1) The Rush—A rush is the initial response felt when smoking or injecting methamphetamine. During the rush, the heartbeat races and metabolism, blood pressure and pulse soar. Unlike the rush associated with crack cocaine, which lasts for approximately two to five minutes, the methamphetamine rush can continue for up to thirty minutes.
2) The High—The rush is followed by a high, sometimes called “the shoulder.” During the high, a feeling of being aggressively smarter and becoming argumentative, often interrupting other people and finishing their sentences, is common. The delusional effects can result in becoming intensely focused on an insignificant item, such as repeatedly cleaning the same window for several hours. The high can last four to sixteen hours.
3) The Binge—A binge is uncontrolled use of a drug or alcohol. It refers to the urge to maintain the high by smoking or injecting more methamphetamine. The binge can last three to fifteen days. During the binge, it is common to become hyperactive both mentally and physically. Each time the drug is smoked or injected, the experience is smaller until, finally, there is no rush and no high.
4) Tweaking—A potentially dangerous phase to the person using and those around them. Tweaking is a phase of the addiction at the end of a drug binge when methamphetamine no longer provides a rush or a high. Unable to relieve the feelings of emptiness and craving, it is possible to lose sense of identity. Intense itching is common and a the feeling that bugs are crawling under the skin. It is not uncommon to not sleep for days at a time, seeing and hearing things that no one else can perceive. These hallucinations can be so vivid that they seem real and, disconnected from reality, a hostile attitude towards self and others maybe experienced.
5) The Crash—The crash happens when the body shuts down, unable to cope with the drug effects overwhelming it; this results in a long period of sleep for the person. Even after if the stages before have been particularly violent, during the crash one becomes almost lifeless. The crash can last one to three days.
6) Meth Hangover—After the crash, one returns in a deteriorated state, starved, dehydrated and utterly exhausted physically, mentally and emotionally. This stage ordinarily lasts from two to fourteen days. Unfortunately this stage re-enforces the addiction, as the “solution” to these feelings is to take more meth.
7) Withdrawal—Often thirty to ninety days can pass after the last drug use before one realizes that they are in withdrawal. First, one becomes depressed, loses their energy and the ability to experience pleasure. Then the craving for more methamphetamine hits, suicidal thoughts may occur.
Unfortunately, it is often the case for most addicts to hit the “withdrawal wall” where they will want to just retreat back into the comfort of their addictions rather than face the consequences of abstinence. This pattern is particularly deadly when the addict is left to their own devices to manage their detox and withdrawal as a solo enterprise. Since meth withdrawal is extremely painful and difficult, most abusers revert; thus, 93% of those in traditional treatment return to abusing methamphetamine.
This is why a medically supervised private residential meth detox increases both the likely hood of successful detox, and also ensures the physical safety of the client by supporting their efforts with 24/7 experienced and caring support staff who have years of experience helping others in exactly the same situation.
As part of our meth rehab treatment model we provide a short course of medication that will help the body through the adjustment phase, gently riding it of toxins. This will make the drug detox as comfortable as possible, helping the client to reach the Primary Care phase of rehabilitation.
