There seems to be a shift in attitudes towards cocaine consumption , with it being seen as more socially acceptable . We ’ re also seeing an increase in use among women and across different ages .
use in the world , with studies suggesting it ’ s both fuelled by – and fuelling – the country ’ s drinking culture .
SOCIETAL ATTITUDES There seems to be a shift in attitudes towards cocaine consumption , with it being seen as more socially acceptable . We ’ re also seeing an increase in use among women and across different ages . Cocaine and alcohol in particular are both commonly used in social settings by people who use substances casually / recreationally , and people sometimes use the two together in order to prolong nights out and allow alcohol consumption for longer periods . This is not a phenomenon unique to the UK , of course . In Bern , high rates of cocaine use have led to discussions of a pilot scheme to allow its legal sale .
While using cocaine and alcohol together is often recreational , mixing the two increases the risks , with a new toxic substance formed in the body – cocaethylene . There are known associations with cardiotoxicity from cocaethylene , something that our sector and our clinicians need to be more aware of . There are also considerations around the possible habit-forming nature of always using both substances together – according to EUDA more than 50 per cent of people with cocaine use issues also struggle with alcohol dependence .
The age profile of people of people who die as a result of their cocaine use is younger than for opiate-related deaths , with the most common cause of death related to cardiovascular events linked to the heart and blood vessels – such as strokes , heart attacks , and cardiac arrhythmia . Cocaine use may unmask underlying conditions – cardiovascular issues are one of the leading causes of death in the British population , and cocaine use might make those deaths happen much earlier . The latest EUDA
I NEEDED COKE TO FUNCTION
Danny sniffed his first line of cocaine at 13 – the start of a problematic relation ship with it , until he sought help
Danny has been abstinent from drugs for 11 months . He has just completed the peer mentor programme at Turning Point , and volunteers at The Hepatitis C Trust and at his local church . The 45-year-old said the last year has been ‘ the best time of my life ’. It ’ s been a remarkable turnaround for Danny who spent 27 years using and selling cocaine . ‘ I sniffed my first line of cocaine at 13 and I smoked my first pipe of crack at 17 ,’ he says . ‘ I tried heroin a few times in prison , but I got nothing off it , so I weren ’ t chasing it . I was addicted to Valium . My whole life ’ s just been drugs . I didn ’ t have a clean day from the age of nine up until I was 44 – every day I done something .’
Danny explained that his drug use was a way to deal with the trauma of being sexually abused as a child . ‘ I found drugs , and that just covered all my problems ,’ he says . Describing himself as a ‘ functioning crackhead ’, Danny gives an interesting insight into an issue that ’ s faced by many cocaine users who often believe they ’ re not dependent on the drug . He ’ s worked all his life , first as a plasterer and then as a forklift driver . ‘ It sounds stupid , but I thought I didn ’ t have a problem because I could get up and go to work after a couple of hours sleep and sniff cocaine all day at work and then get home and smoke crack all night – I thought I could do that for the rest of my life .’
Danny reveals that the birth of his grandson , who his daughter named after him , and then her telling him that she felt he wouldn ’ t make it past 2023 was one of the reasons he sought help . ‘ I couldn ’ t stop for my kids , which is very selfish , but I weren ’ t ready . It sounds horrible but you can ’ t stop for anyone but yourself . People can try and get you to stop , and you won ’ t stop .’
Danny reached out for help at Turning Point services in Suffolk where he spent a year receiving support to come off cocaine . ‘ I ’ ve come out just a hundred times better than I ever have been throughout my whole life ,’ he says . ‘ I ’ ve never been this positive . I ’ ve got my family back . And I ’ m just looking forward to helping as many people as I can at Turning Point .’
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
Number of drug-related deaths due to cocaine use in England and Wales , 2000 to 2023
2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2023 Office for National Statistics
1118 data revealed a time lag of 13 years between first cocaine use – on average at age 22 – and first treatment for cocaine-related problems , on average at age 35 .
INTERVENTION The lack of any substitute prescribing for cocaine can make treatment feel less attractive , but Turning Point ’ s recently reviewed RECLAIM psychosocial intervention aims to meet people where they ’ re at – in the understanding that many people using cocaine will be ambivalent about behaviour change in the context of a drug which can be powerfully reinforcing , but with equally powerful ‘ comedowns ’.
The intervention offers two structured individual sessions based on discussing harm reduction in the context of motivational interviewing , and exploring the person ’ s values and goals . The person can then
WWW . DRINKANDDRUGSNEWS . COM DEC 2024 – JAN 2025 • DRINK AND DRUGS NEWS • 7