HERE COMES TROUBLE

Crystal meth new 'drug of choice', and an intimidating force

At 18, Jerry decided he wanted to try every drug at least once. He started
with alcohol, pot and cocaine.

Then he found crystal meth.

"I remember thinking it was the best thing ever," the Langley man said.

"I could talk and talk and talk-it was so cheap and a big bang for your
buck."

Within a year, Jerry was using every day, spending much of his free time at
a "gack house" (meth users' equivalent of a crack cocaine house). He became
a driver for dealers in return for free drugs, eventually turning to crime
to support his habit.

Today, he's a tall, stocky man, smartly dressed in black jeans and T-shirt,
with short dark hair and a contagious laugh. But four years ago he was pale
and gaunt, having dropped 30 pounds in weeks.

Then there was the paranoia.

He was convinced people wanted to kill him. He thought mini-cameras had been
set up in his car and at his home. Once he filled a can with gasoline and
was ready to fight back by burning his enemies and their homes.

He needed help, and he knew it.

"The day I asked mom to bring me to the doctor I told her Regis and
Kathy-Lee (from the TV show) had been making fun of me for an hour," Jerry
said. "I was just gone-crazy."

Jerry is lucky; he broke free. Thousands of others, mostly young users,
remain in the dance of highs, lows and crashes that all end in brain damage.

Known on the street as crystal meth, crank, glass or zip, methamphetamine
releases high levels of chemicals into areas of the brain that regulate
pleasure. It increases wakefulness and physical activity, and decreases
appetite.

Meth comes in many forms and can be snorted, swallowed, injected or smoked.

Crystal meth is cheap. A "point" (0.1 grams) costs less than $20 and the
high lasts for hours. Users-mainly 12 to 18 year-olds-can maintain a habit
for $5 a day.

Because the effects of meth last up to three days, during which users often
don't sleep or eat, it's particularly attractive to teenage girls who use it
for weight control.

In just two years, crystal meth has overtaken cocaine as the third most
popular drug (after alcohol and marijuana) in Fraser Health Authority.

"We've seen an increase right across Fraser Health, in fact provincially, in
use of crystal meth, particularly in youth. It's a very dangerous drug,"
FHA's addictions leader Sherry Mumford said.

"We're seeing an increasing number of people coming into addiction clinics
telling workers crystal meth is their drug of choice."

A 2002 survey of 2,000 students in the Lower Mainland found 19 per cent had
tried crystal meth. The study found the average age for first use was 14.
Most could obtain it in less than 24 hours.

Annette Welsh, at The Front Room, a drop-in homeless shelter in Whalley, has
seen a marked increase in methamphetamine use in transients.

"Crystal meth is everywhere now-a lot of our clients use it," Welsh said.

"Like crack, it becomes a mental addiction."

Dave knows all about the attraction of meth. A 28-year-old, articulate young
man with intense blue eyes, he's been hanging out at the Front Room for a
year, and is a speed junkie.

"I use it to be more social," Dave said.

"It makes it easier for me."

He used to do cocaine, but gave it up for crystal meth because he can stay
high for $15 a day. Coke was costing him $250.

Dave knows the risks. Methamphetamine is exceptionally toxic. High doses can
elevate body temperature to lethal levels, and can cause convulsions.

When long-term users-"tweakers"-try to kick the drug, they often experience
depression, confusion, fatigue and aggression.

And that makes getting off crystal meth difficult.

"It takes longer for their heads to clear-30 days at least," said Ed Warnke,
director for the Launching Pad, the South Surrey addictions recovery house
where Jerry was treated.

"Then the nightmares start. The weird thing is, they share the same type of
nightmares-bloodthirsty."

Many addicts learn to make the drug themselves. Some even take ingredients
without mixing them.

"They try using them separately, like ammonia, because it's part of crystal
meth," Warnke said.

"I've had to rush people to the hospital more than once."

He's noticed crystal meth affects mental capacity more than other drugs.

"I've talked to people with a mental illness who have clearer thoughts than
them," he said.

There is a unique danger in using crystal meth because it leads to psychosis
in some users. It can take the form of paranoia, hallucinations and
delusions, which in turn can lead to homicidal and suicidal thoughts.

Dr. Bill MacEwan, a psychiatrist with FHA's Early Psychosis Intervention,
treats drug-induced psychosis in crystal meth users.

It's not just street youth and transient adults using crystal meth, MacEwan
said.

It's become popular with suburban youth who live at home, come from good
families, attend school and wouldn't be pegged as drug users.

"It's really terrifying. It's a highly addictive substance," MacEwan said.

"And when it grabs these kids, it's really hard for them to get away from
it."

Some of his patients continue showing symptoms of psychosis three years
after quitting meth. Studies suggest the damage, in some cases, is
permanent.

"It's stressing the person's brain to the point not only do they have
psychosis while using the drug, it persists afterward," MacEwan said.

Treatment includes counselling and use of anti-psychotic medications. For
many, recovery is a long road.

As for Jerry, he's been clean for 18 months. Today he counsels Grades 10 to
12 on dangers of crystal meth.

And the voices in his head?

"On a bad day, they're still there," he said.

"But now I don't run with it."

Crystal meth and crime

Crystal meth is associated with a host of criminal activities, including
theft, assault and production of the drug.

Some community members believe there has been an increase in petty crime
associated with crystal meth.

A recent study on auto crime in Surrey found 70 per cent of thieves are
methamphetamine users. Police believe many offenders are replacing cocaine
and heroin with meth.

Scott Rintoul works with RCMP drug awareness section, and has studied the
drug scene for six years.

"We know methamphetamine is everywhere," Rintoul said, adding it's gone from
a social drug to one for the homeless, students and blue-collar workers.

Termed the "working man's cocaine," meth is popular with shift workers
because it gives them energy and stamina.

Meanwhile, meth labs are a spin-off problem. Dozens of operations are busted
every year in B.C., most in the Lower Mainland. Labs can be built and
abandoned quickly, assembled in homes, hotel rooms, garages even the back of
cars. A lab can produce large quantities of drugs in just a few hours.

Because chemicals used are so volatile (ammonia, battery acid and paint
thinner), crude labs are a risk of fires and explosions.

FHA crystal meth task force

FHA has formed a task force on crystal meth to get the message out on how to
identify meth users and help them.

The group will study intervention and treatment in other health authorities
and learn from their initiatives.

There are no programs specific to crystal meth in FHA, although there are
addiction recovery services.

The task force will have its first meeting this month.

Amphetamines - the basics

Amphetamines were first synthesized in the late 1800s. By the 1930s, they
were used in medications such as nasal sprays and diet pills. They were used
to treat narcolepsy, a disorder in which sufferers fall asleep without
warning.

Amphetamines are psychostimulants that affect the central nervous system.

Amphetamines were widely used during WWII, given to troops to keep them
awake and improve combat performance. The drug was popular among pilots.

There have been surges in the illegal use of methamphetamine, or crystal
meth. The most recent increase began in the southwestern U.S. in the 1990s
and has been steadily moving north.