Mixing Cocaine and Fentanyl

Mixing Uppers and Downers

Cocaine is a stimulant drug that makes users feel confident, more talkative, and more energetic. Fentanyl is a depressant drug that causes drowsiness and sedation.

The resulting effect of mixing these two drugs is a strong “push-pull” reaction that puts extra strain on the heart.

Additionally, there are many chemical forms of Fentanyl including furanyl fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl that can increase or decrease the potency of the high caused by combining cocaine and fentanyl.

The risk for overdose rises as users cannot anticipate the severity of the effects that will be caused by each dose that is taken.

Components of Cocaine

Cocaine is the second most popular drug behind marijuana. It is made from the Coca tree found in South America by crushing and processing leaves into a white powder.

The drug is most commonly snorted up the noses of users or injected directly into the body by a syringe. It affects the body by boosting dopamine levels in the brain. Dopamine is a naturally occurring chemical that makes us feel good for basic behaviors like eating.

Cocaine makes users feel happy, focused, and gives them a burst of energy because of this added Dopamine.

As with all illicit drugs, there are many names for Cocaine including:

• Coke
• Snow
• Rock
• Blow
• Crack
• Nose Candy
• Dust
• Bump

While there are some uses for cocaine in local anesthetics, the majority of cocaine use in the U.S. remains illicit.

Components of Fentanyl

Fentanyl is a lab-manufactured opioid that is prescribed as a pain reliever for patients with acute issues such as those in treatment for cancer, after major surgery, for people who are resistant to other types of opioids, and even for end-of-life care.

It is taken by injection, as an edible lozenge, or by transdermal patch and its effectiveness is up to 50 times more powerful than that of heroin. This drug works just like opioids that are made from poppy plants in that it attaches to opioid receptors in the brain that control pain.

Fentanyl’s effects are similar to the euphoria felt from taking heroin. Users report extreme feelings of pleasure, happiness, and relaxation when taking Fentanyl.

Street names for Fentanyl include:

• Jackpot
• Friend
• Tango
• Apache
• Murder 8
• Cash
• Tango
• China Girl
• China White
• Dance Fever
• Goodfellas

Mixing Cocaine and Fentanyl Intentionally “Speedballing”

Combining drugs for their shared effects is nothing new in the world of drug abuse. It usually consists of mixing a stimulant drug with a depressant drug. This practice is referred to as speedballing.

Users who are looking for more and more of a high often mix more commonly abused substances like marijuana and alcohol while others choose to cross more dangerous drugs like Adderall and Xanax prescriptions.

While it’s well known that singular drug abuse can have devastating effects on a person’s life, speedballing is less studied as addiction and overdose in different types of drugs can cause similar physical reactions.

Addiction to two of more drugs requires specialized treatment care that addresses and treats all substances that are being abused.

Physical Effects of Speedballing

All drug abuse causes both a pleasurable sensation such as euphoria, relaxation, or extra energy. But those same drugs can also set off distressing negative physical and mental reactions like excessive sweating, heart rate increases, and anxiety.

Speedballing aims to increase the good effects felt by drug use while decreasing the bad ones by combining specific opposite reaction drugs.

For example, cocaine often causes irritability in users but smoking marijuana while high on cocaine can subdue feelings of irritation.

Combining stimulants and depressants can lead to an array of negative bodily responses including blurry vision, confusion, lethargy, unintelligibility, impaired motor function, and extreme sleepiness.

People who speedball drugs by injection are more likely to contract hepatitis or HIV and to develop skin infections.

Speedballing Abuse Ripples through Families

The children and families of drug users cannot usually escape the ravaging effects that speedballing has on them.

Studies show that parents who abuse two or more substances such as cocaine and fentanyl are more likely to exhibit negative or threatening behavior against their children.

These parents become anxiety-ridden over time and may develop a sense of paranoia and delusion that causes them to act violently or combative. They also become less affectionate and more likely to over scrutinize their kids.

Physical dangers to babies and small children include the risk of a roll-over or dropping accident by an overly sleepy parent. Furthermore, children of moms and das who speedball receive less attention due to a parent’s preoccupation with taking drugs and being high.

These parents can also develop more psychological issues and are twice as likely to not complete drug rehabilitation.

The Dangers of Fentanyl Laced Cocaine

There is mounting evidence that the recent rise in opioid overdose is being fueled by fentanyl in coke.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse states that “some drug dealers are mixing fentanyl with other drugs, such as heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and MDMA. This is because it takes very little to produce a high with fentanyl.”

Fentanyl is a cheaper, more powerful drug so it doubly benefits dealers in that it costs much less to make and it is more addictive to customers whom they want to return for more purchases.

It may also unintentionally make its way into cocaine by being produced with the same equipment that coke was made with by careless, multitasking drug pushers.

Short and Long-term Health Issues of Cocaine Abuse

The high from cocaine is felt within a few seconds of ingesting the drug and it lasts anywhere from mere minutes to a half an hour.

Repeatedly taking cocaine by smoking or injection rather than snorting it creates a more powerful high that does not last as long.

Using more cocaine in more extreme ways can cause a range of severe short and long-term side-effects including:

• Nausea and vomiting
• Muscle spasms and trembling
• Elevated blood pressure and heartbeat
• Enlarged pupils
• Sensitivity to noises and light
• Constant runny nose, nosebleeds, and a reduced sense of smell
• Bowel deterioration due to slowed blood flow
• Development of respiratory issues like severe cough, asthma, and pneumonia
• Scarring, vein damage, and skin infections
• Anxiety and paranoia
• Insomnia and irritation
• Malnutrition
• Violent behavior