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Drugs and Health
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Where to go for help and advice.
The information above comes from the NHS Direct website which offers infomation about what to do in an emergency. Click to go
If somebody in your family is abusing drugs or other substances this can badly affect the relationships in the family and cause it to break down. Adfam is offering a dvd/video to those families to help them cope with the situation. If you would like a copy please contact adfam on 020 7202 9434 or click here to email them.
Locally try contacting:
The Matthew Project www.matthewproject.co.uk
The Bure Centre 01603 667955
MAP 01603 766994
Community Alcohol and Drug Service
Great Yarmouth 01493 857249
Kings Lynn 01553 761623
For more information about services across the county check out heron the local NHS website.
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Alkyl nitrites (poppers)
What are they?
Alkyl nitrites include amyl nitrite, butyl nitrite and isobutyl nitrite. They are clear or gold-coloured liquids that come in small bottles. Trade names include Ram, Thrust, Rock, Hard, Kix, Liquid Gold and TNT.
Legal Aspect
Amyl nitrite is classed as a prescription only medicine
How are they taken?
The vapours are inhaled.
The effects of alkyl nitrites
· They give you a rush of energy as the heart rate accelerates
The risks of taking alkyl nitrites
- nausea and headaches
- loss of balance and fainting, especially if doing physical activity such as dancing
- regular use can cause skin problems around the nose and mouth
- risk of death if swallowed or if you have blood pressure or heart problems
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Amphetamines(speed)
What are they?
Stimulants available as a powder or tablets. Also known as speed, whizz and sulphate.
Legal Aspect:
Class B drug
How are they taken?
Swallowed, smoked, sniffed or mixed with liquid and drunk. Sometimes injected.
The effects of amphetamines
· make you feel bursting with energy
· make you extremely talkative
The risks of taking amphetamines
- feeling tired, depressed and hungry when the drug wears off but difficulty sleeping
- feeling tense and anxious
- regular, heavy use can make you feel
confused, depressed and panicky and
cause heart problems
- addiction and tolerance
- occasionally, aggression, violent mood
changes and hallucinations |
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Cannabis
What are they?
The most common illegal drug in Britain. Cannabis is also known as marijuana, grass, blow, weed, hash, joint, spliff, ganja and dope.
Legal Aspect:
Class B drug (proposed reduction to class C)
How is it taken?
Usually smoked on its own or with tobacco. Can be cooked and eaten.
The effects of cannabis
· Makes you feel relaxed and friendly
The risks of taking cannabis
- Feeling panicky and anxious
- confusion and having accidents
- feeling dizzy and sick
- can cause bronchitis and lung cancer
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Cocaine
What are they?
Stimulant available as a powder. Also known as coke, snow, charlie and C.
Legal Aspect:
Class A drug
How is it taken?
Sniffed or injected.
The effects of cocaine
· Makes you feel alert, confident and energetic
· The effects are strong and fade quickly
The risks of taking cocaine
- Can make you feel tense and panicky
- dangerous for people with heart or blood
pressure problems
- can make you feel very depressed and
tired when the effects wear off
- addiction - you can spend huge sums of
money on the drug
- feelings of anxiety and paranoia if used
regularly
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Crack
What are they?
Crack is a smokable form of cocaine, available as crystals. It's also known as rock, wash and stone.
Legal Aspect:
Class A drug
How is it taken?
It is smoked.
The effects of crack
· makes you feel more confident and energetic
· the effects are more intense than cocaine but only last a few minutes
The risks of taking crack
- can cause chest and lung problems
- dangerous for people with heart or blood
pressure problems
- can make you feel very depressed and
tired when the effects wear off
- dependence, which can lead to spending
huge sums of money on the drug
- feelings of anxiety and paranoia if used
regularly
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Ecstasy
What are they?
A stimulant drug with a hallucinogenic effect like a mild LSD. Also known as E, doves and echoes.
Legal Aspect:
Class A drug
How is it taken?
Tablets of different shapes and colours are swallowed.
The effects of ecstasy:
· gives a rush of energy followed by a sense of calm
· makes you feel close to others with a greater awareness of your surroundings
· sometimes you see and hear things that are not real
The risks of taking ecstasy:
- feeling panicky, anxious and frightened
- feeling spaced out, dizzy and having
accidents
- regular use can result in sleep
problems, lethargy and depression when
the drug wears off
- can make the arms, legs and jaw muscles
stiffen up
- risk of overheating if you dance for
long periods in a hot atmosphere which
can be very dangerous and can kill
- also dangerous for people with heart or
blood pressure problems
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GHB (gammahydroxybutyrate)
What are they?
Has a medical use as an anaesthetic and is used as a depressant drug.
Legal Aspect:
Class C drug
How is it taken?
