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Is Brain Damage From Cocaine Use Permanent?
zyx555






Posted: September 11, 2012, 3:53 AM
ABC posted his issues a long time ago, I wish he would get back on here.
I have seen this add many of times but never could bring myself to post on it for some reason. I have the same issues he described and the same issues a lot of the other people described.
I am 21 now, I tried all kinds of drugs as a teenager, acid mushrooms weed, EX. Coke was my favorite though. I have been clean for two years. 2009-2010 were my heavy years of use.

I used to be a very out going funny guy, good looking popular, I played sports, I always could fit in with people and I loved to socialize. NOW after my drug use I have become a lot more reserved. I feel like I lost my sense of humor. People can make me laugh but it takes a lot to get me into a mood to attempt to crack my own jokes. I have anxiety, I used to be able to talk to girls no problem. Now when I talk to them I feel very mono toned and boring. basically my communication skills just declined 80% .
I definitely enjoy life a lot less. the only time I seem to feel a little better is if Im drunk. also for some reason my coordination skills changed in a weird way. It takes a lot of alcohol to make me feel any change in coordination.. I can drink 10 beers and not feel anything, even mentally I only feel less paranoid but I dont get the normal "sloppy drunk" feeling. I never understood why.
I also used to be a d*** head to people. Now I feel like I am a lot nicer, I accept people and see the good in everyone one.I see everyone as equal, I can tell I would not know or talk to some of the people i do now if i had not changed.Now I have a lot of friends of different interest and personalities.

I have definitely come a long way since I first stopped using though. I talk more, I get decent grades in school but I still feel like after two years, I have probably recovered only about 35%. My brain works about half as good as it used to. I can hold conversations but on the inside while im talking to people my brain just feels numb. Its random on some occasions I feel my old self for a short period of time.
IF ANYONE ELSE CAN RELATE OR WANTS TO TALK. PLEASE REPLY. I AM OPEN TO ANY ADVICE OR WHAT EVER ANYONE HAS TO SAY. THANK YOU ALL FOR READING.


Posts: 2
Joined: September 8, 2012


Posted: September 11, 2012, 2:46 PM
Try emailing the Addiction Research Foundation in Toronto, Canada. I don't know the name of the equivalent agency in the U.S. The ARF is world-renowned. It cannot hurt to ask them - they're the best. Good luck and let me know what comes of it.
Elizabeth






Posted: October 11, 2012, 9:29 AM
I've have dabbled on the wild side for 25 years. The lot, but never injected anything. The worse thing for me was Meth. Twice a week. I threw in towel NYE 2012 and have had 3 relaspes since (on meth). In the 1st few weeks I was lost, I had 3 weeks off from work and slept. When I went back to work I had to catch up, I struggled but got there. The thing that helped me the most was Glutamine and Carnitine. It boosted my energy and mental clarity came after 2 weeks and improved gradually. Try not to worry and be kind to yourself, it took you a long time to get sick and it'll take a while to get better. If your not good to you then who will be.
Jason






Posted: October 30, 2012, 7:48 PM
I've been a mild user for about 4 years now, by mild i mean on and off say .4 to .8 a week or 2 full months of nothing at all. Even with such small amounts i have noticed changes in my brain functions, same as the ones you describe.. Before ever using it, i remember being way more creative, and had more a more positive outlook on life. This summer (2012) i used more than ever and now it's been 3 weeks i haven't touched and i'm just feeling dull, like a dark cloud is hovering in my head, i'm unable to think right, got nothing to say when im around women and just feel anti-social for the most part. I miss being that exciting, happy go lucky person i was before i started using. But.. As i said i have been an on/off user, last summer there was a night where an old friend came back in town, he got so upset to find out i was using, he just got up and left. The next day i left on a trip on Europe, i was gone for a month, didn't touch any. Got back, stayed off it for another month and suddenly life was becoming good, i was really happy, met an amazing girl, had fun being with friends etc.. Then one night i was with my "coke friend" drinking, and we ended up snorting.. The next week, the girl i met left me and everything was going downhill, yet i kept doing it to keep myself happy. Now i know it takes about 2-3 months to get back to normal. It takes time but it's worth it, stay away from it long enough and good times will return. You will get the urge when you start feeling like yourself again, but that's the biggest test. If you decide to keep doing it, even on occasion, you will lose many good years of your life. I never want to see that crap again.
Rich






