doctor and patient talking about drug addiction treatment in spokane waMany other kinds of substances can be abused, and that can cause problems in people’s lives. New drugs become available or increase in popularity every day. We’ve described here some of the drugs that are less common or have appeared more recently. For all of them, we are aware of harmful health effects, the tendency to cause addiction or dependence, and the overall likelihood of disrupting the lives of people who use them regularly. Then, learn about drug addiction treatment and how it can help you achieve recovery alongside other addiction treatment programs.

No matter what substance you are using, a good benchmark for deciding if you have a problem is if using it is disrupting your life, your family or relationships, or your regular activities. Check out our simple self-assessment that will help you ask and answer questions related to your use.

Inhalants

Inhalants are any drug used primarily by inhaling it. Often, the substances that people use as inhalants are not what we normally think of as “drugs.” Instead, they can come from common work and household products, like solvents, aerosols, and the gases found in spray paint, markers, glue, or cleaning fluids. Another inhalant is nitrites, such as amyl nitrite, which is a prescription medication for chest pain.

The high from inhalants is usually very short, but people may try to prolong it by inhaling again and again over several hours. Along with the drug-seeking and life-disrupting behaviors that any addiction causes, inhalants carry serious health risks, such as:

  • Death from heart failure from chemical exposure
  • Asphyxiation
  • Suffocation
  • Convulsions or seizures
  • Coma
  • Choking

Drug addiction treatment can help end the abuse of inhalants and keep individuals safe from the dangerous effects.

Psychedelics or Hallucinogens

Psychedelics include drugs like ayahuasca (an Amazonian plant), DMT (a synthetic version of the chemical that is in ayahuasca), LSD (acid), peyote (mescaline), and psilocybin (mushrooms). All of these substances cause users to experience sights, sounds, and sensations that seem real but do not exist. Hallucinogenic highs, or trips, can be very short (20 minutes) or very long (many hours or more than a day).

The effects of long-term use can include visual disturbances, disorganized thinking, paranoia, and mood changes. Some people experience flashbacks, the unexpected recurrence of hallucinations and visual disturbances, even long after they have stopped using hallucinogenic drugs. Turning to drug addiction treatment in Spokane, WA, can help prevent these long-term effects of abuse.

Synthetics

Synthetics are laboratory-created drugs, sometimes called “designer drugs.” They include ecstasy/MDMA, bath salts (synthetic cathinones), and synthetic cannabinoids, which are also known as spice, K2, or synthetic marijuana. Synthetics are often very easy to obtain and may not always be illegal. Because they are lab-created, they can be engineered to have slight chemical differences from substances that are illegal and thus can be distributed legally.

These drugs can have highs that last for a very long time, staying in a person’s body for many days. They can cause aggressive and erratic behavior, violence, paranoid or delusional thinking, or suicidal feelings.

Kratom

Kratom is the leaf of a tree native to Southeast Asia. It has opioid-like effects, causing sedation, sensations of pleasure, decreased pain. It also has stimulant-like effects, with some users reporting increased energy, alertness, and sociability. Kratom’s popularity in the U.S. is quite recent. It is not currently illegal and is very easy to buy. Some people use it to manage pain symptoms or as a remedy for opioid withdrawal. Because it is a plant, it has a reputation of being “natural,” like marijuana does. Overdose deaths have been reported from kratom, and you can become physically dependent on it, with physical withdrawal symptoms when you attempt to stop or decrease your use.

Seeking Recovery from Other Drugs

There are so many different substances that can cause health problems and addictive dependency, and new ones appear every day. If you are using one of these substances, and you are worried that you may have a problem with it, it is likely that you do. You deserve to be free from the negative effects of substance use. Treatment and recovery at Spokane Falls Recovery Center can help you explore your addiction, develop new understandings and behaviors, and find a path forward to long-term recovery, free of substance use. Find out how drug addiction treatment can help you and contact Spokane Falls Recovery Center at 844.962.2775 now.