{"id":1865,"date":"2016-03-18T17:48:54","date_gmt":"2016-03-18T09:48:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/?p=1865"},"modified":"2016-03-18T18:35:38","modified_gmt":"2016-03-18T10:35:38","slug":"brain-damage-how-meth-affects-your-brain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/brain-damage-how-meth-affects-your-brain\/","title":{"rendered":"Brain Damage: How Meth Affects Your Brain"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3>Methamphetamine, <a href=\"https:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/2016\/02\/18\/meth-the-deadly-effects-of-shabu\/\" target=\"_blank\">meth<\/a>, crystal meth or shabu here in the Philippines, has become the drug of choice for many Filipinos who have dependence and addiction problems. Little do they know that in the midst of it all, from their first hit until they succumb to a full-blown addiction, that meth changes the way their brain works, sometimes even damaging it permanently.<\/h3>\n<p>The Philippines is one of the world&#8217;s leading countries with a huge population dealing with methamphetamine abuse and addiction. Many reports in the news would show shabu-related crimes, as well as rampant pushing and peddling in the streets. Bust operations of drug dens, as well as meth laboratories, also show just how much meth is being traded and used by Filipinos across the country.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_1867\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/wp-content\/uploads\/meth-brain-damage-bridges-of-hope.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1867\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1867\" src=\"https:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/wp-content\/uploads\/meth-brain-damage-bridges-of-hope-300x250.jpg\" alt=\"meth-brain-damage-bridges-of-hope\" width=\"300\" height=\"250\" srcset=\"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/wp-content\/uploads\/meth-brain-damage-bridges-of-hope-300x250.jpg 300w, http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/wp-content\/uploads\/meth-brain-damage-bridges-of-hope.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-1867\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image source: amphetamines.org<\/p><\/div>\n<p>While this is happening, there&#8217;s more cause for alarm for many meth users in the country. Aside from drug addiction ruining their lives and livelihoods, as well as destroying families and relationships, meth also has devastating and even irreversible effects on the body, especially changing how the brain works.<\/p>\n<p>Below are the different <a href=\"https:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/2015\/12\/07\/1467\/\" target=\"_blank\">effects meth has on the brain<\/a>. Some are immediate, while some happen dramatically over time, without you even noticing. Let&#8217;s take a closer look:<\/p>\n<h3>Meth-Induced Brain Damage<\/h3>\n<p>When you take meth repeatedly over time, the drug can create lasting damage in the nerve cells in many parts of your brain, especially the so-called pleasure center. Meth also damages the support brain cells that protects the nerve cells from contagions as well as helps gets rid of degraded nerve cells.<\/p>\n<p>Over time, the drug can impact your overall brain health, causing you to have:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>impaired memory<\/li>\n<li>memory loss<\/li>\n<li>reduced\u00a0ability to think clearly or logically<\/li>\n<li>reduced ability to focus<\/li>\n<li>reduced ability to regulate violent and aggressive urges<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Drug-induced psychosis is also one of the outcomes of long-term meth use. Its symptoms include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>sensory hallucinations<\/li>\n<li>delusions<\/li>\n<li>paranoia<\/li>\n<li>abnormal repetition of certain body movements<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Other effects of meth on the brain are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>tremors<\/li>\n<li>shakes<\/li>\n<li>poor judgment skills<\/li>\n<li>anxiety<\/li>\n<li>recognition problems<\/li>\n<li>difficulty speaking<\/li>\n<li>some may even exhibit symptoms similar to schizophrenia and bipolar disorder<\/li>\n<li>anhedonia, or the inability to experience pleasure, happiness, or joy even from things that you previously enjoy. This can cause you to feel empty. For many, this feeling can last even long after you have sobered up.<\/li>\n<li>disrupted dopamine regulation, which causes you to exhibit many emotional changes, which includes irrational behavior, violent mood swings, and the need to have more of the drug or other ways to increase your dopamine levels in the brain.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When your dopamine receptors are always overstimulated by meth, it changes your brain chemistry in very dramatic yet difficult-to-reverse way.<\/p>\n<p>Some of these damages to the brain are permanent, while others can be partially resolved with proper treatment.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">You may not feel it now, but if you are taking meth, the drug is slowly yet definitely changing the way your brain works. Sooner or later, it can damage your brain in ways that you may never get to repair. So do yourself a favor and sober up. If you can&#8217;t we offer help so you can finally be on the path of a recovered, healthier, and more positive life. Call or text our rehab specialists through our confidential helpline at 09175098826.<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Methamphetamine, meth, crystal meth or shabu here in the Philippines, has become the drug of choice for many Filipinos who&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/brain-damage-how-meth-affects-your-brain\/\">[&hellip;]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1867,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[18,6,213,158,159],"tags":[3,97,19,37,169,24,7,30,31,8,25,13,14,15,16],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/wp-content\/uploads\/meth-brain-damage-bridges-of-hope.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1865"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1865"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1865\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1869,"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1865\/revisions\/1869"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1867"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1865"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1865"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bridgesofhope.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1865"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}