Methamphetamine
a stimulant drug known as meth, crystal, chalk, and ice.
How is it used?
Physical/Psychological Effects
- increases the amount of the neurotransmitter dopamine, leading to high levels of that chemical in the brain
- produces the euphoric “rush” or “flash” that many users experience
- reduced motor skills and impaired verbal learning
- severe structural and functional changes have been found in areas of the brain associated with emotion and memory, which may account for many of the emotional and cognitive problems
- extreme weight loss, severe dental problems (“meth mouth”), and skin sores caused by scratching
- increased wakefulness, increased physical activity, decreased appetite, increased respiration, rapid heart rate, irregular heartbeat, increased blood pressure, and increased body temperature
- anxiety, confusion, insomnia, and mood disturbances and display violent behavior
- paranoia, visual and auditory hallucinations, and delusions
- alters judgment and inhibition
- Methamphetamine is SUPER ADDICTIVE
Legality & Schedule
It is classified as a Schedule II drug, meaning it has high potential for abuse and is available only through a prescription that cannot be refilled.
Cost
The price also can depends on the drug's purity, the amount, and where it is sold.
Potential Treatment Options
For example, one program found to be extremely effective is the Matrix Model, which is a 16-week behavioral treatment approach that combines behavioral therapy, family education, individual counseling, drug testing, and encouragement for non-drug-related activities.
Contingency management interventions, which provide the users with incentives in exchange for engaging in treatment and maintaining abstinence, have also been shown to be effective.
Motivational Incentives for Enhancing Drug Abuse Recovery (MIEDAR), an method for encouraging cocaine and methamphetamine abstinence, has been super effective in methamphetamine abusers through NIDA’s National Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network.
Meth use in the US
Meth use in Maryland
Laws/Legislation
In 2005, the federal government passed the Methamphetamine Epidemic Act to heighten penalties for meth possession, and to place stiffer restrictions on legal uses of meth. States have also followed the federal government in enforcing heightened penalties for meth possession convictions.
How Meth enters country/area
- Cooked in home labs
- Mobile labs
- Cars, RVs, trucks, trunks, suitcases
- Motel rooms
- Basements
- Crawl spaces
- Sold on the streets
- Smuggled over border from Mexico through drug trafficking