What are short-term effects of DXM abuse?
The effects of DXM abuse vary with the amount taken. Common effects can include confusion, dizziness, double or blurred vision, slurred speech, impaired physical coordination, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, rapid heart beat, drowsiness, numbness of fingers and toes, and disorientation. DXM abusers describe different “plateaus” ranging from mild distortions of color and sound to visual hallucinations and “out-of-body,” feelings of detachment from the environment and self, sensations, and loss of motor control. Vomiting: Ingesting medications containing DXM at recreational doses can lead to vomiting, often projectile vomiting or vomiting blood, and sometimes both at the same time. Cardiac Arrest: DXM abusers are at risk for abnormally high cardiovascular activity. Experimenting with dangerously high doses of DXM can even trigger cardiac arrest. Muscle Spasms: DXM abuse can impair the brain’s ability to tell the body how to move normally and extreme spasms can occur. Emergency room
