# coca leaves?



## nork123 (Oct 22, 2009)

I know that cocaine is a powerful stimulant and has massive effects of dopamine in the brain, but has detrimental effects in the long term so is a very bad option for people with anxiety disorders

I found out recently that the coca leaves are readily available as a legal stimulant in both capsule form and leaves that you chew. I wanted to know if anyone has tried these, or knows what effects it would have on dopamine levels? Obviously it wont be as powerful as cocaine, but it would still contain the same stimulant chemical. Would this be of any benefit for social anxiety?


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## Canadian Brotha (Jan 23, 2009)

There's a book by a Canadian writer called The Devils Picnic, in it he travels to Bolivia where chewing coca leaves & drinking coca tea is the norm, the equivalent of coffee for many westerners. He has a pretty detailed fact & experience tale relating to it but his general conclusion is that the effect of the stimulant in the plant in it's natural form is very limited or weak. It's been a while since I read that book so can't quite be more specific at the moment but that was the general bit on it. I'll skim over that chapter again & try to post some more detail. I'm not sure how it would effect social anxiety though. Regardless of what you take for anxiety, whether prescribed or self chosen the effects can be hard to generalize. Some people smoke pot & are much more relaxed, others get paranoid & worse. I've wanted to try kava kava myself but it's illegal here. I'm not sure about coca leaves but if they are legal here then I will give them a try at some point


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## Vini Vidi Vici (Jul 4, 2009)

nork123 said:


> I know that cocaine is a powerful stimulant and has massive effects of dopamine in the brain, but has detrimental effects in the long term so is a very bad option for people with anxiety disorders
> 
> I found out recently that the coca leaves are readily available as a legal stimulant in both capsule form and leaves that you chew. I wanted to know if anyone has tried these, or knows what effects it would have on dopamine levels? Obviously it wont be as powerful as cocaine, but it would still contain the same stimulant chemical. Would this be of any benefit for social anxiety?


you can never be sure whether or not the Leaves have been dealkanalized....they may or may not have cocaine in them, and if they do, it will be a very very small amount....enough to cause effects, but not very strong. Cocaine in general would help most people with SA (obviously in the short run) but would make it worse in the long run. Its just like super fast acting super strong Ritalin. its almost Exactly the same mechanism...raises levels of Dopamine, Norepinephrine, and Serotonin (to a lesser extent) in the synaptic cleft, causing increased confidence, euphoria, agressiveness, impulsivity, increased heart rate, increased sociability/desire to socialize......ect.

Cocaine, unfortunatly has a very short half life in the body/brain....so you would have to dose quite often (if you are taking capsules of coca leaf LOL)...id think like every 2-3 hours at least. And also, in the amount of leaf that one can fit into a capsule (approximately 500mg for a normal sized capsule) there would be approximately 3-5mg of cocaine. That could have an effect....but youd have to dose like every 1 hour or so.. ....and there is no guarantee that the body absorbs cocaine from coca leaves.....they are always chewed (with sodium hydroxide/lyme) or extracted.

consider--- what is the probability that these capsules/supplements actually have Cocaine in them? what happens if you are caught with them, or you have to take a drug test? what if your shipment is detained at customs? ......dude im not anti-drug or anything, i love drugs. I just dont think its a good idea, most likely, nothing good will come of this idea...... get some Ritalin or Adderall or Dexedrine instead. cocaine sucks. BTW... i was gonna order some Coca tea a couple months ago...that looks more promising, but it still has the same potential problems.


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## nork123 (Oct 22, 2009)

i've heard chewing the leaves is the best method because it absorbes in the mouth as well as the stomach, either way because of how quick the duration is it would be best used as an occasional pick me up rather than for dealing with social anxiety, unless you wouldn't mind looking like a koala bear chewing leaves all day long


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## RedMan (Oct 30, 2009)

I use coca leaves on occasion. They are fairly mild. I either grind them and make tea with them or use them like dip (stronger effect - no need to swallow the spit, it absorbs through the mouth). It helps alot to mix it with Baking soda to release the alkaloids and increase the effect.

Last for about 1 hr. Similar to caffeine but without the jittery feeling caffeine causes. more of a happy, energetic feeling. 

Unless you can sip tea during the social situation it isn't very useful due to its short duration - and a wad of chew doesnt fit it in most crowds - lol

Coca and cocaine are very different. There are other alkaloids in Coca leaves and the concentration of cocaine is minimal. 

i would consider it harmless and worth a try. It actually tastes very good as a tea (baking soda will ruin the taste tho)

If you have any questions let me know. I've played around with it a bit recreationally but dont see much use for SAD.

I can't comment on the capsules.


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## VanDamMan (Nov 2, 2009)

Like CB said. Its like coffee. Nothing more. 

Actual cocaine is a different story.


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## crayzyMed (Nov 2, 2006)

Yeah it wont harm you at all, it cannot be compared to cocaine.


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## compulsive dreamer (Dec 9, 2009)

coca leaves are consumed legally in some South America countries, it's as legal as tobacco .... I never tried them so I don't know how does it make you feel, but i heard its like energizing or something like that :O


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## lookingforpeace (Jan 20, 2009)

I recently bought a fat sack of coca leaves online. As has been stated, it is a mild stimulant, more like coffee without the jittery feelings. It does seem to boost my mood a bit. I have read that chewing coca acts on your brain completely differently than sniffing coke. Cocaine mainly acts on dopamine, whereas the alkaloids absorbed from coca when chewed primarily increase norepinephrine and serotonin. It tastes like green tea, but when you put baking soda in with it, it tastes like straight ***.


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## UltraShy (Nov 8, 2003)

I doubt you're ever going to find legal coca leaves in the US that actually contain anything close to cocaine.

I remember watching a documentary some years back that looked at illegal drugs and how they got that way. Europeans first learned of coca when Spanish explorers were high in the mountains of South America. They were exhausted in the thin air at that altitude, but saw it didn't bother the natives who chewed on coca leaves as a stimulant.

It became vastly more stimulating when scientists managed to purify coca leaves into cocaine.


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