What is Crack Cocaine?
Both cocaine and crack are fast-acting central nervous system stimulants derived from the coca plant native to South America. These drugs are commonly abused for their ability to produce an intense but brief euphoric high.
Cocaine is currently considered a Schedule II controlled substance by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Depending on how the drug is administered, its effects can last anywhere from a few minutes to an hour.
When snorting cocaine, its effects kick in within 3-5 minutes after use and can last for up to 20 minutes. Smoking cocaine or taking the drug intravenously will produce effects within 5-10 seconds, and will also last around 20 minutes. Taking cocaine orally will take around 10-30 minutes for the effects to kick in, but will last for about an hour.
But how long does crack stay in your urine? Keep reading to find answers and get help for cocaine with the most effective treatment centers nationwide!
What is the Cocaine Half-Life?
Cocaine’s elimination half-life is around one hour. This means that it takes about one hour for your body to eliminate half of the cocaine that is in your bloodstream. However, long-term substance use can cause this elimination period to be longer.
This means that the detection time for how long cocaine will stay in your system will increase, and drug tests will come back positive for cocaine use over a longer period after your last dose of this drug. Half-life has little to do with the detection of crack in most kinds of drug test.
Another very important fact to consider is that most drug test systems are built to test for cocaine metabolites. Knowing the answer to how long does cocaine stay in your system centers around the method of detection and what the saliva test, blood test, or urine tests are built to find.
How Long Does Cocaine Stay in Your System?
Different factors that affect how long cocaine metabolites typically stay in your system can vary based on several factors, including how fast your metabolism is, how much you weigh, how much you took, your method of administration, and how frequently you use the drug.
The type of drug test used to detect cocaine in your system will also determine how long cocaine “remains” in your system. How much cocaine you use can also play a role.
What Kind of Drug Test is Used to Detect Cocaine?
There are several types of drug testing used to detect cocaine misuse. This may include a blood test, a saliva test, a hair test, in which a hair sample will be collected and tested, or a urine test, which will analyze your urine pH levels and drug concentration.
Saliva tests and blood tests can detect for up to two days after it was last used, while urine tests can detect cocaine for up to three days or more, and hair tests for months to a year or more.
For a heavy cocaine user, a urine test will test positive for cocaine for up to 2 weeks after its last use. Overall, where there are many different testing methods available, testing urine concentration levels for cocaine is currently the most commonly used.
If you are concerned about testing positive for cocaine use, it is important to understand the dangers of this drug and consider stopping its use. If you find that you are unable to do so on your own, this may indicate that you have a crack cocaine addiction, or at the very least a problem with crack that would benefit from treatment.
If this is the case, you will need to seek out a professional cocaine addiction treatment and recovery services in order to safely and successfully overcome your substance abuse habits.
Fortunately, at Find Addiction Rehabs we make it our business to help provide those struggling to stop using crack and all sorts of other substances with support.
A quick and completely confidential call can help you find help no matter where you live!
Can Drinking Alcohol Make Crack Cocaine Stay in Your System Longer?
Drinking alcohol or using other drugs simultaneously can also affect how long crack cocaine will stay in your system. Many people will combine substance use in order to enhance or prolong the effects of cocaine.
This, however, can be incredibly dangerous, and cause serious health complications, such as:
- Elevated blood pressure
- Respiratory failure
- Cardiac problems
- Coma
- Death
Understanding Cocaine Abuse and Addiction
As discussed, cocaine affects its user by causing them to experience intense euphoric highs, as well as a heightened sense of confidence. This alone can make the substance extremely addictive, but with its fast-acting nature, repeated cocaine use is not uncommon as people try to prolong its effects.
Cocaine belongs to the stimulant drug class, meaning that it can make people who use it feel like their body is being sped up, leading to feelings of increased energy, happiness, and excitement.
This happens because cocaine causes the brain to release high amounts of dopamine. This is also commonly referred to as the “feel-good” chemical, because it makes people feel happy and relaxed. When using cocaine, you may feel:
- Joy, euphoria, or extremely energetic.
- Less inhibition, similar to drinking alcohol.
- A feeling that their thinking is extremely clear.
- A sense that they are more in control.
- Increased self-confidence.
- A desire to be more talkative and social.
Especially for people with undiagnosed or untreated mental illness, these feelings of joy and euphoria can feel impossible to resist. Unfortunately, this makes it very common for many people to have co-occurring cocaine use and mental health disorder.
