Category: Addiction Education

Signs of Substance Use in Your Loved One

Signs of Substance Use in Your Loved One

If you suspect your loved one is abusing drugs or alcohol, it’s unfortunately common. In 2021, some 46.3 million Americans qualified for a diagnosis for a substance use disorder, or 16.5% of the population. Of those, some 29.5 million had an alcohol use disorder and 24 million had a drug use disorder or a drug use and alcohol use disorder. But, it means that 4 out of every 25 people have a substance use disorder, and that means that one in two Americans knows someone with a drug or alcohol use disorder.

Recognizing the signs and symptoms of substance abuse is one of the first steps to getting your loved one treatment and help. However, those signs can vary from person to person. In addition, people often try to hide drug abuse and use. In some cases, your loved one may be high functioning or show very few outward signs of substance abuse – but may have no money, unexplainable absences, and deteriorating health.

People use substances to cope with life, stress, and pain. Getting help is about getting treatment and improving quality of life. Hopefully, recognizing these signs in your loved one makes it easier for you to throw out a lifeline and help them get their life back.

Constant Stress and Mood Swings

People who abuse drugs and alcohol are not generally chipper and happy when they are not using. Instead, they’ll be stressed, paranoid, irritable, and may have significant mood swings. That’s in part because of the change in hormones and neurotransmitters in the brain because substance abuse changes how the brain regulates chemicals like dopamine, serotonin, and opioids. Substance abuse makes you feel good in the moment, but tired, hungover, and cranky.

If your loved one is having mood swings they didn’t used to have, it could be a sign of increased stress or a mental health disorder. But, if that’s paired with substance use, it might just be a hangover.

Changes in Behavior

People who regularly abuse substances get very adept at hiding their effects. That’s especially true as they increase tolerance and the drugs or alcohol have less effect. However, if they’re binging on any substance, you should be able to tell. For example, someone with an alcohol use disorder may loosen up, they may have more trouble articulating thought or words, they may act dizzy or woozy, they may act in an exaggerated fashion, etc. And, if they’re using other drugs, there will be other signs. For example, pain pill and opioid abuse typically results in longer periods of lethargy or increased sleeping – sometimes even passing out on a couch or acting extremely fatigued.

That is the same story if they constantly have withdrawal symptoms. For example, someone without a hay fever diagnosis should not have constant puffy eyes and runny nose or a cough. And hay fever does not come with fever and excessive sweating.

Manipulative Behavior

If your loved one is lying, stealing, or manipulating others into giving them money or breaks from their responsibilities, it’s a good sign that something is wrong. Someone who frequently needs larger sums of money for no reason or for similar reasons like frequent car accidents, not being able to make the rent for unexplained reasons, etc., are being suspicious. People who frequently ask for money, who steal valuables, or who manipulate others into paying for things may be using their own money for substance abuse.

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Unexplained Disappearances

People who abuse substances need time to use those substances and that often means taking hours or even days out of their week. Some will use on their own in a room, others will go out to meet people to use with. This symptom is less visible with alcohol use disorder, because many people have no problems drinking around friends and family. However, they may get blackout drunk or may be unable to remember conversations where you thought they were sober.

Waste and Trash

It’s often relatively easy to find waste and trash from drug or alcohol abuse. For example, most alcohol requires buying bottles, which means receipts, bottles or cans, etc. If your loved one is drinking a lot, they are hiding bottles somewhere and sneaking them out of the house. That’s especially important if you find things like very strong alcohol that you wouldn’t normally buy. People hide bottles behind couches, in the bottom of the trash can, in garages, and under their beds – although some may simply make sure they do their drinking outside of the home.

Drug paraphernalia is also relatively easy to spot and typically includes pill containers, small pipes, burnt tinfoil, spoons, pipes, etc.,

These will vary significantly depending on what kinds of substances your loved one is using. But, if you suspect they are, taking time to look for signs is a good idea.

Lying

If you know your loved one has been using or drinking and ask them about it, and they lie or show guilt, it’s usually a bad sign. For example, if your loved one has a prescription for pain medication and they start hiding usage or lying about it, it’s a good sign that something has gone wrong. Similarly, if someone always underexaggerates how much they’ve had to drink, even though you know they’ve had more, it’s a sign that they might have a problem.

