Drugs

Intro
Drugs are matters that influence your mind and your feelings. A lot of people find these influences as a pleasure. Some drugs change your awareness or have a narcotic effect.
Not only the more well-known products like hash, heroine and cocaine are drugs. Coffee/tea, alcohol, tobacco, hypnotic drugs (drugs that induce sleep), sedative drugs (drugs that provide calmness) are drugs as well.
A lot of people are scared of drugs, this is often unjust. They’re afraid of something they don’t know, because of this the words drugs can often cause panic reactions. People often don’t dare to talk about it. But (almost) everyone gets in touch with drugs and drugs issues in a certain way at a certain point in his life. So it is important that people know something about drugs. The users, what they exactly are, what is and isn’t allowed according to the law.

When is something a drug?
You can categorise drugs in two different ways. You can look to the effects, than it’s already enough to conclude that the matter is a drug. But you only have to look at the law. If the law says that the matter is a drug, than the matter really is a drug…


Why do people use drugs?
Drug users & drug addicts mostly have a motive to use the drug, the motives are different, like younger people try drugs out just to experimantate.
Some use it because they have problems at home, others because they just like to be under the influence of the drug and there are a lot more motives.
But drugs stimulate your moods/emotions. So if you use it, it’s better to feel good than feel bad, because if you are feeling bad your emotions will be much stronger. In a good or in a bad way…

Kinds of drugs
There are several kinds of drugs. For instance: stimulating drugs, narcotic drugs, and drugs with a mixed effect.
* Stimulating drugs
When using this type of drug, the user gets the feeling he has more energy and he is more alert. This sort of drug is especially being used by party animals and workaholics. Examples of this type of drugs are: speed, cocaine, but also coffee and tabacco.
* Narcotic drugs
This type of drugs has got a relaxing and calming effect. The user becomes sleepy and he doesn’t see the bad things of life. Drugs with a narcotic effect are particularly being used by people with sleeping problems and people who have fears, but also by individuals with personal and social problems. Specimens for this type of drugs are: heroine, sleeping medicines and alcohol.
* Awareness changing drugs

The consequence of this drug is that the user -for his feeling- is living in a different world. He sees wonderful colors. It can also happen that the user becomes a glutton, he gets very active or tired and it can also happen that the user can’t stop laughing. This type of drug is for the biggest part being used by younger people who are curious to know the effect of the drug. Older people who are looking for a new mental experience are also a big part of users from this drug. Examples from awareness changing drugs are: LSD, weed and hashish.
* Drugs with a mixed effect
An example of this drug is XTC. This drug is stimulating, but it also changes the awareness. Depending on the situation and dose hashish and weed can also have a narcotic effect.

The opium law and the two main drug groups: soft- & hard drugs
The opium law includes all the rules about drugs. There are two kinds of drugs: soft drugs and hard drugs. In the opium law, the rules about hard drugs are named in list one. The rules about soft drugs are named in list two.
Hard drugs, like heroine, cocaine, LSD and XTC can have an unacceptable big effect. They are more dangerous than the products that belong to list two.
List two names all sorts of hemp products, like hashish and weed. Also sedatives (kalmeringsmiddelen) like Valium and Seresta (belongs to the soft drugs named in list two. The punishments for using hard drugs are stricter than the punishment for using soft drugs.
But not all matters of list two are soft drugs, like hypnotics and sedative drugs. These matters don’t fall under the category soft- or hard drugs. Because you can get them on prescription, as a medication. You also got alcohol and Tobacco. These should also actually fall under hard drugs, because they’re as harmful and sometimes also as addictive. But because the society accepted these matters through times this isn’t the case.
This means that everything what has to do with drugs, like trade, production and possession is an offence. But the strange thing is that the use of soft drugs in The Netherlands isn’t an offence. This is because of the Drugs Policy of The Netherlands, it’s tolerated in a certain way. And it’s also proven that when it is allowed to use soft drugs, less people will take them.


The Dutch drugs policy
The Dutch Drugs policy is a pragmatism policy. That means that a issue that might be insoluble, like the drug problem, is better to be allowed in a certain way, rather than making it illegal, because people would still use it. And it’s even proven that less people will use drugs if it’s legal or allowed in a certain way than when it’s illegal.
-Soft drugs are tolerated in a certain way. If you’re 18 years or older you’re allowed to buy the soft drugs weed & hash at a coffee shop. According to the Dutch law you can’t buy more than 5grams at a time. You can’t possess more than 5 grams of weed or 5 weed plants. The cultivation of weed is illegal, but the coffee shops do sell weed from the plantations, but that is allowed. As long as they don’t sell to minors, don’t have a stash of more than 500grams, don’t have alcoholic beverages in the same area as they sell weed, don’t give more than 5grams of weed a day to a person, don’t promote drugs and most important don’t sell hard drugs.
-Hard drugs are illegal! Only, when someone possess hard drugs and it’s less than 0,5 gram, he wouldn’t get prosecuted in general. But the police do confiscate the drugs.