Posted: December 2, 2012, 5:49 PM
I am experiencing the same symptoms as ABC. I really need some help. Is there any way to contact him? I would like to see what he did to get out of this malady.
QC7crew






Posted: December 30, 2012, 6:05 AM

While I have thankfully never used any of these drugs I have been doing EXTENSIVE brain research for the last 3 years after sustaining a very significant traumatic brain injury from a horrific car accident I had 3 years ago. Since then I have also met my beloved who while off all these drugs for the last 6 years, was a VERY heavy user of pretty much everything and anything he could get his hands on. The most important thing I can share with any of you is that you have four neurotransmitter s in your brain and deficiencies in anyone or sometimes all 4 of these can and will result in a whole host of problems and symptoms. Your doctors will not tell you this...because they do not know this. Please do yourselves ALL a big favour and invest in a book called "the edge effect". Read it cover to cover...it will change your life. Please all continue to stay off these drugs, and do NOT refer to yourselves as addicts...it was a time in your life it is NOT who YOU are...please do not carry around a negative label like this for the rest of your life. Anyone who would like more information personally please contact me at qc7crew@aol.com I would love to hear from you. Much love and laughter to all of you!Qc7crew@aol.com

BOBBIE






Posted: January 3, 2013, 10:57 AM
take cod liver oil capsules, use coconut oils for cooking, make smoothe, using blueberries, avocado, spinach, eat walnuts every day . blessings. do research foods that heal the brain.
josh






Posted: February 5, 2013, 8:59 PM
Very encouring discussion that seems to span a couple years of posting. I have been very consirned lately abput damage I may have done to myself and speaking through the lens of some with a susbtantial and intense case of obsessive compulsive disorder, i can attest to anxietys role in reinforcing negative thought to a point where it becomes your main body of evidence when supporting a diagnosis youve made on yourself. Mind over matter would be the obvious cliche that comes to mind, but more importantly, we have to understand that 'anxiety' is a very inaccurate term, the equivalent of referring to a seizure as a 'fit' or a mentally ill individual as 'touched'..... Much can be speculated on the topic, and little should be justified, but the reziliance of the human mind is proving greater by the study. No, cocaine abuse should not be advocated for mind expanding experiences because of the obvious physiological one detects after waking up after a period of in gestion but at the same time, you have to think positively after use to regain mental composure and use sparingly and far between if you want to avoid the rapid depletion of ceratonin and dopaminr that is the gasoline that fires the chemical reaction in our mind that is happyness. Exercise is also key. Do not be the architect of your own self fulfilling prophecy.


Posts: 1
Joined: January 30, 2013


Posted: February 20, 2013, 3:49 AM
Finally brought myself to post on this after reading it so many times.

First i apologize for all mistakes and jumbledness writing.

I am now 10 months clean. Im 21years old , i shot heroin for a good 3years then speedballs. But what burnt out my brain was a heavy habit iv cocaine & iv crack which id break down w lime juice to fix, this lasted for 2 years nonstop. I also did a few very large crystal meth shots upwards of atleast a half gram, which kinda sent me over the top I was in a psychosis for the last few months using.

When i cleaned up i weighed less than 137 lbs, im 6ft1 i could barely walk. Now i weigh 190. didnt speak but a few words for the first month i remember the simplest tasks being so difficult, such as walking i would tell myself "left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot. I didnt know it was the year 2012 already not 2011 i thought everything was a dream but after a few months i came to reality


Slowly by eating right, exercising, staying clean and engaging my mind i have come a long way. I no longer have the fear i will have to live my life nearly retarded, because im not as i once thought. I have done loads of research on this subject of brain damage, just now starting to form my opinion. I believe most damage is not physical damage but chemical damage in the brain which should heal for the most part after 12-18months abstinence.

I feel i am functioning at about 60-70% of my old self. I still have bad days where i feel spun out, and days where i am extra slow mentally or i get stuck in thought and have trouble living in reality versus thought world. I still have trouble organizing my thought and words or staying focused during conversation. But i continue to stay positive engage my mind constantly eat right, take tons of various vitamins and just get back to life.

