Heroin
(Diamporphine Hydrochloride)
Otherwise known as:
H, Smack, Brown, Junk, Gear, Henry, Skag.
Heroin is a depressant and belongs to the opiate family of drugs, comes in 3 main forms:-
- Pharmacutical heroin – for medical use,
- Far Eastern Heroin,
- and the most common Middle or New Eastern or ‘Brown’.
COST:
Approx £60 gram.
How Taken
Heroin is either:-
- smoked on tinfoil (chasing the dragon),
- swallowed in a bag (bombing),
- or injected into the body (shooting up.)
Physiologically (that’s what happens physically to the body) reaction to pain, breathing, and heart rate are reduced, the cough reflex is repressed, constipation occurs, + blood vessels dilate.
Mentally the effects of fear, anxiety and discomfort are relieved. Feelings of contentment, well being + happiness are experienced, like being wrapped in cotton wool. It is the relief from symptons such as these that makes Heroin a drug of choice for some people who have some pain or unhappiness they cannot cope with. Inversely many people would chose not to use it because of the very fact that it dulled the senses.
Nausea + vommitting can also occur when the drug is used at first. High does also cause sedation.
Tolerance can develop rapidly, i.e. more ready to be taken for the same effect.
Withdrawl brings on aches, pains, tumours, convulsions, muscular spasms, sweating + anxiety. This is cold turkey. This lasts 7-10 days, but feelings of weakness + feeling generally not so good can carry on for week.
Many long term users who present themselves to drug agencies not only have to confront the ‘original reasons’ as to why they became dependent on Heroin, but also unpick years of associated problems that go along with using an illegal adulterated drug.
Health problems include:-
- Collapsed veins, hardened arteries, and infected injection sites, the legacy of injecting years of adulterated Heroin in various states of desperation.
- HIV and Hepatitis A,B, + C risks.
- Pnuemonia as a result of the depression of the respiratory system brought on by long term use.
- Disturbed eating + sleeping leading to ill health + weight loss.
Many problems can be reduced by using safer injecting practices
Legal problems may have arisen, a highly possible consequence of using an illegal drug for long term, both due to it’s own status and the need to raise funds to feed the habit.
Social consequences may include problems around work, housing, money.
Personal/Emotional problems arise.
Emotions that heroin use stopped people having to deal with, maybe one of the factors that caused dependent use, or exasperated it.
Relationship problems with family, friends, and lovers that have suffered while heroin was No. 1.
A loss of the confidence, skills, + abilities needed to deal with problems in life.
Many long term users go through the cycle of coming off and starting again.
One of the reasons people overdose on Heroin is because when they go back onto it after being off for a while, they go back to their old dosage, forgetting their tolerance has gone down, and OD follows.
The other main killer is when a load of gear with high purity comes onto the streets and people jack up with their usual amount not realising it’s muh stronger…OD follows.In overdose, death is usually the result of respiratory failure and heart complications.
Methadone is also responsible for many OD deaths.