Cocaine

What is cocaine?

Cocaine is a powerful stimulant that comes in the form of powder or crystals (crack). Cocaine in powder form is snorted (inhaled through the nose) so is absorbed slowly into the body. If watered down and injected, cocaine takes effect more quickly. ‘Freebase’ cocaine (also a powder) and ‘crack’ cocaine can be smoked, and so can reach the brain very quickly in high dosage.

Young people we talked to said that cocaine is widely available and more affordable than it has been in the past. Mary Ann commented that cocaine ‘used to be a rich man’s drug because it used to be so expensive’ but that ‘it’s a common drug now’. Some of the young people we talked to said that they suspect cocaine that’s available in the UK isn’t pure. They wondered whether their supplies had been cut with another drug.

Mary Ann started using cocaine at aged 15. It became a thing she did every weekend; drinking…

Age at interview 20

Gender Female

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What are the effects of cocaine?

As a stimulant, cocaine temporarily speeds up the processes of your mind and body. The ‘highs’ associated with cocaine include feeling wide awake and confident but the people we spoke to shared a number of negative experiences. As with all drugs, its effect in each individual person can be hard to predict. The amount and the purity of the substance you are taking and your own emotions at the time you take cocaine, will have an effect on the experience.

What are the negative effects of cocaine?

Those who had used cocaine were amazed at how much their behaviour and temperament changed, even after using it for a short period of time. Peter only snorted a line of cocaine once, but said that it wasn’t for him because he didn’t want to snort drugs and become aggressive.

At first cocaine made her feel energetic but, after a few days of using it, Leah felt she was turning into a horrible’ person and decided to quit.

Age at interview 17

Gender Female

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The highs that come with taking cocaine can be followed by the lows of a ‘come down’ the next day.

Taking cocaine and alcohol to escape her problems just made Mary Ann feel worse. (Played by an actress)

Age at interview 20

Gender Female

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Joe and Alex B said that they didn’t feel any of the ‘highs’ that other people associate with cocaine. Joe tried it twice (mixed with ecstasy) and Alex once and after that they both lost interest in using it.

After trying cocaine twice and not experiencing any of the effects associated with it, Joe lost…

Age at interview 24

Gender Male

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Mixing cocaine with other drugs

A combination of alcohol and cocaine can be dangerous for your health. Cocaine and alcohol are stimulants that put pressure on the heart, increasing the risk of heart attacks.

Chloe experienced chest pains after nights out where she mixed cannabis, cocaine and alcohol.

Age at interview 20

Gender Female

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Sam has experimented with all sorts of illegal substances and he once thought it would be funny to mix ecstasy and crack cocaine. To his dismay, the ‘comedown’ from base (crack cocaine) and ecstasy made him feel like he didn’t ‘exist anymore’. He thinks that the ecstasy tablets he took were cut heavily with ketamine.

Sam describes how bad he felt after mixing base (crack cocaine) with ecstasy tablets that he suspected had been cut with ketamine. (Played by an actor)

Age at interview 28

Gender Male

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Ketamine

What is ketamine? Ketamine is a powerful general anaesthetic that lasts for a short time. It has been used during surgery on humans and animals....

Ecstasy

What is ecstasy? Ecstasy or MDMA (its chemical name) is a hallucinogenic amphetamine that comes in pill form or a powder that is snorted or...