What is the drug called love boat

Pronunciation /ˈlʌv bəʊt/

1 figurative A romantic relationship imagined as a boat or ship, especially one on a (difficult or dangerous) journey.
2A boat or ship which is (intended or designed to be) the scene of a romantic encounter.
In later use influenced by the title of the U.S. television programme The Love Boat (1977–86).
3US slang The drug phencyclidine (commonly known as PCP), especially as mixed with marijuana and smoked.

Late 19th century (in an earlier sense). From love + boat.

Hallucinogens are a class of drugs that cause hallucinations—profound distortions in a person’s perceptions of reality. Hallucinogens can be found in some plants and mushrooms (or their extracts) or can be man-made, and they are commonly divided into two broad categories: classic hallucinogens (such as LSD) and dissociative drugs (such as PCP). When under the influence of either type of drug, people often report rapid, intense emotional swings and seeing images, hearing sounds, and feeling sensations that seem real but are not.While the exact mechanisms by which hallucinogens and dissociative drugs cause their effects are not yet clearly understood, research suggests that they work at least partially by temporarily disrupting communication between neurotransmitter systems throughout the brain and spinal cord that regulate mood, sensory perception, sleep, hunger, body temperature, sexual behavior, and muscle control.

PCP (Phencyclidine)—also known as ozone, rocket fuel, love boat, hog, embalming fluid, or superweed—was originally developed in the 1950s as a general anesthetic for surgery. While it can be found in a variety of forms, including tablets or capsules, it is usually sold as a liquid or powder. PCP can be snorted, smoked, injected, or swallowed. It is sometimes smoked after being sprinkled on marijuana, tobacco, or parsley.

PCP is a white crystalline powder that is readily soluble in water or alcohol. It has a distinctive bitter chemical taste. PCP can be mixed easily with dyes and is often sold on the illicit drug market in a variety of tablet, capsule, and colored powder forms that are normally snorted, smoked, or orally ingested. For smoking, PCP is often applied to a leafy material such as mint, parsley, oregano, or marijuana. Depending upon how much and by what route PCP is taken, its effects can last approximately 4–6 hours.

At low-to-moderate doses, physiological effects of PCP include a slight increase in breathing rate and a pronounced rise in blood pressure and pulse rate. Breathing becomes shallow; flushing and profuse sweating, generalized numbness of the extremities, and loss of muscular coordination may occur.

At high doses, blood pressure, pulse rate, and respiration drop. This may be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, blurred vision, flicking up and down of the eyes, drooling, loss of balance, and dizziness. PCP abusers are often brought to emergency rooms because of overdose or because of the drug’s severe untoward psychological effects. While intoxicated, PCP abusers may become violent or suicidal and are therefore dangerous to themselves and others. High doses of PCP can also cause seizures, coma, and death (though death more often results from accidental injury or suicide during PCP intoxication). Because PCP can also have sedative effects, interactions with other central nervous system depressants, such as alcohol and benzodiazepines, can also lead to coma.

The use of PCP as an approved anesthetic in humans was discontinued in 1965 because patients often became agitated, delusional, and irrational while recovering from its anesthetic effects. PCP is a “dissociative drug,” meaning that it distorts perceptions of sight and sound and produces feelings of detachment (dissociation) from the environment and self. First introduced as a street drug in the 1960s, PCP quickly gained a reputation as a drug that could cause bad reactions and was not worth the risk. However, some abusers continue to use PCP due to the feelings of strength, power, and invulnerability as well as a numbing effect on the mind that PCP can induce. Among the adverse psychological effects reported are—

Symptoms that mimic schizophrenia, such as delusions, hallucinations, paranoia, disordered thinking, and a sensation of distance from one’s environment.

Mood disturbances: Approximately 50 percent of individuals brought to emergency rooms because of PCP-induced problems—related to use within the past 48 hours—report significant elevations in anxiety symptoms.

People who have abused PCP for long periods of time have reported memory loss, difficulties with speech and thinking, depression, and weight loss. These symptoms can persist up to one year after stopping PCP abuse.

Addiction: PCP is addictive—its repeated abuse can lead to craving and compulsive PCP-seeking behavior, despite severe adverse consequences.

A car passenger accused of shooting his friend in the face after smoking “Love Boat” is facing a charge of murder, according to media reports.