Examples of drugs
-Name: ethanol/alcohol/Booze/Angels Water/Special Water (often said by Shoaling Monks) (Dutch slang: “sopi”)/Biri
-Appearance: liquid. Alcoholic beverages for the biggest part exist of water. Ethyl alcohol is made out of ferment fruit, vegetables and corn.
Strong drinks contains around 50% alcohol.
-Duration: multiple hours, depending of the dose.
-How to use it: drink
-Positive: the user gets (after a small amount of drinks) less inhibited, happier, more relaxing.
-Negative: alcohol is addictive. The user can get dependent of alcohol, and has to drink
more to get the same effect.

It’s very difficult to predict the short period effects of alcohol. Sometimes small amounts cause aggression and mood changes.
Bigger amounts cause lack of coordination , difficulty in speeking and extremely emotional reactions.
After big amounts you can: see double (double vision), change balance- & awareness.
The consequences of exuberant alcohol use are: hangovers, with the symptoms: headache, fear, dehydration and nervousness.
-Long term effects: addiction, stomach- & liver ailment, brain damage.
Tip: Don’t drink to much. Vary alcoholic beverages with non-alcoholic beverages. One of the most common causes of a hangover are: dehydration, drinking non alcoholic-beverages can relieve these symptoms.

-Name: Caffeine
-Appearance: in coffee, tea, chocolate and some soda’s.
-Duration: up to 4 hours.
-How to use it: drink, eat
-Positive: caffeine is a mild stimulating drug, it’s been used to stay awake and alert.
-Negative: sleepless nights, stomach complaints. It’s bad for people with high blood pressure. Heavy users can get dependent of the drug.

-Name: Cannabis, or: marijuana, grass, weed, pot, hashish (Dutch: jonko, blaap …)
-Appearance:
*Marihuana, it contains the flowered bud of the Cannabis sativa plant. The flowered bud contains the most important psychoactive matter: tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

*Hashish, is a preparation of cannabis composed of the compressed resin collected from the cannabis plant. It contains the same active ingredients but in higher concentrations than other parts of the plant such as the buds or the leaves.
*Cannabis oil, a dirty, fat, dark brown substance, that is made by drenching the plant in a solvent. It’s packaged in paper or plastic and you can cut it with a heated knife.
-How to use: all three forms can be smoked (joint/blunt/bong/crack pipe), what also is the most common way of using the matter, mixed with tobacco or in a pure form.
It can also be eaten, mostly incorporated with cakes (space cake) or in a pure form.
-Duration: around 2 hours.
-Positive: increased feeling of well-being, happiness, relaxation.
Users claim to get better intensive insight, more sensitive senses and even hallucinations (hardly ever occurs) with higher amounts. It’s probably the most “safe” drug, it doesn’t work addictive (not physically, can only be a sort of mental addiction) and causes less or no hangovers. Death because of a overdose of cannabis has never been reported yet. But they do say that eating 800grams at once is deadly.
-Negative: red eyes, wide pupils, raised pulse, dry throat & mouth, fatigue & raised appetite.

-Long term effects (over the years): amnesia, depression, loss of motivation, brain damage and sometimes even Schizophrenia.
-Tip: smoking cannabis is easier to keep under control than eating it. When eating it you have to be prepared for a more dramatic effect than when smoking it. If you’re going to smoke cannabis have something to drink or eat with you (dehydration etc.)

-Name: Cocaine/coke, crack (smoke), snow, yayo (Dutch: sos, sossa, witte) It’s obtained from the leaves of the coca plant.
-Appearance: a white powder
-How to use it: it can be smoked(crack)/injected/snuff, or can be rubbed on the teeth or gums (“tandvlees”).
-Duration: 30 to 60 minutes, the after effect can last to 24hours
-Positive: cocaine gives you the feeling that you can manage the whole world.
Users experience a feeling of agitation, pleasure, luck, self-confidence and energy. The drug reduces the need to sleep and food. It is a subtle drug because users carried itself rather inconspicuous.
-Negative: high blood pressure, increased pulsation, body temperature and breathing tempo. A small number of users got breathing difficulties, some with fatal result. Others complain about overstimulation. For a long time it was adopted that cocaine was only psychologically addictive, but today is suspected that there also a physical dependence appears.

