Tips for Meth Recovery: Getting Through a Meth Comedown
There are many types of drugs that are abused today—and some of the most popular are stimulants, like methamphetamine, or meth.
Meth is a stimulant drug known for increasing users’ energy and motivation. It can cause extreme feelings of euphoria in people who use it because it floods the brain with dopamine.
In addition to causing euphoric highs and happiness in users, meth can also have other physiological effects when someone uses it, including increased heart rate and blood pressure, raised body temperature, and feelings of jitteriness.
If you or a loved one is struggling with meth use, you may be wondering how to get through a meth “comedown.”
The Basics of a Meth Comedown
When a person uses meth, it affects their body and brain chemically. If they use it multiple times, over time, it can biologically change a brain—making the body dependent on the substance to function.
People who have become dependent on meth can be physically or psychologically dependent. This means that they may feel like they need to use meth for their body to feel okay or for their brain and thought processes to feel balanced.
If you’re ready to get clean and stop using meth, you’ll have to stop putting the drug into your system—and there will be a period through which your body transitions from having the chemical in it to not having the chemical in it.
As your body goes through this transition—the meth comedown—it can feel extremely scary and unpleasant. However, it’s a necessary step to take for anyone who wants to live a meth-free life.
Meth stays active in your system for anywhere from 10 to 12 hours. After the 12th hour, your body will probably begin going through a meth comedown.
A meth comedown usually lasts for several days to a week, and it has distinct phases, as your body re-adapts to living without meth in its system. Here are the basic stages of a meth comedown:
1. Hours 12 to 24 Post Use
You will have low energy and be lethargic and tired. Your mood will change, and you may experience feelings of irritability or agitation.
2. Days Two to Three
These are the days in which symptoms of a meth comedown peak. You have moved beyond feeling tired, but your agitation has likely increased.
During these days, you may have intense cravings for the drug since your body is not used to going without the substance. You’ll find it hard to concentrate, may feel depressed or anxious, and may have disrupted thinking.
It is hard for people to learn and retain new information during the height of a meth comedown.
3. Days Four to Seven
The meth comedown usually winds down and ends within a week. Severe physical symptoms should dissipate, though cravings can last for a long time.
People will still be tired with sleep and appetite disturbances but feel less physically agitated.
4. Post Week One
One of the hardest things about meth is that the drug is tough to come off of and then stay off of. People usually feel a “crash” after their week of comedown. This means that they not only feel exhausted, but they feel a complete lack of happiness, motivation, hope, calm, and more.
People in this post-comedown phase often experience severe depression or anxiety. They may have to fight intense cravings to use the drug they know could remedy the negative feelings they are experiencing.
The severity of the meth comedown usually depends on how long a person has been using meth, how often they use it, and how much they use.
The most challenging comedown experiences will be for people who have been on the drug a long time and whose bodies will feel extreme withdrawal after not using the drug their body has become accustomed to.
Physical and Mental Effects of Meth Post-Comedown
Once you have completely stopped using meth and gone through the comedown and withdrawal experience, you may want your body to return to being as it was before you ever used meth.
Unfortunately, experts have discovered that many meth users (especially those who have used meth for a long time) may never be able to fully recover from the physical results of usage.
- Lethargy
- Poor impulse control
- Difficulty making decisions
- Depression
- Poor motor coordination
Meth is a neurotoxin, and it can cause damage to your brain. Some users may find that it takes years off of meth until their brains and bodies feel like they can function normally again.
Tips for Meth Recovery: Get Through the Comedown and Stay Clean
If you plan to go through the pain and suffering of meth withdrawal and comedown, you’ll want to stay clean and not use meth again.
However, cravings can be brutal. With the proper guidance, you should be able to get through the beginning of the withdrawal experience and stay off the drug—experiencing total recovery.
Here are our best tips for meth recovery, so you stop using in a way that feels doable and lasts.
1. Get Professional Help
Getting off of meth is tough. If there is any question about your ability to do it and succeed on your own, seek out the help of an addiction specialist.
If you go through meth withdrawal with the help of a professional, you can learn how to ride out cravings, minimize the pain you’re going through, and sit with the feelings you’re having, even when they’re intense and uncomfortable.
