cocaine addiction
Cocaine is an illegal stimulant drug typically snorted although it is also used in a form that is smoked (crack cocaine) and injected. Cocaine is often combined with other drugs such as heroin (speedball). Cocaine can cause damage to the brain’s ability to produce the chemicals that allow a person to feel pleasure. Cocaine blocks the reuptake of neurotransmitters such as dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. Cocaine addiction can be particularly difficult to treat due to the long-term impact of blocking reuptake. Those in recovery may feel depressed for several months and even as long as a year after quitting while the brain repairs its ability to properly process neurotransmitters related to pleasure.
Posted under Cocaine
Study Finds Female Rats Prefer Cocaine Over Food
A new study reveals surprising results: When given a choice between sweets and cocaine, male rats prefer sweets, and female rats prefer cocaine. Researchers presented the results at the November 2010 meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in San Diego, California.
Posted under Science & Research
Study Examines Cocaine Addict Relapse
A cocaine addict may or may not want to be addicted to this deadly substance and for those who would like to come clean, the road to get there may be littered with failures. As scientists continue to research cocaine withdrawal, relapse and treatment options, however, better options may eventually emerge.
Posted under Cocaine
Glutamate Receptors Could Play Role in Cocaine Addiction Treatment
Glutamate is a neurotransmitter that is involved with learning and memory, and could help with treating cocaine addiction. Metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) represent a network of G-protein-coupled receptors that help transmit glutamates, and these receptors could play an important role in treating a variety of neurological and psychiatric disorders such as drug addiction.
Posted under Celebrity Addiction
Rapper DMX to Do Jail Time for Failing Drug Test
Rapper DMX was sentenced to six months in an Arizona jail on Tuesday for violating his probation by testing positive for cocaine. The rapper (born Earl Simmons), who has been in jail since his arrest on March 9 for five counts of probation violation, admitted to a single violation for failing a court-mandated drug test last June and testing positive for cocaine, according to The Arizona Republic.
Posted under Celebrity Addiction
Kristin Cavallari’s Alleged Cocaine Addiction
Kristin Cavallari of the MTV reality show The Hills raised eyebrows for the wrong reasons during Super Bowl weekend in Miami, according to a source quoted in the new issue of US Weekly. "She was wasted the entire time. She was going around to everyone, asking them to score her some coke."
Posted under Celebrity Addiction
Charlie Wilson: From Addiction and Homelessness to a Grammy Nomination
If R&B singer Charlie Wilson wins either of the awards he’s up for at this Sunday’s Grammys, his will be yet another great comeback story. "People really don’t know how I laid in the streets," Wilson said. "From that to this, I cried when they told me I had a Grammy nomination. It still doesn’t seem real to me, because so many doors have been shut on me so many times…Everything was derailed."
Posted under Celebrity Addiction
Stephen Baldwin Opens Up About Cocaine Addiction
Actor Stephen Baldwin, who has been on “Celebrity Rehab” and now appears on “Celebrity Big Brother,” has opened up about overcoming his cocaine addiction.
Posted under Cocaine
Cocaine Torches to Detect Cocaine Use Among Scottish Club-Goers
"Cocaine torches" (also known as flashlights) are to be issued to pub and club stewards in Renfrewshire, Scotland, in an attempt to tackle drug abuse. They work by illuminating the hairs on the inside of the nose and around the nose area. If cocaine has been taken, it shows up bright green.
Posted under Addiction Treatment
Researcher Given Grant to Further Study Effect of Exercise on Addiction
In a series of experiments over the last three years, Mark Smith, Associate Professor of Psychology at Davidson College, has found that exercise can reduce the desire for cocaine in addicted rats. Now he’s been given a grant of nearly $1 million from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to further investigate the benefits of exercise at various stages of addiction.
Connect with a Recovery Adviser
The Addiction Primer
Everything you need to know to help a loved one struggling with addiction, from the writers and editors of Everything Addiction.