People who have a good relationship with substances do not try to hide drinking or using. They also won’t show or react with guilt when asked about those substances.

Getting Help

If your loved one is struggling with drug or alcohol abuse, it’s important to reach out and get help. Substance abuse is bad at any level, simply because it causes stress to mental and physical health, resulting in permanent damage to the liver and the gut, and what can be permanent damage to the way the brain functions. The more substances someone uses, the worse the effects are. A substance use disorder or addiction means that person has lost control over their substance abuse and will seek out substances regardless of their impact on social, career, or personal life. People become addicted for different reasons, but there is always a way to treat that addiction.

A rehab center can help your loved one to recover by treating the addiction and its symptoms and then treating the underlying causes of that addiction. People use to mask pain, to destress, to fit in, to hide mental health problems, and to feel good. Modern treatment includes behavioral therapy like CBT to help uncover behaviors that contribute to needing medication and to help people build new and better coping mechanisms, social behavior, and to improve their life – so they don’t need drugs or alcohol.

If you or your loved-one struggles from alcoholism or other substance abuse please contact us today and speak with one of our experienced and professional intake advisors about our detox, partial hospitalization, and residential treatment programs. 10 Acre Ranch also has specialty tracks like our pet friendly drug rehab and couples substance abuse treatment programs. We’re here to help you recover.

Substance Abuse Issues in the LGBTQ+ Community

The LGBTQ+ community is especially vulnerable to mental health problems, including anxiety, depression, and substance use disorders. Today, an estimated 60% of people identifying as LGBTQ+ will have a mental health disorder in their lifetime, which means that LGBTQ+ individuals are more than twice as vulnerable to mental health problems. That exacerbates in relation to substance use disorders, where the LGBTQ+ community is anywhere from twice to four times as likely to have a substance use disorder. The National Survey on Drug use and Health shows that 21% of sexual and gender minority adults struggle with substance use disorders vs about 11% in the general population, for a total of about 16%.

The complex interplay between the problems faced by the LGTBQ+ community and mental health are an important factor in that. This means that treating substance abuse in someone how identifies as LGBTQ+ requires acknowledging those issues and treating the trauma caused by stigma, homophobia, transphobia, gender dysphoria, shame, lack of fitting in, and abuse.

The LGBTQ+ Community and Substance Abuse

It’s a well-studied fact that the LGBTQ+ community is more vulnerable to mental health disorders including substance use disorders. Often, that relates to other life experiences, especially early trauma, inability to safely manage self-expression, and feelings of being different or not fitting in.

The LGBTQ+ community is also at especially high risk of domestic and interrelationship violence, which increases risks of mental health problems and substance use disorders.

That’s often exacerbated by social stigma, shame, family rejection, and in how common it is for the LGBTQ+ scene to drink and use drugs as part of culture. The following sections discuss each of these issues in detail.

Early Childhood Trauma

The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study directly links incidents of trauma experienced before the age of 16 to heightened risk of addiction, mental health disorder, and physical health problems. The scale links increases in experiences of trauma to heightened risk, with increases in risk taking behavior, poor coping mechanisms, poor social behavior, and reliance on substances and heightened experiences to self-medicate.

Because persons who are not cisgender and who are not straight are at significantly higher risk for domestic violence, family rejection, social rejection, bullying, and feelings of being ostracized from peers, they are significantly more likely to have more Adverse Childhood Experiences, and therefore a higher vulnerability to addiction.

Trauma

LGBTQ+ individuals are at an increased risk of experiencing trauma as adults. This relates to:

Increased risk of domestic violence and inter-partner violence
Stigma and shame
Hiding gender and sexuality
Inability to practice self-expression
Stress from slights, stigma, and bias from the community
Family rejection
Homophobia and transphobia, including internalized
Lack of resources for mental health support

These can all result in real trauma, without considering that people identifying as LGBTQ+ are significantly more likely to experience violence outside of the home in the form of attacks, challenges, and being physically beaten. As a result, rates of trauma, PTSD, and high levels of stress are significantly higher in the LGBTBQ+ community than in the general population.

