Short & Long-Term Effects of Cocaine Addiction

Cocaine is a powerful stimulant drug that can inflict lasting damage to the body from short-term and long-term use. Because of cocaine’s addictive properties, many people develop a substance abuse disorder after taking the drug. 

There are several methods to use cocaine, including snorting it, rubbing the powder onto the gums, dissolving it in water and injecting it, or smoking the rock version of the drug.1

Each of these methods carries its own serious, immediate, and long-lasting health implications.  

Short-Term Effects of Using Cocaine

While a person may use cocaine for the desired effects of feeling more energetic, alert, or euphoric, these feelings are very short-lived. Depending on the method of use, the longest a person will experience these sensations is an hour, while some may only feel the effects for five minutes.1 

Within moments of ingesting the drug, a person’s body experiences a wave of sensations. These short-term effects of cocaine include:1

• Increased body temperature 
• Increased blood pressure
• Quickened heart rate 
• Irregular heartbeat 
• Dilated pupils
• Constricted blood vessels
• Muscle twitches and tremors
• Vertigo

There are psychological symptoms that may develop after using cocaine. These psychological side effects of cocaine can include:1

• Anxiety
• Panic
• Irritability
• Restlessness
• Paranoia

Cocaine Overdose Signs 

While cocaine can impact every part of a person’s body, it’s most dangerous to the cardiovascular system.2 Using cocaine can overwhelm the heart to the point where a person experiences a cardiac event. While chest pain can be a common indicator of a cocaine overdose, a person may exhibit symptoms that are unrelated to their heart, such as a seizure or delirium. 

Other common symptoms of a cocaine overdose include:2

• Headache
• Altered mental state
• Hyperthermia (increased body temperature)
• Blurring of vision
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting
• Abdominal pain
• Feeling extremely itchy
• Severe agitation 
• Nosebleed
• Hypertension  

In recent years, the risk of overdose has increased as drug manufacturers have been adding other substances to cocaine to make it cheaper to produce and more potent. The most common additive is fentanyl, a strong opioid that has the ability to be lethal in doses as small as two milligrams (depending on a person’s body size, tolerance, and past usage).3

If you suspect someone is experiencing a cocaine overdose, call 911 and stay with them until paramedics arrive.

Long-term Effects of Abusing Cocaine

The dangers of cocaine extend beyond the short-term risk of overdose. Continued misuse of cocaine can lead to many long-term, potentially life-altering medical complications. 

Cocaine adversely impacts many organs throughout the body. A long-term cocaine user may develop ulcers and tears in the gastrointestinal tract from reduced blood flow from cocaine use.1 They could become malnourished and lose weight, as they experience suppressed appetite from taking the drug.1

This is only the tip of the iceberg. Some other long-term effects of cocaine include:1

• Developing a substance use disorder
• Developing paranoia or panic attacks
• Experiencing hallucinations
• Increased risk of stroke

Of all the long-lasting effects, however, some of the most concerning cocaine risks impact the heart and the brain.

Effects of Cocaine on the Heart

Cocaine is particularly demanding on the heart because it increases your heart rate while constricting the blood vessels going to the heart.1 This creates a dangerous situation where the rapidly beating heart needs more oxygen but is receiving less oxygen.4 

This combination can cause a cocaine user to experience intense chest pain, leading them to think they’re having a heart attack even when they’re not.1 This may cause the person to ignore chest pain, thinking it’s just a false alarm, when it’s actually a major cardiac event.

Other effects of cocaine on the heart can include:1,4

• Inflammation of the heart muscle
• Deterioration of the heart’s ability to contract
• Aortic ruptures
• Arrhythmias (irregular heart rhythm)
• Infections within the heart

These conditions from cocaine misuse can lead to a heart attack or heart failure.4

Effects of Cocaine on the Brain

Cocaine abuse can also have significant implications for the brain and chronic illnesses stemming from the brain. Using cocaine has been tied to physical changes in the brain, including bleeding within the brain, as well as balloon-like bulges in the walls of cerebral blood vessels.1 

Long-term cocaine use may even increase a person’s chance of developing certain movement disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease.1

The effects of cocaine on the brain can harm several types of cognitive function, including:1

• Memory
• Making decisions that include rewards or punishments
• Fine motor skills
• Attention span
• Impulse control 

Outside of these risks, using cocaine can also increase a person’s chance of stroke, as well as the potential to have a seizure.1 

Effects of Snorting, Smoking, or Injecting Cocaine

Cocaine can be used in several different ways, including being snorted, injected, or smoked.5 

The different methods lead to differing lengths and levels of a high. For example, smoking or injecting cocaine allows the substance to reach the brain in mere seconds, triggering a powerful but short high or “rush.” Snorting the drug, on the other hand, reaches the brain more slowly and leads to a more drawn-out high.5 

Snorting, smoking, and injecting cocaine all carry unique risks associated with the method of delivery.

Risks and effects of snorting cocaine

Snorting cocaine in powder form can lead to decreased or complete loss of smell, nosebleeds, swallowing issues, a generalized feeling of having a hoarse throat, and a chronically inflamed and runny nose.1

Risks and effects of smoking crack

If someone is smoking cocaine, they’re smoking small, white chunks called crack.5 Smoking crack can damage a person’s lungs and worsen asthma.1 

Risks and effects of injecting cocaine

Many of the risks involved with injecting cocaine stem from sharing needles and contracting infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C. Someone injecting cocaine could also have an allergic reaction to the drug or additives, which can become life-threatening.1

Cocaine Addiction Treatment in Kansas City

If you find yourself dealing with the painful and difficult effects of cocaine, our team at Empowered Recovery Center in Kansas City can teach you the skills to overcome your addiction. 

Our dedicated clinical and medical teams are experienced in using a combination of therapy and life skills to put your recovery into motion. They’ll work with you to create a personalized recovery plan best suited to your life. For you, that may include a medical detox followed by partial hospitalization. Or perhaps intensive outpatient or standard outpatient is a better fit, so you can have more time available for work or family responsibilities. 

To learn about all the programs we offer, reach out to our admissions team. They can fill you in on every aspect of our program, from what being admitted looks like to the types of therapy we use. Our program also works with a variety of insurance providers, meaning many of our patients have their treatment fully or partially paid for through their policy. Our intake specialists are happy to verify your benefits to see what your insurance would cover while sharing our manageable payment options. 

Let us help you get back to a healthy way of living free from cocaine. Give us a call or fill out our contact form to begin your recovery journey.

References 

1. Cocaine. (2024, September 27). National Institute on Drug Abuse. Retrieved June 9, from https://nida.nih.gov/research-topics/cocaine#short-term
2. Richards, J. R., & Le, J. K. (2023, June 8). Cocaine Toxicity. StatPearls – NCBI Bookshelf. Retrieved June 9, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430976/
3. Facts about Fentanyl. (n.d.). DEA. Retrieved June 9, from https://www.dea.gov/resources/facts-about-fentanyl
4. Schwartz, B. G., Rezkalla, S., & Kloner, R. A. (2010). Cardiovascular Effects of Cocaine. Circulation, 122(24), 2558–2569. Retrieved June 9, fromhttps://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/circulationaha.110.940569
5. Cocaine. (2021). Retrieved June 9, from https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2025-01/Cocaine-2024-Drug-Fact-Sheet.pdf