Shatter is a new illegal drug hitting the streets at speed in the United States.
What is shatter? It’s the street name of one of the latest, more potent forms of cannabis or marijuana concentrate, better known as Butane Hash Oil or BHO.
It’s called BHO because it utilizes liquid gas called butane to remove terpenes and cannabinoids from marijuana plant matter. That produces an incredibly potent concentrate or hash oil that gives you a much greater effect when you want to get stoned.
As with most new drugs on the scene, shatter is rapidly gaining popularity, particularly in areas where marijuana has been legalized. Young people, drawn to the color, mood-altering influence, and ritual of breaking the brittle substance before smoking, have indeed been intrigued by it.
Here is a straightforward overview of its dangers and side effects, including an in-depth look at shatter and how dangerous it is.
Shatter Definition: What Is Shatter?
Some people call shatter the “crack of marijuana.” While this analogy may or may not be precise, people have recently expressed genuine concerns about its existence on the streets and in schools.
Shatter marijuana is also known as BHO. It is a hash oil concentrate produced by the use of butane solvent to derive high THC levels from the marijuana plant.
What Does Shatter Look Like?
Shatter refers directly to a finished product that looks like a slab of toffee or maple syrup chip. Some types are comparable to wax or honey. That is why the names budder or honey oil are used on the streets.
Cannabis concentrates are usually labeled depending on their color and texture. Shatter is an orangy color and derives its name from a transparent glass-like surface that “shatters” as it’s split to be used.
How Is Shatter Made?
Contrary to common opinion, shatter’s transparency does not imply its purity but is instead the outcome of how it is made.
The process of producing shatter is relatively simple. It entails soaking marijuana buds and trimming them with liquid butane to separate the trichomes from the plant. The resultant mixture is then extracted and heated to eliminate as much butane as possible.
The removed mixture is then left to rest and stabilize to form a thin layer of extract. The finished product resembles a honeycomb-like glass sheet.
How Do You Use Shatter?
The substance is used by taking a small quantity of shatter, putting it on a hot surface, and then inhaling the smoke. Shatter drug merchandise is similar to crack pipes. But, you can also use vaporizer pens or add them to marijuana food products.
What Is The Difference Between Shatter and Wax?
There is no major difference except for appearance. However, there are some subtle differences:
- Shatter is more complicated to produce
- Shatter lasts longer and is more stable
- Wax is normally easier to manage, weigh, and use due to its consistency
Like shatter, wax is a BHO concentrate that has the texture of coconut oil and looks like ear wax. Like shatter, wax begins as an amber liquid resulting from butane removal.
How Does Shatter Affect You?
There is a suggestion that it has the same psychoactive qualities in marijuana in the form of THC.
Shatter is more powerful than marijuana in its conventional form. It contains more than 60 percent THC compared to about 20 percent THC in marijuana. Shatter drug users get a high quicker, and the effects of shatter are more intense and intoxicating.
Is Shatter Dangerous?
A single ingestion of shatter provides THC and other cannabinoids equal to up to 10 medicinal cannabis inhalations, depending on the potency. The risk lies in the fact that doing shatter slams your brain with that intense high in one fluid motion.
When shatter is bought illegally, it comes from makeshift laboratories where it may not be manufactured correctly. In the process of manufacturing shatter, butane gas is removed by heating the plant mixture. However, if it is not heated for it is possible that some of the butane can remain.
That can be particularly harmful to people who smoke or “dab” shatter. While overdose of marijuana is rare, adverse side effects such as hysteria, delusions, anxiety, and hallucinations can occur.
What Are the Side Effects of Shatter?
The precise side effects of ingesting shatter are still unclear. Shatter may have similar side effects to cannabis flowers but will be more severe due to higher amounts of cannabinoids and terpenes.
Shatter has the following side effects:
- Heartbeat and blood pressure increase
- Potential infections, including sinus infections, bronchitis, and asthma
- Airway pain that causes narrowing and spasms
- Sore throat
- Immune system weakening
- Bloodshot eyes
Shatter can also affect the mood of a person, causing them to feel overly anxious or panicky. Shatter may affect the brain, making it harder to focus, weaken the capacity to recall information, and reduce coordination.
Though overdose is not normally lethal, the potency of shatter can cause users to faint or enter transient drug-induced psychosis. It can also cause extreme anxiety.
Withdrawal Symptoms From Shatter
A few individuals can become emotionally dependent on shatter. They may believe they’re not in a position to control the need to use the drug.
Physical dependency on shatter may lead to addiction. That means that you will require higher and more intense levels of shatter to experience the same effects.
Possible withdrawal symptoms include:
- Feeling frightened, nervous, and anxious
- Feeling excited, stressed, uncertain, or irritable
- Difficulty with falling asleep and staying asleep
Heavy shatter use can cause the brain to decrease its production of anandamide. That may create problems within the brain signaling network that uses these receptors in the endocannabinoid system. That system plays a vital part in the nervous system.
Interfering with the nervous system can have severe side effects. This includes modifying parts of brain circuits that enable people to remember, create new memories, and shift their attention.
Treatment of Shatter Dependence
People with severe withdrawal symptoms can benefit from an inpatient treatment program. Inpatient or residential care may include the counseling resources required when someone is going through a shatter withdrawal.
There are presently no approved drugs to help treat marijuana dependency. However, a mixture of treatments such as detoxification and behavioral therapy can help people break their shatter dependency.
Shatter Marijuana: Shatter The Habit!
Several states in the US have legalized marijuana for medical purposes and a few for recreation. Because it’s made of marijuana, shatter use is on the rise amid debates about safety and labeling.
So, what is shatter? Shatter is a serious matter and should not be taken lightly.
If you, a family member, or a friend uses shatter, more severe problems may be at stake. When it comes to potential drug use, it is always good to get more knowledge and, if necessary, get help.
Are you prepared to take a step towards getting your life back and safely detox from drugs? Contact us today!
