5 Reasons Drug Crossfading Is Dangerous

The term “crossfading” most frequently refers to the effects of using different substances simultaneously. Among younger people, that includes using alcohol and marijuana at the same time. 

To some, the idea of using alcohol and marijuana simultaneously may not seem all that dangerous, but there is almost no way for someone to know how their body will react to the use of one or more substances. The dangers increase as the substance use begins to include the simultaneous use of multiple high-risk drugs such as cocaine, heroin, or prescription opiates. 

Too much of one substance can cause irreversible damage and even lead to death. Drug crossfading is dangerous because it impairs one's decision-making, makes it difficult to recover from addiction, depletes mental health, has adverse effects on the body, and can lead to death.

Crossfading, the mixing of two substances, can be very dangerous.

How Cross-Fading Most Commonly Presents Itself

As mentioned, the most common example of crossfading often experienced is the simultaneous use of alcohol and marijuana. When simultaneously using these two substances, ethanol can affect the way the body absorbs THC, the key psychoactive ingredient of marijuana. 

The more THC absorbed by the body, the more the user will experience its effects. For some unaware of the risks, that may be the desired result of crossfading. Those individuals must understand the risky position they are putting themselves in as a result of impaired decision-making.

Marijuana is often revered as a generally safe and harmless substance. Yet, there are several short-term and long-term effects of marijuana use and its impact on the brain. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a few of the short-term effects include:

• Impaired body movement 
• Hallucinations, delusions, and psychosis 
• Difficulty thinking rationally or problem-solving

Consuming alcohol and marijuana cause more severe effects than these. When an individual experiences impaired thinking or delusions, they risk making choices that put themselves or those around them in direct harm. That might be by choosing to get in the car while crossfading or making many other risky decisions. The misconception that simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use is harmless is far from the truth.

Why Do People Cross-Fade?

The reasons people use more than one substance at a time varies. They may just be trying to amplify the effects, but many may be trying to escape from the reality of their lives. Individuals commonly begin suffering from addiction due to the inability to cope with stress or trauma in a healthy way. Using multiple substances at the same time will make it twice as hard to enter into addiction recovery.

People may also be suffering from a co-occurring mental disorder like anxiety or depression. Crossfading may be a way of coping if they do not have access to proper treatment or do not know where to begin with treating their mental health. People suffering from mental illness and are addicted to crossfading will need to seek treatment to heal from all struggles involved. What starts as a way for them to misguidedly improve mental health actually depletes mental health.

Adverse Effects of Crossfading on the Body

Unfortunately, crossfading can even be an unintentional process, such as when people mix prescribed medications without realizing they should not. Whether intentional or not, understanding the adverse effects simultaneous drug use has on the body may persuade individuals to think twice about it. 

By taking multiple dangerous drugs at the same time, individuals risk causing irreversible brain damage, liver failure, respiratory problems, and severely damaging their hearts. In even more severe circumstances, crossfading can cause people to enter into comas or even lead to death. Thinking of the risk of overdose when addicted to a specific substance, the chances of being addicted to multiple substances can increase that risk greatly.

It does not matter if someone is crossfading by using alcohol and marijuana or by simultaneously using any number of dangerous drugs like cocaine, heroin, opioids, or even medications. Even something as mindless as mixing sleeping pills with any one of these substances or alcohol can lead to future struggles or adverse effects. The damages caused by such incidents can be detrimental and potentially irreversible. 

If an individual is experiencing the adverse effects of crossfading, is seeking treatment for multiple substances, or is even in the early stages of struggling with substance abuse in general, seeking treatment immediately is vital. If untreated, crossfading can irrevocably damage one's life and the lives of their loved ones.

Finding Treatment Is Essential

Finding a treatment facility that can help you recover from your struggles with substance use and crossfading is essential. However, you must first acknowledge the problem for what it is before attending an addiction center.

Detox is the first step after realizing one has a problem. DetoxNearMe.com aims to take the challenge out of finding a detox center by putting thousands of detox listings at your fingertips. With us, we hope you’ll find your search for a drug detox center easily.

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