Fredericton clinic sees new hope in fight against crystal meth addiction

There could be new hope for dealing with crystal meth addiction, says a doctor working on replacement therapy at the Fredericton Downtown Community Health Centre.

Dr. Sara Davidson has started prescribing Dexadrine to patients and says the results, so far, are encouraging.

Dexedrine is commonly used for treating narcolepsy, a chronic disorder that causes people to fall asleep. But like crystal meth, it is a stimulant, so it hits the same receptors.

"Some of the literature says it's not a great substitute, but I'd just as soon give it a shot," said Davidson, who describes crystal meth as a "devastating scourge on the community."

"We have actually had some — very preliminary — but some early successes with people that are very high users of crystal meth who are saying, 'You know what, I actually didn't think about it for a couple of days because we're now getting daily dispensed Dexadrine."

The arrival and increased use of crystal meth is the biggest change in the local drug scene in a long time, according to a recent survey by the New Brunswick Community Alliance, which includes AIDS New Brunswick.

It's really destroying lives.- Sara Davidson, doctor

In Fredericton, one of the comments was,"crystal meth is taking over the city big time."

People are smoking, snorting and injecting the powerful and potentially deadly drug.

While it makes people feel euphoric, crystal meth also has a violent comedown that includes aggression, paranoia and hallucinations.

One of the telltale signs someone is using crystal meth is they have a general "sped-up quality," said Davidson.

They may also have sores because one of the side-effects of ongoing use is they feel as if bugs are crawling on them so they pick at their skin.

Chronic use can induce psychosis.

"It's really destroying lives," said Davidson. "It is heartbreaking."

Opioid withdrawal driving up use

One of the reasons people use crystal meth is they're addicted to opioids and either can't afford or find any, said Davidson. Crystal meth is cheap and helps them cope with their opioid withdrawal.

"It's kind of like if you bang your shin and you rub it, you're not taking care of what happened to your shin, but you're distracting yourself from feeling the pain of the banging of it."

So one way to deal with the crystal meth crisis is to address that underlying driver and get those patients stabilized through opioid replacement therapy, such as methadone and Suboxone, said Davidson.

An informal survey of patients at the clinic and at pharmacies dispensing opioid replacements found "overwhelmingly" having access to a free, safe supply of opioids would  significantly help address crystal meth use, she said.

Homelessness a factor

Another reason some people use crystal meth is to stay awake because they are homeless and don't feel safe sleeping on the street. So the clinic's social workers are also working with clients to help them find housing.

"It seems to pick on the people that are most vulnerable and so you can't just say, 'Well just pull up your socks and let's get over this, and cops just go out and arrest all the bad guys,' and that will all fix it," said Davidson. "I mean, that would've worked already."

Patients also have to want to get off crystal meth for the replacement therapy to work, she stressed.

Davidson is prescribing a daily tablet of Dexadrine to participants, starting with a low dose and increasing the amount every few days until they're "in a good, steady state, where they feel they're getting enough to sort of calm down those cravings."

She is also talking to emergency room doctors about getting overnight patients who are in opioid withdrawal onto methadone or Suboxone, when no replacement therapy clinics are open, in hopes of keeping them away from crystal meth.

"So that's exciting."