Knowing accurately how long does PCP stay in your system depends significantly on different variables, which take into account the type of drug examination being utilized.
PCP, also called a boat, hog, angel dust, fry, embalming fluid, love boat, rocket fuel, killer weed, ozone, wack, and supergrass, can be identified for a short period with some drug tests; however, it can also be detectable for up to three months in other drug examinations.
What is PCP: Short Overview
PCP or phencyclidine is a powerful dissociative hallucinogenic medicine invented in the 1950s, once used as an anesthetic, and pulled out in the market in 1960 because of many serious side effects related to its application. This hallucinogenic drug is available in liquid and powder forms; typically, users smoke it, even if it is snorted or injected. The intake process, however, shouldn’t have an impact on how long it stays in your body and system.
PCP is often smoked with cannabis or tobacco products; however, some add this drug to other substances like oregano, parsley, ginger, and smoked. This generated extremely powerful hallucinations, often causing a person to feel like his surrounding isn’t real or as if he is leaving his body, also known as dissociative effects.
PCP falls under the category of Schedule II controlled substance; this is according to the assessment conducted by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration DEA. This indicates that it might have some therapeutic and curative purposes. On the other hand, it is a hazardous drug to abuse. Its application might lead to psychological or physical dependence. This is made in a small amount, and its manufacture and distribution for research reasons are firmly controlled.
Drug Abuse Problem
This drug has legally gotten the name of being a dangerous drug of abuse because of its long-term effects, side effect profile, and psychoactive effects. PCP can cause an increase in heart rate, respiratory rate, high blood pressure, and body temperature.
PCP psychoactive effects are dose-dependent and are able to range from stimulation to minor hallucination to seizure, coma, and catatonia. People who take this drug frequently often utilize it along with other drugs of abuse. They might become violent, very aggressive, and feel invincible and untouchable.
Illicit Drug Concerns
As mentioned, PCP is a Schedule II drug. Based on Mental Health Services Administration, five schedules of drugs are available based on their potential dependency and applications. Schedule I is considered the most dangerous and addictive.
This illicit drug has the most significant risk for addiction and has massive potential for severe physiological problems. On the other hand, Schedule V drugs have the slightest chance of developing addiction and psychological or physiological side effects.
PCP is as unsafe as a few of the more popular drugs at this point; methamphetamine, however, has different effects.
Phencyclidine is highly addictive for uses due to the feelings it produces. This potent drug has many common side effects, such as:
Hallucinogenic effects
Coma
Extreme violence
Euphoria
Catatonia
Other side effects related to the use of this drug take into account feeling a strong and powerful mental health disorder, perceptions of time, adrenaline highs, increased social contact as well as the lack of feeling of pain. Due to the powerful dissociative and euphoric senses, those who take this drug find themselves in risky situations where they uphold injuries and sometimes pose a threat to other people. There are other types of drugs that fall under the category of Schedule II, such as;
Methamphetamine
Hydromorphone
Fentanyl
Adderall
Cocaine
Schedule II drugs are very dangerous and will put your life at risk. With regards to PCP, extended use causes an improved risk for heart attack and brain damage.
Long-term use of PCP can lead to various health issues like brain damage and heart attack and improve the risk for stroke.
How Long Can PCP Be Seen in Your Body?
According to the National Institute of Drugs and other sources like the American Society of Addiction Medicine, PCP has a half-life of 7 to 46 hours. The typical PCP’s half-life in your body is approximately 21 hours. A drug’s half-life refers to the number of times a person’s metabolism can reduce the substance by half its original concentration. Most often, this measure is utilized to figure out the time a particular drug can be expected to stay in a person’s body. Drugs that are fat soluble will remain in your body for a longer time than those which are water-soluble or hydrophilic.
Sad to say, PCP is a fat-soluble or lipophilic drug.
The purging or removal of the substance is achieved over many routes and methods. However, the primary organ responsible for removing substances is your liver. If the substance is smoked, virtually 50% of it is ruined by the heat; if it is snorted or injected, this is not the case. If a person utilizes an average level of this drug based on its normal half-life, it could take an individual anywhere from 1 ½ days to 10 days to get rid of it from the body.
On the other hand, some experts recommend that because this is a fat-soluble drug, it might stay in fat cells, and the half-life might be longer ( about seventy-two hours for many people). In this case, it would take 17 days or more to eradicate it from your body.
PCP half-life will differ from one person to another. The time that a drug remains in a person’s body relies on many factors, including the specific kind of drug being consumed.
