Heroin research

Heroin is one of a group of drugs which are come from the Opium Poppy which are known as Opiates. Other examples are Codeine and Morphine, which are commercially produced as painkillers. Heroin comes from Morphine which is a white powder in its pure form, on the street it is more of a brown coloured powder, due to the additives added. It has been known for powdered milk, talc, curry powder, washing powder and other substances to be mixed with pure Heroin to increase the volume.

Injecting Heroin is the most common way addicts will use the drug to get high Once the Heroin is purchased the preparation starts. The kit used to shoot up includes, Heroin, syringe with needle, spoon, lighter or candle, cigarette filter, belt, citric acid and water. The Heroin is put onto the spoon with citric acid, the right amount of water will then be mixed with the Heroin and citric acid, the citric acid is used to breakdown the Heroin so it can be injected. At the same time the spoon is held over the heat source so all the three substances are mixed together. Once mixed, a cigarette filter will be placed onto the spoon, the solution will then be drawn up the syringe through the filter, and this is to filter out any impurities. It is now ready to be injected into a vein usually in the arm. The belt or similar implement such as a shoe lace is tied tightly around the arm to stop the blood flow, this will cause the veins to stand out for easier injection. After long periods of use the veins will become damaged and other areas of the body are used for injecting into. Other places used are in the groin area, behind the knees or in serious cases in the neck. It has been known for addict’s veins to collapse.

Effects of heroin fall into two groups, short term and long term. Short term effects of Heroin include: - Sedation / Drowsiness, Euphoria, Reduced Anxiety, No feeling of pain. Long term effects include: - AIDS due to sharing needles, Skin infection from injecting, collapsed veins due to injecting, Poisoning due to additives added to the drugs by dealers and Liver damage.

Addicts usually don't intend to overdose. The reasons for overdosing are few but can be very serious and has in the past resulted in death. If an addict has been restricted from taking the drug for a long period of time, for example, due to imprisonment. The addict could overdose if they were to use the same amount of the drug they were taking before they had the long spell of not using. Another reason for overdosing is due to the strength of Heroin. Some dealers will mix other substances with the Heroin making it weaker. If a pure bag of Heroin was taken, this could amount to a serious overdose.  

Things to look at when finding an addict are:

·         Not mixing with others

·         Sleep pattern will change dramatically

·         Lack of money

·         Hyper and more energy than usual

·         Personal items get sold to feed the addiction

·         Money starts to disappear

·         Dramatic weight loss

·         Looking pale and gaunt in the face (no colour)

·         Eye pupils very small, with little reaction

·         Don't keep personal hygiene up to standard

I will have to take on all this research before we film the final piece. This is because I will have to show the heroin addict as realistic as I can so the film looks real and professional. All these ideas will have an effect on the final character and the atmosphere off the film so it is really important to make sure the character is effective.