing alcohol is a suitable cleaner. Harsh chemicals donât clean any better and are toxic.
Polish the surface when cleaning, pressure will break the pipe. Â
Use nothing stronger than a toothpick or straightened paper clip when cleaning a pipe.
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