What Does Meth Feel Like? The Meth High, Withdrawal, Usage, Forms, Ways of Abuse, Addiction & Treatment

The Meth High

What Does Meth Feel Like? When someone is high on meth, there are physical and physiological changes that occur. Many of the changes that happen regarding how the person feels and behaves result from how the drug impacts the brain and the nervous system.

The Initial Rush

When people take meth, they may initially experience euphoria because meth stimulates the brain’s reward system. It’s that stimulation of reward centers that motivates people to continue using meth.

The High

Along with euphoric brain stimulation, there’s also a sense of blunted emotions when you take meth. People on meth may not experience feelings as they would ordinarily, so they may actually like this feeling because it can help them escape from bad memories or emotional pain they experience when they’re sober. Meth can become not just a way to get high, but a way to escape from worry, stress, and negative feelings.

In a recent survey of meth users, the high was ranked as the number one reason people used meth, and coping with mental health symptoms ranked in the top three. 

During the high, which can last anywhere from 4–16 hours, the user will start to feel a sense of power or that they’re capable of more than they are. That can manifest in sociability as an example, but also as delusional aggression.

Often users lack any sense of self-awareness. It’s not usually until a person is in the recovery phase of their addiction that they’re even able to recognize their behaviors and the effects on the people around them.

Tweaking

Meth use can lead to tweaking, which is very fidgety behaviors and sensations such as bugs crawling on the skin. That’s why people addicted to meth often have scabs and sores on their faces and areas of their bodies.

At this level of use, people may report extreme paranoia, hallucinations, and delusional thinking. They may become violently aggressive due to their psychotic symptoms.

In a recent study, 15.7% of meth users reported experiencing hallucinations long-term, even if they stopped using, and heavy meth users increased their odds of experiencing hallucinations by 50%.

Meth Addiction Withdrawal

People addicted to drugs often think only about their next fix of the drug. They have tunnel vision because of how their brain reacts to the drug, and they crave it. Their thoughts and actions are often solely dedicated to obtaining more of the drug, and they will do anything necessary.

When people no longer have the ability to get more meth or the energy to use more meth, the crash occurs, marking the onset of methamphetamine withdrawal.

The symptoms of meth crashing include:

• Low energy and extreme fatigue
• Long periods of sleep or inability to sleep
• Vivid dreams and nightmares
• Intense depression and anxiety
• Increased appetite and thirst, usually due to limited eating and drinking during a “run”
• Intense cravings for more meth

Some withdrawal symptoms are more common than others: current and former meth users reported fatigue (57%) and sleep problems (52%) most often, followed by increased depression and anxiety (both 41%) and appetite issues (36%). 

These unwanted effects are why addicted people often lie, cheat and steal. They may engage in illegal behaviors outside of drug use as a means to get more. They’re usually unable to recognize the pain and harm they’re causing themselves and the people around them because of their addiction.

Someone addicted to meth or other drugs will not only lie and mislead people but may manipulate them. Someone who was once loving and caring may start to manipulate the people closest to them to facilitate their continued drug use. They’ll feed on the concern and love of their family members. They may even beg and try to plead with loved ones and make promises they have no intention of keeping. It can take a long time before their loved ones accept that this is, in fact, manipulation.

What Does Meth Feel Like? How do people use it?

Methamphetamine can come in several different forms – including tablets, powder, or crystals. The tablets are sometimes referred to as yaba and the smokeable crystals are often called crystal meth or ice.

Depending on its form, methamphetamine can be swallowed, snorted, or injected. Smoking the purer, crystalline form of methamphetamine, known as crystal meth, produces a very intense high similar to that produced by crack cocaine but much longer-lasting. Sharing needles, syringes, or other injecting equipment runs the risk of the injector catching or spreading viruses, such as HIV or hepatitis C. There is also the risk that veins may be damaged, and of abscesses or clots developing.

What Does Meth Feel Like? Duration

How long the effects last and the drug stays in your system depends on how much you’ve taken, your size, and what other drugs you may have also taken.

How long does it last?

The effects of methamphetamine can last a very long time. Smoking the purer, crystalline form of methamphetamine, crystal meth, produces a very intense high similar to that produced by crack cocaine but is much longer-lasting. The effects can last for a period of between 4 and 12 hours.

After effects

The comedown from methamphetamine is severe.

How long will it be detectable?

Crystal meth can report positive in a urine test for 1 to 4 days after use. How long a drug can be detected depends on how much is taken and which testing kit is used. This is only a general guide.

Methamphetamine Effects

Long-term methamphetamine abuse has many negative consequences, including addiction to short and long-term methamphetamine effects. Addiction is a chronic, relapsing disease, characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use and accompanied by functional and molecular changes in the brain.

