What is flakka?
In the Netherlands, the highly addictive hard drug flakka seems to be used very little, but according to Jellinek addiction care, it is difficult to estimate how many users there are. Addiction experts from the Trimbos Institute in Utrecht have been receiving more and more reports since last year that the use of flakka is on the rise again, especially in the regions of West Brabant and Zeeland.
Flakka and alfa are street names for a number of new psychoactive substances derived from the substance alpha-PVP that have been available on the Dutch drug market for more than ten years.
Alpha-PVP is now prohibited, it has been on List I of the Opium Act for several years. However, some derivatives of alpha-PVP are still legal and therefore relatively easy to obtain.
Flakka is offered as a powder or as chunks and then smoked in a pipe, although it can also be snorted and injected. The substance works for about 2 to 5 hours. According to some users, the effect is similar to that of methamphetamine or cocaine. In the Netherlands, it is often smoked. This gives a quick effect. Users get a lot of energy and feel happy and alert, but it also makes it very addictive.
A person may experience a strong desire to take the drug again during use or once it wears off (craving). The days after use, a person may suffer from a severe hangover and feel depressed. Physical effects and side effects include: increased blood pressure, increased body temperature, stimulation and increased muscle tension, sweating, dry mouth, poor sleep, large pupils.
Flakka is effective from just a few milligrams. Someone can quickly take too much of the drug. In the event of an overdose, a user can become restless, anxious and suspicious (paranoid). There are also known incidents in which users had an epileptic seizure, delirium of excitement or drug psychosis. People can then feel afraid and sometimes become aggressive. Videos of these accidents in the United States have ended up on the internet. This is why flakka has been nicknamed the ‘zombie drug’.
Sources: Trimbos Institute and Jellinek addiction care.