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Cocaine is a stimulant that gives a user a sense of power and excitement. The drug stimulates the central nervous system and releases chemicals in the brain that make the user feel happy and energized. When the user comes down from the high they will typically experience very low lows like depression and irritability. When a user becomes addicted to the drug they will be dysfunctional and irritable and tired without the drug. A person who is addicted to cocaine will often have bloodshot eyes, weight loss, hyperactivity and heightened heart rate. Currently there is no prescription drug on the market for a person trying to recover from cocaine addiction. Support groups and weaning yourself off of the drug seem to be the best solution.
-Julia Wright

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Every year about 440,000 people in the U.S. died to cigarette smoking. And Nicotine is a important part of cigarettes. It effects nearly every organ in the body. Smokers are twice more likely to die from cancer than nonsmokers. 90% of all case of lung cancer is from smokers, which is one of the leading deaths of cancer. Smoking can also cause many different type of cancer such as mouth, stomach, kidney, and much more. More than cancer, smoking can increases the risk of heart disease. Exposure to high doses of Nicotine can be extremely toxic. One drop of pure Nicotine can kill a person. But aside from all the negative effects of Nicotine there are some good effects. It is use for revealing stress, pain relief, treating obesity/ weight control, and helps those with ADHD/schizophrenia

- Tony Ku

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LCD serves as a dangerous hallucinogen served mostly in tablet form. It's usually called Acid, Dots, or Window Pane. This drug is one of the more dangerous drugs of the hallucinogen family inflicting hyper mood changes to its users. Additionally, this drug also distorts the senses and time perception, impairing one's judgement and state of reality altogether. The users feel "trippy" drifting into space suffering from flashbacks and hallucinations during the ingestion. Furthermore, this drug also adds severe anxiety, schizophrenia and depression as a result of its usage. Its most potent effect, is the senses' distortions which alters the reality of its victims threatening their physical safety and emotional well being. The effects of this drug can range through the users' lives, even with the drug's abandonment.

~Ahmed Boukour

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Methamphetamine - Medical Uses & Effects

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Methamphetamine - Medical Uses & Effects

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Methamphetamine is a stimulant that when abused or used for recreational purposes can cause rapid or irregular heartbeat, delirium, panic, psychosis, and heart failure. However it and a chemically similar drug amphetamine is used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy (a sleep disorder that causes excessive daytime drowsiness), and obesity. A common medical drug brand for methamphetamine is Desoxyn. Long term use of the drug can lead to dependence and can result in withdrawal symptoms when stopping drug use. Additionally, when treating obesity, it should only be used short-term and should be the last option. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns that "misuse of methamphetamine may cause sudden death and serious cardiovascular adverse events."
- Colleen Han :]

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/methamphetamine

https://www.medicinenet.com/methamphetamine_hydrochloride-oral/article.htm

https://www.drugs.com/pro/desoxyn.html

https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2007/005378s026lbl.pdf

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Alcohol is a depressant. Psychological dependence is being mentally dependent on a substance. Some examples of psychological dependence are intense cravings, high anxiety, loss of appetite, obsession, denial, depression, mood swings, loss of memory, personality changes, and many more.
-Ariana Posner

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Heroin is a psychologically addictive drug because it alters feelings and emotions.  One may see the psychological dependence when one's main motives are to use no matter the consequence.  When withdrawing from the drug one may experience anxiety, paranoid delirium, sleeplessness, and very strong cravings.  With psychological dependence users may experience a higher tolerance due to the fact of the frequent use of the drug.  Although symptoms may occur within hours, it it common for people to endure withdrawal symptoms of heroin for months

-Bobby Mcmillon

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Taking a high consumption of alcohol can take a serious toll on one's health. It can damage important organs like the heart, liver, and pancreas. Heavy drinking can cause inflammation in the liver and can cause the pancreas to produce toxic substances. Also, consuming alcohol can increase one's risk of developing cancer in different parts of the body such as the throat or esophagus. Finally, by drinking too much alcohol one can damage their immune system and weaken it immensely, making that persons body more susceptible to diseases such as tuberculosis or pneumonia. Yet, if taken in moderate amounts, alcohol can actually lower the risk of certain diseases and lengthen one's life. This is the only time alcohol is used for medical purposes, when used to lightly challenge cells in the body making them more fit and able to fight off disease.
-Nousha Karimi

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Heroin is an opioid drug made from morphine. A natural substance taken from the seed of opium poppy plants. Heroin enters the brain rapidly and binds to opioid receptors on cells. It can effect those involved with feelings of pain and pleasures, as well as controlling heart rate, sleeping, and breathing. People who abuse the drug over long terms may develop insomnia, infection of heart lining valves, anxiety, and agitation. The body goes into withdrawal sending it into nasty, flu-like state of misery. Under the influence of heroin studies have shown loss of the brains white matter, which may affect decision making, behavior control, and response to stressful situations.

