What Does Cocaine Smell Like?

Getting Help for a Loved One Struggling with Coke

I didn’t want any help during my cocaine addiction. No one could tell me anything. My family had no idea how to get through to me, and I just wanted them to leave me alone. I was on the verge of prison or death before something finally clicked, and I decided to seek help. The folks at Find Addiction Rehabs were my saving grace.

Not many addicts want to actually admit they are addicts. My cocaine addiction made me extremely defensive. Any time my loved ones would try to talk to me about it I would shut it down immediately. I didn’t want to hear any of it. I thought that I was fine and I had it all under control. I was convinced I needed cocaine just to exist.

Do you want to know what does cocaine smell like? At that point in my life, I could smell it with almost every breath I took and told myself it was needed to keep me on an even keel. Looking back now with a clear mind, it’s wild to me how my cocaine addiction completely changed me. I was not the same person.

If you have a loved one struggling and want to help them by knowing the smells of cocaine, I salute you. Keep reading to learn more about my descent into cocaine addiction, the things I suffered through, and how to recognize the smell and get help for someone you care about!

Dealing With a Full Blown Cocaine Addiction

I began using powdered cocaine when I was in my early twenties. I was hanging around with a lot of other cocaine users and I gave in to peer pressure. All through my younger years, I had been warned of the dangers of cocaine, but I still gave in and decided to give it a try.

Before long, the cocaine was doing all the thinking and decision-making. As a cocaine user, all that mattered to me was getting more cocaine. My addiction quickly went from snorting cocaine to smoking crack.

I don’t know if I was hooked from the first bump, but before I knew it my whole life was consumed with using and acquiring cocaine. My drug abuse quickly spiraled out of control and before long I began smoking crack cocaine.

What Types of Cocaine Smells Are There?

I’ve done all different types of cocaine. You never know what you are going to get when you buy a gram of cocaine. It’s very difficult to find pure cocaine, and it is very difficult to identify cocaine based on its look alone. It could look fine and be full of toxic chemicals. Cocaine often smells like the solvents used in processing and production and gives off odors of kerosene, acetone, or different chemicals used to harden and reconstitute the drug.

Interestingly enough, some forms of cocaine are legal, such as a formula of cocaine hydrochloride 2%, which is used as a topical solution. This is an odorless form of cocaine I am told by dentists, but it is not commonly found. Of course, this wasn’t the coke I was using, but it shows just how many variations of this drug are out there!

Common cutting agents for cocaine include talcum powder, baby laxatives, powdered caffeine, and over-the-counter medications like Tylenol and Ibuprofen. I’ve done many different versions of cocaine, and never knew what I was actually ingesting. As long as there was some form of cocaine in it, it didn’t matter to me.

How is Powdered Cocaine Produced?

There is a complex cocaine extraction process that is quite sophisticated. A lot of the cocaine that is sold in the United States comes from South America. Cocaine is derived from the coca plant and then mixed with gasoline and other chemicals such as sulfuric acid to extract the cocaine base from the leaves.

This liquid cocaine is then turned into a paste and eventually, a powder using ammonia and lime. This pure cocaine is then cut with a variety of other substances before it hits the street. What does cocaine smell like? The cocaine smell depends very much on what other substances it is cut with.

Pure Cocaine vs Cut Cocaine

Pure cocaine has a very distinct smell. It is described as having a floral-like smell while cocaine that is cut with other substances can have many different smells. No one bag of cocaine is going to smell or taste exactly like another.

Identifying cocaine by smell requires a history of cocaine use. This is the same with the taste as well. The cocaine taste is generally bitter and numbing. When I was first using cocaine, I wasn’t able to identify it by smell or taste. After I used it for a while, I started to identify cocaine and the different drugs that it was cut with.

Snorting Cocaine vs Smoking Crack Cocaine

When I went from snorting powdered cocaine to smoking crack, everything changed rapidly. Cocaine is an expensive habit. Crack cocaine was introduced in the 1980s as a cheaper, faster way to get high.

Crack cocaine is made by cooking powdered cocaine with baking soda to form a solid base, which is then smoked. This form of cocaine is much stronger and much more addictive. The high is much more intense, yet it is not as long-lasting.

The Smell of Burning Cocaine

Crack cocaine has a burnt plastic or even rubber smell. This burnt plastic smell is very unpleasant to be around, due to its excessive sweetness and almost oily quality. In my years of struggling with drug addiction, nothing changed my brain like crack.

Cocaine produces a euphoric feeling that is followed by a pretty big crash. When I used powder cocaine, there was always a question of how good it was going to be, and how long it was going to get me high. With crack, you know what to expect.

It will be quick and intense, but you will have to smoke it continuously to keep the high going. I was always worried about a cocaine overdose, but it didn’t stop me from continuing my habit.

The Lifestyle Associated with Cocaine Abuse

It’s hard not to engage in a life of crime when you are dealing with a regular cocaine habit. Cocaine is highly addictive and dangerous and will require you to go to great lengths to get it.

I began stealing from my family members to keep my habit going. I never felt bad at the moment, because all that mattered was the drug. Any form of substance abuse will lead you down some dark paths, but chasing a cocaine addiction can very quickly lead to a life of crime.

A Worn Out and Damaged Version of Normal Life

Eventually my chase of the cocaine smell in the back of my throat, in whatever form it took, brought me to a lot of dodgy places and people. A cocaine habit will cause a lot of physical and mental damage as well. The short-term effects of cocaine include increased heart rate and blood pressure, constricted blood vessels, and decreased appetite.

Long-term cocaine abuse will result in heart problems, risk of stroke, increased paranoia, weight loss, and malnourishment. I suffered from all of these effects, including burnt lips as a result of constantly hitting a hot crack pipe.

Common slang terms for cocaine include coke, blow, dust, snow, and nose candy. You pick up on these terms quickly when you are engaged in the lifestyle. Even when I thought I knew all these terms, I was always hearing new ones.

Recovery From Cocaine Addiction is Possible

I was so deep into my addiction that if I had to fly to Columbia and manufacture cocaine myself, I was willing to do it. My cocaine supply was on my mind twenty-four hours a day. If I was without cocaine, I would have violent outbursts.

I ended up in jail after assaulting a fellow addict, and when I was in jail, I was given information regarding treatment options. When I finally decided to go to treatment, I didn’t take it seriously at first. My brain was still consumed by cocaine.

The numbing effect of the drug for me was physical and mental. All I could think about were plastic bags full of cocaine and vials of crack. When I got out of detox for coke, my mind slowly began to accept that I had a huge problem.

Reach Out to Get Help for Cocaine Now!

After my mind was clear for a few days, my attitude began to change. I finally accepted that my substance use was going to kill me or land me in prison. I saw it happen to so many people, but I never believed it could happen to me.

My recovery is the most important part of my life these days, and I work hard to keep myself in check. It’s hard to describe to someone who hasn’t experienced drug addiction the grip that it can have on you. The decision to seek help and use Find Addiction Rehabs was the best decision I ever made, and I would suggest it is worth a call on your part too.

Reach out now and ask them for options on a life free from cocaine for you or your loved one, I know it made a huge difference for me, and it can for you as well!

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