Amphetamine Addiction: Uses, Side Effects, and Treatment

what are the effects of amphetamines

According to the DSM-5 criteria, a diagnosis of substance use disorder (SUD) requires meeting at least 2 of the specified criteria within a 12-month period. However, it’s important to note that for prescription medications taken as directed by a doctor, developing tolerance or dependence does not necessarily indicate a SUD and would not be counted among the 2 required criteria. Always take your amphetamines on a schedule or at the same time each day to avoid experiencing withdrawal symptoms. If you are close to the next time on your schedule to take another dose, wait until your scheduled time to take your next dose. If you missed your scheduled time by a short period, like a couple of hours, you can take your missed dose immediately. To avoid withdrawal symptoms, take your medication exactly as your provider prescribed it to you.

Continuing Education Activity

what are the effects of amphetamines

Among injection drug users, infection with HIV and other infectious diseases is spread primarily through the use of contaminated syringes, needles, or other paraphernalia by more than one person. The intoxicating effects of methamphetamine can also alter judgment and inhibition, which may lead people to engage in unsafe behaviors. Methamphetamine abuse may also worsen the progression of HIV and how long do amphetamines stay in urine its consequences.

  • Amphetamines reverse some of these symptoms and have been shown to improve brain development and nerve growth in children with ADHD.
  • If they are not taking the drug, they feel dreadful, so they continue with the abuse in order to keep going.
  • People eventually found, however, that the medical value of amphetamines is offset by their dangerous effects and high abuse potential (the chance a drug will be abused, cause addiction or be otherwise harmful).
  • Amphetamine is a pep drug that makes a person more physically active and boosts energy levels by causing the release of dopamine (the feel-good chemical) in the brain.
  • Plasma profiles of d- and l- amphetamine are similar after a single dose of 20 mg Adderall XR or two 10-mg doses of Adderal IR, given 4 h apart.
  • However, some authors have concluded that the abuse potential of methylphenidate is equivalent to that of amphetamine, on the basis of findings in animal models and human research 88.

Do Amphetamines Affect Your Personality?

A person’s tolerance begins slowly, which could result in dependence over time. If you take amphetamines and feel you are dependent on the drug, talk with your healthcare provider. Amphetamines are stimulant drugs that speed up how your body functions. Healthcare providers may prescribe amphetamines to people with ADHD or narcolepsy. Providers may also use amphetamines to treat obesity, though this is less common. As https://ecosoberhouse.com/ amphetamines affect the way the brain processes dopamine naturally, cessation can cause uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms.

what are the effects of amphetamines

Related/similar drugs

what are the effects of amphetamines

Many heavy amphetamine users grind or “gurn” their teeth and jaws; this will damage tooth enamel. Amphetamine also causes pupil dilation which is sometimes a very obvious indication of use. All stimulants, including amphetamine, cause the body to overheat and sweat, so dehydration is a very real danger. Regular amphetamine use can lead to problems eating and sleeping, as well as feelings of anxiety and paranoia and a lowered resistance to infection. There is also a temptation for users to use benzodiazepines and anxiolytics to come down from the high (the effects of the drug wearing off).

Where can I find help, treatment and support?

  • If you feel that the medicine is not working properly after using it for several weeks, check with your doctor first and do not increase the dose.
  • The long-term effects of amphetamine use are what make the drug so dangerous.
  • It comes as powder, crystals or tablets and has a similar euphoric effect to cocaine but a much longer duration of action.

Along with its needed effects, amphetamine may cause some unwanted effects. Sudden death and serious cardiovascular adverse events may occur with misuse of amphetamines. Before prescribing amphetamine sulfate, assess each patient’s risk for abuse, misuse, and addiction. Throughout lisdexamfetamine dimesylate treatment, reassess each patient’s risk of abuse, misuse, and addiction and frequently what is alcoholism monitor for signs and symptoms of abuse, misuse, and addiction.

what are the effects of amphetamines

Levels of Care

So many famous musicians have built their image around sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll, when in actuality, it’s something of a fallacy, or on the other hand, sadly leads to a short career with their life carting off the rails because of it. However, Lemmy was one of the only figures who was the real deal, and it is almost certain that his working-class upbringing in the hard industrial town of Stoke had something to do with it. When you think about it, it was only really he, Ozzy Osbourne and Keith Richards who pushed life to the absolute brink in rock’s golden age and lived to tell the tale. Sam Gor is primarily involved in drug trafficking, earning at least $8 billion per year.197 Sam Gor is alleged to control 40% of the Asia-Pacific methamphetamine market, while also trafficking heroin and ketamine.

Amphetamine is most often administered twice daily in immediate-release formulations (Dexedrine, DextroStat, or Adderall IR tablets), or once a day in sustained-release formulations (Dexedrine or Adderal XR capsules, Vyvanse tablets). The therapeutic effects begin within 45−60 min after ingestion of an immediate-release tablet, with peak effect in 2 to 3 hours, and a total duration of 4−6 h. Effects peak about 4−7 h after ingestion of extended-release doses, and last about 12 h, depending on the endpoint and dose. Plasma profiles of d- and l- amphetamine are similar after a single dose of 20 mg Adderall XR or two 10-mg doses of Adderal IR, given 4 h apart. Maximum plasma concentration for Adderall XR is achieved about 6 h after ingestion 15.

What other drugs will affect amphetamine?

Yes, your healthcare provider might offer low-dose amphetamines to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in your child, like Adderall ® or Ritalin ®. Amphetamines create a calming effect for children diagnosed with ADHD by targeting the chemicals in their brain that transmit signals between nerves in the central nervous system. When amphetamines are used at higher doses and through routes that are not prescribed by a doctor, they can have severe adverse effects. There is evidence that amphetamine use to treat ADHD could slow growth in children. There have been fears that long-term use of amphetamines for ADHD could affect brain development, prevent physical growth, and increase the risk of drug abuse later in life.

Mental Health 101

Use of these has additional legal, dependency and medical issues – the come down will pass without using more drugs. If they are not taking the drug, they feel dreadful, so they continue with the abuse in order to keep going. The more they abuse the substance, the higher their tolerance for it becomes, which means having to keep on taking more in order to get the same effects. How long the effects last and the drug stays in your system depends on how much you have taken, your size and what other drugs you may have also taken. Amphetamine can be detected in a urine test for 1 to 5 days after using.

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