They both act as central nervous system stimulants and induce hallucinations, anxiety, paranoia (constant feeling of threat), and an aggressive mental state. The only evident difference between bath salts and Flakka is the lack of 3,4-methylenedioxy atomoxetine strattera nami motif molecules in Flakka. Similar to “bath salts” at times referred to as “gravel” or the “zombie drug” and comes from the plant Khat. Flakka is a synthetic cathinone with stimulant effects like cocaine or methamphetamine.
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Some say the name could be a variation of the Spanish slang word “la flaca” which means “skinny girl”. Some say the term is random and quite fittingly describes what a person high on this drug feels. A popular street name for A-PVP is “gravel” as the pink and white crystals look like those placed in fish aquariums. The practice of jump-starting a cycle of Flakka used to counter negative come downs will eventually lead to tolerance to the drug.
CarePlus in New Jersey is Where To Get Help for Drug Abuse and Flakka Addictions
However, several traditional drug treatment approaches can help someone addicted to flakka become sober. As cathinones are hydrophobic molecules, they can cross cell membranes and the blood-brain barrier. This allows them to interact with the monoamine transporters in the synaptic cleft between neurons. They last between two and five hours, https://sober-home.org/alcohol-and-insomnia-possible-risks-and-more/ which is similar to the duration of the effects of effects of bath salts. If you or a loved one is struggling with flakka or other drugs, it is important to contact Your First Step immediately. Withdrawal can be very painful and uncomfortable, and it is important be under medical supervision so that the symptoms are monitored and managed.
What Are Flakka’s Effects on a User’s Brain?
This condition causes changes to the mental state, including bizarre behavior, anxiety, agitation, violence, confusion, myoclonus, and seizures [32,33]. Clinical signs of agitated delirium include tachycardia, hypertension, hyperthermia, diaphoresis, and mydriasis [34]. Although α-PVP is not a risk-free drug, this new synthetic Cathinone is beginning to dominate the drug arena in the US and Europe [35]. Even when flakka does not cause death, it can lead to severe permanent damage. The chemicals in flakka have the ability not just to disrupt neurotransmitter levels in the brain to cause a high, it can also destroy entire neurons.
On an almost daily basis, we hear about a new designer drug that people are using to chase their next high. No matter what type of drug it may be, its’ use causes major problems for those who use it and its’ use becomes widespread in certain areas of the country. In some of the documented delusions, individuals’ experiences are of a typical paranoia, where the drug users feel they are being chased by a large group of people trying to kill them. These patients are a threat to themselves, the people around them, and the first responders (police, EMS) who are there to help them. It is common to hear reports that it takes multiple people to restrain and sedate these patients. Rescue crews and emergency department staff need to give sedatives to these patients to calm them and make them safe.
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- It is an artificial stimulant that can induce hallucinatory effects.
- In severe cases it may cause epilepsy, severe peripheral organ damage, and rhabdomyolysis [9].
- This is often followed up with years of psychological care to treat post-traumatic stress caused by the incident and to treat the underlying conditions that may have lead to the users taking flakka in the first place.
- It is no secret that dopamine is a neurotransmitter in the brain that plays a crucial role in the feelings of reward and pleasure.
Cathinones are man-made, or synthetic drugs containing cathinone, a naturally occurring stimulant found in the khat plant. Specifically, the excited delirium inspired by the drug not only involves hyperstimulation and hallucinations but also a paranoia that often leads to aggressive violence or self-injury. Linked to deaths by suicide and heart attack, the drug can raise a user’s body temperature dangerously high (up to 106 degrees), leading to kidney damage or even kidney failure. In 2012, the Drug Enforcement Administration banned two chemicals used to make the synthetic street drug bath salts. In the United States, flakka is classified as a Schedule I controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act. Schedule I drugs are defined as substances with a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment, and a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision.
In the year 2015, several reports mentioned individuals who were running naked in the streets and showing aggressive behavior by attacking those around them or impaling themselves into fences. These individuals showcase unnatural strength, and it is pretty hard to control such individuals without the use of sedatives. Flakka overloads an individual’s senses by reacting with the brain’s hormones on a chemical level, and this can even cause hyperthermia. Hyperthermia is when the body’s core reaches an unnaturally high temperature. Use of Flakka can impair your brain permanently and make an individual aggressive, paranoid, and delusional. As the brain’s significant neurotransmitters are blocked and manipulated, this can result in organ failure in the rest of the body since the brain controls the entire body’s function.
A synthetic drug known on the streets as “Flakka” (α-pyrrolidinovalerophenone, α-PVP) has become popular in the United States. It is chemically similar to MDPV, also known as a bath salt, which was responsible for the increase in bizarre cases of intoxication and agitation in the United States several years ago https://soberhome.net/alcohol-addiction-drug-rehab-centers-in-california/ [30]. Although people use α-PVP for their euphoric potential, symptoms can easily escalate into terrible delusions, paranoid psychosis, extreme agitation, and many other altered mental states. Α-PVP causes a condition called agitated delirium, where there is an excessive influx of sympathetic activation [31].
This synthetic drug is incredibly potent and can lead to several severe health complications. While Flakka and bath salts are chemically similar, there is a crucial difference between the two drugs. Bath salts are a mixture of chemicals such as mephedrone, mephedrone, and methylone. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has classified Flakka as a Schedule I drug, which means that it has a high potential for drug abuse and no currently accepted medical use. Buying, selling, and possessing Flakka in the United States is illegal.
If you or a loved one has taken the drug, or are struggling with addiction to other drugs, it is vital that you find quality drug treatment immediately. With the treatment choices that you have, finding the right drug treatment program can be daunting. When you or a loved one is ready to take that first step towards recovery, call Your First Step. While the attention given to the flakka and its effects on the brain here nationally, the drug–as well as all synthetic drugs–are seen around the world.
The longer you wait, the more difficult it will be to overcome addiction. Because of this, there is little research on the best way to treat addiction. This is just one example of the severe consequences of someone under the influence of this drug. There are several ways that Flakka affects the body, and there are a variety of treatment options available for those addicted to it.
Most of these synthetic drugs–which were banned worldwide in 2006–start off in New Zealand, then spread to Eastern and Western Europe, then to the United States. According to the National Forensic Laboratory Information System, Florida had 672 recorded cases of flakka in 2014, compared to the 2,720 nationally. Flakka was also very inexpensive, costing as little as $5 for a dose. This caused people most at risk, poor desperate drug addicts and homeless people, to use it instead of more expensive drugs like cocaine or methamphetamines. Costs of residential treatment programs will frequently be higher than those of outpatient centers. Luxury drug rehab centers can cost as much as tens of thousands of dollars per month to attend.