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Alcohol addiction must be taken seriously. It distracts the person from daily activities and affects their relationships with their surroundings such as: friends, family, work, and themselves. A person who is recovering from alcoholism becomes mentally and physically effected. Symptoms that alcohol addicts can experience during recovery is anxiety, depression, restlessness, sweating, and acute hallucinations. The best way an alcoholic can recover safely is by seeking medical professional help. According to the 2013 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimate of 23 million people need treatment to return back to health. There are hotlines and detox programs that allows alcoholics to seek the help they need to recover safely and comfortably.
- Gabrielle Marquez

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Methamphetamine is one of the worst drugs because of how severe the symptoms can become. The psychological symptoms can lead to depression or experience in anhedonia, which is the inability to feel pleasure, due to the lack of dopamine receptors inbetween neurons. Meth increases the number of dopamine as the user uses it which is why the person feel a sense of pleasure when they have reached their high. During the process of quitting, there's a risk of developing mental issues such at paranoia, psychosis, anxiety, agitation, suicidal thoughts and vivid, lucid dreams. Depending on how much is used will determine how severe the symptoms can get. Users may still be under the addiction because of how they feel that they are recieving a reward for using meth.

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Heroin is a drug that has been used to treat immediate pain such as surgeries, women in labour, or treatment. However, this drug has been misused and can lead to serious consequences. While there maybe an immediate rush within seconds of ingesting heroin, such as injection, snorting, or smoking heroin, the symptoms of dehydration, change in skin colour, heaviness on arms & legs, itching, mental confusion, or disrupted mental procedures occur. Long term effects can be insomnia, destroyed veins (those who inject), heart damage, abscesses in blood tissue (pus), pneumonia, depression, improper sex drive for men or irregular menstrual cycles for women. Potential effects such as blood clug from heroin additives, contraction of HIV/AIDS for drug sharing may also occur depending on the circumstances. Speedballing (mixing, usually crack cocaine, but others apply as well) with heroin or overdosing poses increased danger such as organ failure or even death.
-Caleb Cheung

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Marijuana is addictive because it reaches the same pleasure centers in the brain as alcohol, heroin, cocaine, and other substances. It creates a feeling of euphoria, or high, as it stimulates brain cells to release dopamine. The impact varies by person depending on how much they use the drug and how strong it is. However, after the moment of feeling high, users can feel depressed or extremely tired. In addition, there are side effects of panic, hallucinations, and trouble with concentrating.

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Although the use of medicinal marijuana is controversial the outcomes are overall positive. It can be used to reduce nausea, gain of appetite, reduce seizures and pain.  A chemical in the plant called cannabinoids are FDA approved and they have turned the chemical into a pill. These pills reduce sickness for those in need, and is reducing pain and treats the mentally ill

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Aside from the disturbing initial effects of methamphetamine consumption, its physical dependence factors don’t fail to fall short. When the body of a meth abuser goes without the drug, severe withdrawal symptoms kick in even as immediately as the moment an abuser begins to “crash” — the moment the high begins to wear off. Going through this paralyzingly unpleasant feeling as soon as they come down, an abuser bears the temptation to immediately take the drug yet again to evade the crash’s discomfort, trapping the user in a grim state of escapist dependence on its synthetic and unnatural flood of dopamine. As the drug is known to kill neurons and disrupt the natural secretion of dopamine, pleasure in normal life becomes scarce, reinforcing this imprisonment in artificial pleasure. Apart from this roundabout consequence, although the symptoms differ from individual to individual, withdrawing from the drug barrages the user with effects including intense drug cravings, anxiety, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, irritability, uncontrollable shaking, loss of energy, and depression. With severe depression as a hanging possibility, suicidal tendencies consequently loom hand in hand with this. These life-crippling symptoms, along with the unforgiving cycle of repeated abuse caused by the compulsive urge to evade the crash, make up the narcotic monster we know plainly as "meth".

- Matthew Viray

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Methamphetamine is a variant on the typical amphetamine that is much more potent. It is known for being highly addictive and difficult to get off of. It's also possible for a meth addict to develop bipolar disorder if he or she uses it enough. A survey in 2012 stated that over 12 million people used meth at least once. As of now, there is no specific medication that is known to help people recover from meth addiction. However, there are many treatment facilities and support groups out there for those who wish to get off of the drug.

