Itsdominanceas itcapturedfirstp.accwith amonstrous 17pointadvantage. Freshman Ray Addas clutches a bottle of Coke as if it's a Sfe preserver, because. For coming aroundto crack on us; to everyone we called forscores and quotesthat. Crack cocaine is the crystal form of cocaine, which normally comes in a powder form. 1 It comes in solid blocks or crystals varying in color from yellow to pale rose or white. Crack is heated and smoked. It is so named because it makes a cracking or popping sound when heated.
![]() ![]() What is cocaine?
Cocaine is a stimulant drug that is made from the leaves of a coca plant and comes in the form of a white powder or a “rock.” Street names for powdered cocaine include snow, nose candy, coke, Big C, flake and blow. People snort cocaine through their nose, rub it into their gums, or dissolve it and inject it with a needle into their veins. Powdered cocaine can also be smoked via a process called “freebasing.”
Drug dealers mix cocaine with other substances so they can have more of the drug to sell. These “fillers” make the drug even more dangerous because the user does not know how much cocaine he or she is taking or what fillers may have been used. Commonly used fillers include cornstarch or flour or other drugs – such as amphetamines or fentanyl – which can add harmful, and even fatal, side effects to an already unsafe drug.
What is crack?
Crack is cocaine that has been processed so that it can be smoked. It also goes by the street name “rock.” Crack looks like small pieces or shavings of soap, but has a hard, sharp feel. Crack is usually smoked by heating it in a glass pipe, but it can also be mixed into a marijuana “joint” or a tobacco cigarette.
When a person smokes crack (or powder via freebase) cocaine, the drug reaches the brain more rapidly and in higher peak doses than when it is snorted in powder form. The user feels an intense “rush” followed by a “crash” that can produce a strong craving for more of the drug.
What's so bad about cocaine and crack?
Cocaine and crack are dangerous for many reasons. Cocaine and crack use can lead to serious side effects – some life-threatening – including:
In a person who is addicted, his or her cocaine use becomes an obsession and strong urge that can cause:
How do people become addicted to cocaine?![]()
Cocaine causes an intense flood of chemicals in the brain’s “pleasure” or “reward” pathway—essentially short-circuiting what would normally only be stimulated, or roused, by pleasurable life events. Repeated overloading of this brain circuit by cocaine causes changes in the brain in which nothing seems pleasurable without the drug.
The chemicals released in the brain by cocaine also play a role in maintaining normal feelings of happiness. Reduced levels of these chemicals (as during a cocaine “crash”) can cause intense feelings of depression. The addict will try to avoid these negative feelings by using more of the drug as soon as these symptoms arise.
These actions can ultimately lead to changes in other parts of the brain that result in drug use becoming an obsession and compulsion—like an itch that must be scratched no matter what the outcome. This is why addicts will continue to use the drug despite all of the negative consequences. The obsession with the drug is also referred to as a craving.
In the case of cocaine, addicts also report an intense motivation to try to obtain the “high” that they experienced the first time they ever used, but the intensity of that first experience is impossible to ever achieve through repeated use.
What are the signs that someone is becoming addicted or is already addicted to cocaine?
A person who is becoming addicted or is addicted to cocaine will show signs including:
What are the long term side effects of taking cocaine?
There are many health side effects of cocaine use. Long-term side effects, based on how cocaine is used, include:
Other general long-term effects include:
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