Street Names: Smack, Horse, Mud, Brown Sugar, Junk, Black tar, Big H, Dope, Skag.
Know the Facts:
Heroin is a highly addictive drug derived from morphine, which is obtained from the opium poppy. It is a narcotic/analgesic,
a "downer" or depressant that affects the brain's pleasure systems and interferes with the brain's ability to perceive pain.
Heroin is a white to dark brown powder or tar-like substance and can be used in a variety of ways, depending on user preference or
the purity of the drug. It can be injected into a vein ("mainlining"), injected into a muscle, injected under the skin ('skin popping"),
smoked in a water pipe or standard pipe, mixed in a marijuana joint or regular cigarette, inhaled as smoke through a straw
("chasing the dragon"), and snorted as powder through a straw or rolled up dollar bill.
SEE GRAPHIC IMAGES BELOW
Immediate Effects:
After an injection of heroin, the user may experience a surge of euphoria ("rush"), dry mouth, and heavy extremities caused its sedation effects.
Following this initial euphoria, the user goes through an alternately wakeful and drowsy state. Mental functioning becomes clouded due to the depression of the central nervous system.
Other effects include slowed and slurred speech, constricted pupils, droopy eyelids, itching, impaired night vision, vomiting, constipation, and depression of the respiratory system.
Long-Term Effects:
Tolerance develops to a rapid degree and heroin users need to take more of the drug to get its original effects; often,
the increase is fatal. Chronic users may develop collapsed veins, infection of the heart lining and valves, abscesses,
cellulites, liver disease, and pulmonary complications.
Due to the strong physical dependence on heroin, a user is unable to stop and withdrawal symptoms may occur.
Withdrawal from heroin includes the following: intense drug craving, restlessness, muscle and bone spasms, insomnia,
diarrhea and vomiting, cold flashes with goose bumps (hence the expression "cold turkey"), kicking movements (hence the expression "kicking the habit"), and other symptoms.
Major withdrawal symptoms peak between 48 and 72 hours after the last dose and subside after about a week.
Medical conditions may arise during withdrawal, such as extreme dehydration, body chemistry disturbances,
and stress on the cardiovascular system. Users who are in poor health may need medical help because withdrawal can be fatal.
Below are a few photos of overdose victims, collapsed veins, and the infections caused by skin popping.
Photos are courtesy of ODD SQUAD and used with written permission.
Listen to a live Audio Interview with a Drug Dealer.
Please visit our Memorial Wall for those who died from Drugs.