A overdose of cocaine is very rare.
-Long term effects: brain damage, depressed mood states, damage to the bone between your nose, bad teeth
-Tips: a gentle tranquilizer can moderate some unpleasant side effects of the drug.

-Name: Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) or XTC
-Appearance: tablets, less reliable forms of the drug are even available in capsules(they often contain acid & speed). There is a new form of mdma, powder. You can also call it crystal meth
-Duration: depending on the quality
-How to use it: by swallowing tablet(s)
-Positive: as with most drugs, the effects depend on the mood you’re in,
People who want to dance for hours, like the energy that they get out of the drug by listening to music. Others prefer a quite, “chill”, environment (it can be with other people that they feel comfortable with).
-Negative: eyes get wider, different mood changes, to much energy (more risk of getting dehydrated) , it ruins your body (it isn’t a matter that you can find in nature, it’s made in a chemical laboratory), it’s dangerous (it’s a chemical drug), hallucinations.

-Tip: this is a dangerous drugs, cause some people are to sensitive and your not 100% clear what’s inside the tablet.

-Name: Heroine/smack, H brown sugar
-Appearance: in it’s purest heroin is a white (fluffy) powder. On “the streets” it often has a brown color.
-Duration: about 30 minutes to 3hours. When it’s injected you’ll immediately get a rush (you get it less if you smoke it or sniff it)
-How to use it: heroin can be injected, sniffed, or in pure form smoked on a piece of tin foil. You can also eat it, but because it’s bad for your stomach, the people who use heroin think it’s a waste of money.
-Positive: lightens psychical pain, because it’s generating the feeling of euphoria. People who’re using the drug (might) feel the following things: getting hot, a protected feeling, they feel free and dizzy.
-Negative: heroin can get you ill, makes you want to puke, itching skin.

The drug is most addictive when it gets injected, or smoked, or sniffed.

-Name: Tobacco/ -The drug effect of tobacco is caused by the matter nicotine. Nicotine is a gentle stimulating matter en gives you a kick. One or 2 cigarettes can cause stimulation and a bit of excitement.
-Appearance: dry leaves of the Tobacco plant
-How to use: Smoke, snuff, chew
-Duration: depends on the user,
-Positive: it’s gives you a stimulating effect, release stress. Prevent fatigue and monotony
-Negative: the smoke contains tar, nicotine, Carbon monoxide and other gas.
Cigarettes raise the blood pressures and the pulsation, and reduce the appetite. Beginners can become dizzy or even get ill. Tolerance develops very fast. Long term effects are an increased risk on hearts and vessel sicknesses, heart attacks, infections of the air ways, and lungs, mouths and throat cancer.
-Tip: try to smoke less!


Medical use of drugs
Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a disease of the central nervous system ( CNS). People still don’t know the cause of MS and there isn’t a cure for it yet.
Thanks to research they discovered that the use of marijuana helps as a muscle amplifier, just like the other medications, but without side effects.
Marijuana is also used by people who have cancer, specific those who are having chemotherapy. A lot of people who have chemotherapy often have to puke. A lot of them are also dealing with weight loss, and because of those 2 problems they also get less appetite.
Marijuana gives you an eating kick, so you’ll get your appetite back, and it’s a pain reliever.
Scientists are still working to get the marijuana better, by trying to get rid of the (negative)side effects.

How do addicts lose their addiction?
Health care
People in their environment.
Self-help. Talk with other addicts, or people that were related with addicts
( “N.A.” narcotics anonymous.” = a well know example)
Specific paramedic exists out of 2 main groups:
-At the persons’ home. Extramural health care
-The help centers are there to life a drug free life. You can go there if you want to stop using drugs.

Rehabilitation
Treatment, for dependency on drugs. It’s a difficult part of the addicts “drug life”
The First part is getting rid of the physical & psychological dependency of the drug. Cause your mind & body often used to be under the influence of the drug.

The last part is getting rid of the fear of: the drugs, health care and rehabilitation.
The best thing you can do is talk with people with the same problems or people from health care.
And when you’re finally clean, you have to make sure that you stay clean!

"Kids don't do drugs... drugs are bad, ok..."
(quote: Mr. Garrison, from the animation show Soutpark)