Effects of Cocaine Addiction
The effects of cocaine addiction can be uncomfortable.
Cocaine is not a highly physically addictive drug but that doesn’t make it safe or easy to stop using. A common myth is that because cocaine is not highly addictive physically that it can be used without harm or risk of addiction—this couldn’t be more wrong. Cocaine addiction is a very real problem that affects millions of people around the world causing a lifetime or hurt, pain and suffering. Although the addiction is not marked by serious physical withdrawal symptoms, cocaine addiction does lead to extreme psychological complications that are often very difficult to treat.
Effects of Cocaine Addiction
The physical effects of cocaine addiction mostly surround a lack of appetite, lack of rest and the breaking down of the body that comes from not eating or sleeping properly when cocaine is being used. Most people who abuse cocaine will have long periods of staying awake and being active and usually will not eat during the time in which they are using cocaine. These periods are followed by periods of heavy sleep to make up for the lost time.
Some people will feel the effects of cocaine almost instantaneously after their first use and will stop feeling the effects very rapidly while others report the high lingering a bit. Regardless of how fast, or slow the cocaine high wears off, the psychological effects of cocaine addiction become progressively worse with each consecutive use of the drug. Some of the disturbing effects of cocaine addiction include:
- Irritability
- Paranoia
- Restlessness
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Fatigue
- Inability to feel pleasure
- Increased cravings for cocaine
Over time, cocaine addiction can lead to a number of complications that require counseling, therapy and even medical treatment in order to overcome. There is no safe level of cocaine use and therefore, the best way to prevent any form of cocaine addiction (be it physical or psychological in scope) is not to use the drug at all.
What Happens if I Become Addicted to Cocaine?
If you or someone you know has abused cocaine and is not suffering from psychological dependence (cocaine addiction) there is help available. You may feel very intense cravings for the drug but these cravings will most often go away in time. Depending on how long you used the drug and various factors associated with your own health, lifestyle and other factors you may notice that the desire to use cocaine quickly goes away after just a couple of weeks of not using or it could take many months or years for these cravings to completely pass. A cocaine rehab center can provide you with support and guidance along the way to make this entire process a little bit easier on you. Call 1-888-223-4410 to talk to a specialist who can give you a free referral to a cocaine rehab center that can help.
Addiction to cocaine is not the end of the world, but it will take some work and commitment in order to get past the addiction and to feel better. Rehab centers that specialize in coke addiction treatment can provide you with counseling and therapy that will help you to learn new behaviors, learn how to have fun and will gradually teach you new ways to enjoy life without the use of the drug. As time goes on and your recovery progresses you will soon realize that you no longer think about cocaine, it no longer bothers you to have fun without the drug and that your cravings have completely passed.