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Mental Health Problems

The same risk factors that increase vulnerability to substance abuse increase vulnerability to mental health disorders including depression, anxiety, and PTSD. In addition, those factors are more likely to trigger bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and borderline personality disorder. Many people who are not cisgender also experience gender dysphoria which can be traumatic on its own. This leads to higher rates of using substances to cope, higher rates of suicidal ideation and attempts, and increased need to self-medicate to manage life. With as many as 60% of LGBTQ+ individuals qualifying for a mental health disorder diagnosis, LGBTQ+ individuals are four times as likely to have mental health problems as the general population.

Exposure to Drugs & Alcohol

Drugs and alcohol are a standard part of life for many people but the culture of drugs and alcohol in the LGBTQ+ community is especially bad. That often relates to the fact that homophobia means that homosexual gatherings were actually prosecuted by the police – leading them to be prime spots to sell drugs because they were already secret. As a result, drug use and raves are very common as part of culture and adults who are stressed and who have poor impulse control because of trauma are more likely to seek out quick ways to feel good. However, it does mean that the LGBTQ+ community is more exposed to drug use and heavy alcohol use than many other communities in the United States.

Building Treatment Plans Around LGBTQ+ Needs

Finding and seeking mental health and substance abuse treatment is difficult for the general population but often more so for people who identify as LGBTQ+. For example, one study shows that 70% have experienced stigma or bias during treatment. And, as many as 24% of have been denied care at all because of their gender or sexuality.

That stigma, plus the significant amount of specific issues faced by the LGBTQ+ community, mean that the community needs unique care built around those needs.

LGBTQ+ Only

Individuals who identify as LGBTQ+ face significant issues including stigma, homophobia, rejection, social isolation, and low self-esteem. These issues must be understood and incorporated into treatment in order for treatment to be effective. That necessitates custom programs and tracks, built around offerings support and treatment to not only the substance use disorder but also the underlying causes. Offering LBGTQ+ focused programs at rehab centers creates safe spaces, reducing fears of stigma, violence, or harassment. And, studies show that doing so improves outcomes, because people are better able to invest in treatment and not in ensuring that they stay safe through treatment.

Personalized Care

The LGBTQ+ community is not homogenous, instead, each person has their own unique and individual history, with patterns and life problems that might contribute to substance abuse in different ways. Rehab relies on behavioral therapy, which means investigating the root of problems and treating those causes. That requires significantly personalized care and treatment tracks, which may involve dealing with trauma, coping with self-esteem problems, overcoming social barriers, or learning to feel accepted. From there, you can base the treatment approach on individual motivation, progress, and aptitude.

Emotional and Psychological Support

Understanding, support, and affirmation are seen as critical elements of any treatment program but that is more true in the case of the LGBTQ+ community. It is critical that mental healthcare providers be able to deliver understanding and reaffirmation for gender and sexuality – without judgement. For this reason, staff involved in LGBTQ+ programs must be trained to do so and to handle those aspects with care.

Getting Help

If you or your loved one is struggling with substance abuse, it’s important to reach out and to get help. The LGBTQ+ community is significantly vulnerable to drug and alcohol abuse and that goes on to impact quality of life, mental health, and ability to live a fulfilling life at all. Trauma, mental health problems, and lack of support mean that people in the LGBTQ+ community are significantly likely to turn to drugs and alcohol to cope, but good healthcare, mental health support, and treatment will actually improve quality of life.

Adderall vs Meth – What’s the Difference?

Adderall vs Meth - What’s the Difference?

Amphetamines are one of the most common drugs in the United States. In fact, in 2021, Americans had some 41.4 million prescriptions for prescription and generic Adderall. That number of prescriptions is at an all time high, up 10% from 2020, and up almost 10 million from 2017. Adderall is also famous as being “just like meth”, and if you or a loved one is using it, you probably have concerns.

However, Adderall and Methamphetamine are very different blends of the same substances. Adderall is a mix of amphetamine salts. It’s identical to Mydayis and a number of generic drugs, which are mostly used to treat ADD, ADHD, and other attention disorders. But, as it’s made up of two of the active ingredients in Methamphetamine, the effects at very high doses can be quite similar. And vice-versa. Methamphetamine is sometimes used to treat ADD.

Today, the widespread availability of Adderall has led to its being abused in recreational settings. People use it as a study drug, with some 4.4% of `12^th graders admitting to doing so. Others inject it, looking for the same highs as with methamphetamine. And, some 3.7 million people abuse prescription stimulants like Adderall each year.