Thanks all who have posted and for who havent i implore you to post!
Louie






Posted: April 11, 2013, 2:37 AM
There is some residual damage from cocaine use that lingers long after.
With regular exercise to burn the crap out of all your cells, yoga to relax by, and a good diet with lots of protein and vitamins, you can clear your self of the toxic build up.
But you will have to form new neural circuitry which will not show up on a EEG, etc.
And that takes amino acids, minerals, regular sleep, and a clean life with some self work. Therapy. Prayer. Solitude. Peace etc.
And alot of years totally free from drugs and alcohol.
26 years later after a wknd or infrequent usage of free base, I can think clearly but I work at brain stuff constantly. Math, computer, reading, etc.
I stay away from situations which anger me which are most relationships.
And the pleasure out of much of stuff other folk find fun, I don't.
The kicks keep getting harder to find but i guess that is the price I have to pay.
It ain't perfect but that's what I know.
college






Posted: April 16, 2013, 7:22 PM
I'm currently in my sophomore year of college and have been around cocaine most weekend nights. I just recently started using it, and already noticed my escalated use. I stumbled on this site as I was looking to see if I was doing any real harm to myself and my brain. Thank you all for your stories -I will no longer touch the stuff. You have saved me from a lot of future pain and anxiety. I wish all of you the best if you are suffering and/or recovering.
Here to Help






Posted: May 3, 2013, 5:43 PM
http://www.livescience.com/19867-co...ain-shrink.html. I believe this is what you are looking for.
RPF






Posted: May 21, 2013, 4:49 PM
I have been using on a bing basis since 2005. I feel like a idiot. I hate myself for the damage i have done to my family and friends. Hate the lies I told. Hate the deeds i have done. Cant explain why I cant stop. What is funny is i can stop and go to work for weeks then binge for a couple days and then go back to work. I held the same job and work every day. I know that I disapear for days and that I have lied and hurt my family and thats why I want to stop but how... How do I tell myself no and mean it. How can I keep this under control....I CANT. Who can I trust with this??? I dont have too many options and I feel like its about to come undone. I am using more and loosing touch with everything. I feel like a fog is taking me away and I know that I cant keep going but I cant stop at the same time.. IF you know or read this and have any way to beat it I need ideas....ANYONE...
Hopeful one






Posted: May 31, 2013, 11:57 PM
Man I am right there with you. I have been using since 05 as well, I'm now 26 and in college. I got a 3.8 GPA and just got some scholarships for my upcoming semester. Today I bought a brand new Hyundai Sonata and for some reason I felt like I had to initiate it by going to score with it. Now I am sitting here high off my a** and gotta be to work in 6 hours. I don't know what to do. I think a girlfriend or just some friends who are clean would be great for me. You are a product of your environment, and all i hang around is drug dealers and users. I want to stop and I tell myself I am going to, there has been times where I went clean for like 5 months, but then one day I would just get a thought process going that would lead me to going to grab some stuff. I use cocaine normally, i used to smoke weed, I've done ecstasy for a few months (one time i took 40 in the span of a week), I've smoked crack before maybe a gram, i did meth for like 8 days straight one time (wildest week of my life probably). I've lied to the people I love, even stolen from them. I have ruined the relationship with my childhood best friend, and it seems like I just keep going in a circle with life. I want more from life, I want more money to go on cruises and vacations. Any tips on changing this lifestyle would be appreciated. Also, advice on somehow fixing broken relationships with a best friend .... Thanks for reading guys. Oh if it matters I am a car salesman and work like 60 hours minimum each week.


Posts: 1584
Joined: November 6, 2005


Posted: June 1, 2013, 11:06 AM
Look up PAWS (Post-acute withdrawn symptoms) A string of symptoms that can go on for a year or two after drug addiction. Strange phenomenon that it occurrs in moon cycles..three months. I will do a search and post for you

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All things are possible through God.
Ask and you shall receive
Seek and you shall find
Knock and the door shall be opened unto you

When you pray, you activate God's power.
Every time you pray something happens!
The faithless are like an empty vessel and are more vulnerable to events that are out of their control.
Pray at stop lights.
Without faith it is impossible to please Him.
When you pray, pray for His will.
God is Good............all the time!!!!!
Big Bear






Posted: June 15, 2013, 1:18 PM
I am particulary moved by the individual that posted he/she has utilized prayer to get them through the dark times. My son has been struggling for several years with substance abuse, and at the present time, he seems to be overcoming these particular demons. The one thing that has gotten both he and me through these tough times has been praying to a higher authority.
Devilscandy2006






Posted: June 17, 2013, 5:40 PM
Scans showed cocaine users had enlarged grey matter in areas of the brain associated with processing reward.


