Crystal meth use exploding in Hamilton
As the city focuses on fentanyl and opioid overdoses, another drug is blooming in its wake
Juice left home at 14. He found crystal meth soon after.
His brother had older friends, and it was through them that he was introduced to the powerful stimulant. A month after he first tried smoking it, he started injecting.
"It all just spiraled from there," he said.
Though the city's focus of late is centred firmly on the opioid crisis, crystal meth use in Hamilton has skyrocketed in recent years. Fentanyl commands increased attention because of the sheer number of people who are dying from overdoses, but crystal meth, blooming in its wake, still poses a serious danger.
Police, social agencies and drug users themselves all report that the powerful stimulant has grabbed a hold of some of the city's most vulnerable.
There's been a few times … a lot of times, where I've been in comas, I've had a lot of close calls. There's been times where I've wished that I didn't wake up.- Sam, crystal meth user
Juice, whose real name has been withheld to protect his identity, is part of a video project about crystal meth made by the Hamilton Addictions and Mental Health Collaborative (HAMHC), Core Collaborative Learning and the Wellington-Guelph Drug Strategy.
The video, which contains heartbreaking testimonials from drug users, was made as part of a forum on crystal meth, which was put on because of concerns in the community about the drug's rapid rise.
"The up and coming drug is meth … it's massive," said Const. Joe Janus of Hamilton police. "If history dictates, it's going to be a problem."
An explosion of drug seizures
Back in 2012, police seizures of meth were virtually non-existent. There was only one bust in Hamilton for that entire year.
Things started to change in 2014, when there were 41 crystal meth seizures in the city.
Then things exploded. In 2015, there were 457 crystal meth seizures in the city.
The numbers have stayed high. There were 442 crystal meth seizures in 2016, followed by 450 so far this year.
"It seems to flow from west to east. The west coast starts the drug of choice, and then it flows in this direction," Janus said. "It's easy to make, so I'd say it's being cooked here as well."
In a new city study about drug use and the feasibility of a supervised injection site in Hamilton, a survey of 106 people said the most frequently injected drug they used was crystal meth, followed by hydromorphone and then cocaine.
"Most survey participants (82%) reported that they had obtained a drug that they suspected was contaminated ("cut") with another substance, most commonly fentanyl and crystal meth," the report says.
"It kind of takes you away from the now," said Sam, another meth user quoted in the HAMHC video. "When I'm high on meth, it kind of takes you away … I never think about what's important right now."
Crystal meth use 'up dramatically'
Debbie Bang, the manager of Men's Addiction Service Hamilton and Womankind Addiction Service for St. Joseph's Healthcare, says her agencies saw a big surge in people seeking treatment for crystal meth addiction about three years ago.
"Crystal meth is up dramatically compared to what it was ten years ago," she said.
Things leveled off a bit this year, but residential care numbers for meth addiction are quite high right now, she says.
"With crystal meth, the impact of the drug happens really quickly," she said. "I think [users] might seek help a little sooner than with opioids or crack cocaine."
Richard A. Rawson, a professor in the department of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at the David Geffen School of Medicine in California, outlines how the powerful stimulant affects people in a post on PBS's website.
The drug centres on the parts of the brain that control judgment, reward and memory, he writes.
"The most important one probably are the reward centers of the brain," he said. "When that part of the brain is stimulated and dopamine is released, you experience that as pleasure."
Different drugs release dopamine at different levels. Alcohol and nicotine cause dopamine release levels of about 100 to 200 units, with cocaine producing up to about 350 units of dopamine.
Crystal meth, however, is an entirely different beast. It releases about 1,250 units of dopamine into the brain, which Rawson describes as a "tremendous amount."
"This produces an extreme peak of euphoria that people describe as something like they've never experienced and they probably never have experienced before because the brain really isn't made to do this," he writes. "And that's why people will be attracted to it and want to take it over and over and over again. They want to produce that response."
That high can last for several hours, Bang says, and can be accompanied by severe psychological effects, including psychosis. "That for some people is an okay experience, and for others its not," she said.
An opioid problem
Hamilton as a city has been placing an increased focus on opioid use, and with good reason. In 2016, 43 people died in Hamilton due to accidental opioid poisoning, which is above the provincial average. That number has more than quadrupled since 2002.
My concern is as we have put in all sorts of safeguards [for opioids], we provide the opportunity for another drug to take its place.- Debbie Bang, addictions specialist
In crystal meth, people have found a product that's cheaper than opioids, Bang says. Meth tends to come in at a similar price range as cocaine, in the $80 to $100 a gram range.
"It was cheaper and the buzz lasted a lot longer," said Lisa, another user seen in the video.
Meth doesn't suppress breathing like opioids do (a major factor in overdoses) and doesn't cause a stupor like alcohol does, Bang says — though it can still be exceptionally dangerous. Side effects of the drug include paranoia, violent behavior, seizures, increased risk of stroke, and tooth and gum disease. Heavy usage can lead to overdose and death.
"I don't eat or drink or do anything when I'm high on crystal meth," Juice said.
"There's been a few times … a lot of times, where I've been in comas, I've had a lot of close calls," Sam said. "There's been times where I've wished that I didn't wake up."
Bang says that while the city absolutely should be paying attention to opioids, attention also needs to be paid to other drugs that people may be turning to in place of prescription painkillers.
"My concern is as we have put in all sorts of safeguards [for opioids], we provide the opportunity for another drug to take its place," Bang said. "In the States, the drug appears to be crystal meth. Sometimes we follow their lead, and sometimes we don't."
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