What Does a Meth Addict Feel and Think?
Meth, or methamphetamine, is a highly addictive drug. Made out of common household ingredients and toxic chemicals, the drug acts as a stimulant. It is capable of eroding the user’s mental health, physical health, and well-being. If your family member struggles with a meth addiction, you must understand how he or she may think and feel. Understanding the feelings and thoughts of a meth addict won’t help you to know what being an addict feels like.
However, it can give you a greater insight into the nature of addiction. You may be better able to understand that when your loved one steals, lies or lashes out, it’s not personal. Instead, the attack is only a symptom of the disease of addiction.
What Happens When You’re High On Methamphetamine?
When somebody is high on methamphetamine, both physiological and physical changes occur. Many of those changes occur because of the impact the drug has on the nervous system and the brain. When someone takes meth, initially he or she will probably experience euphoria. This is because meth, like other drugs that are highly addictive, stimulates the reward system in the brain. The stimulation of the brain’s reward centers drives the individual to use the drug again. Knowing how meth produces a physiological effect is key if your loved one has a meth addiction. After somebody has taken meth, his or her brain will rewire in several ways. This is what causes him or her to become addicted and seek out the drug. The addiction will then rapidly spiral out of control.
Blunted Emotions
In addition to the euphoric stimulation of the brain, something else happens. The emotions become blunted. People who take meth often don’t experience feelings in the same way as they normally would. This is another reason why meth is so addictive. For those who are trying to get away from emotional pain or bad memories, meth allows them to escape. Not only does meth allow them to become high, but it also helps them escape from stress and worry.
Delusional Aggression
There is another way in which a meth addict’s drug use affects him or her. Aggression can appear. When someone takes meth, the person begins to feel as if he or she is extremely powerful. While this may result in the person behaving in a more sociable way, sometimes, it presents itself as aggression. This can have a severe impact on the addict’s life. Not only can it cause family problems, but it can also result in expulsions from school or being fired from work. In a worst-case scenario, it could even end with the addict going to jail for a violent crime. Around 50 percent to 70 percent of property crimes have been found to have been committed by people who have meth addictions. These crimes include shoplifting, burglary, vandalism, arson, and motor vehicle theft. The consequences of being arrested for one of these crimes can be life-changing.
A Lack Of Understanding
Families of meth addicts often fail to understand that methamphetamine dulls self-awareness. This means users are incapable of understanding the damage they are doing to themselves or others. It can be frustrating and distressing for family members to watch their loved ones go through this type of behavior. However, having an understanding of what meth does to the addict’s mind will help to overcome that frustration. Usually, addicts cannot recognize their behaviors or their effects until they are in recovery. Once they realize the damage they have done, they often experience remorse and shame. Families have a key role in supporting recovering meth addicts during this period. They could be at risk of a relapse.
Physical Effects Of Meth
Gaining a greater insight into how meth addicts feel and think depends on exploring how it affects the body physically. Meth is a stimulant. Therefore, using it leads to fidgety behavior (called tweaking), as well as unpleasant sensations. Some addicts feel as if bugs are crawling on their skin. This often results in sores and scabs on their bodies and faces as they try to scratch away the bugs.
Another physical effect of meth is appetite suppression. This is one of the reasons why many women use meth when they want to lose weight. In fact, around 30 percent of women using meth don’t seek treatment because they value it as a weight-loss drug. What addicts fail to recognize until it’s too late is that their physical appearances will also deteriorate significantly. Excessive weight loss leads to a haggard appearance and premature aging. Meth also causes facial scabs and sores, as well as decayed teeth. This results in the user looking worse and not better over time.
Tunnel Vision
Commonly, a meth addict seems to experience tunnel vision. The person only thinks about how he or she will get his or her next fix. This is common for any type of addict. Their actions and thoughts become dedicated solely to getting more of their drug of choice. The world begins to center around obtaining, using or recovering from their drug use. They end up being prepared to do whatever it takes to get high. This is why so many addicts steal, cheat, and lie. They also often behave in illegal ways to enable them to obtain more drugs. They will steal from loved ones or strangers, attack people to take their money or tell lies to obtain funds. The way in which the drug affects their brain means they cannot recognize the harm and pain they cause.
Someone with a meth addiction may not only mislead people and lie to them. He or she may also manipulate them. This is especially the case with family members. Meth addicts manipulate those they are closest to so they can carry on using drugs. They play on their family members’ love and concern for their welfare. Somebody with a meth addiction may plead and beg with his or her loved ones. The user will almost certainly make promises he or she doesn’t intend to keep.
Unfortunately, it often takes a very long time for family members to realize their loved one is manipulating them. Understanding that this is part of the addiction is important. It is the drug that makes an addict behave in this way. It is not because he or she is inherently bad. Addicts manipulate their loved ones because all they can focus on is the drug. Once they are in recovery, they will return to their loving old selves.
Understanding In Recovery
Understanding how meth affects your loved one’s mind and body is vital for your own mental well-being. However, you also need to maintain that understanding and support through their recovery. Recovery is extremely difficult, and the extra guilt and shame can make it even harder to get back to normal.A qualified addiction treatment center is necessary for the greatest chance of success. Not only can they offer a holistic approach to addiction treatment for the addicts, but they also help family members. It is possible to come through addiction and out the other side. With professional help, it’s possible for addicts to experience a sober life after addiction. It’s also possible for families to get their loved ones back.
