The three most common production routes are the P2P (phenyl-2-propanone) amalgam method, the hydroiodic acid and red phosphorus reduction method, and the Birch reduction method. Ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, which can be found in many over-the-counter cold remedies, are key starting materials in the production of methamphetamine. Depending on the synthetic pathway, other important materials include iodine, red phosphorus, hydrogen chloride gas, and anhydrous ammonia. The U.S. government has regulated the sale and use of some of these chemicals in an effort to curb production of methamphetamine. Continued use of meth can cause even more health effects, some of which may be far more serious in nature.

Meth Withdrawal

To help with these issues, therapies like REBT (Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy) can be very helpful. REBT for addiction helps people recognize and change negative thoughts that cause emotional instability and harmful behaviors. It works for both PTSD and addiction by teaching coping skills and healthier ways to manage emotions without using substances like meth.

Risks and Symptoms of Meth Use in PTSD Patients

The appearance of amphetamine and methamphetamine depends on the synthetic process and quality control used in their production. High-quality street meth is generally a white crystalline powder. The color of lower-quality meth may range from dark yellow to brown. The drug may be crystalline, granular, or solid block, and it may have a sticky consistency. It may be packaged in plastic bags, paper bindles, or glass vials. The synthetic route by which methamphetamine is prepared is widely known, and the required chemicals are readily available.

Is methamphetamine addictive?

Methamphetamine is an addictive drug that has energizing (stimulant) effects. As a powder, it can be snorted or dissolved in water and injected. View « The Faces of Meth™ », a slideshow of mug shots collected by Officer Brett King of Oregon’s Multnomah County Sheriff’s Department, illustrating the effects of meth on the faces of users. You can have serious side effects and health problems from drug use. Some can affect your physical appearance while others can be fatal. If you use meth while you’re pregnant, you may give birth early or have a baby with a low birth weight.

• Another medication for meth addiction, ibudilast, may reduce some of the pleasurable effects of meth.
• Methamphetamine has a neurotoxic effect on the brain and can cause permanent damage to neurotransmitters.
• For meth addiction, medications like bupropion may be used to help reduce cravings and manage withdrawal symptoms.
• But some changes may take years or longer to resolve or never get better.
• The color of lower-quality meth may range from dark yellow to brown.
• For example, you may have problems with coordination or learning.

Group Counseling and Support

• These names often reflect particular ways the drugs appear; for example, ice is a very pure form, whereas peanut brittle is less so.
• He teased, cajoled and vexed his listeners, daring them to explore the « devilish » contours of his mind, as he sang rash rhymes about parties, drugs and « seducing » women.
• CBT addresses the learning processes underlying drug addiction and other harmful behaviors.

After the high wears off, you may start to feel bad physically and emotionally. These negative feelings may equal the intensity of your high but in the opposite way. In general, you may feel the effects of meth for around 2-6 hours if you smoke it or 6-8 hours if you inject it. The high may linger a little longer if you snort or swallow the drug, lasting up to 12 hours or longer. The duration may differ for you depending on how often you use meth. Methamphetamine is a man-made stimulant that’s been around for a long time.

Snorting meth can damage sinus cavities and nasal passages, and lead to chronic nosebleeds and/or a perpetual runny nose. Smoking meth may lead to respiratory damage and lung complications. Methamphetamines (more commonly known by their street name, “meth,” “crystal meth,” and “crank”) is a powerful and addictive stimulant that can be smoked, snorted, eaten, or injected.

• In 2022, the DEA found that about 6 in 10 fake fentanyl-laced prescription pill contain a potentially lethal dose of fentanyl.
• Methamphetamine can cause long-term damage to the brain, which can require specialized treatment and continuous care over a sustained period of time to promote abstinence.
• It involves working with a therapist to develop a set of healthy coping strategies.

If you know someone who can’t control their drug use, ask for professional help. The chances you’ll take too much meth are higher if you inject meth, but harmful or life-threatening health problems can happen no matter what method you use. You may grind your teeth, get dry mouth, or skip good dental hygiene practices when you use meth.

Mental Health Treatment

You may use meth to make sex more pleasurable or to lower your inhibitions. But you may not think clearly when you’re high or make the same decisions as when you’re sober. That’s why it’s a good idea to plan for how you’ll avoid impulsive or risky sex before you use drugs. There’s ongoing research into the health effects of secondhand meth smoke. Still, you may test positive for the drug if you’re around the smoke.

How do community and health system responses to resurgent methamphetamine use and harms need to evolve?

People have also taken the drug to lose weight, ease depression, and manage attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Long-term use of meth can cause significant damage to the brain and the cells that make dopamine as well as to the nerve cells containing serotonin. The drug addiction Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) warns that chronic and prolonged meth exposure can damage as many as half of the dopamine-producing cells in the brain and potentially even more of the serotonin-containing nerve cells. Take our free, 5-minute substance use self-assessment below if you think you or someone you love might be struggling with substance use.

A national survey on people aged 12 or older shows that 0.6% of the U.S. population, or about 1.6 million people, may have a methamphetamine use disorder. That means more than half of people who use meth go on to misuse the drug. Unlike medication regulated by the government, there’s no way to know what’s in drugs made in illegal labs.