How Long PCP Is Visible in the Body: Factors Which Affect the substance abuse Presence
Because PCP stays in the body for a longer time, many people are curious about how to eliminate this from their systems. The fact remains that there are many methods for you to process it. However, you would have to know how PCP dependency might affect the drug remaining in the body.
Factors like co-occurring disease and other genetic variables also play a vital part, particularly with the use of PCP. There are a lot of factors that can figure out how long PCP is visible in the system. The following variables commonly affect the detection period of this drug.
Age and Health
Individual overall well-being can greatly affect how long it takes to flush PCP out from the body. Somebody who is healthier can rid the system of substances faster than someone who is not healthy. What is more, younger people are likely to be able to break down drugs faster than mature or older individuals.
Body Composition
An individual who is taller as well as weighs more tends to take longer to break down the drug compared to a person who weighs less and is shorter.
Metabolism
Usually, a faster metabolism can metabolize this drug and eliminate it from the system as fast as possible.
Taking other Medicines
Consuming other substances or medications together with PCP can also affect how fast PCP is flushed out from your system. Moreover, alcohol abuse along with this drug can cause it to stay in your body for longer.
Hydration Level
Keeping hydrated is important in how your system eradicates harmful substances. Individuals with low hydration levels will understandably have difficulty eliminating PCP from their bodies.
Why Is PCP Very Popular?
PCP is ubiquitous at this point due to the cultural trend of drugs because of the array of feelings it provides and its original feelings that were not like any drugs out there. Now, the sustained popularity of PCP keeps it active in the substance culture. Individuals all over research with this drug, and sad to say, become addicted in a short period.
Problems Associated with the Use of PCP Abuse
Clinical and pharmacological review shows that there are many issues related to phencyclidine intoxication, and they take into account psychological and physical effects and mental health disorders that take place on a short-term and long-term basis. Some might have prolonged threatening problems which cause mortality or carry the threat of death.
PCP prolonged use can lead to seizures, stroke, heart attack, and many others. The more you turn to this drug for a high, the higher the possibility of long-term physical and emotional damage. While high on this drug, some commit violent crimes or harm themselves. Some also find themselves in extremely dangerous conditions.
Another threat of prolonged use of PCP is getting tainted batches from unknown or illegal dealers. Because PCP is made in illegal labs, there is no way to control the process of producing this drug, and most often, there are wide inconsistencies with every batch.
Some users might make the preferred effect, but others might be risky and dangerous. Also, some can cause a medical emergency for the users, and those are able to have long-term results. A lot of people also mix PCP with other drugs, making it riskier, and tend to overdose or respond to combining drugs will take place.
This drug is commonly utilized with other substances like herbs and cigarettes as it can be easily dissolved in water. Once it is diluted, it’s soaked up by other substances for smoking. In powder form, this drug can be used along with cocaine or mushrooms, and the users wouldn’t be able to tell.
If this drug is consumed in a smaller amount, like below 20mg, there are visible effects. However, they pose a less instant threat to the well-being of the user. They might have confused speech or looked into the distance. There might also be other less visible indications like anxiety and a changed sense of insight. Even if low doses of this drug is safe, the 20mg threshold is recommended. If users go beyond this amount, there is a life-threatening effect. It can lead to fever, coma, stroke, or worse, death.
PCP Detection Times and Methods
When it comes to PCP detection time, this drug can be seen in the person’s body with many types of tests. Urine tests are the most popular and common test utilized in detecting the presence of this drug in the body. This drug test works like a usual laboratory urine examination where the person’s urine is collected, put in a particular small container, and sent to the facility. A urine test is reasonably precise and detects the presence of this drug in your system from four to six hours after taking it. This test is also able to sport PCP traces from seven to fourteen days after taking.
Another type of test used is the blood test. Blood tests are considered more accurate and are done while users are still in the effect of the drug. A blood sample can confirm PCP use. If a person is admitted to a medical facility, this is usually the kind of drug testing utilized for different types of substances in the body. Hair tests are also used to detect PCP in the body. This test is also precise when done anywhere from five to ten days after using this drug. Also, this can precisely sport PCP use for ninety days.
A saliva test is also used to detect the presence of PCP in the body. Even if utilized less commonly, saliva tests are able to detect PCP substances in just a matter of five to ten minutes of taking and continue to precisely sport for up to three days after the first dose.
