As part of our ongoing mission to look at social issues with a fair, non-biased prospectus, we here at Very Little Known Facts are proud to introduce this, the first in a multi-part series about crystal meth and other methamphetamines.
Some say that meth is fun, while others contend that it may in fact be fun, but also it is very bad. In the middle fall still others who don't know the facts and are reserving judgment until they have tried meth for themselves.
Hopefully this series will allow you, the reader, to make an informed choice in deciding whether or not to devote a significant amount of your time, money, and life to this controversial substance.
Crystal Meth: Pros and Cons: Part Four: The Long-term Effects of Methamphetamine Use and Abuse
Science has made many breakthroughs over the years, but few are as hallucinagenic as the invention of the class of drugs known as methamphetamines. This class includes such drugs as meth and crystal meth, which is a crystalline form of methamphetamine.
The following are several bullet points containing many of the long-term effects of methamphetamine use and abuse:
- paranoia
- addiction
- dry mouth
- stroke
- weight loss (not the good kind, the bad kind that makes you look like a meth addict)
- death
- unexplained itching
Meth: Myths and Facts You Might Have Missed
Long-term methamphetamine abuse, while no doubt entertaining, may result in many undesired effects including (but not limited to) addiction. Meth addicts constantly crave the singular sensation of highness that comes from introducing the drug into their system. Eventually, this can lead to anxiety, insomnia, poor dental hygiene, loss of self-esteem and feelings of wellness, homelessness, paranoid delusions of grandeur, track marks or snort marks, intense weight loss, loss of job and social standing in the community, criminal behavior, poor choice of friends, violence, psychotic breaks, hallucinations, chronic masturbation, loss of appetite, feelings of ennui or listlessness that can only be ameliorated by subsequent intake of methamphetamine, murder, bone marrow loss, mood swings, poor financial planning and planning for the future in general, craving for sugar and sugary treats, loss of control, dead souls, isolation, disorder, insight, shadowplay, a means to an end, feelings of being torn apart by love, feelings of being disconnected from one’s body, feelings of general positivity or negativity or indifference for the universe in general irregardless of one’s own position in it, suicidal thoughts, matricidal thoughts, goiters, limp lip, irritability, loss of control over one’s own thought processes (in particular the loss of the ability to stop thinking about meth), stroke, heart attack, the feeling or absolute certainty that you are having a heart attack when in fact you are not, the feeling that you have AIDS even though you just got tested last fall but that was before you hooked up with that scary bartender with all the skull tattoos, and not like just one or two skull tattoos but A LOT of skull tattoos, skull tattoos all over, skull tattoos in inappropriate places and places where it would be really painful to get a tattoo and places where you would never want to see a skull tattoo especially one with “MOM” written across it in gothic script, muscle atrophy, night sweats, jaundice, degraded nutritional choices, misguided feelings of infallibility and invincibility, and delusions (for example, the sensation of insects creeping on the skin, called "fornication").
Tolerance: Need More Meth
Meth tolerance builds up over time in inverse proportion to the tolerance one’s friends, acquaintances, loved ones, and employers have for the meth user. The user must either increase the dosage or add “enhancements” such as baking powder, bleach, or drain cleaner to the drug. In some cases, abusers may forego food and sleep while indulging in a form of binging known as a "binge," injecting as much as a half pound of the drug every 2 to 3 hours over several days until the user runs out of the drug or is too disorganized to continue. Chronic abuse can lead to psychotic behavior characterized by mild confusion, amusement at jokes that are not actually funny, and sexual side effects—although intense paranoia, hallucinations, wildly inappropriate behavior and inexplicable rage including extreme violence are much more common.
Is Meth Mouth a Myth?
Meth Mouth is not a myth. Meth mouth is caused by inattention to dental hygiene in conjunction with the highly dangerous solvents that attack your teeth along with the sweet foods that meth addicts often crave. If you want to see many graphic examples of Meth Mouth, then you are a twisted individual and should probably seek psychiatric counseling.
Is Meth Bad for You?
Despite opinions to the contrary, the overwhelming majority of the scientific community feels that meth is ultimately bad for you and should be avoided at all costs.
In scientific studies examining the consequences of long-term methamphetamine exposure in animals, concern has arisen over the ethics of exposing animals to a chemical known to be as toxic as crystal meth. Researchers have often resorted to experimenting on human meth addicts who line up around the block to participate in clinical tests. Some of these participants later report being “disappointed” by the experience. Significantly, the test subjects who reported being “disappointed” have a 99% correlation to the members of the control group who were given placeboes instead of meth.
Withdrawal: Should I Stop Snorting or Injecting Meth? Will I Miss Meth?
Although there are no physical manifestations of a withdrawal syndrome when methamphetamine use is stopped, the meth user may still experience a desire to continue the use of methamphetamine. This is natural and may continue for the duration of the user’s lifetime.
COMING SOON: Part Three: Crystal Meth: Pros and Cons: Crystal Meth, Celebrities, and You. Which celebrities, politicians, and televangelists are meth addicts? You might be surprised.
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