This plant grows in South America. The powder can be sniffed or snorted through a straw or rolled up banknote and absorbed through the nasal membranes. Cocaine is sometimes mixed and reacted with other chemicals to form crack, a smokable form of the same drug. Burning cocaine powder destroys the drug. When the smoke is inhaled it passes into the bloodstream through the lungs and quickly reaches the brain.
Cocaine is a short-acting powerful stimulant.
The effects of cocaine powder are similar to amphetamines - talkativeness, confidence, reduced appetite, euphoria and increased energy. These effects last for about thirty minutes. Once the drug starts to wear off, it's common to experience a compulsion to take more coke to avoid coming down. Someone using crack will experience peak effects after several minutes and find themselves coming down after ten to fifteen minutes. What goes up must come down, and the higher you go, the further there is to fall.