Talk to Your Kids About Speed (Metamphetamine)

Speed is another club drug, like ecstacy, that has been gaining popularity among the youth of America. Time Magazine even printed a recent issue on Metamphetamine addiction. Truly its use is a growing phenomenon that must be watched and hopefully contained. It is important to warn your children about the effects and dangers of speed and other club drugs. In the below explanation I hope that I will be able to help illustrate the effects and dangers of speed. In my opinion, I think speed is the most dangerous of all the club drugs that I know of. It is very addictive, very potentially dangerous to your body and health, and often has other components and impurities in it when it is manufactured making it unreliable and even more risky to take from random dealers.

There are many ways to ingest speed. It can be inhaled, snorted, sniffed, injected, and smoked. The smokable version of speed is often called ice, or meth (short for Metamphetamine).

The general effects of speed are increased activity, aggression, tendencies to violence, alertness, irritability, and paranoia. Speed is a stimulant and may keep you up and active for hours at a time. The comedown is also relatively slow and it may take you several days to recover and become normal again. Speed has many psychoactive effects on the brain as well. Along with being a stimulant speed users often find that they are always paranoid and experience hallucinations. This leads to physical disordination coupled with increased agitation. The heart also has to beat very hard to keep up with all the physical activity speed induces. Speed causes you to feel like moving all the time without stopping so this poses risks to dehyration and other complications such as heatstroke.

Because the heart works so hard you may also be suspectable to heart attacks. When taking speed you will most likely have a dry mouth, lots of sweating, and constant movement such as shaking or trembling. Taking speed puts strain on your heart as it has to work harder and so overdose can be fatal. When users take a lot of speed regularly they will also face consequences such as mental damage and damage to physical health.

When taking speed regularly, users become seemingly aggressive and violent all the time. Weight loss is also a common effect of speed and users do not eat as much and general health declines. Since it is an addictive drug users may become dependent on it.

If you know your son or daughter is taking speed at clubs or wherever, you should warn him or her about the dangerous effects it has on the brain and the high risk of permanent lasting damage. Speed is highly addictive and the process of refining it is difficult so many times it is made with impurities which pose even greater health risks.

If you discover one day that your child is under the influence of speed it is important that you tell him or her to drink lots of water. Though the euphoric effects last only for a while, the comedown may last several days. Because speed causes you to become much more active, your heart will be strained and you will sweat a lot. Drinking at least a cup of water every half hour is very helpful for remaining hydrated and helps flush the toxins from speed out of your body. You should also advise your child to rest and always offer assuring words to keep him or her calm. When under the influence of speed, users sometimes become paranoid so it is important for you to reassure them they will be alright so they don't get scared and do crazy things.

I would consider speed one of the more dangerous "hard drugs" to definitely avoid. Most users I have seen have become addicted to it and are now in rehabilitation. Some of my old friends that had taken speed seem to be completely different people. Speed definitely changes people for the worse. It is a drug that if you were to take all others, this would definitely be the one to avoid. It can alter your psyche completely and make you into an addict. Stay away at all costs.