Dangers of Injecting Street Drugs

In the society we live in, we want everything bigger, faster, and better. The majority of us have to have the best of everything. We get the latest phone that has all the bells and whistles; we have to have the new one that comes out next year. We are never satisfied with what we have and we go to extremes with everything.

Some of us go to extremes even the way we party and have fun.  The majority of the population believes we need to have drugs and alcohol to have fun and we even go to the extremes with that. We drink to the point of passing out and use illegal drugs while putting others and ourselves in dangerous situations.

Dangers of Injecting Street Drugs

Most Street Drugs are Being Injected

Nearly all drugs can be injected by dissolving pills, powders, or salts into a liquid solution and using a hypodermic needle to get the liquid into a vein. This method is often preferred to ingesting a drug orally due to the fact that injecting a substance gets it to the brain much faster. The administration of street drugs by injection has been the bigger, faster and better way to get that high. But it has a dark side because injecting drugs is more addictive, dangerous, and carries higher risks. On the other hand, smoking, swallowing and snorting is less preferred because injecting is the quickest and results in the most intense “high”.

Other methods of administration generally provide a slower onset and a less Intense “rush”. This other methods also waste a good amount of the drug being used: when given orally a proportion of the dose may not be absorbed or may be metabolized by the liver before reaching the brain; smoking or vaporization usually destroys some of the drugs; nasal inhalation wastes the percentage of the drug that passes down the throat to be absorbed more slowly later.

Injecting Drugs Has the Worst Consequences

Injecting is the most dangerous way to use drugs. When you inject street drugs, the majority of the risk is related to the needle. Street drugs are deadly, and usually, there’s no way to know how strong they are or what else may be in them. It’s even unsafe to use them along with other substances like alcohol, marijuana and prescription drugs.

Some drugs that have the ability to be injected are:

  • Bath Salts
  • Heroin
  • Cocaine
  • Methamphetamine
  • Ecstasy
  • Ketamine
  • PCP
  • Prescription drugs like Vicodin and Adderall

When an addicted man or woman switches to injecting drugs, it is usually a sign of a progression of addiction. Besides being addicted to the drug, having a higher chance of overdosing, there are also other major health concerns that follow the repeated injection of drugs.

Addicts are usually not in their right mind and don’t think of infection or diseases when they are in the process of getting high, so sharing needles or using unsanitary tools are of very little concern. This leads to many infectious diseases and viruses such as Hepatitis B & C and HIV.

Besides the viruses, there are other health issues that can evolve over time with the repeated injection of drugs. There is the damage that can be done to internal organs of course but there are many different types of damage a user can do to their skin as well. This can be a result of injecting regularly, using potentially tainted needles, or injecting into fat or muscle by accident due to missing the vein, and injected right under the skin called “skin popping.” This can result in a painful lump that could potentially cut off blood flow to the area.

Other skins problems that can arise are:

  • Heavy bruising
  • Abscesses
  • Severe bacterial skin infections like cellulitis
  • Fungal infections

We Are Here to Help You

If you or a loved one are using drugs intravenously and think there is no way out, let Allure Detox so you the way. We understand that the idea of going through withdrawals can be daunting and scary, at Allure Detox our medical detoxification, first and foremost, help patients stop using drugs and alcohol safely. But Allure’s Medical detox offers more: a renewed love of life.

We look forward to working with you and your family to get your lives back on track. Contact us around the clock for a confidential assessment and let’s see if Allure Detox is the right treatment center for yourself or a loved one.