As is the case with many drugs, tolerance to methamphetamine’s pleasurable effects develops when it is taken repeatedly. Abusers often need to take higher doses of the drug, take it more frequently, or change how they take it in an effort to get the desired effect. Chronic methamphetamine abusers may develop difficulty feeling any pleasure other than that provided by the drug, fueling further abuse. Withdrawal from methamphetamine occurs when a chronic abuser stops taking the drug; symptoms of withdrawal include depression, anxiety, fatigue, and an intense craving for the drug.

In addition to being addicted to methamphetamine, people who use methamphetamine long-term may exhibit symptoms that can include significant anxiety, confusion, insomnia, mood disturbances, and violent behavior. They also may display a number of psychotic features, including paranoia, visual and auditory hallucinations, and delusions (for example, the sensation of insects creeping under the skin). Psychotic symptoms can sometimes last for months or years after a person has quit using methamphetamine, and stress has been shown to precipitate spontaneous recurrence of methamphetamine psychosis in people who use methamphetamine and have previously experienced psychosis.

These and other problems reflect significant changes in the brain caused by the misuse of methamphetamine. Neuroimaging studies have demonstrated alterations in the activity of the dopamine system that are associated with reduced motor speed and impaired verbal learning. Studies in chronic methamphetamine users have also revealed severe structural and functional changes in areas of the brain associated with emotion and memory, which may account for many of the emotional and cognitive problems observed in these individuals.

Research in primate models has found that methamphetamine alters brain structures involved in decision-making and impairs the ability to suppress habitual behaviors that have become useless or counterproductive. The two effects were correlated, suggesting that the structural change underlies the decline in mental flexibility. These changes in brain structure and function could explain why methamphetamine addiction is so hard to treat and has a significant chance of relapse early in treatment.

Long-Term Meth Behavior Effects

Methamphetamine misuse also has been shown to have negative effects on non-neural brain cells called microglia. These cells support brain health by defending the brain against infectious agents and removing damaged neurons. Too much activity of the microglial cells, however, can assault healthy neurons. A study using brain imaging found more than double the levels of microglial cells in people who previously misused methamphetamine compared to people with no history of methamphetamine misuse, which could explain some of the neurotoxic effects of methamphetamine.

Some of the neurobiological effects of chronic methamphetamine misuse appear to be, at least, partially reversible. In the study just mentioned, abstinence from methamphetamine resulted in less excess microglial activation over time, and users who had remained methamphetamine-free for 2 years exhibited microglial activation levels similar to the study’s control subjects. A similar study found that while biochemical markers for nerve damage and viability persist in the brain through 6 months of abstinence from methamphetamine, those markers return to normal after a year or more without taking the drug.

Another neuroimaging study showed neuronal recovery in some brain regions following prolonged abstinence (14 but not 6 months). This recovery was associated with improved performance on motor and verbal memory tests. Function in other brain regions did not recover even after 14 months of abstinence, indicating that some methamphetamine-induced changes are very long-lasting. Methamphetamine use can also increase one’s risk of stroke, which can cause irreversible damage to the brain. A recent study even showed a higher incidence of Parkinson’s disease among past users of methamphetamine.

In addition to the neurological and behavioral consequences of methamphetamine misuse, long-term users also suffer physical effects, including weight loss, severe tooth decay and tooth loss (“meth mouth”), and skin sores. The dental problems may be caused by a combination of poor nutrition and dental hygiene as well as dry mouth and teeth grinding caused by the drug. Skin sores are the result of picking and scratching the skin to get rid of insects imagined being crawling under it.

Meth Addiction 

Meth is a stimulant drug that heightens the functions of the central nervous system, thereby increasing activity in certain areas of the brain. For example, heart rate, body temperature, respiration, and blood pressure all rise under the influence of meth. 

Energy, attention, focus, pleasure, and excitement are enhanced as well, as chemical messengers in the brain, such as dopamine, are increased by the interaction of meth. Elevated levels of dopamine cause the intense “high” that is associated with meth, and the desire to recreate this feeling makes the drug extremely addictive.

When someone is taking meth, they are alert and energized, and can stay awake for long periods. When meth wears off, however, a significant “crash” generally occurs, leaving individuals feeling fatigued, lethargic, hungry, depressed, and anxious. 

As a result, meth is commonly taken in a binge pattern, often called a “run,” where small amounts of meth are taken every few hours for a couple of days to prolong the high. This pattern of abuse can more quickly lead to drug dependence and addiction.

Reclaim Your Life From Meth Addiction

People addicted to drugs often think only about their next fix of the drug. They have tunnel vision because of how their brain reacts to the drug, and they crave it. We Level Up treatment rehab & detox center can provide you, or someone you love, the tools to recover from Meth addiction with professional and safe treatment. Feel free to call us to speak with one of our counselors. We can inform you about this condition by giving you relevant information. Our specialists know what you are going through. Please know that each call is private and confidential.