Girl against tile wall worried about speed drug addiction, needs help.Speed, also known as meth, is highly potent and addictive. It causes many terrible side effects, both short-term and long-term. Once prescribed by doctors for weight loss and treatment of ADHD, speed drug is rarely used in the healthcare setting anymore. Those who do abuse speed now buy it on the streets or manufacture it in makeshift labs.

How Speed Drug Is Addictive

Smoking, snorting, injecting or taking speed by mouth is how the drug is used. Crystal meth is another form of speed, a crystallized version smoked like crack cocaine.

Smoking or injecting speed causes a rush of pleasure. You get the pleasurable feeling by snorting it or taking it by mouth, but not the big rush of smoking or injecting. This is why many people smoke or inject meth and subsequently suffer meth addiction.

Using speed drug causes hyperactivity, sleeplessness, intense concentration, low appetite, high libido and an overall sense of well-being. Addiction to speed happens very quickly and leads to increased use of larger doses. People use speed more and more in an attempt to recreate their first high on the drug.

Health Risks of Using Speed

Speed increases your pulse, blood pressure, body temperature and breathing. It also dilates your pupils. Side effects include tremors, anorexia, hyperactivity, and insomnia. Over time, you can become more nervous, irritable, paranoid, confused, anxious and aggressive.

Long-term damage caused by meth speed includes blood vessel damage in the brain. This leads to stroke. You can also die from speed’s effects that cause hyperthermia, heart failure, and convulsions.

People who use meth in high doses suffer erratic behavior, violence, hallucinations, and psychosis. This psychosis can last for years after stopping the drug’s use. Memory loss, “meth mouth” dental problems, weight loss and malnutrition are other harmful effects. People who inject speed are at high risk for HIV/AIDS and hepatitis B or C.

Warning Signs of Speed Abuse and Addiction

People abusing speed quickly lose control of their behavior and their lives. Their physical appearance even changes quickly. Signs that someone you love is abusing meth include:

  • Increased attention and talkativeness
  • Wakefulness and fatigue
  • Increased activity level
  • Feelings of euphoria and a pleasurable rush
  • Increased breathing and heart rates
  • Reduced appetite and weight loss
  • Hyperthermia

A speed addiction may be obvious to others before the individual using the drug knows they’re addicted. Physical appearance changes very quickly in those using meth. There are also tell-tale behaviors you can look for if you think someone you love suffers an addiction to speed.

Skin picking is one of the most obvious signs of a speed addiction. People using the drug pick at their skin, leaving marks and open sores. The resulting skin problems can look like severe acne.

Meth addiction causes a feeling of crawling skin, something you may hear your loved one complain about. Speed drug also causes severe tooth decay. Called “meth mouth,” this condition of dental problems causes teeth to fall out and the face to change shape. In combination with the dry skin of meth addiction, people using speed look much older very quickly.

People using meth also may lose their hair. This is due to low nutrition and the speed drug chemicals’ presence in the body. Remaining hair becomes very brittle and breaks off easily.

Getting Help for an Addiction to Speed Drug

Speed drug abuse only leads to one of two places–drug rehab or death. If you or someone you love suffers a meth addiction, help is available. Only through recovery treatment is there a real chance for a quality life beyond drug addiction.

Beaches Recovery in Jacksonville, Florida provides accredited treatment for meth addiction. Recovery at Beaches starts in detox before rehab begins. For rehab, there are a variety of programs available according to individual need.

Beaches Recovery rehab programs include:

At Beaches Recovery your treatment goes according to an individual treatment plan based on your own unique needs. Beaches provides a full spectrum of care, from the first moments of detox through rehab and into aftercare. Call Beaches Recovery at 866.605.0532 now for the treatment you need. Call to start the better life you deserve.