Recreational drugs are usually used for reasons other than the medical such as pleasure, fun, stimulation, hobby and temporary happiness or relief of sadness. The use of recreational drugs has become a big problem, especially amongst the teenage population. These can not only lead to addiction, but also to withdrawal effects, making it difficult to stop taking the drug.

Why Do People Use Recreational Drugs?

• People use it often out of peer pressure and they do not want to get marginalized.
• It makes them feel stimulated, comfortable and helps to tackle the stress.
• People use drugs to get a temporary period of relief and drive away from topics they don’t want to consider.
• They become dependent on drugs and it is harder for them to maintain their happy mood without taking recreational drugs.

The Problems that Recreational Drugs Pose to Your Well-being

Drugs can cause miscellaneous problems to your well-being, ranging from health to behavioral issues and finances.

1. Financial Burden: Drugs can cause financial burden and the never ending desire of attaining pleasure may drag individuals to criminal activities for maintaining their expensive habit.
2. Infections: Many drugs are taken through the intravenous route (sharing needles or using contaminated needles again and again) and they can lead to infections transmitted through blood such as AIDS and hepatitis.
3. Addiction: Drugs can drive the perceptions of people addicted to them and they just can’t help themselves without. This may hamper their day to day activities due to abnormal reliance on a thing other than their natural potentials.
4. Problems with Relationships: Regular drug use can lead to behavioral problems and issues with personality. Such individuals can have problems in sustaining healthy relationships due to their swings in mood.
5. Health Emergencies: Drug overdose is a major problem in individuals already taking drugs because they are on the verge of misusing them by natural predilection.

Types of Recreational Drugs and Additional Information

1. Amphetamines

• Famous with other names such as dexies, whizz and speed.
• These drugs can be inhaled through the nose, swallowed by wrapping them in cigarette paper, injected or dissolved in to drinks. These can also be rubbed on the gums.
• It is a stimulant which causes pseudo stimulation and imparts extra stimulation. The person taking this feels excited and elated.
• As for the side-effects these drugs can lead to excessive anxiousness. To the lesser extent it may cause psychosis (an abnormal perception of losing contact with reality and hearing or seeing unreal things).

2. Amyl Nitrates

• It is available with other names such as poppers, TNT, amyls and liquid gold.
• Their usual route is sniffing through a bottle of liquid.
• They can push the person taking it to a new high.
• As the substance is inflammable it can cause chemical burns around the areas touching the vapors and careless intake may also lead to burns and accidents.

3. Cannabis

• These are available with alternate names such as hashish, hash, weed, marijuana, ganja, grass and dope.
• It is usually taken with cigarettes by rolling it up with tobacco.
• It can lead to feeling of ecstasy and relaxation.
• The side-effects are multiple such as excessive anxiousness, paranoid changes in personality (suspicious and speculative personality), affects fertility and can be extremely harmful for people with heart disease.

4. Cocaine

• It comes with alternate names such as crack, coke white and freebase.
• It is taken as a powder and then sniffed through the nose. It can also be smoked through a tube and injected.
• Cocaine can cause high blood pressure and increased heart rate along with depression, anxiety and panic disorders. It can boost the confidence by pseudo stimulation.

5. Ecstasy

• Known by other names as MDMA, brownies, dolphins, superman, pills, E or crystal.
• Taken in the form of a pill.
• It can cause elation and intensify the impact of colors and sounds. It can arise the feelings of love and affection.
• It can cause problems with memory, cause anxiety and depression. It can interfere with the immune system and functions of liver heart or kidney.

6. Heroin

• Available with other names such as gear, H, brown, smack and skag.
• The usual way of taking it is dissolving in water and injecting. However, these can also be smoked or snorted.
• It can behave as a potent painkiller (diamorphine) and can cause calmness, happiness and relaxation.
• It can cause infections (AIDS or hepatitis) when taken through intravenous route and is extremely addictive. The overdose of heroin can cause respiratory depression and breathing problems.

7. Ketamine

• It is famous with names like Vitamin K, super K, special K, green, donkey dust, etc.
• It can be taken through Intravenous route, swallowed or snorted.
• Ketamine can cause side-effects such as triggering fear or confusion, feeling of extravagant urination (ketamine bladder syndrome) and intravenous administration makes the individuals vulnerable to infections.

8. LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide)

• Famous with other names such as blotter, tripper, flash, stars, paper mushroom, etc.
• It can cause mood changes opposite to each other. At times it can cause elation and during the opposite may cause panic.
• May lead to self-harming during the panicking phase with fear and confusion.

Author details: The writer of this article is Mrs. Samreen Imam who is a Doctor of Pharmacy by profession and is serving the healthcare industry for over 10 years.