What are the Differences Between Adderall and Methamphetamine?

Amphetamines are all remarkably similar drugs and Adderall and Methamphetamine are both amphetamines. This class of drug is made up of active ingredients known as “amphetamine salts”. Here, dextroamphetamine and levoamphetamine are the two most common of these salts. Each of these two salts has a different reaction in the brain, meaning that different amounts of each can produce remarkably different results.

Adderall – Adderall is a 3:1 mix of dextroamphetamine and levoamphetamine. This mix is used in Myadis, Adderall, and Adderall RX, as well as generic versions of each of these drugs. It also balances the effects of each to produce a profile that is tilted towards increasing focus and attention. The effects of amphetamine drugs like Dexedrine and Evekeo, which only use dextroamphetamine, are markedly different. However, that’s not the only difference. All authentic Adderall is made in a lab, under regulated conditions, and packaged in regulated doses of 5-30mg. These pills contain regulated inactive ingredients, most of which are cellulose or sugars or salts. With Adderall, providing you buy authentic pills, you always know what you’re getting and that the other ingredients are safe.

Methamphetamine – Methamphetamine is a 1:1 mix of dextroamphetamine and levoamphetamine. The higher dose of levoamphetamine adds increased impacts to wakefullness, concentration, decreased appetite, decreased fatigue, and weight loss. For this reason, levoamphetamine is sometimes sold as a narcolepsy treatment. Levoamphetamine and dextroamphetamine was also commonly used in nasal decongestants, such as Vicks and Robitussin, meaning that drug-dealers could simply purchase over-the-counter cold medicine, distill it down, and have methamphetamine. Today, these drugs are much more likely to be manufactured separately. They can often be sold as “Adderall” except the pills are made somewhere other than a lab, without regulation, and dosage may vary significantly. In addition, many are made with fentanyl, an opioid with 100 times the strength of morphine, because it’s cheaper.

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Differences:

Dosage – Every Adderall pill contains 25% Dextroamphetamine Saccharate, 25% Amphetamine Aspartate Monohydrate, 25% Dextroamphetamine Sulfate, and 25% Amphetamine Sulfate, with cellulose and salt fillers to increase the size of the pill. A methamphetamine dose is neither predictable nor guaranteed not to contain fillers like chalk or baby powder.

Salt Mix – Methamphetamine is a 1:1 mix of dextroamphetamine and levoamphetamine. Adderall is a 3:1 mix of dextroamphetamine and levoamphetamine. Because levoamphetamine is considered to produce more euphoric results, methamphetamine is easier to abuse.

Safety – Adderall is regulated, produced in clean labs, and uses safe fillers. Methamphetamine and fake Adderall pills don’t have that safety guarantee. However, no abuse of an amphetamine is “safe”, it’s just safer to use a drug that you know doesn’t contain toxic additives, other drugs, or a higher dose than expected.

What are the Effects of Amphetamines?

Amphetamines are “uppers” or “stimulants” which affect the central nervous system. Here, amphetamines affect the central nervous system, dopamine neurotransmitters, and norepinephrine transmitters. Someone taking the drug feels increases in confidence, wakefulness, focus, and attention. Dopamine affects normally result in the person having more motivation to complete tasks, and therefore more ability to focus on them. It also increases body temperature and heart rate, increasing feelings of energy and wakefulness. In high doses, increases in dopamine and norepinephrine in the brain can cause feelings of power, confidence, and even euphoria, making amphetamines extremely popular party drugs.

Of course, those same effects can result in very negative side effects.

Heart Problems – Long-term use of amphetamines in high doses stresses the heart, and can result in heart problems. Someone with a weak heart can have a heart attack.

Exhaustion – People who don’t feel tired don’t rest, and as a result, meth users can stay awake for days. The result is normally crashing for several days at a time when the high wears off. This increases risks of stress and heart attack.

Reduced Dopamine Production – The brain reduces dopamine production to cope with high amounts of dopamine in the brain. The result is that someone who frequently uses amphetamines may feel blunted or unable to feel emotions or motivation when not using.