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Despite the rumors, marijuana is actually very addictive and is one of the most difficult drugs to give up. One out of eleven people who use marijuana become addicted, and one out of six young people in their teens who use marijuana have a high chance of getting addicted. Treatment used for marijuana was the same that therapists used for other drug-related problems because treatments for marijuana was hard to find. There are currently no medication that could treat marijuana use, however treatment programs use counseling and group support systems to help users refrain from using marijuana.

- Eunice Kim

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Marijuana is a Hallucinogen originating from the dried leaves and flowering tops of the pistillate hemp plant. Yielding THC, the plant is normally smoked for their intoxicating effect, and frequent abuse of the drug causes a physical dependence. Symptoms of physical dependence start to show after a short period of abstinence from the drug. Examples of some symptoms include: aggression, depression, anxiety, loss of appetite, difficulty sleeping, and mood swings. Along with sudden abstinence is a very strong craving for the drug. Though not considered intense compared to a majority of other drugs, physical dependence caused by marijuana abuse should still be noted.

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First derived from a coca bush in the mid 19th century, cocaine, a stimulant, is known to be a very widespread drug that makes its user feel a range of emotions such as feeling euphoric and energetic. Short term (and also considerably long term) effects include depression. Once a user comes down from a high, they may feel suddenly depressed after experiencing an intense feeling of euphoria. However, the effects of long term usage of cocaine are much more damaging to the user’s psyche. In one study, it was discovered that up to 84% of cocaine abusers experience paranoia--an effect that can cause other complications such as aggressive actions towards other people. Hallucinations also accompany this paranoia as some users feel as if they are being watched or followed by another person. Suicidal thoughts are also found often in cocaine abusers, becoming more prevalent during rehab.

- Rhianna Zarraga

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Cocaine is a drug that increases the speed of dopamine in the brain. This drug can cause many different diseases and even death. If someone is worried about their way of using cocaine, they are most likely addicted. There are many signs that will prove that you are addicted. From englarged pupils that make the eyes look black to a loss of interest in food and sleep. As people attempt to recover, they often experience depression, anxiety, bad concentration, or tiredness. Fortunately, there are no physical symptoms of recovery, which leads to people convincing themselves that they are not addicted even if they are. While people recover, they expirience something called "cross addiction". This is when the person struggles with forgetting the drug and starts to use another sunstance. A lot of cross addictions often contain alcohol.
-Kayla Yamamoto

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Cocaine is a highly addictive and powerful stimulant that gives the user heightened energy and a false sense of strength. The psychological dependence of cocaine results in negative effects on mood, feeling, thinking, and attitude. For example, the user may experience withdrawal symptoms like depression and mood swings from being deprived of the drug. They may also experience self-destructive behavior and anxiety, paranoia, irritability, psychosis, delusions, and social isolation. Since Cocaine has direct and immediate access to the brain’s pleasure center, it causes a feeling of euphoria.
-Alyssa Griego

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Nicotine is an alkaloid which derives from plants and is most commonly found in tobacco products. Nicotine has highly addictive properties, affecting the human brain's behavioral processes. The pharmacological makeup of nicotine bring about enhancement of mood, and stimulating mental and physical functions. Nicotine can enhance mood directly or through relief of withdrawal symptoms. Additionally, nicotine affects the reward centers of the brain through releasing dopamine and as smokers grow a threshold, those attempting to quit are prone to relapse. Some are vulnerable to nicotine addiction through their genetic makeup. There are genetic determinants and variants in the human genome associated with nicotine dependence which may ultimately lead to addiction. There are commercial products developed to aid in addiction recovery of nicotine but researchers have found CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) to be most effective.
-Dustin Nguyen

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LSD (Lysergic acid diethylamide) is a hallucinogenic drug made from lysergic acid that is derived from a specific type of fungus chemically. LSD dependence is mostly psychological because people who take LSD tend to have a lot of mood changes including feelings of anxiety, depression and euphoria. However, we are to be talking about Physical Dependence of LSD. People who take LSD have physical effects that include dilated pupils, nausea, loss of appetite, change of body temperature, sweating, increase heart rate, and many more. These effects tend to begin from 30-60 minutes after they take in the drug which can last up to 12 hours. LSD isn’t really a drug where it is to be addictive but a drug for a person to build a tolerance to have more in order to experience the effects. With that, the drug primarily affects the brain by interrupting the normal release and re-uptake of serotonin. This would result in the weak shifts of neurotransmitters.  User may need to see help if this tend to be too addictive because users who use these drugs tend to have flashback without warning and may experience them at work, school, or daily routine activities.
-Abdulbakis (Abi) Yusuff

