Cocaine And The Brain

One can feel the effects of cocaine almost immediately after use, with these effects lasting only a few minutes or hours. The duration of cocaine 's effects depends upon how it is administered. The faster the drug is absorbed, the more intense the high, but also the shorter the duration. The high from snorting is relatively slow to arrive but it may last 15 to 30 minutes. In contrast, the effects from smoking are more immediate but may last only 5 to 10 minutes. “In the brain, cocaine interferes with the chemical messengers -- neurotransmitters -- that nerves use to communicate with each other. Cocaine blocks norepinephrine, serotonin, dopamine, and other neurotransmitters from being reabsorbed. The resulting

The short term physiological effects of cocaine include constricted blood vessels, dilated pupils, and increased temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure. Large amounts intensify the user’s high, but may also lead to bizarre, erratic, and violent behavior. The short term effects on the brain are tremors, vertigo, muscle twitches, paranoia. Some users of cocaine report feelings of restlessness, irritability, and anxiety

Cocaine is one of the oldest, most powerful and most dangerous stimulants in the world. This powerfully addictive drug effects over 35 million people In the United States. Cocaine addiction prevents a person from being a productive member in our society. It also increases the cost for law enforcement and treatment facilities. It rapidly decreases the workplace, increases the homeless rate and needless deaths on a daily basis.

Cocaine’s mode of action has been shown to involve the dopamine receptors. This paper will discuss how cocaine affects dopamine receptors, the mode of addiction, how cocaine affects the frontal brain metabolic activities, as well as the role of excitatory amino acids in cocaine’s mechanism. I will also discuss how cocaine affects another system through its mechanism on the brain—the renin angiotensin system.

Cocaine is one of the most euphoric, exciting, fun substances in the world - and also the most dangerous. It creates the perfect feeling, the invincible high. It is so strong and has so many beneficial qualities that it was once called the miracle drug, but the miracle drug has its downsides too. The miracle drug is dangerous. The miracle drug is deadly. Cocaine is a highly addictive and dangerous drug that alters the mind and body of humans of all ages and consequently changes their entire thought process. It chemically alters the mind, increases the physical ability of people (while also destroying their bodies) and morphs their entire mental state into something great (while also turning them into paranoid schizophrenics).

One of the most addictive substances in the modern society that is increasingly abused is cocaine, which is a drug that generates several problems in the society and today’s health care programs. As a result of the increased use of this drug, users sometime develop cocaine addiction or dependence, which is a condition characterized by an overwhelming psychological desire to use the drug regularly. Despite its associated psychological impacts, people increasingly use cocaine and become addicted because it generates euphoria and high levels of energy similar to caffeine. Cocaine addiction or dependence has become a major issue for health care providers because it may contribute to brain and cardiovascular damage, which in turn generates heart attacks, strokes, and constricting heart arteries. Therefore, the treatment of cocaine addiction or dependence is increasingly important in today’s society.

M.J. is a 21-year-old female who presented herself in the emergency room with a laceration on her hand and a positive test for cocaine in her system. The patient is a single mom of two toddlers and has a live-in boyfriend. The patient presented to the E.R. that her house was destroyed in a fire and lacerated her hand while trying to escape. Her boyfriend, who is a heroin user, perished in the fire. She is now having difficulty remembering the fire and she feels like she is in a dream. M.J. is being admitted to the psychiatric unit. Because of this traumatic event, the likelihood that this patient is experiencing anxiety and depression is very high: leading to acute stress disorder. This disorder is prevalent within the first month of

Cocaine is a powerful central nervous system stimulant that gives the user immediate effects that wear off quickly - often within minutes. The powder form of this illicit drug can be smoked, snorted, injected, or orally ingested. The rock form, crack-cocaine, is almost exclusively smoked.