A colourless, odourless liquid that is swallowed.
The effects of GHB:
Small doses feel like the effects of having a few drinks
larger doses cause various unpleasant effects
The risks of taking GHB:
- Vomiting, nausea, stiff muscles,
dizziness, fits and collapse
· very dangerous if mixed with alcohol
· can burn the mouth
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Heroin
What are they?
A brownish powder made from opium poppy, also known as gear, H, junk, scag, smack and junk brown.
Legal Aspect:
Class A drug
How is it taken?
Injected, smoked or sniffed.
The effects of heroin:
Slows you down and makes you feel drowsy and separate from the real world
The risks of taking heroin:
- Nausea, vomiting and dizziness
- drowsiness and sedation
- an overdose can lead to coma and death
- impossible to know how pure the heroin
is and so can overdose by mistake
- addiction and getting off heroin is
difficult because of the unpleasant
withdrawal symptoms
- injecting heroin can damage veins, cause
gangrene, and increase your risk of
getting HIV or hepatitis
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Ketamine
What are they?
Has a medical use as an anaesthetic. Is used as an hallucinogenic drug.
Legal Aspect:
Ketamine is classed as a prescription only medicine.
How is it taken?
Swallowed as a tablet or snorted as a powder. Sometimes mixed with ephedrine (a stimulant drug) and passed off as ecstasy tablets.
The effects of Ketamine:
Makes you hallucinate
during a trip you may be unable to move much, if at all, and can feel dizzy
effect depends on your mood and where you are.
The risks of taking Ketamine:
- The trip can be frightening
- numbs pain, therefore increasing the
risk of injuring yourself without
realising it
- heart failure and breathing problems
very dangerous if mixed with alcohol.
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LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide)
What are they?
A hallucinogenic drug, also known as trips, acid, tabs and microdots.
Legal Aspect:
Class A drug
{How is it taken?
LSD comes as small paper squares with a picture on them. They are sucked and swallowed.
The effects of LSD:
The kind of trip you have depends on how much LSD you take and your mood
it is common to see and hear things, for colours to seem very bright and for things to appear to speed up or slow down.
The risks of taking LSD:
- Feeling hot, sick and dizzy
- having a bad trip that makes you feel
anxious, panicky, afraid or even paranoid
- people with mental health problems can
really flip out and make their
situation worse
accidents are more likely
some people have flashbacks to a previous trip that can be disturbing.
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Magic mushrooms
What are they?
Wild mushrooms, particularly the Liberty Cap mushroom, that are taken as a drug. They are also known as happies, mushies, sillies and shrooms.
Legal Aspect:
Class A drug (if dried, cooked or boiled).
How are they taken?
They are eaten raw, cooked or stewed into tea or an infusion.
The effects of magic mushrooms:
They cause hallucinations like a mild LSD experience
they often make you laugh a lot
effects are very dependent on your mood and expectations.
The risks of taking magic mushrooms:
- Nausea and stomach ache
- accidents due to clumsiness and
confusion
- picking and eating poisonous mushrooms by
mistake
- having a bad trip that makes you feel
anxious, afraid or even paranoid
- some people have flashbacks to a previous
trip that can be disturbing.
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Solvents (gases, glues and aerosols)
What are they?
Found in gas lighter refills, fuel canisters, hairspray, deodorants, tins or tubes of glue, some paints, thinners and other products.
Legal Aspect:
There are restrictions on shopkeepers selling these products to anyone under 18.
How are they taken?
Fumes are sniffed or sprayed into the mouth or nose.
The effects of solvents:
Like getting very drunk very quickly
feeling light headed and dizzy
having dreams and visions (hallucinations).
The risks of using solvents:
- vomiting, nausea and drowsiness.
- loss of balance and control and increased
risk of accidents, especially if used in
dangerous places
- loss of consciousness with a risk of
choking on vomit
- suffocation if solvents are inhaled from
a plastic bag
dependency
dangerous to mix sniffing with drinking
alcohol
sniffing or spraying gas into the mouth
can result in instant death. One person
dies every week from sniffing solvents.
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Tranquillisers
What are they?
Medical drugs used to treat anxiety, depression and insomnia. Examples include Valium, Mogadon, Temazepam and Ativan.
Legal Aspect:
Class C penalties apply with regard to Supply
How are they taken?
Capsules or tablets that are swallowed or injected.
The effects of tranquillisers:
In small doses make you relaxed
in larger doses make you drowsy, lethargic and sometimes forgetful
- The risks of taking tranquillisers:
- Tolerance can develop quickly it is easy
to get dependent on tranquillisers
- injecting Temazepam is very dangerous
- an overdose can cause unconsciousness and
death
- Mixing with other downers, such as
alcohol, can be very dangerous
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