2. Pay Attention to Hydration and Nutrition
If you’re planning to go through a meth comedown, one of the most important things to focus on is nutrition and hydration.
Meth often suppresses people’s appetite, so regular users can be underweight and lack essential nutrients. Make sure you eat a well-balanced diet to get the calories, vitamins, and minerals you need, and drink a lot of water to keep yourself hydrated.
Meth also dries you out, so there is a good chance you’ll be dehydrated at the start of a meth comedown, and a good way to keep other comedown symptoms like headaches, fatigue, and lethargy at bay is by staying hydrated.
3. Get Enough Sleep
Meth is well known for interfering with people’s sleep patterns. Some people even take it to stay up all night. When you start getting off meth, focus on rebuilding healthy sleep patterns.
Set a sleep schedule for yourself, then commit to sticking with it. If you are well-rested, you’ll be able to think more clearly and better participate in life.
People who are well-slept also have better impulse control, so making sure you get enough sleep during meth comedown can ensure that you don’t give in to cravings that you have or relapse.
4. Keep Busy To Stay Distracted
Your meth comedown will be uncomfortable no matter what. Once you’re through the height of the physical symptoms, making sure you stay busy can help you get through the rest of your comedown.
Having plans with friends or colleagues can take your mind off the discomfort you are experiencing.
Alternatively, allowing yourself to feel bored may bring on a craving—so if you’re keeping your mind stimulated with other people or activities, you are less likely to think about, crave, or want to return to using.
5. Consider Support Groups
Support groups help many people who have recovered from substance use disorders. There are even support groups specifically created to help people recovering from meth addiction.
One crucial step you can take to help you get through your meth comedown and fight cravings is joining a meth support group.
Crystal Meth Anonymous is one of the most popular support group options. Members help each other stay sober by listening to each other’s stories, working through recovery steps, giving advice from personal experience, and providing community.
This last one is a critical connection many people lose during the height of their addictions.
6. Focus on General Wellness
If you shift your focus to general wellness, you may make your recovery from meth dependence easier. Consider starting an exercise program or routine to improve your physical health and boost your strength.
Mental healthcare like psychotherapy can help you deal with any issues you may have previously dealt with by taking meth, and focusing on other bodywork—like massage or chiropractic work—can help ensure your body is in the healthiest shape possible.
Physical wellness can help you feel your best and encourage you to avoid any substance that might make you feel worse (like meth).
Learn more about nutrition and consider getting focused on how to fuel your body. One of the first steps in meth recovery is to start eating more; another is to learn how to eat the right foods and nutrients to feel energized, balanced, clearheaded, and calm.
The Physical and Psychological Risks of Using Meth
Although people choose to use the drug for what they perceive as its benefits, meth can have myriad terrible consequences on the body and brain.
Meth has been known to cause reckless behavior in users. It can result in extreme anger or violence in people using it. Also, people who abuse meth can experience extreme paranoia or delusions, or they may hallucinate and see or hear things that are not there.
The DEA considers meth an incredibly addictive drug, and experts believe that over 700,000 people in the United States are currently addicted to the substance.
While a physical dependence on any drug is hard, becoming addicted to meth is particularly challenging because the comedown from meth—after you stop taking it—can be incredibly uncomfortable.
However, a meth comedown is an essential experience to go through if you are going to get off of the drug. Some of the best tips for meth recovery are understanding what meth comedown is, how it affects someone going through it, and the best ways to get through it as painlessly and comfortably as possible.
Reach Out to Zinnia Health for Tips on Meth Recovery
If you or a loved one are ready to get help with a dependence on meth, consider reaching out to Zinnia Health. At Zinnia Health, we can help get you through the toughest part of meth recovery—the meth comedown—then walk you through the process of getting healthier, happier, and more confident each day.
At Zinnia Health, we understand that stopping substance abuse is a complicated and lengthy process. We are ready to guide you through the physical parts and help you understand the mental and emotional components.
We are happy to work with individuals who are ready to stop using meth, as well as their family members, to help every participant set up a life they can return to that enables their growth and vitality—and helps them learn to fight cravings and ensure that their sobriety lasts.
To learn more about how we can help you or a loved one, reach out to us today. One of our team members will help you better understand your situation and how our organization can help you get back to the life you knew before meth.
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