Drugs in Pubs and Clubs: www.police.qld.gov.au - Queensland ...

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Name What does it look like? How is it used? What to look for Dangers
Cocaine
Coke, Charlie, C,
Snow, Dust, Posh
Stimulant
White powder which is
grainy and can sometimes
be shiny
Most commonly ‘snorted’. It can also
be injected. Some people rub it into
the gums, where it is absorbed into the
bloodstream. Others add it to a drink
or food. Freebase and crack cocaine
are usually smoked.
• Traces of powder on smooth
surfaces used to cut and snort the
cocaine. Customers making
frequent visits to the toilets.
Payment with tightly rolled bank
notes.
• Runny nose, sniffing, dilated
pupils, excessive sweating,
increased confidence, energy and
feelings of invincibility.
• Cocaine numbs pain and so
someone under its influence who
behaves in an aggressive manner
may continue to fight, despite
having been restrained or injured.
• In higher doses, or when missed
with alcohol, cocaine can cause
unpredictable violent/aggressive
behaviour, paranoia, anxiety,
agitation and panic.
Ecstasy
E, XTC, Ecy, Te
love drug, Pills,
MDMA
Stimulant
Ecstasy usually comes in
the form of a tablet, in
various shapes, sizes and
colours. Often, the tablets
are imprinted with logos
and designs from popular
culture.
The most common way to take
ecstasy is by swallowing.
• People with lollipops or dummies
to counteract the jaw clenching
and teeth grinding associated with
ecstasy use.
• Dilated or enlarged pupils,
excessive sweating.
• Feelings of wellbeing, closeness
to others, empathy, high levels of
continuous energy without feeling
tired.
• Ecstasy induces a rise in body
temperature; users are at risk of
extreme dehydration, heatstroke
or hyperthermia (overheating),
especially when dancing.
• Ecstasy pills may contain a huge
range and quantity of substances
including anaesthetic drugs,
amphetamines (speed), so effects
can be unpredictable
Cannabis
Marijuana, Dope,
Hash, Grass, Pot,
Weed, Splif, Joint,
Yarndi, Skunk
Depressant
Marijuana is the dried
leaves and flowers of the
plant.
Marijuana is generally smoked in
hand-rolled joints, or in a pipe (a bong
or cone).
• Distinctive smell, aromatic, sweet
and slightly sickly.
• Torn cigarette packets or beer
mats used to make filters.
• Reddened/bloodshot eyes,
relaxation, sleepiness and
reduced coordination,
spontaneous laughter, loss of
inhibition.
• Cannabis use can worsen
symptoms associated with
psychotic illnesses such as
schizophrenia.
• Cannabis use, particularly with
alcohol, can cause a condition
known as drug-induced psychosis.
Disorientation, memory problems
and visual hallucinations are some
of the symptoms.
Amphetamines
Speed, Fast, Up,
Uppers, Louee,
Goey, Whiz, Super
coke, Bass
Stimulant
Amphetamines can come in
the form of a powder,
tablets, capsules or crystals
in a range of colours
ranging from clear/white
through to brown,
sometimes even orange
and dark purple.
Amphetamines are generally
swallowed, injected or smoked. They
are also snorted.
• Traces of powder on smooth
surfaces. Customers making
frequent visits to the toilets.
Payment with tightly rolled bank
notes.
• Amphetamine packages of ‘foils’,
plastic bags or small balloons.
• Runny nose, sniffing, dilated
pupils, excessive sweating,
increased talkativeness, non-stop
movement, jiggling about,
repetitive movement,
nervousness, anxiety, agitation.
• Addiction can occur very quickly in
people who use the drug often.
• High doses and frequent heavy
use can create an ‘amphetamine
psychosis’ characterised by
paranoid delusions, hallucinations
and bizarre, aggressive or violent
behaviour.
• Amphetamine abuse may increase
the risk of heart attacks, through
increasing heart rate and blood
pressure. It can also cause artery
spasms and lessens the flow of
blood to the heart.
Heroin
Smack, Skag,
Dope, H, Junk,
Hammer, Gear,
Harry, Slow, China
white, Dragon
Depressant
Heroin can range from a
fine white powder to offwhite
granules or pieces of
brown ‘rock’. Generally
packaged in ‘foils’ or small,
coloured balloons.
Heroin is most commonly injected into
a vein. It is also smoked (‘chasing the
dragon’) or added to cannabis or
tobacco cigarettes, or snorted.
• Syringes and heroin packages of
‘foils’ or small balloons.
• Constricted pupils, drowsiness,
slurred, slow speech, reduced
coordination, slow breathing rat,
decreased heart rate and blood
pressure.
• Users often go ‘on the nod’ an
alternative wakeful and drowsy
state.
• Syringes used to inject can spread
diseases such as hepatitis B,
hepatitis C and HIV. Extreme care
should be taken when handling
syringes.
• Mixing heroin with other
depressant drugs (such as
alcohol) increases the depressive
effects and can result in an
increased risk of respiratory
depression, coma and death.
Ketamine
Special K, K, Ket,
Kitkat, Super K
Depressant
When sold illegally,
ketamine is usually a white
crystalline powder. It can
also be made into tablets
and pills, or dissolved in a
liquid
Ketamine can be swallowed, snorted
or injected. It is also sometimes
smoked with other substances such as
cannabis or tobacco.
• Constricted/small pupils,
drowsiness, inability to move,
temporary paralysis, semiconsciousness,
lack of
coordination.
• Hallucinations and distorted
perception including visual,
auditory, physical, time, space.
• Anxiety, agitation, paranoia,
feelings of panic.
• Because ketamine is a
dissociative it can cause the user
to lose control of their body and
perform actions that they are
unaware of. They can fall over,
get up and walk around, fall into
water.
• At high doses, ketamine is a
depressant and can dangerously
reduce a person’s heart rate and
respiratory function, particularly if
mixed with other depressant drugs
(such as alcohol).
For further information on these and other drugs and their effects go to the Australian Drug Foundation DrugInfo website, www.druginfo.adf.org.au.
Last updated 2 August 2012
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