Paranoia – Increases in dopamine and norepinephrine can cause increases in anxiety, paranoia, and psychosis. Heavy users typically become extremely paranoid and may scratch at the skin, believing insects or bugs to be crawling there. However, some people can experience visual hallucinations at even small doses, meaning this drug is never safe to take without medical supervision.

Is Adderall Safe?

More than 40 million Americans have an Adderall prescription, which they use to manage attention disorders. Adderall is an extremely useful drug, which can help people to go about their lives, to go to work, and to focus on school, their careers, and their hobbies. It’s safe to take while you take it in accordance with a prescription. However, even with prescription usage, many people experience withdrawal symptoms when quitting.

On the other hand, Adderall is never safe to take without a prescription. Having medical monitoring is important to ensure there are no negative side-effects, like paranoia, muscle twitches, or addiction. In addition, if you’re sourcing Adderall illegally, you’re exposed to dangerous fake versions of the pills, which may be contaminated with other drugs, which may be contaminated with toxic filler agents, and which may be significantly higher in dose than you expect. In addition, taking too much Adderall can cause significant symptoms of toxicity. People who use large doses of Adderall see constant cold and flu symptoms, muscle shakes, sweating, mood swings, weight loss, loss of interest in relationships and hobbies, and increasing paranoia and anxiety.

There are differences between Adderall and Methamphetamine highs. However, when taken in high doses, those differences vanish and the effects are much the same. Adderall is somewhat safer because it’s unlikely to be contaminated and very likely to be a standardized dose. However, abusing any amphetamine is unsafe, simply because the drug is not safe to use in large doses.

If you or a loved one is struggling, it’s important to reach out and get help. Drug addiction treatment and behavioral therapy can help you to tackle the underlying causes behind drug abuse and to find better coping mechanisms.

Can Cocaine Kill You? Yes, and Here’s How

cocaine or other drugs cut with razor blade on mirror. hand dividing white powder narcotic

Can Cocaine Kill You? Yes, and Here’s How

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, some 478,000 new people try using cocaine each year. Most of those go on to be occasional users, turning to cocaine for social use and parties.

Cocaine is often seen as relatively safe, because of its light addiction profile and the fact that millions of people use it. But, this drug is listed as a Schedule II Drug under the Controlled Substances Act because it can be dangerous. Yet, about 5 million Americans, or 2% of the population, use cocaine.

Those dangers include addiction, health risks, and mental health risks – each of which can vary significantly depending on the individual, their genetics, their metabolism, and their existing health. Cocaine’s euphoric effects on the body can quickly turn to paranoia, anxiety, insomnia, sleeplessness, and heart problems – but few people talk about that when initiating use. Cocaine can kill you, and it will always be dangerous to use.

How Can Cocaine Kill You

Cocaine is a powerful stimulant that takes just a few seconds to affect your brain. The drug also affects nearly every part of your body, from dopamine production to the amount of air in the cellular walls of the heart. This can result in significant side-effects to the body.

Heart Attack

Cocaine usage elevates the heart rate and blood pressure, which puts stress on the heart. If you have a weak heart, even a small amount of cocaine can elevate your heart to the point of causing too much stress. Long-term cocaine usage can also cause the heart problems that result in having a heart attack after a small amount of cocaine usage. In addition, cocaine usage patterns result in continuing and ongoing stress to the heart. For example, short-term effects of cocaine mean that people are very likely to keep using throughout the night. This means the heart is under a large amount of stress for a longer amount of time, with continuous spikes of stress – rather than a single spike and then a plateau. This means you’re more likely to experience heart abnormalities with cocaine than with a stimulant that you only take once. In addition, because cocaine has a half life of about 60 minutes, people typically increase the amount of cocaine in their system with each follow-up dose, even if they don’t intend to.

Stroke

Cocaine is a significant contributor to stroke, although the mechanism of how is poorly understood. However, it causes increased blood pressure and stimulates the central nervous system. This can result in a stroke which may result in partial paralysis or even death.

Overdose

Cocaine was involved in 1 in 5 overdose deaths in 2019. While it pales in comparison to heavier drugs like fentanyl, cocaine can be significantly dangerous. In fact, some 16,000 Americans died in 2019 with cocaine in their system. Often, those cocaine-related overdoses included either very large amounts of cocaine or a mixture of cocaine and another drug. Of these, cocaine and alcohol is the most common, as both of these drugs are common. However, mixing cocaine with another drug can increase the potency and the bad side effects of each, meaning it’s much more likely to suffer an overdose.

