Issue date: 4/23/08 Section: Features

Media Credit: Ai Kobayashi Photo illustration.

It's hidden in the bathroom, celebrated in popular song lyrics, and pumping through the bloodstreams of many students. It's far more discreet than the liquid that flows from glass bottles and the smoke that billows from bongs. As it lures in a diverse fan base across every socioeconomic field, many students may find themselves in the club.

Coke, blow, snow-the fun nicknames may help cocaine pass as a party drug, along with its ability to produce feelings of euphoria, sociability, alertness, and omnipotence in users. However, its dangers loom as strongly as ever, and its addictive quality is undeniable.

"[Cocaine] becomes our best friend, but the paradox is-our best friend turns on us, and when you cross that line into dependence, you don't know it. The body likes the drug that much," explains Gordon Coburn, Department Chair of Alcohol and Drug Counseling at City College.

Cocaine users may ignore the drug's less attractive effects, like nosebleeds, dysfunctional sleeping and eating patterns, dark circles under the eyes, anxiety, depression, paranoia, hallucinations, and skin lesions. Not to mention, regular users may find their social lives compromised as they lose interest in family and friends.

A City College employee, who asked to remain anonymous, has struggled with cocaine abuse in the past. "My body was there but I wasn't. It just altered my mind so much… I was a great person, but it just takes you over."

She tells about her time in rehab, when she had to write a letter to cocaine, "My first sentence said, 'it was love at first sight.' It's a relationship, and either you're going to break up with it, or it's going to break up with you."

It's common for students to confine cocaine use to the weekends, especially considering the hefty price and fleeting high of the drug. But the line between recreational use and dependence is hazy; what may initially be a weekend indulgence can become a study aid, allowing students to stay up all night getting work done. And after staying up all night working, it can easily turn into a morning boost, starting a cycle of dependence.

"Nobody starts out with the intention of getting addicted. Nobody starts out by thinking, 'When I grow up, I want to be an addict,'" adds Coburn.

Laura Ray, Counselor-in-Training in the Alcohol and Substance Awareness Program (ASAP) emphasizes that cocaine, among other drugs, is particularly damaging to young people as the human brain takes about 26 years to fully develop. Addictive substances interrupt the natural development of the brain and put it into a disease pattern that can take a lifetime to rewire.

Helping students who struggle with cocaine issues is difficult-- sometimes even run-ins with law enforcement and major health scares may not even quell one's denial that he or she has a problem.

However, the ASAP counselors at City College are more than up for the challenge. Students concerned about drug abuse are encouraged to call the Health and Wellness Center to make an appointment with an ASAP counselor.

"The counselors here love what they're doing-I love working with college students because they are at the front end of the issue." Ray and the other ASAP counselors often work directly with personal counselors to tackle the issue from all angles. Additionally, students who seek help are referred to community programs like Narcotics Anonymous, where they may get some extra support.

ASAP counseling is free, confidential, and students are allowed six sessions. However, Ray says that counselors will ignore the six session limit to provide students with as much help as is needed.

Whether a student wants to stop, or simply wants help moderating use, Ray points out, "It's a treatable disease, so that's really why we're here."

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