Love Boat is a street name for cigarettes dipped in embalming fluid or formaldehyde, according to a report by the Florida Times-Union newspaper.

Three friends who previously had smoked Love Boat were heading to North Carolina from Orlando early Sunday when one of the men, Tyrell Alexander Brown, 32, of Orlando, woke up from a nap in the front passenger seat, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said.

He is accused of shooting the driver, Steven Shawn Grady, 25, of Castle Hayne, N.C., for no apparent reason, the newspaper reported.

“Without warning, he pulled out a handgun and shot the victim in the head,” said Lt. Craig Waldrup. “There was no conversation. The suspect was sound asleep and he just woke up.”

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An arrest report alleged that Brown, Grady and a 39-year-old man who was sitting in the back seat of the Cadillac XTS had all smoked “Love Boat.” The back-seat passenger, according to the report, said the alleged shooter had exhibited “several extreme reactions” to Love Boat in the past.

A Jacksonville Sheriff's Office spokesperson said Brown smoked a cigarette dipped in formaldehyde before the shooting, Action News Jax reported.

A Drug Enforcement Administration report of drug slang terms also lists “Love Boat” as slang for PCP.

Brown was taken to UF Health Jacksonville for his safety, officers said.

According to jacksonville.com, the back-seat passenger told police he and Grady were talking as Grady drove north on I-95 through downtown Jacksonville. Brown woke up, shot Grady, then turned the gun on himself but didn’t pull the trigger, according to the arrest report.

The Cadillac then spun out of control and went into a ditch.

Grady remained behind bars. He faces a charge of murder, First Coast ABC News reported.

Phillipe McIver

WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) - "Love Boat" is a drug known to have caused severe brain damage and even death in its users. Wilmington Police Officers have said they see very few reports of Love Boat possession a year but past and recent Wilmington events have proven that the drug could be a bigger problem than officials think.

"It's just that chemical imbalance in the head that pretty much makes you go crazy," said WPD officer R. J. Evans.

The drug is marijuana dipped in formaldehyde, a toxic chemical, and set out to dry. It can also be used in powdered form, sprinkled on marijuana, tobacco, or parsley, and then smoked.

[What is Love Boat? (PDF)]

According to John Dail, a drug prevention specialist, the onset of effects of the drug is rapid. He says people who use Love Boat can fall into a coma or even die.

"I knew of a girl that used Love Boat once, a 14-year-old, and she ended up in a psychiatric ward for about a month after that," explained Dail with Coastal Horizons. "She still has to be on meds to this day and that's been over ten years ago. It changes a person's brain chemistry."

Dail has never worked a case where Love Boat has killed, but the Wilmington Police Department has.

WECT gathered information on an open investigation at the WPD involving the man who used the drug and beat in the windows of an elderly woman's car this past March. Officers responded to a 911 call--the caller described the man, saying he was running around Burnett Boulevard completely naked.

"We subsequently tased him," said Evans.

When officers got to the scene the man would not cooperate with verbal commands. After being tased several times, he charged back at officers.

"The tasing pretty much had no effect on him at all," said Evans.

In this case, police say he showed the drug's classic signs.

The WPD also mentioned that the drug was most likely a major factor behind a high profile homicide that happened on Princess Place Drive four years ago. Phillipe McIver was shot and killed by a police officer after he tried grabbing the officer's gun.

According to the SBI's initial findings, two officers responded to the area after several 911 callers reported a man was in the middle of the street with little or no clothes on. An autopsy report confirmed McIver had a presence of PCP and marijuana in his system at the time of the incident.

Four years later, people living in the inner-city neighborhood surrounding North Fifth Avenue are convinced the drug was involved in a recent homicide that happened this year.

TJ Harris, 16, was left for dead on a porch near North Fifth Avenue. Police say they have not come across the use of Love Boat in their investigation of Harris' death, but a person claiming to have been close with the teen is convinced the drug was present the night he was killed.

If you suspect a family member of friend is using the Love Boat, contact Coastal Horizons Center treatment program for a drug assessment and drug testing at one of their three offices.

Coastal Horizons Center New Hanover Office 615 Shipyard Blvd. Wilmington, NC 2812 (910) 343-0145

Toll Free: 800-672-2903