Street Names of Drugs

And Other Information

Marijuana:

• most widely used drug
• users are usually younger, less experienced
• use starts as early as middle school

Many teens today consider marijuana use as harmless, and their use continues unless proactive intervention is started as soon as identified. Seldom will a teen quit using marijuana by their own decision.
There are many varieties of marijuana, and it typically appears as small, dried buds of plant material and is recognizable by its pungent odor. If you aren’t familiar with the odor, you can almost always assume that a “smoky” smell that you can’t identify as a common smoke odor is the smell of marijuana.
How to Recognize:
Marijuana is often stored in baggies or small plastic containers such as film canisters or candy packaging.  If you see or hear the numbers 420, which means time to smoke, or 840, double the high, be aware that those are code words for the use of marijuana.
Common Names:

• Dank
• Weedud
• Green
• Reefer
• Grass
• Dope
• Mary Jane
• Skunk
• Blunt

… and many more! A good “rule of thumb” is to suspect some sort of drug use if you hear teens use words that don’t seem to fit into their normal conversation. If you don’t quite recognize the term or its use, do a quick Internet search and you can likely find if it’s a drug or not.

When high on marijuana, users may say someone is baked or stoned when high on marijuana.
Paraphernalia:
pipes, bongs, scales, rolling papers, and lighters.  Metal and colorful glass pipes are popular and can be purchased in various stores.  Many users make their own pipes and bongs  from pop cans, bottles and other sources.  Many younger uses may also like to wear clothing with marijuana or hemp symbols or even hang posters and drawings of the plant in their rooms.
Storage:
zip-lock baggies (found with plant residue), small wooden boxes, film canisters, other unique small storage containers.

Methamphetamines:
Methamphetamines, or meth, is one of the widely used narcotics and also one of the most deadly.   Highs from meth can last up to a day,  and the user is typically highly agitated, hyperactive or in a constant state of euphoria.  There are two varieties of meth – white and brown.  Both varieties are found in powder or crystal form (crystals look like smaller, clearer pieces of rock salt)
Physical Appearance:
Meth is found as a clear, white or brown powder, white or brown chunky material, or white crystals. It is often stored in small zip-lock baggies called bindles.  Users may discard corners of sandwich baggies or bindles with a powdery residue.
Street Names for Meth
Shards (like shards of glass), Crank, Crystal, CR, Powder.

People who use meth are called Tweekers.

Meth is often purchased in a T or Teener (1/16th oz.), or an 8 Ball (1/8th oz.).
Meth Paraphernalia:
In use, meth pipes are often made of thin glass and may have white or dark residue inside.  Mini torches (not lighters) and butane fuel or propane bottles (the type used for camp stoves) are used to heat or melt the meth.  Snort tubes called tooters made of pieces of cut straw or hollow tubes of ballpoint pens that may have residue inside.

Needles, syringes, dirty spoons and cotton, scales are often used in using or distributing meth.  Users may have 8-Ball symbols on clothing, key chains or posters.  Users often wear baseball caps with a “CR” symbol.
Storage :

Meth paraphernalia is often kept in kits.  Purple Crown Royal Bags or other small storage containers are frequently used for kits.  Small zip-lock baggies with residue are another way of storing meth.

Heroin:
Heroin use is frequently found among users as young as high school age, and the percentage of heroin users is growing steadily, especially in suburban areas.  Heroin is highly addictive and addicts often show violent or totally irrational behavior.
What to look for:
Heroin is frequently distributed in tiny pieces of small, colorful toy balloons with the heroin wrapped tightly inside.  Occasionally it may be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil.  A typical amount of heroin for one user is only the size of a pencil eraser. Tiny bits of plastic, balloons, burned foil or used syringes that are discarded indicate that meth has been used in that area.
Street Names
Chiva or cheeva, black.
Paraphernalia:

Look for the following to indicate if heroin has been used in the area.

• syringes
• burned spoons
• dirty cotton balls
• Q-tips
• rubber tie bands (used to tie around an arm before injecting).

Heroin can also be smoked in pipes which can be made from unusual items such as permanent markers or even plumbing material.

Prescription Drugs:
The serious abuse of prescription drugs is an increasing problem among young teens.   The misuse of prescription drugs is very dangerous.  Prescription drug abusers may steal the drugs from their parents and friends, and even forge prescriptions.
The drugs may be taken orally, crushed and injected, or snorted to get high.  Common drugs that are abused include: Ritalin, Dexedrine, OxyContin, Darvon, Vicodin, and Valium.

Some teens with ADD will not take their proper dose for several days, then sell or take the drug in unsafe ways in order to achieve the desired high.
Symptoms of Prescription Drug Abuse
If you find a single pill or groups of pills mixed together in unmarked bottles or baggie or not professionally packaged, you should be suspicious that prescription drug abuse is occurring.  Empty prescription bottles with unfamiliar names are also another very common clue.
Prescription Drug Abuse Paraphernalia:
You may find dirty spoons and needles, dirty cotton swabs (used to clean the spoon), dirty cotton balls (used as filters for shooting up), mini torches with butane fuel (used to heat up the spoon), snort tubes piece of cut straw, hollow tube of a pen, may have residue inside.
Storage:
Empty pill bottles, baggies or small containers.

Ecstasy:
Ecstasy is often called a “Club Drug,” since it is frequently sold or given out at bars, parties or raves (underground parties). One pill is usually a dose for the night user. Ecstasy is often done in groups of people, sometimes even with party-goers that don’t know each other very well.
Ecstasy users often showextreme hyperactivity, increased sensitivity and/or paranoia, and lowering of normal inhibitions.
What to Look For:
Pills with pop culture icons printed on them.  Popular icons include a crown, dollar signs, mickey mouse, designer logos sush as CK or the Nike Swoosh.  The pills are often misshapen and the logos may be off center or distorted.
Street Names:

E, X, E-tard,  E-Bomb when taken with Vics Vapor Rub to enhance the high.Sometimes the pills are doubled up and known as Double stack.
There is seldom unusual signs of ecstasy use, since they are usually taken in straight pill form.

Mushrooms:
Mushrooms can be used to  create a hallucinogenic effect in users, and can be used alone, or treated with LSD.  Dried mushrooms are typically white to light brown in color.   Mushrooms also are often identifiable by the horrible odor eminating from them.

Things to Look for:
Dried mushrooms in plastic baggies.  May be found with LSD or marijuana.
Slang:
Shrooms.
Paraphernalia: None.  Often found in association with marijuana – see marijuana paraphernalia listing above.
Storage:
Almost always found in plastic baggies of some variety.  May be individually wrapped.