How To Tell If Someone Is Using Cocaine

Editor Thomas Christiansen

With over a decade of editing experience, Tom is a content specialist for Advanced Recovery Systems,... read more

Medically Reviewed Past Conor Sheehy, PharmD, BCPS, CACP

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Updated on 05/xx/21

But as with whatever other illicit drug, cocaine can bear on the body in a number of ways. It impacts the reward pathway in the encephalon, which is what creates the euphoric feeling that and then many seek. If you suspect that a friend, relative or other loved one is using cocaine, it can be troubling.

Knowing the signs of cocaine use can assistance you make ameliorate assessments so you can assist your loved ane go the help they need. In that location are many signs associated with cocaine use that can be observed in a person'southward advent and general behavior. It's of import to as well consider the behavioral cocaine side furnishings that occur from long-term use.

Article at a Glance:

Lack of judgement, excessive assailment, hallucinations and paranoia are signs of cocaine use.
A person may have needle marks on the body or burned fingers or lips afterwards using cocaine.
Long-term furnishings of cocaine utilize include moodiness, loss of olfactory property, mental disorders and financial problems.
Treatment options are bachelor for people who are fond to cocaine through The Recovery Hamlet.

How Someone Acts When They're On Cocaine

Since cocaine is a stimulant, it typically causes the person that uses it to be very talkative, energetic and confident. It also creates a sense of improved well-beingness, which tin lead them to be social, excitable and even more than sexual. People on cocaine may seem "pumped up" for no reason at all. They may likewise have a diminished ambition, dilated pupils and disrupted sleep in many instances. Behavioral signs of cocaine use include paranoia, excessive aggression, lack of judgment, delusional thoughts and hallucinations.

1 of the main tell-tale signs of cocaine utilize is the presence of pocket-size, trace amounts of white pulverisation appearing around their olfactory organ. Sometimes when people are on cocaine, they will also get a runny nose. If someone uses cocaine for a long period of fourth dimension, they may get nosebleeds frequently.

If someone injects the drug rather than snorting information technology, there may exist concrete signs of employ, such as needle marks on various parts of the body, including the arms, legs, easily, anxiety and neck. Someone who smokes cocaine may show physical signs of use such as burned fingers or lips. Other physical symptoms of using cocaine that may be less obvious to an outside observer include a faster heart rate, which tin can pb to very serious or mortiferous health concerns like cardiac arrest or heart attack.

Long-Term Behavioral Signs of Cocaine Apply

When someone is on cocaine over a long flow of fourth dimension, there may be more than behavioral indications that they have a substance corruption problem. These include:

Moodiness: As the effects of the drug brainstorm to diminish, the person using it might start to seem moody. That moodiness can include hostility and aggressiveness.
Avoidance: Oft, when people are coming off of cocaine, they endeavour to avoid social situations, and they may accept other substances, such as sleeping pills, or drink booze to help them fall asleep.
Fiscal problems: Cocaine is as well an expensive drug, and so someone who uses it for a long period of time will typically start to feel financial issues. While being addicted tin get in hard to maintain a chore or career, people on cocaine often steal or practice illegal things to become money in an effort to support their addiction.
Loss of smell: In addition to nosebleeds, someone who abuses cocaine over time may somewhen lose their sense of smell.
Mental disorders: People who utilise and corruption cocaine and scissure tend to develop anxiety and depression over time. This is i of the reasons many people on cocaine or scissure require dual diagnosis treatment when attempting to recover from their addiction.
Deterioration of well-being: The more cocaine a person uses, and the longer they corruption the drug, the more than likely they are to feel apparent deterioration of their mental and physical well-being. The person who is on cocaine may outset to feel nervous and tired all the time, simply be unable to slumber, and they're likely to feel apathy as well as experiencing crashes which can include long periods of sleep.
Tolerance: As with nearly other drugs, when someone is on cocaine they can quickly build a tolerance to the drug, requiring them to accept higher and higher doses to get the same effect they're chasing.
Withdrawal symptoms: Later on someone has used a lot of cocaine, if they utilize less or cease using it cold turkey, they may feel signs of withdrawal. Some of the signs of withdrawal from cocaine can include mental symptoms such as anxiety, depression, paranoia and violence, as well as physical symptoms like cardiac problems or seizures.

When you lot're wondering how to tell if someone is on cocaine, you'll more than likely first consider their behavior. And so, consider the physical signs. There are handling options for those who are fond to cocaine, most of which involve dual diagnosis programs. If yous believe someone shut to you lot is using cocaine or is addicted to cocaine, consider talking to a medical or addiction specialists, because it tin can be dangerous or deadly.

If you or a loved one live with cocaine addiction or are using cocaine recreationally and desire to stop, information technology'due south time to seek professional person assist. The Recovery Hamlet provides care to those struggling with substance utilise. Reach out to one of our knowledgeable representatives today to learn how yous can start on your path to recovery.

Sources
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "2018 Annual SURVEILLANCE Report" 2018. Accessed July 22, 2020.

Ciccarone, D. "Stimulant Corruption: Pharmacology, Cocaine, Methamphetamine, Handling, Attempts at Pharmacotherapy." Principal Intendance: Clinics in Office Practice, 2011. Accessed May 27, 2019.

Medical Disclaimer: The Recovery Village aims to meliorate the quality of life for people struggling with substance use or mental health disorder with fact-based content about the nature of behavioral health conditions, treatment options, and their related outcomes. We publish material that is researched, cited, edited, and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is non intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. It should not be used in identify of the advice of your md or other qualified healthcare providers.