How to spot a meth user
Methamphetamine (Meth) is an illegal stimulant. It is commonly referred to as crank, speed, ice, crystal, glass or, when crystal meth is smoked, snot. Crystal meth is simply a highly purified form of the drug. A street term for using meth is “tweaking.”
Technically, meth belongs to a class of chemicals called amphetamines. Members of this class include some familiar names: dexadrine (dextroamphetamine), benzedrine (levoamphetamine), and methedrine (methamphetamine). Some of these you may recognize as the active ingredients in nasal inhalers. Less technically, meth falls into a class of drugs commonly called uppers. Meth can be smoked, injected intra-venously, snorted, or swallowed. Injection is a frequently used method for those who are addicted and require high doses. Within 5-10 seconds of injecting or smoking the drug the user experiences an intense “rush” or “flash.” When smoked, meth may exert its effects for up to 24 hours. Ingesting (swallowing) meth produces effects over about 15-20 minutes.
Methamphetamine is one of the most addictive drugs known. Addiction has been reported after a single use and it is destructive both physically and emotionally. It can be made in simple clandestine laboratories, which can be housed in a motor home, house, hotel room or even in the trunk of a car, and it is produced from commonly available materials. Because it is easy to produce, easy to sell and so addictive, it is the fastest-growing “recreational” drug on the street. Its addiction and use are often associated with other crimes such as burglary, robbery, shoplifting, forgery and theft including credit card and identity theft and, of course, prostitution. Addicts will literally do anything to pay for their habit.
Ingredients often used to make meth include cold and allergy medicine (pseudoephedrine, e.g. “sudafed”), rubbing alcohol, matches, salt, gasoline additives, drain cleaner (e.g. “Red Devil lye”), brake cleaner, anhydrous ammonia, iodine, camera batteries, kerosene, gasoline, muriatic (hydrochloric) acid, paint thinner, and campfire fuel. Discarded containers of these materials are often found in the vicinity of meth labs. Equipment and supplies include coffee filters, funnels, aluminum foil, laboratory equiment and vessels such as retorts and stills, coffee makers and propane tanks.
Signs of Meth Use :
• Stimulated movement and speech (hyperactive, staccato, “motor mouth”, agitated)
• Dilated pupils
• Feelings of intense excitement and euphoria
• Lack of sleep, no desire to sleep
• Increased energy
• Mood swings, irritability, nervousness
• Increased heart rate and blood pressure
• Chest pain, heart palpitations, hot flashes, dry mouth, sweating
Signs of Long Term Use:
• Mental Confusion
• Deteriorating school grades or work performance
• Aggressiveness, violence, emotional lability
• Weight loss (women & young women sometimes start the drug for this)
• Sores on face, arms (”crank bugs”)
• Diarrhea, vomiting
• Hallucinations, paranoia
• Tremors or shaking, convulsions
• Staying awake for long periods (e.g. several days)
• Sleeping for long periods, sometimes days (after being awake for long periods)
• Hypertension
• Palpitations, cardiac arrhythmia
• Dental decay