Cocaine is an intense, euphoria-producing stimulant drug with strong addictive potential (Drug Enforcement Administration). Cocaine is derived from the coca plant grown in Bolivia, Peru, and Colombia. When injected, snorted, or smoked it blocks the reuptake of dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain that causes a “rush” through the body. There are two forms of cocaine, freebase and crack. This illicit drug, when used, will increase the heart rate, blood pressure, dilate the pupils, insomnia, and loss of appetite. People who use cocaine may seem excited and may act more confident than when they weren’t under the influence. Cocaine use alters the mental state of the individual who is using and causes paranoia, poor judgment, delusions and hallucinations. Those who have a been using for a long time will often have a runny nose or sometimes nose bleeds. In addition, their craving for the drug will intensify which often results in need for higher doses. Some of the street slang names you may hear is coke, crack, soda and nose candy (Hanson, G. et al, 2015).

The short term effects of cocaine or "the high" is why one generally uses cocaine. Users generally sniff/snort, inject, or smoke the drug to achieve a high. As the drug enters the blood stream, it stimulates the central nervous system creating a feeling of euphoria, which can last up to 30 minutes. During this time the blood vessels become constricted; heart rate, blood pressure, and body temperature increase; and pupils become dilated. This makes most users feel mentally alert, euphoric, and energized although some users experience irritability, anxiety, and

Cocaine is a stimulant drug that can be snorted, injected, or smoked. Cocaine comes from a Coca plant (Hart & Ksir, 2016). It can come from any of the four Erythroxylaceae plants, but it most commonly comes from the Erythroxylon Coca plant (Hart & Ksir, 2016). These plants are commonly grown in South America (Karch, 1998). Cocaine interacts with several neurotransmitters in the brain, such as “Dopamine, Serotonin, Gaba, and Glutamate” (Hart & Ksir, 2016). Upon consumption of the drug it also influences adrenaline reuptake and causes more to be released (Karch, 1998). Cocaine is a popular mainstream drug, it impacts the user positively and negatively, and has known stereotypes associated with it.

Cocaine is an extremely addictive stimulant that creates a sense of euphoria and increased energy in people who use it. A cocaine high tends to be short-lived so it is often used in a binge pattern, meaning it’s used repeatedly and in increasingly larger doses over a short period of time. Cocaine raises the risk of serious heart problems and even of sudden death in people who use it because of its range of cardiovascular effects, which include sharp increases in heart rate and narrowing (constriction) of blood

coca plant (5). The high chemical content as well as the effects of the cocaine derived from the E. coca plant combine to produce properties that are psychoactive and highly addictive. Once ingested, cocaine displays its effects onto the nervous system. Cocaine blocks pumps present in the pre-synaptic neuron cells from the re-uptake of dopamine, a neurotransmitter. Since dopamine is no longer being reabsorbed, a buildup of dopamine in the synaptic cleft occurs. The response emitted by the nervous system is a strong feeling of pleasure and ecstasy (6). Cocaine users greatly desire the feeling of euphoria cocaine provides which ultimately leads to severe

Cocaine induces issues in the central nervous system that can quickly transform into a life threatening addiction. Cocaine is a highly addictive, dangerous, and illegal stimulant drug. Once cocaine penetrates the blood brain barrier, it clogs up dopamine receptors. Consequently, dopamine will bond and overstimulate the receptors of nearby cells. Cocaine affects many parts of the brain such as the hippocampus, amygdala, the frontal lobe, the nucleus accumbens, and the ventral tegmental area. As a result, the user remembers the pleasures brought by cocaine. Affected nucleus accumbens cause the user to want to repeat that sensation again. Additionally, one of the frontal lobe’s purpose is to rejects activities that have too many negative consequences,

Thank you for having me here today to speak with you on he effects of drug abuse on the brain. Drug abuse or addiction is characterized by compulsive drug craving, seeking, and use that persists even in the face of negative consequences. Overtime a persons ability to chose not to take drugs is compromised. Drugs of abuse are able to interfere with the normal communication of the brain