Fergie found fame at the age of 17 with the girl group Wild Orchid. But when the band tanked, she turned to Ecstasy and eventually crystal meth.

"I thought it would be disloyal if I left (Wild Orchid), but I wasn’t happy anymore with the music we were doing. I really internalized it and found my outlet in the underground club scene and the raves," the 34-year-old singer said.

"It started with Ecstasy. I loved Ecstasy. Loved it, loved it. It was great at first," she told OK Magazine.

"I had a blast but those things can only last for so long. I’m actually lucky that I hit it as hard as I did because it took me to a place where I knew I never wanted to do it again," she added.

Fergie also confessed that her search for crystal meth once led her to being held at gunpoint while traveling to East Los Angeles.

"Yeah, that was crazy. Don’t mess with East LA. Thank the Lord I’m here," she said.

Fergie Admits Past Addiction to Ecstasy, Crystal Meth is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

How it starts is fairly predictable. At an all-night rave or trance, where the dance scene is frenetic and the music is loud and non-stop, someone passes around brightly colored pills or tabs of E (ecstasy), or hands you a drink containing Rohypnol, GHB or ketamine. With the heat, the intoxicating energy of dancing bodies, strobe lights and your own excitement, you take the pill or drink.

Within minutes, you begin to feel the effects of these so-called club drugs. At first, the euphoria feels wonderful, but when it starts to wind down, you may start to stack or bump additional quantities of the substances. You want to sustain the high and keep the party going. But eventually the drug wears off, leaving you with depression and confusion. So you take more, just to get rid of the anxiety and jitters. Stacking is especially risky for the body, which can’t keep up with the amount of the drug in the system.

Club Drugs Are Dangerous

Sometimes these effects last for hours, but the greater danger is long-term consequences that may persist for weeks, months or years – or even be permanent. Chronic use can produce tolerance and dependence. Before you know it, you’re hooked on club drugs. Sooner or later, your mind and body begin to suffer. The results can be serious, even fatal.

·         GHB, a sedative, can cause sleepiness, coma or death.

·         Rohypnol, a benzodiazepine, can result in memory loss of events or actions committed while under the influence of the drug. When mixed with alcohol or other drugs, Rohypnol can be fatal.

·         Ketamine, a dissociative anesthetic, produces effects similar to PCP – distortions in perceptions, sight and sound. You may feel detached from reality, experience hallucinations, vomiting, and convulsion, be aware of what’s happening but unable to move, and not remember what happened afterwards. The drug may also cause high blood pressure and respiratory problems that may prove lethal.

·         Ecstasy, or MDMA, can cause confusion, insomnia, intense fear, anxiety and depression, symptoms which, in regular abusers, can last for weeks after taking the drug. Many of the effects are similar to those in cocaine and amphetamine abuse. In high doses, ecstasy can also cause the body’s temperature to increase rapidly, called hyperthermia, and dehydration. Hyperthermia can lead to heart problems, liver failure, seizures and death.

All of the club drugs and ecstasy have been associated with unwanted sexual assaults and have been referred to as “date-rape drugs.”

How You Know When You’ve Had Enough

Your everyday existence turns into a blur. You can’t remember what happened yesterday, let alone last week. You start to neglect your appearance. Your skin turns pasty and pale. Your weight drops dramatically and you have little or no appetite. You start stealing from family and friends to support your habit. Pretty soon, your family may disown you and you may wind up on the street.

Is this when you know you’ve had enough? When your friends call you a drug addict or a lowlife and refuse to have anything to do with you – is this when you decide to call it quits? Do you look in the mirror in shock and horror at the gaunt, crazed-looking person staring back at you?

If you’re really lucky, you’re able to recognize when your casual use of club drugs has become dependence. If you have the strength and willingness to admit your problem and seek help for it, you have a chance to beat it.

Getting Off Club Drugs

When club drugs hit the scene, there was little if any treatment protocol in place to handle people who exhibited classic dependence or addiction to the various substances. Compounding the problem is the fact that club drugs are not pure substances. They are laced with numerous other chemicals, impurities and toxins. Treating someone for dependence on Rohypnol or Ecstasy, for example, often meant treating them for multiple addictions, including alcohol.