Unlike a lot of other illegal substances, PVP remains in the fat tissue in your body and is gradually released in due course. Due to this method, the hallucinogenic influences are stretched over a long period. With regards to the half-life of PCP, or the time takes for this substance to break down in your system, it is three days. For those who often use PCP, the time frame goes up, and the PCP is spotted in the brain for up to seven days.
Always remember that when examining this drug, specific over-the-counter drugs make a false result. Some drugs which cause this to take place take into account the following:
Tramadol
Imipramine
Diphenhydramine
Ibuprofen
Antidepressants
Dextromethorphan
Ketamine
If a person tested uses any of the drugs mentioned, they should alert the one administering the examination to make sure he knows the risk of a false result.
Why Should You Undergo PCP Test?
People working in public and private offices are often tested for this drug for different reasons. One common reason might be the reliability of the job. Another reason is to determine why a crime was committed, or somebody was hurt or harmed.
Less often, medical techs test for this drug for substance cure admissions to develop a drug treatment program that meets their requirements based on their outcomes and any details gathered during the process.
Another good reason testing is vital is to figure out the level of substance consumed. The amount consumed is critical in figuring out the level of risk present. The more the users take, the more severe and visible the side effects. As stated above, one risk of PCP intake is that it makes sense of paranoia and generates unusual or aggressive behavior, which can result in painful conditions.
How to Know If You Are Already PCP Dependent?
Just like other addictive drugs out there, you might develop PCP addiction. Some indications point to possible dependency. If you see any of the signs mentioned below, seek professional medical advice right away or help the person know the harmful effects and motivate him to pursue a cure.
Past background of use
Problems with consistent actions
A constant desire to consume the drug
Craving the drug
Denial of intake with indications consistent with taking the drug
Drug dependency can look different from one user to another. It is essential to monitor actions and note the past background to examine the condition accurately. Also, knowing that many people will refute when they have an active drug addiction is vital.
In most cases, drug users don’t want to undergo tests to spot the presence of the substance in their bodies. Some people try natural methods like detoxification to eliminate the drug from their bodies. On the other hand, these actions or practices are not practical. This is because PCP stays in the body’s fat tissue, and the only approach to eliminate it is to stop using the drug. Purge diets and detoxification will not work and might prove risky for the users. So, the best approach is to get support from licensed medical professionals for drug addiction. In due course, the system rids itself of the PCP and starts to recover.
This situation is challenging for the users, but providing gentle assistance might assist them in talking about their dependency and, at the same time, let them admit they want support to overcome the drug addiction and return to their normal lives.
Seeking treatment from rehab centers and other organizations provides hopes for fighting PCP addiction by giving patients the most excellent care and customized treatment programs to ensure they have the best outcome possible.
How to Find PCP Addiction Treatment Program
Finding the right treatment process for PCP dependency is hard for the users. If you are not the users, understanding and patience are needed to connect with them to suggest they seek a cure. However, not all conditions are the same.
The addict might refuse treatment regardless of the method and accept addiction treatment if a medical problem occurs or find them legally bound to seek a cure. The superb approach is to try to get them to look for treatment admittance on their own.
A lot of treatment facilities offer simple and streamlined admissions procedures to make the whole process of treating substance use disorder faster and less stressful. The objective is to acquire the needed information as well as insurance information immediately to assist the addict get to the facility faster and starting the journey to recovery.
The key to assisting someone gets the right cure at the right treatment facility with a qualified healthcare provider and with the use of the best and most appropriate treatment programs is to get the needed details. The PCP user should be open and honest with his drug intake information and give precise information associated with his medical background and drug use background. Getting this detail makes sure that any possible medical issues or interactions are determined.
Suppose the user is admitted to a rehab center. In that case, they start the process of getting rid of the substance from their body under the firm and stringent supervision of qualified experts well trained to manage particular problems associated with PCP cravings and withdrawal symptoms. They can help with the urges and any changes in behavioral health conditions or physical issues during the whole process. The objective of advanced recovery systems is to make the addict comfortable and assist him in overcoming the craving for the drug. Then, the expert will work on coping skills and lean methods to keep away from using the PCP in her daily life.
To Sum Up
The most effective and safest way to eliminate the presence of the drug and, at the same time, overcome drug abuse is to enroll in a reliable drug rehab or treatment center. A substance abuse treatment plan that provides a full medical detox plan and round-the-clock care to help with emergent psychiatric or medical needs as they emerge is a must for the first couple of weeks of cure. Family therapy is also proven effective in treating drug abuse.
