Cocaine and the Cycle of Addiction
As covered in other Narconon articles, cocaine is a Schedule II stimulant drug that has a very high potential for abuse and addiction. Cocaine comes as a white, crystalline powder and is usually diluted ("cut") with other substances, usually some type of sugar or local anesthetic. The only real reason dealers "cut" cocaine is to increase the amount of the product and stretch profits. Crack is far more potent as it is inhaled directly and is cocaine that has not been neutralized by an acid. The damaging effects of cocaine or crack are well documented and even a single use can be detrimental. However, there is a cycle of addiction that cocaine users follow and unless broken results in serious problems.
The Life Cycle of Cocaine Addiction
Cocaine addiction begins as does other drugs however, given the intense effects of cocaine the cycle can often progress faster than other drugs.
It is not true that someone is born with an innate drive to become a drug addict. Having spent much time with addicts and even overcoming their own addictions any Narconon staff member will tell you there is no "god" cruel enough to have laid forth in advance ones road to addiction. Addiction in truth, especially crack cocaine addiction, can be a far worse hell than any devil would ever care to make. Crack drives a seemingly well balanced individual to the most vicious and depraved lifestyle striving only for another hit, to stave off the intense feelings of misery accompanying crack addiction.
The bottom line is if you have been told your addiction is "pre-destined" or genetic, it simply is not the case. Addiction has a precise series of stages and any individual, given the correct factors can become an addict.
How Cocaine Addiction Starts
Addiction starts with a problem, discomfort, emotional or physically painful situation. The person, like most, is basically good, his goal is not to be a drug addict.
However, the person encounters a situation for which they don't have any immediate answer. Each person's problem is as individual as the person, however, common situations are peer pressure, trouble with the opposite sex, physical injuries, or a sudden loss in life. One addict for instance had her father go blind and a sibling commit suicide prior to turning to drugs as her answer, another was faced with the loss of a job and was subjected to peer pressure if he didn't "get going faster now" and cocaine helped him to "speed up" pulling the night shift after working the day shift.
Whatever the problem is, it is too much for the person, is often persistent and the person in one manner or other comes across drugs as a solution to the problem. He takes cocaine at a party, feels so much better, or a friend shares a line with him and he notices he feels he can now go "forever". He loses inhibitions and so on.
This temporary relief becomes identified as a source of pleasure for the individual.
As all drugs, when the drug wears off the sensations or pains or discomforts revisit the person much harder than before they had taken the drug. Cocaine or crack have a very intense "coming down". The person will feel irritable, hostile, annoyed or anxious. Now we have two factors at work. Not only does the person have a personal problem that they don't know how to overcome, they now feel miserable physically by the fact of having taken the drug.
The physical side of cravings enters the scene. The drug itself burns up a tremendous amount of vitamins and nutrition in the body when taken. Crack does this very rapidly as the body is desperately trying to protect itself from the sudden poisonous fumes the person is inhaling. This is the reason for the rapid mal-nutritioned appearance of crack addicts and why their teeth are rapidly decayed. The body is pulling minerals and nutrients from any source, including the teeth and bones to keep the more sensitive and vital organs functioning. Without a proper amount of calcium in the blood, for instance, the heart stops resulting in death. To circumvent this the body will pull any calcium from any reserves possible, such as teeth and bones.
As the person feels worse he or she is liable to continue to consume more of the drug to counteract these feelings of misery and now physical pain. However, as it is the drug itself creating this condition, the problem simply gets worse.
Cravings for crack or cocaine can be so strong and the accompanied physical sensations of irritability and aggression and anxiety be so real that the user will push aside all social behavior and morals to obtain more of the drug. The drug itself creates an obsession to have more of the drug to the exclusion of all other things. Thus families are no longer important, their work and their personal appearance and body are no longer necessities in their view, only the crack or cocaine is important. $2000 a day habits are not unusual and when one is addicted to drugs there are very few legal methods of obtaining this large sum of money.
The Solution to Cocaine and Crack Addiction
Cocaine and crack addiction can only be successfully overcome with an effective Narconon cocaine treatment center.
To think a son or daughter is going to "come to their senses" or "come clean" on their own when they have become addicted to cocaine or crack is simply not having a correct information and evaluation of the situation no matter how well-intended the parent.
The person's addiction progressed because of some problem or situation that to them was unsolvable. Now added to it are the physical drug cravings and emotional situations they find themselves in as well as their own lack of confront of the situation, the result is a trap they are in that requires expert help to come out of. Narconon staff have the tools and experience to help the addict out of this trap and even address the factors that preceded their condition.
Narconon cocaine treatment centers have been in operation for over 44 years and as such have successfully rehabilitated cocaine and crack addicts at a success rate of four times that of the international average. The graduates of Narconon go on to lead happy productive and drug-free lives.
For help for your loved one call Narconon today at 877-237-3307.