Ketamine Abuse
A
BBC report in May 2000 claimed that medical research had shown
that controlled tests on Ketamine users had revealed impaired
memory and mild schizophrenia several days after taking the
drug.
Two
psychological difficulties which seem to come up for those who
use Ketamine regularly are paranoia and egocentrism. There are
many reports of regular users starting to see patterns and coincidences
(synchronicities) in the world around them which seem to indicate
that they are somehow more important or integral to the world
than others. This same sense of the world focusing on the user
can also feed into a sense of paranoia.
A main characteristic of Ketamine is a stupor similar to extreme
drunkenness. This is commonly known as "being in the K-hole."
- increase heart rate
- slurred speech
- paralyzed feeling
- nausea
- unable to move
- hallucination
- numbness
- impaired attention, memory and learning ability
- delirium,
amnesia, impaired motor function, high blood pressure, depression
and potentially fatal respiratory problems at higher doses
Q) Can you overdose on Ketamine?
A) Yes, an overdose of Ketamine will knock you out as if in an operating room. If repeatedly taken in large doses, Ketamine can induce unconsciousness and failure of the cardiovascular system, leading to death. There are at least seven Ketamine related deaths known nationally.
Q) Is Ketamine addictive?
A) Yes, Ketamine can cause a tremendous psychological dependence and may be physically addicting as well. The dissociation from one's consciousness experienced with Special K (the entrance to "K-Land") can be highly seductive, and there are many cases of Ketamine addiction. If used regularly, users of Special K can quickly build a tolerance to the drugs effects. Special K is illegal and possession can result in long prison terms.
Q) What are the slang terms used for Ketamine?
A) Special K, Ketalar, Ketaject, Ketaset, Super-K, "K", Ket Kat, Cat Valium, Vitamin K
Q) What is the history behind Ketamine?
A)
Abuse of Ketamine (pronounced Kee-ta-meen) goes hand in hand
with gamma hydroxy butyrate (GHB) and MDMA (Ecstasy). Where
you find one, you will likely find the others. All three are
very popular with the RAVE party crowd. Ketamine hcl, a cat
tranquilizer and the most commonly used anesthetic in the Vietnam
War. It was popular in the 70's. Ketamine is a psychedelic anesthetic
classified medically as a dissociative anesthetic, discovered
by Dr. Cal Stevens of Wayne State University in 1961. Heavily
used on the battlefields of Vietnam, it is used today for short-term
surgical procedures in both animals and humans. It is sold only
to hospitals and physicians. Since it does not depress critical
body vitals, it is often used in procedures with burn victims
for example.
Special K has exploded in the past few months onto the suburban drug scene. In February, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration warned that use is increasing at teen "rave" parties, the marathon dances that have spawned a new youth subculture. Anti-drug czar Barry McCaffrey's office added K to its list of "emerging drugs" in 1995; the office's latest "pulse check" of the nation found K "all over." St. Louis, Mo., Tampa, Fla., and suburban New Jersey have seen a rash of animal-hospital break-ins by thieves hunting for Ketamine.
