Last Updated on February 24, 2023 by Mike Robinson
Cocaine Addiction
Sudden mood swings characterize the behavior of a cocaine addict. Addicts will experience reduced motivation, high economic costs, deteriorated personal relationships, and decreased physical and mental performance.
Cocaine is one of the most addictive psychoactive substances that exists today. Regular consumption of cocaine usually generates a high dependence on the substance and implies the appearance of a series of negative consequences for the consumer.
In this sense, beyond the direct effects generated by cocaine use, many recent studies have focused on examining the consequences of regular cocaine use.
This article looks at the main behavior traits that a cocaine addict tends to exhibit to get a better understanding of the long-term effects of cocaine abuse. The characteristics discussed below attempt to describe as thoroughly as possible all the traits that are most typical of the addictive use of cocaine.
10 Signs that a Person is a Cocaine Addict
Sudden Mood Swings
The consumption of cocaine usually generates a wide range of satisfying sensations, such as euphoria, excitability, hyperactivity, or vitality. Therefore, it is common for people addicted to cocaine to experience frequent and intense changes in their mood.
These characteristics can become less noticeable at the beginning of the addiction. This is because mood modifications only occur at times when the direct effects of the drug are present at the brain level.
However, with regular and continuous consumption of cocaine, mood swings usually appear permanently in the individual. Addiction makes the person’s mood only reach high levels after the use of cocaine, which is why the mood constantly changes.
Changes in Activity Levels
Cocaine’s primary side effect is a surge in energy. The high levels of energy the user feels after taking the substance drive the dramatic uptick in activity that follows. Common side effects include a surge of excitement and a need to constantly move, talk, or otherwise make noise.
Cocaine use causes an increase in activity, which is then contrasted by a decrease in activity as the drug’s effects wear off. A rebound effect occurs when a cocaine addict abruptly stops using the drug. The cocaine addict will see their drive, enthusiasm, and overall activity level all drop significantly.
As a result, subjects with a history of cocaine abuse typically display a wide range of activity levels.
Drug Addiction Reduces Motivation
Although the direct effects of the drug generate a high increase in the individual’s mood, energy, and motivation, cocaine addiction implies a gradual reduction of motivation. This is because of how the chemicals operate in the brain. Consistent cocaine use negatively affects motivation because the drug disrupts the brain’s reward circuits.
Cocaine addicts require more and more of the drug to maintain normal functioning. As such, they need a higher dose of cocaine each time to feel better.
The drug thus controls the subject’s intrinsic drive. Cocaine is the only thing that can give a person addicted to it a sense of fulfillment and the drive to continue using it. Because of this, people dependent on this drug typically exhibit significantly less motivation, which can have far-reaching consequences in every aspect of their lives.
Social Isolation
Cocaine addiction grows in tandem with its use. the same way that a person’s drug use increases alongside their degree of dependence on the drug.
Cocaine is a substance that can cause extreme addiction, which has far-reaching consequences for a person’s health and well-being. Cocaine dependency causes a person to become increasingly preoccupied with and dependent upon the drug.
The search for, purchase of, and use of cocaine become essential parts of the addict’s life, which hurts their ability to function in society.
The person addicted to cocaine will only want to do things that involve taking the drug, which usually means they will lose all their friends (except those who are also consumers).
Physical alterations after consumption
People typically sniff cocaine. Furthermore, it causes several obvious and tangible physical changes when used. Cocaine addicts often have several physical signs that make them easy to spot.
These signs include:
- Damage to the nasal passages and the septum.
- Too many deep breaths through the nose
- Frequent nosebleeds.
- Excessive and unexplained sweating or increased body temperature
- Nerves, tics, or involuntary body movements
- Dilated pupils
Financial Burdens of a Cocaine Addict
Cocaine addicts can’t function without taking the drug constantly throughout the day. Because of this, they regularly partake in excessive drug consumption.
Cocaine is more expensive to obtain than most other illicit substances. Cocaine use, especially heavy use, has significant financial consequences. In this regard, the economic costs associated with cocaine addicts tend to be relatively high. The cost of the drug may exceed the individual’s financial means.
However, a cocaine addict’s primary need is to take the drug, so he may get involved with criminal activity or incur large debts to fund his habit. Cocaine addicts often display bizarre spending habits. It is impossible for someone with this addiction to not waste a lot of money.
How Cocaine Addiction Destroys Relationships
The high financial impacts of cocaine addiction are typically one of the primary causes of these individuals’ personal problems. Similarly, the short-term effects (excitement, euphoria, extravagant behavior, mood swings, and so on) and long-term (behavior modification, lifestyle, decrease in work performance, and so on) are elements that typically directly impact the individual’s personal relationships.
Cocaine addicts frequently experience difficulties in their relationships, marriages, and families. Family and friends are often the first to feel the effects of a person’s drug use or drug-buying trend.
Harmful Physical Effects of Cocaine Use
Regular cocaine use increases the risk of developing various physical chronic conditions. Time reveals more and more physical changes as the substance wears down the body.
Heart and lung problems such as arrhythmias, heart attacks, chest pain, and respiratory failure are common. Similarly, gastrointestinal issues like nausea, fever, muscle spasms, and cloudy vision are also possible, as are neurological effects like stroke, seizures, and frequent headaches.
Lastly, people who inject cocaine are more likely to contract infectious diseases like HIV and hepatitis.
Altered Perception of Time
Cocaine addicts frequently display severe impairments to their typical functioning. The drug is consumed regularly and becomes a central part of their lives, drastically altering their routines.
For cocaine addicts, the most noticeable change in how the body functions are the long time the user spends consuming the drug. Addicts spend much of their day pursuing and engaging in cocaine-related behaviors.
Cocaine use also has a similar effect on one’s body clock. Consuming just one hit of cocaine, time and how it is used becomes entirely distorted. It is common for cocaine addicts to spend long night hours consuming the drug, resulting in a significant time lag in the individual.
How Addiction Impacts Personal Performance
The final characteristic of cocaine-dependent individuals relates to their performance. Drug consumption affects the expected performance of the individual.
Also Read: 35 Famous Drug Addicts of History and News
This is perhaps most noticeable in the workplace, where a person’s performance would suffer significantly if they were addicted to cocaine.
