METHAMPHETAMINE (Ice)

Methamphetamine, also called meth, crystal, crystal meth or ice , is a synthetic stimulant drug used for both medicinal and recreational purposes. Some of its medical uses involve treatment for ADHD, obesity and mood disorders. Ice is chemically very similar to amphetamine but has much stronger effects. While this means a more intense high, it also means the negative effects are increased too.

Like most stimulants, ice can cause a strong feeling of euphoria. The euphoria can drain a person physically and make the user, when the drug’s effect wears off, have a “come-down” which can create a desire to consume more, increasing the potential for dependency.

Availability and names of ice

Pure ice is available in tablet form and prescribed by doctors. Illicit methamphetamine comes in a variety of forms. Most commonly it is found as a colorless crystalline solid, sold on the street under a variety of names, such as: crystal ice or crystal. Crystal ice may also be commonly referred to as shards, rock, crystal, glass or ice.

It is also sold as a less-pure crystalline powder called crank or speed, or in crystalline rock form called dope, shit, tina, or tweak; both “dope” and “speed” are also sometimes used to refer to other drugs. Colorful flavored pills containing methamphetamine and caffeine are known as yaba (Thai for “crazy medicine”). At its most impure, it is sold as a crumbly brown or off-white rock commonly referred to as peanut butter crank.

Ice found on the street may be pure, or adulterated with chemicals that were used to synthesize it. In some instances, it may be diluted or cut with non-psychoactive substances or it may be mixed with other psychoactive drugs.

History of ice

Methamphetamine was first synthesized in 1919 and is closely related to amphetamine, which was first synthesized in 1887. Ice was later distributed during World War II by the Allies and the Axis to troops. The Nazis widely distributed ice to their soldiers for use as a stimulant. Adolf Hitler received shots of methamphetamine from his personal physician.

With the 1950s came a rise in the legal prescription of methamphetamine to the American public. The 1960s saw the start of the significant use of clandestine manufacture to supply meth. The recreational use of ice sky-rocketed in the 1980s in many Western countries.

Production of ice

Ice is structurally similar to methcathinone, amphetamine, and other stimulants, and it may be produced from ephedrine or pseudoephedrine by chemical reduction. Most of the necessary chemicals are readily available in household products or over-the counter medicines. This makes ice appear unusually easy to make. Almost every method of synthesis involves highly dangerous chemicals and processes. Production appears to be a mix between large scale operations and small home-based ones.

Effects of ice

Ice is a potent central nervous system stimulant, that affects neurochemical mechanisms responsible for regulating heart rate, body temperature, blood pressure, appetite, attention, mood and responses associated with alertness or alarm conditions. The person who ingests ice will experience an increased focus and mental alertness and the elimination of the subjective effects of fatigue, as well as a decrease in appetite. Many of these effects are broadly interpreted as euphoria or a sense of well-being, intelligence, and power.

Prolonged use or overdose can lead to dependency, anxiety reactions, skin rashes, weight loss and/or amphetamine psychosis - paranoia, hallucinations, exhaustion, sleepiness, and depression. In cases of neurotoxicity, there can be long-term impairment of brain function.

Other side effects include twitching, repetitive behavior, and jaw clenching or teeth grinding. People regularly using ice can have dental problems due to a lack of saliva, teeth grinding, effects of the chemicals used to make meth, and in some cases, poor dental hygiene.
Formication can occur, a sensation of one’s skin crawling with bugs, with possible associated compulsive picking and infected sores.
The risks of sexually transmitted infections can be higher as users will tend to be more impulsive in sexual encounters.

Tolerance and dependency on ice

The desired effects drop off as the brain’s natural transmitter resources are depleted which leads to the rebound effect, the opposite of the drug’s effects. Many users then compensate by administering more of the drug to maintain their current state of euphoria and alertness. This process can be repeated many times, often leading to the user remaining awake for days, after which secondary sleep deprivation effects manifest in the user. Classic sleep deprivation effects include irritability, blurred vision, memory lapses, confusion, paranoia, hallucinations, nausea, and (in extreme cases) death. After prolonged use, the ice user will begin to become irritable, most likely due to lack of sleep.

The extra strength of ice over normal speed means that physical dependency builds quicker and is harder to escape. Methamphetamine is very much a psychologically addictive drug too. The mental and social consequences of quitting can be severe and extremely difficult.

As with all drug dependencies, relapse is common. As the brain adapts to meth, going clean usually results in slowed thinking, feeling emotionally flat and depressed. Research is indicating that there is less dopamine in the brain months after someone has detoxed so these negative feelings can last a long time.

Routes of administration for ice

Methamphetamine can be swallowed, snorted, smoked, dissolved in water and injected, inserted anally (with or without dissolution in water), or into the urethra. As with most recreational drugs, the potential for dependency is greater when it is delivered by methods that cause the concentration in the blood to rise quickly. The desired effects are felt quicker and with a higher intensity than through a moderated delivery mechanism.
The safest method of taking ice is by mouth. The effects are moderated over time to a greater degree, and neither teeth, skin, nor nasal passages are directly exposed to potentially harmful chemicals. Although the effects lasts longer, the less-intense high may make this a less popular current choice for administration.

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so how addictive is ice?

A lot of documentaries and media coverage have painted meth as so addictive you only use it once and you are hooked. Is this the usual scare campaign, or is there some truth to it?

As usual the truth is somewhere in the middle. There is still no drug that is ‘instantly’ addictive — and the one that probably comes closest to this is nicotine! Some people can use meth for a night on the town once a week and leave it at that level, for years on end. At the other extreme, others will spiral down into a life dominated by the drug. And of course plenty of us fall somewhere in between.
Dependency on a drug has two faces; physical and psychological.

Meth can easily lead to physical dependency with regular use. Your body adapts to the regular presence of the drug, so you need more to get the same effect. Eventually stopping the use will lead to nasty withdrawal symptoms. The problem is that meth is stronger than normal amphetamines so this physical dependency develops faster, with worse withdrawals on stopping. And as anyone who has detoxed from speed knows, it can be a nasty enough experience — meth is just that much nastier than normal speed if your body gets hooked.

Psychological dependency can happen quickly for many users too. Once the effects wear off, you often get the rebound – the opposite of the drug’s effects. You go from feeling great to lethargic and down. It is easy to just keep taking more to keep the good feelings going.
While it takes a while for physical dependency to kick in, for some users this psychological dependency can happen very quickly. The high is more intense than normal amphetamines, so some users can crave another hit after their first time, which may contribute to the ‘addicted after one shot’ myth.

For those with a heavy degree of dependency, staying off meth can be really tough. Going clean usually results in slowed thinking, feeling emotionally flat and depressed. Research indicates that there is less dopamine in the brain, even months after someone has detoxed, so these negative feelings can last a long time. It can be pretty tough to avoid meth when life seems pretty flat (with our without Twisties), and knowing you can feel good for a few hours with another hit.

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