When you take meth, you are robbing your brain the ability to be happy. This is why meth addicts often feel depressed and feel like they’re never going to be happy again. This is one of the saddest long-term effects of meth.
All addictive substances alter the brain’s reward system, which is the dopamine reward pathway in your brain. This is what causes the high–the drugs activating your brain’s reward and pleasure circuitry, delivering a powerful jolt of happiness and ecstasy to your head. The same can be said when it comes to methamphetamine, one of the most addictive drugs in the world, which changes how the brain works and may potentially rob you of the ability to be happy.
Methamphetamine addiction starts out much like a spiritual experience for some. It is a religion followed by people who worship a chemical god, a cleanser of insecurities and inhibitions, an enhancer of everything that is feel-good. This crystalline powder can instantly turn a person into his or her best version ever–more confident, more focused, more active, braver, sexier, smarter, and happier than before.
However, in reality, using crystal meth is like borrowing from a sadistic and unforgiving loan shark who demands more from you than you can give back or replace–with the interest really high and costing you a lot than you have initially imagined. This is especially true on a physiological perspective.
Because meth robs you of the ability to be happy.
As soon as you crash from your high, you are quickly brought into the deepest depths of your reality–armed with nothing but depression, insecurity, and hopelessness. Many meth users would often describe the feeling like they are going to be unhappy forever.
This is called anhedonia, the inability to be happy or feel pleasure. When once even the most trivial things can make you happy, when you use meth over time, you will find that nothing, not even your partner, sex, money, children, or even food, can ever make you happy.
According to Edward Ratush, New York-based psychiatrist specializing in depression and substance abuse, says:
“Using Crystal meth for a substantial amount of time, especially when smoked, can put almost golf ball-sized holes in someone’s brain. If you look at someone who has had a traumatic brain injury, from a fall or car accident, their ability to experience happiness is also effected because different parts of the brain are interdependent. The long-term meth user experiences traumatic brain injuries as a result of longtime toxin ingestion.”
Compare this to a person who is used to eating really spicy food. For those who don’t eat spicy food all the time, they can appreciate a little spice or are sensitive to the tastes of even a bland dish. However, someone who is used to eating very spicy food all the time burn their tastebuds to the point that they have become desensitized.” This is the same with meth use. For a meth addict, a drug-free existence can seem so bland. Normal just doesn’t cut it. They cannot appreciate the little joys of life, like a beautiful sunset, hanging out with family, reconnecting with loved ones, or even just eating a good dish.
The brain is so rewired to the point that meth use becomes a habit and an addiction.
Unfortunately, stopping and abstinence can’t easily return the brain to its normal function. Even after rehab and staying off meth, most of the damaged brain cells cannot be restored or replaced. Some of the damage can last for months to even years.