With GHB, there are no standard tests for use by emergency room physicians to detect for the drug. Many cases of GHB overdose are therefore undetected. When a GHB-dependent individual goes into treatment, they often have a mixed bag of severe problems. But they do generally respond well to treatment, which is best accomplished in a residential treatment setting. Anti-seizure medications, sedatives and benzodiazepines may be used to help manage severe withdrawal symptoms during detoxification. Medicine to help control blood pressure is also warranted. Some studies have found that using antipsychotic medications helps make detoxification safer for the patient. Detox for GHB dependence requires a gradual tapering off the drug, as abruptly stopping can be fatal. An addiction specialist assists the patient during the approximate 10 to 14 days of detoxification. Following detoxification, the patient is encouraged to enroll or participate in counseling and additional treatment to help ward off relapse and to help with sleeping difficulties, anxiety and depression.

Rohypnol treatment follows the standard protocol for benzodiazepine dependence. A 3- to 5-day inpatient detoxification with 24-hour intensive medical supervision to monitor and manage withdrawal symptoms may be warranted, since coming off benzodiazepine dependence can be life threatening. Certified addiction counseling or treatment at a specialized residential drug treatment center should follow. The type of treatment to use depends on the extent of the addiction and other factors.

Ketamine overdose requires hospitalization to provide care for acute symptoms, including problems with the heart and respiratory system. There are currently no medications to combat ketamine addiction. Treatment after overdose or detoxification involves psychotherapy and behavior modification, followed by recommended attendance at drug abuse recovery support meetings.

Overcoming dependence on Ecstasy is a little different. There are no medicines currently approved or available for MDMA addiction. Long-term users experience severe withdrawal symptoms and abruptly quitting may pose serious medical consequences. But inpatient and outpatient detoxification programs are available, with some of the withdrawal symptoms managed with sedatives. The best solution for quitting MDMA addiction is through residential treatment programs consisting of intervention and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to help the patient modify their thinking, expectancies and behavior related to the drug.

In all cases, abusers of club drugs need to learn new coping skills to be able to deal with the stresses of life, and the triggers that cause them to use drugs. Many club drug-dependent individuals have positive outcomes by attending drug abuse recovery support group meetings, in addition to CBT.

How To Find A Club Drug Treatment Center

You need to do a little research and ask a lot of questions. The best place to start is to call the referral hotline at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) at (800) 662-HELP or find a treatment facility near you by using their facility locator at http://www.findtreatment.samhsa.gov/about.htm.

See your family physician or personal doctor and ask for a referral. With a list of potential treatment centers or facilities, call and ask questions. Then go check it out yourself. See if the treatment facility or center customizes treatment to patients. Make sure the facility/center is licensed by the state and all the staff is fully credentialed. You definitely want a treatment program in a facility or center that has expertise and a track record in successfully treating your type of addiction or dependence.

Don’t put off seeking treatment due to cost considerations. There are resources available that include insurance coverage, sliding scale or ability to pay programs, scholarships, and loans. The important thing is to get into treatment. Go get an assessment. See what it’s going to take. Then, do it. Life after club drugs will be so much richer and more enjoyable than the gloomy and self-destructive path you’ve been on. Don’t wait. Get help today. You can get off club drugs

When the Party’s Over: Getting Off Club Drugs is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

Although the immediate side effects of these drugs may seem to be minimal, research shows that these drugs have an insidious long-term effect on the brain and can, in due course, cause serious mental problems. Paranoia, hallucinations, delusions, amnesias, and long-term cognitive degeneration are just some of the effects that these ‘fun’ club drugs can have. In fact, cases of extreme psychosis leading to suicides or serious self-inflicted injuries are not unknown.

Because the club drugs are usually consumed at clubs or private parties, they are often mixed with alcohol which increases the chances of mental and emotional damage. Some of the club drugs affect the same part of the brain as alcohol and this combined effect can easily cause neural overload that can result in serious psychological problems.

The reactions of individuals to these drugs varies greatly. Some have little or no apparent reaction to these drugs. This may encourage others to take them and these people may suffer from far more extreme reactions that could range from psychotic episodes to even death. Another problem is that these club drugs are circulated in large quantities in clubs and parties and are often adulterated, so as to ensure that the required quantity is available. The adulterating substances are often highly toxic or else may be chemicals that, when combined with the drugs, can form dangerous and even lethal compounds.

Many of these club drugs are colorless and tasteless, and so it is easy to slip them into the drinks of those who may not be willing to try them. This creates a growing market for these drugs. Besides this, they are often also used for other criminal purposes. GHB is commonly used to lower a person’s powers of resistance and cause short term memory loss, which is why it is known as the “date rape drug.”