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Marijuana can lead to the development of problem use, known as Marijuana Use Disorder, which is linked to dependence and may lead to addiction. A person is psychologically addicted to marijuana when they continue to smoke the drug despite social, psychological, and physical impairments, relationship and family problems, guilt associated with usage of the drug, financial difficulties, low energy and self esteem, sleep and memory problems, and overall dissatisfaction with productivity levels and life. Studies have shown that people who begin using marijuana before the age of 18 are four to seven times more likely to develop Marijuana Use Disorder than adults, and 17% of the teenage marijuana users will eventually become dependent on it. People who are psychologically dependent on marijuana will show signs of distress if they are cut off from it or feel as if they can’t access the drug. Some users will even ensure that they have an adequate amount on reserve so they can feel at ease that they’ll never run out of marijuana. Users will usually socialize around the drug and refuse the company of those who don’t use it. It becomes the main priority of a user’s life and they feel as if they need to smoke to go through their day normally.
-Trina Hoang

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LSD, or lysergic acid diethyl amide is a non drug that is found in mushrooms and it makes the brain more sensitive to the serotonin signal, which influences visual processing and emotional processing .In 1990, FDA began research on LSD  for the treatment of headache, depression, anxiety, etc.A patient who was diagnosed with stomach cancer claimed that LSD helped him overcome the anxiety. In another similar British based research group which studied LSD in University of California, Berkeley found that the consumption of LSD may enhance creativity by the hallucination caused by the chemical. The benefit of LSD is that it is less dependent. There are examples of LSD help recovering alcoholism, OCD, tobacco addictions, etc.

-Yuyi Wang

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Nicotine dependence is when someone gets addicted to using the substance and cannot quit for any reason, even if it is causing them or others harm. Nicotine causes mood changes and physical pleasure within the brain that is temporary which makes the user become addicted. When someone is additced to nicotine and stops using it can cause anxiety, withdrawals, and irritablility. Two symptoms of physical dependence are the continuation of smoking even if it affects your health, and giving up social and recreational activities that may prevent you from smoking. When a user becomes addicted they are risking lung cancer and lung diseases, other types of cancer, heart and circulatory issues, diabetes, eye problems, infertility and impotence, pregnancy and newborn issues, weak immune system, weakened senses, teeth/gum disease, alteration of the skin, and situations involving family.
- Isis Perez

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When using nicotine, most users associate it with doing another activity. Such as smoking while talking on the phone or eating. Therefore when they do these activities, or jut daily actions, they feel the urge to begin smoking because it has become a routine. When attempting to quit smoking or to just come off of nicotine, the person quitting goes through tremendous psychological distress. Due to this high distress level, this makes relapse for nicotine users very common. Along with mental distress, those trying to quit using nicotine also developed high anxiety and depression.

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Alcoholism occurs when a drinker experiences signs of physical addiction such as issues such as driving under the influence of drinking and legal or social problems such as arrests and arguments with family members. Some common signs of addiction to alcohol are violent when drinking, continue to drink and loss of control. Alcohol can be treated in different ways. The treatment which is recommended for alcohol dependent individuals is detox, which is the abrupt cessation of alcohol intake with substitution of cross-tolerant drugs. The alcoholic takes medications that have similar effects of alcohol in order to prevent alcohol withdraw symptoms, this must be assisted by a qualified health care professional. The next treatment is abstinence, which the user completely stops using the alcohol, but those who cannot can lower the amount of alcohol. Some symptoms alcoholics may experience are tremors, sweating, anxiety,nausea,vomiting,agitation,hallucinations,headaches, and seizures.
-William Tom

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Alcoholism occurs when a drinker experiences signs of physical addiction such as issues such as driving under the influence of drinking and legal or social problems such as arrests and arguments with family members. Some common signs of addiction to alcohol are violent when drinking, continue to drink and loss of control. Alcohol can be treated in different ways. The treatment which is recommended for alcohol dependent individuals is detox, which is the abrupt cessation of alcohol intake with substitution of cross-tolerant drugs. The alcoholic takes medications that have similar effects of alcohol in order to prevent alcohol withdraw symptoms. The next treatment is abstinence, which the user completely stops using the alcohol, but those who cannot can lower the amount of alcohol.

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This post will explain the physical dependence issues associated with nicotine as found in the two articles you will research.