Scientists have found "significant abnormalities" in the brains of people addicted to cocaine, which could help explain some of the compulsive behaviour associated with using the drug. It may also hint at why some people are more prone to addiction.

Brain scans revealed that cocaine users had a "dramatic decrease in grey matter" in their frontal lobes, according to researchers, which affected key functions including decision-making, memory and attention, while some of their brain's rewards systems were significantly bigger. Karen Ersche of the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute at the University of Cambridge, who led the latest work, found the longer a person had been using cocaine, the poorer their attention was, and the more compulsively they used the drug.

"That is the hallmark of cocaine dependence - namely, that most of them are intelligent people who go to great extents to buy cocaine, to get more cocaine, to put their jobs at risk, their families at risk,They feel like they're driven to use more .

The results were published on Tuesday in the journal Brain. Ersche and her team scanned the brains of 60 people who were dependent on cocaine and compared them to scans of 60 people without any history of drug-taking. "We found significant abnormalities in the brains of the cocaine users," she said.

Specifically, the amount of grey matter in the orbitofrontal cortex was reduced in people with cocaine addiction, an area involved in decision-making and goal-directed behaviour.

Other affected areas included the insula, an area of the brain involved in feedback processing, learning and feelings of cravings. The grey matter in the anterior cingulate, involved in emotional processing and being attentive, was also reduced.

In contrast, a region deep in the brain associated with reward processing, attention and motor movements - the caudate nucleus - was enlarged in subjects who were addicted to the drug. This could explain why those subjects were more prone to addiction but the scientists cannot be sure whether the enlargement is a result of cocaine use.

Laurence John Reed, a clinical senior lecturer in addiction neurobiology at Imperial College London, said the "most impressive" results were the basic comparison of controls and stimulant users, which showed how parts of the brain remodel themselves in response to drugs. "This is a striking and visual example of how addictive stimulant use can result in adaptation of very important brain systems which have a direct correlates with behaviour – specifically inattention, impulsivity and compulsivity – and really does underline why we need a much better neurobiological understanding of the processes involved."

Ersche said that, though she found links between brain structure and cocaine use,her research was not conclusive on which came first. "At the moment, correlation shows me a direct relationship - but I don't know which direction the relationship is. Has this been caused by cocaine, or are people who have this abnormality more vulnerable?"

But the work could be used to help in diagnosis and treatment of addiction.

"We basically show that cocaine is a disorder of the brain, which is a big step," said Ersche. "For a lot of people, it is still a moral issue and willpower has nothing to do with the brain."

Knowing that certain brain areas are abnormal, she said, meant that scientists could try to work out ways of training or medicating the brain to get around the damage.
Raptor






Posted: February 6, 2014, 2:05 PM
Amino acid and branched chain amino acid supplementation can be a valuable tool in recovering mental and physical condition. They help your brain rewire new pathways and repair your DNA structure. Vitamins and minerals are also valuable in this aspect of repair. I am in the same boat now from Caine use and when I went through opiate withdrawals, it was hell but supplementation definitely improved speed of recovery. Do some research on this topic for more info.


Posts: 433
Joined: December 14, 2009


Posted: February 7, 2014, 1:54 PM
"Branched-chain amino acid supplementation promotes survival and supports cardiac and skeletal muscle mitochondrial biogenesis in middle-aged mice."


National Institute of Health
nih.gov


Larry

This post has been edited by larrylive on February 7, 2014, 1:55 PM

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All gods send their drunks to AA

My story.. https://www.addictionrecoveryguide.o...ST&f=16&t=63644


Posts: 1
Joined: June 5, 2014


Posted: June 5, 2014, 7:15 PM
Hi there I went through this, now it takes time to heal, you need to be in state of total peace, take time off, if you smoke quit, spend lot of time outdoors long walks exercices join a team any sport.
No stressful situations, drinking also just eat whole foods and drink lots af fluids, when you feel tired and fogged just let go relax sleep it off is your body trying to heal don't fight it! Trust me!
Now invested in L-Tyrosine it does miracles it repairs the brain, it helps with brain fog and cognitive problems. I took it for 5 months, and out the blue bang!! I was back to normal like a miracle i felt so bad I could not function and am back like a lion!
Also take 5 HTP is called it helps with your mood nd anxiety amazing stuff! Let faceit we messed i wtih our body and brain badly!! Do am telling you I went trough so much and now life is amazing if
I can help someone is a pleasure i know what it means. Take a deep breath and take control
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