Cocaine metabolizes differently depending on how the drug is ingested. When cocaine is snorted, it will instantly enter the bloodstream, creating a more instantaneous high from the drug. If cocaine is taken orally, it will first go to the stomach and then be transferred into the bloodstream, which usually takes about thirty minutes to reach the bloodstream from the stomach. If cocaine is smoked, it delivers cocaine to the lungs first.
Once cocaine is in the bloodstream, it will be taken to the brain where the high from the drug will be created by affecting dopamine and other neurotransmitters. After fifteen or thirty minutes, it will be processed through the liver and finally excreted in the urine.