There is also the issue that cocaine is one of the fastest drugs to exit the system, meaning that a cocaine high does not last very long. This can lead many people to continue using this drug more and more over time.
The Side Effects of Long Term Cocaine and Crack Use
With prolonged cocaine use, the dopamine levels in the user’s brain will continuously increase over time, making it more and more difficult for someone to produce and release dopamine naturally.
This can cause them to have to use more frequently and in higher doses in order to feel cocaine’s effects, resulting in the development of a dependency and eventual substance use disorder for this drug.
Some people choose to begin injecting the drug directly into their system, in order to shorten the amount of time it takes for cocaine’s effects to kick in. In most cases, injecting cocaine is a clear sign that the user has already developed a drug addiction.
What are the Signs of Cocaine Addiction?
Cocaine addiction has many signs and symptoms that can be looked for in either oneself or a loved one, including:
- Taking cocaine in larger doses or for longer than intended.
- Trying to reduce or stop cocaine use, but being unsuccessful.
- Spending large amounts of time acquiring, using, or recovering from the effects of cocaine.
- Experiencing intense cravings when not using cocaine or reducing the usual amount taken.
- Having difficulty keeping up with work, home, or school responsibilities due to drug abuse.
- Continuing to use cocaine despite this causing problems within relationships.
- Giving up important or previously enjoyable activities, obligations, or hobbies in order to continue using cocaine.
- Using cocaine even in potentially dangerous situations, such as while driving, operating heavy machinery, or performing other risky activities.
- Continuing to use cocaine despite this potentially causing or worsening underlying physical or mental health issues.
- Developing a tolerance to cocaine, and needing to use increasingly higher doses or more frequently in order to achieve the desired effect.
- Developing cocaine withdrawal symptoms when no longer using or reducing the normal dose of cocaine.
Cocaine Addiction Treatment Options
If you or a loved one has a cocaine use disorder, there are many addiction treatment options available to help you overcome this drug use for good. In most cases, combining medical and behavioral treatments is the most effective route for treating cocaine addiction.
Most people will begin treatment with a medical detox program. Cocaine detox can help gradually wean you off of an abused substance while under the constant supervision of licensed medical professionals.
This treatment process may also involve medication assisted-treatment to help manage and prevent withdrawal symptoms and drug cravings. Once your system has been completely cleared of cocaine, you will likely move onto further levels of care.
In most cases, you will be encouraged to move on to inpatient or outpatient rehab programs, depending on the severity of your addiction and the amount of support you will need during recovery.
These may also include behavioral therapies, such as sober support groups or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), to help you better understand why you may have begun abusing this drug in the first place.
These services can also help you develop better coping mechanisms and recovery skills that will help support independent sober living.
FAQs on How Long Does Crack Stay in Your Urine
What can affect how long cocaine remains in my urine?
Various factors can affect the detection time of cocaine in a urine test. Drinking alcohol can create a toxic metabolite that also causes crack to linger in some testing methods. How much cocaine you use can also impact if you will test positive.
How long does cocaine stay visible in drug tests?
Depending on the type of drug tests used, cocaine can stay much, much longer in terms of detection time than its relatively short half life in your body.
Can smoking cocaine stay longer in my urine than powder cocaine?
The effects of cocaine can change or be amplified if it is smoked as opposed to being snorted. But the time spent in your system and whether it can be detected will be the same for both crack and powdered cocaine.
Find the Right Cocaine Treatment Options Now
Cocaine addiction is a difficult and painful issue, not only for yourself but for your loved ones as well. For many people, it can feel impossible to overcome; but this is not true. If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, the Find Addiction Rehabs team is here to help.
Our hotline is available 24/7 to help people struggling with substance abuse find addiction treatment programs and recovery services that can serve all of your needs. With the help of our rehab partners, you can put concerns about crack and drug testing in your past for good!
So make the right choice and call now, so that one of our representatives can help get you started on a path to a happier and healthier way of living today!
Charles F. has been an active part of the Florida recovery community for over 5 years. He began as a behavioral health technician at an addiction treatment facility in Ocala, Florida and has since begun training as a Licensed Addiction and Chemical Dependency counselor in Boca Raton. Charles’ passion involves the promotion of recovery and helping spread the hope of recovery to as many readers as possible!