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Toxicity or Poisoning

Cocaine-induced cardiotoxicity happens when too much cocaine collects in the heart and cardiovascular system. The result is quite-often sudden death. This happens because cocaine permeates the membrane tissues of the cardiovascular system, forcing oxygen out. If you use too much, it can result in reduced oxygen in the heart and sudden death. Most importantly, there is not a way to actually predict that happening before it does.

However, cocaine can also cause more traditional toxicity and poisoning if it is cut with toxic material. For example, some dealers will cut cocaine with baby powder or talc. Consuming small quantities of this won’t really harm you. However, in larger doses these and other substances can cause significant toxicity, which can result in shock and even poisoning.

Other Dangers of Cocaine

Cocaine can be significantly dangerous, even when it doesn’t kill you. This means it’s important to be careful with cocaine even in small doses. In addition, cocaine can cause significant and lasting damage to your mental and physical health, which can decrease your quality of life.

Addiction

An estimated 1.4 million people or almost 30% of all cocaine users have a cocaine use disorder. This means that they are mentally and physically addicted to the substance, show signs of withdrawal, and show seeking behavior – where they prioritize cocaine over responsibilities, family, friends, and other things they care about. That behavioral addiction often requires significant therapy intervention to treat and if left alone, can mean years of spiraling substance abuse.

Paranoia and Anxiety

Cocaine usage affects dopamine reuptake in the brain. This often means that dopamine production raises significantly in the short term and the body responds to this by producing less dopamine. As a result, long-term users may start to experience side-effects of anxiety, paranoia, anxiety attacks, and even panic attacks. These symptoms are often a result of chemistry changes in the brain, meaning they can be persistent and can last for years or permanently, even if you quit using cocaine.

Cardiac Complications

Cocaine usage can result in long-term side-effects and damage to the heart. Here, common cardiac complications include arrhythmia, acute myocardial infarction, cardiomyopathy, and coronary artery disease. Each of these diseases is not fatal on its own. However, they do increase chance of early death, decrease quality of life, and increase need for medical care over your lifetime. In addition, they increase the risks of further cocaine usage, because they weaken your heart, meaning you’re more likely to have heart problems.

Getting Help

Cocaine is never safe to use recreationally. The drug causes short-term euphoria and can make you feel good, energetic, and even powerful. Yet, it causes physical harm to your body, increases your risk of death, increases your risk of mental and physical health problems, and decreases your quality of life. If you are using anyway, you are putting yourself at risk, and knowingly. That often means you can benefit from therapy and help getting off the drug, treating the underlying reasons behind substance abuse, so you can recover and get your life back.

How to Pass a Drug Saliva Test

If you or a loved one is facing a drug test at work or at school, or worse, while on probation, it can be nerve wracking. If you’ve recently used, passing a drug saliva test is likely to be difficult. That’s true whether you’re being tested for cannabis or heavier drugs like opioids or amphetamines. Oral swab tests are popular as “on the spot” tests everywhere because they’re cheap, easy to administer, and almost anyone can give them correctly. In addition, you can use a dipstick test to see results in about 5 minutes – although they’re normally sent off for lab analysis, which is more accurate and more specific. So, your employer or your parole officer could spring them on you and you might see results in as little as a few minutes, giving you very little time to prepare.

Still, if you’ve recently used, you likely want to know how to pass the test without being flagged as not being clean. Unfortunately, that can be complicated and there’s no guaranteed way to pass the test other than to not use long enough in advance. However, there are some methods you can use to try to get a false negative result.

Steps to Take to Pass a Drug Saliva Test

If you’ve smoked cannabis or used another drug in the last 24-48 hours, passing a saliva drug test is very likely to be a problem. Depending on the drug and your habit of use, you can expect saliva tests to show positive for 1-3 days following your last usage.

This happens because the drugs bind to the molecules in the saliva, normally from the saliva production glands in the cheeks. For this reason, swabs normally swab the back of the cheek where the saliva glands are. This also limits the efficacy of using a gum, drinking, or brushing your teeth to remove chemicals left by drug use.