Some of the common club drugs are:

• LSD or “acid” is the classical “trip” drug from the 1960s. It is known to cause long term personality changes and disorders.
• Meth or Speed, Chalk or Ice is the most popular and is known to cause psychotic behavior, aggression, memory loss and heart problems.
• Ketamine or “Special K” is an anesthetic that can cause delirium, breathing problems, amnesia and extremely high blood pressure.
• Rohypnol is colorless and tasteless. It causes short term memory loss and can result in serious gastric problems.
• GHB or Liquid Ecstasy can, if taken in excess, result in placing the user in a coma that could lead to death.
• Ecstasy is a hallucinogen that is known to cause loss of mental abilities, memory and sleep disorders.

Club Drugs: Harmless ‘Fun’ or Dangerous Game? is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment

According to data from the National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC), teenagers and young adults represent the majority of ketamine users. Statics from the Drug Abuse Warning Network show that young people between the ages of 12 and 25 accounted for 74 percent of the ketamine emergency mentions in the U.S. in 2000.

What it is

Ketamine, or ketamine hydrochloride, is a central nervous system depressant, a dissociative anesthetic originally developed in 1963 to replace PCP. Today, ketamine is used in both anesthesias in humans and in veterinary medicine. In fact, most of the ketamine on the street has been “diverted” from veterinary offices.

Common street names

On the street, you’ll hear various names for ketamine, including: blind squib, breakfast cereal, bump, cat valium, green, honey oil, jet, K, keller, keller’s day, ket, ketaject, ketalar, kit kat, new ecstasy, psychedelic heroin, purple, special K, special la coke, super acid, super C, super K, Vitamin K and vit K.

How to identify ketamine

Manufactured as an injectable, clear liquid, ketamine is used illegally in an evaporated form, a white power that is either compressed into pills or snorted. Due to its appearance, ketamine is often mistaken for crystal methamphetamine or cocaine. On the street, it is sometimes sold as ecstasy (MDMA), and mixed with other drugs or substances such as ephedrine and caffeine.

How ketamine is used

The drug is swallowed, snorted, smoked, or injected into the muscles or veins. Reports of “cafeteria use” – where a mix of sedative/hypnotic and hallucinogenic drugs are used, including MDMA, LSD, GHB, and illegally used prescription drugs – are occurring all across America, especially on the rave/club dance scene.

Effects of ketamine

Ketamine’s effects are similar to those of PCP, although in ketamine, the effects are less potent and last a shorter period of time. A ketamine “high” usually lasts about an hour, but can last 4 to 6 hours. It usually takes between 24 to 48 hours before the user feels back to normal again.

Low doses, about 24 to 100 mg, can quickly bring on psychedelic effects. Users of ketamine report various sensations, everything from a pleasant floating feeling to rapture to the feeling of being separated from their bodies.

A really bad ketamine trip involves frightening and nearly complete sensory detachment that some describe as a “near-death experience.” These bad trips are called the “K-hole.”

Other slang terms for trips on ketamine include K-land, baby food, and God.

Why ketamine is bad for you

Odorless and tasteless, ketamine can be added to beverages without detection. The drug induces amnesia. It is sometimes given to unsuspecting victims in order to commit sexual assaults called “drug rape.”

Other negative and potentially fatal effects of ketamine abuse include:

• Exaggerated sense of strength

• Large doses can result in coma, seizures, respiratory arrest and death (1 gram can cause death)

• Long-term use can cause memory impairment and damage to other brain functions

• Muscle rigidity, numbness, loss of coordination, sense of invulnerability

• Personality and mood changes, sometimes aggressive, violent behavior

• Psychosis, induced by the drug, can occur and last for hours

• Risk of accidents while under the influence of the drug

• Vomiting and convulsions

Is it addictive?

The effects of chronic ketamine use may take several months to a couple of years to wear off. Long-term abuse involves a tolerance to the drug, requiring larger and more frequent amounts to achieve the same high, and issues of dependence (both physical and psychological). Flashback episodes can occur as much as a year after use.

Ketamine is classified as a Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act. Although Schedule III drugs, which include anabolic steroids and codeine, have less potential for abuse than drugs such as heroin (Schedule I) or cocaine (Schedule II), abuse of Schedule III drugs can lead to dependence. Abuse of ketamine is also illegal.

The Dangers of Ketamine is a post from: Drug Addiction Treatment