PCP Abuse

Categories: PCP Abuse  |  Tags: ,

Phencyclidine, or PCP, is a lab-developed drug originally intended for use as a surgical anesthetic. The drug is mainly found in the form of a white crystalline powder that dissolves in both alcohol and water. The drug is characterized by a bitter chemical taste and is manufactured illegally in unregulated laboratories. Its use in medicine was halted back in the 1950s as a result of the severe side-effects that it caused. It can be acquired in capsule or tablet form or as a colored crystalline powder.

The drug can be taken in various way, either by smoking, snorting, injection or even by dissolving it in a solvent which is then applied to tobacco, oregano, marijuana and other varieties of leafy plants which can be smoked. It is also quite possible that some users of marijuana and methamphetamine be addicted unwittingly to PCP since it is often mixed with these drugs.

Just like other drugs that affect the brain and the central nervous system, PCP brings about a dissociative experience and users of the drug often feel an `out of body’ sensation. Repeated use of the drug creates dependency in the user. The onset of addiction can be indicated by withdrawal symptoms and cravings for the substance.

The reactions experienced by different people after abusing this substance vary greatly. The main reason for abuse of PCP is to experience the euphoric, tranquilizing and relaxing effects of the drug. Nonetheless, these pleasant effects are regularly accompanied by the dissociative effects which drive the patient to erratic and aggressive behavior.

Initially, the addict takes small quantities of the drugs which are enough to get the desired sensation of euphoria. Users claim that the effects can last for several hours and some may even feel the effects for days. However, the duration of the sensations will reduce as the body becomes tolerant to the drug. Cellular adaptation increases the rate of metabolism meaning that the substance is digested quite rapidly. Addicts are compelled to keep increasing the dose taken as well as the frequency of use of the drugs.

A compulsive desire to take the drug makes the addict keep taking PCP despite the many side-effects that comes from abusing this substance. PCP addicts are mainly affected psychologically since the drug inhibits proper brain function. Among the side-effects experienced as a result of taking PCP are delusions, extreme agitation, distorted thought processes and irrational behavior. It was because of these dangerous and undesirable effects that use of the substance was banned from legal medicine.

The level at which the substance remains in the body is determined by a number of factors such as the period of time over which an individual has been using the drug, the form in which it was taken and the quantity ingested.

Many cases have been recorded of people having bad experiences when taking this drug (bad trips). Despite this, people who keep using the substance develop a strong affinity to the drug.The process of withdrawing from PCP can cause effects such as depression, amnesia, an inability to talk and think properly, paranoia, delusions and detachment from the surrounding environment.