However, there are a few methods you can try:

Brush your teeth well, and often, leading up to the drug test. E.g., every 2-3 hours before the test
Chew on gum the full day before the drug test
Use mouthwash, especially a medical or dental mouthwash after brushing your teeth
Don’t drink anything to dehydrate your body to decrease saliva production
Decrease saliva production in another way, such as by eating spoonful’s of peanut butter just before the test
Eat fatty foods before the test. E.g., thc and some other drug molecules bind to fat, which means less will be in your mouth. A burger or similar fatty meal will likely help.
Drink soda with bubbles which could bind to the drug residue and move it out of your mouth faster

Unfortunately, none of these options are guaranteed to work. You could chew gum all day and still come up positive for a test. In addition, chewing a spoonful of peanut butter right before a mouth swab might be a lot suspicious – and it still might not help you pass the test.

There’s also another tactic that some people use. Here, you leverage a false positive to try to hide the actual positive. This also might not work and it might backfire, because the person doing the test might decide for a more intensive blood or urine test. However, it might help.

Take ibuprofen every few hours before the test (marijuana, benzodiazepines)
Use hay fever remedies or nasal decongestants (amphetamines)
Start taking diet pills (amphetamines)
Bring poppy seed snacks to work (opioids)
Bring hemp products to work (marijuana)

Depending on where and why you’re being tested, a false positive might result in a more intensive lab investigation. However, if your workplace is doing a quick check without lab intervention, you might be able to use your false positive to get around having a “true positive”. Still, you’re likely to get caught if the test ends up going back to the lab.

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Do Detoxes and Special “Toxin Clearing” Gums Work?

You can often buy detoxes and “toxin clearing” gums and mouthwashes to use before taking a test. Do these work? They might, but not any more than using any of the options listed above. For example, mouthwashes normally contain fat and acids, which are intended to remove all of the detectable THC or other drug residue from your mouth immediately. In addition, because it’s intended to be done just before a test and typically includes something like 9 minutes of rinsing your mouth, it can be effective. On the other hand, there are no tests showing that you won’t get the same results by eating a bag of potato chips and then rinsing your mouth with normal mouthwash for the same period.

Other cleanses are detoxes intended to flush drugs from your system over a period of several days. These are less useful for saliva tests, which are usually given by surprise or “next day”. They can also include diuretics, intended to force liquids through your system faster to clear up your saliva. Here, you might use a diuretic in combination with a large quantity of water to attempt to “flush” your system. There’s also no evidence that these work any better than drinking a larger amount of water or soda in the period – which isn’t a tactic that works – although it can help.

How Long Do Drugs Show Up on a Saliva Test?

If you’re taking a saliva test, it’s important to understand when you’re likely to test positive. Most roadside, workplace, and police tests check for marijuana, methamphetamine, and opioids. Some will also check for other drugs like MDMA and LSD. However, drug tests can show:

Alcohol
Amphetamines (including meth)
Benzodiazepines (Xanax, Ativan, etc.)
Cocaine
THC
Opioids (pain pills, fentanyl, heroin)
PCP

For any of these substances, an oral swab test shows positive results for 5-48 hours after the last use. In addition, duration of positive results depend on where in the mouth is swabbed. E.g., swabbing the saliva glands may produce positive tests for longer as does swabbing the tongue, but many people administering tests are not experts.

Eventually, if you’re facing a drug test and you don’t think you’ll pass, it’s probably a problem. That’s not just because it may affect your driver’s license, your career, or your probation. Instead, if you’re using a substance when you know that it can endanger things you care about, you’re prioritizing that substance over your life. That may mean you’re struggling with a substance use disorder, that you’re using substances to deal with your life, or that you’re at risk for addiction. It’s important to reach out, talk to your doctor about substance use, and to make informed decisions about continuing substance use. If you’re struggling, there is help.

What Does It Mean to Be Sober Curious

What Does It Mean to Be Sober Curious?

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to live without alcohol, you’re sober curious. Whether you’re questioning why alcohol is everywhere and at every event, why people drink so much, or why so many people, perhaps even yourself, seem to have an all-or-nothing approach to drinking, sober curious is an approach that might work for you.

The basic premise is that you don’t have to quit alcohol to improve your approach to it. As someone who is sober curious, you question your approach to alcohol, you decide if you want to be sober in the moment or not, and you use judgement based on the situation rather than social pressure to make the decision for you, in that moment. You don’t have to quit alcohol to be sober curious. Instead, you have to approach your usage of alcohol mindfully.

If that sounds like something that might be interesting, keep reading.

Everyone Drinks, So I Should Too?

Today, an estimated 65% of the U.S. population over the age of 21 drinks. If you drop the age to 18, that drops to just 64%. Most people drink. And, if you raise it to people who sometimes drink socially, that number goes up to 85%. Often you show up at parties or social events and there’s nothing to do but drink. Sure, there are the occasional party games, but most rely on drunken camaraderie to even be fun. And, drinks for anyone not looking for alcohol can be as simplistic as an option of coke or diet coke. Everyone drinks, so you should too? Right? Questioning that premise is a large part of what being sober curious is about.

Do I want to drink right now?
Do I feel like having alcohol? Would I prefer a beverage without alcohol?
Do I have fun getting drunk? What if I just have one drink?
Are my friends fun when they are drunk? What if I’m sober at the same time?

Normally, people don’t ask any of these questions before drinking. They show up at an event, people are drinking, so they join in. But, you don’t have to. People might pressure you to drink if you’re not, but if they are, they’re not good friends.

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Taking a Break from Alcohol

Sober curious can also mean “trying out” sobriety, with the intention of it not being permanent. For example, many people use “Dry January” to experiment with sober curiosity. However, if you really want to try out being sober, you have to skip drinking for 3-6 months or even longer. Taking 6 months to a year to commit to not drinking will show you what you and your brain are like without alcohol. And, making the period that long will give you very good insight into how alcohol affects your judgement and whether or not you actually struggle with not drinking. If you don’t set a defined period and go for “I will stop drinking for a bit”, you’ll only get some of the insight.

Committing to staying sober for a period of 6-12 months means you’ll have to stay sober for that period and if you don’t, you’re likely struggling with alcohol use.
It takes 6+ months for most brains to recover from the effects of alcohol usage. This means you’ll be able to make the decision to continue staying sober or to start drinking again from a fresh slate of as recovered as you will be without spending 2 years sober.
Setting a defined period means you can check in with friends, you can join others in trying out sobriety, and you’ll have guidelines to your sobriety

Trying out being sober can be a great call if you find that you drink more or more often than you’d like. For example, if you drink every time you go out, drink to the point of blacking out, or frequently drink more than is recommended, trying out being sober may be a great call.

Intentionally Sober Outings

Sober curious is a concept that gives you the opportunity to experience events and meetups with a clear mind. For example, “Sober Curious” is a trend on Tinder because it allows people to experience a first date with a clear mind. Committing to not drinking for the first few days means you get to experience each other sober, to make sober judgement calls, and to experience each other without the euphoria caused by alcohol. That can be important for dating. But, it can also impact other types of social events. For example, you may want to intentionally decide to experience a work event with a clear mind. You may decide to do the same at a social event like a fundraiser or an auction or a wedding. Intentionally choosing to stay sober means you want to experience this event without alcohol, whether for the memories, the experience, or for your capability to contribute to that event.

Sober Curious is a term that comes from the 2018 book by Ruby Warrington, “Sober Curious: The Blissful Sleep, Greater Focus, Limitless Presence, and Deep Connection Awaiting Us All on the Other Side of Alcohol”. Her definition of sober curious was trying out sobriety with the intention of eventually being sober. That’s a very good approach. However, you don’t have to intend to or ever quit alcohol to be sober curious. You may simply want to know what it’s like, how it affects your life, how it changes your social outings, how it affects how you feel on the weekends, if it changes your sleep and your health, etc. Sober curious is about curiosity and wondering what being sober would be like.

And, once you’re curious, you should be able to try out being sober without pressure, without expectations, and while being able to set guidelines, goals, and expectations for yourself. And, even if you find out that life really is better sober, you don’t have to keep drinking completely. Cutting back to almost sobriety can be a great compromise. Drinking one or two drinks on the weekends is also a great approach. Plus, full sobriety can be as interesting as drinking – because there are plenty of interesting beverages you can try that don’t have alcohol.

If you’re sober curious, go ahead and try out what it’s like to not drink.