Exact Answer: 24-48 hours
PCP is also known as a hog, embalming fluid, rocket fuel, Angel dust, boat, or love boat is a hallucinogen that might cause addiction. Its effect lasts for long and can be easily detected in your bloodstream and urine.
The drug can be easily detected for up to three months, depending on the test carried out. In this article, we shall discuss how long does PCP stay in your system and why.
How long does PCP stay in your system?
| PCP Test | Time |
| Saliva Test | 24-48 hours |
| Urine Test | 30 days |
| Hair Test | 90 days |
There are various variables that affect how long PCP remains in your system. When habitually used, PCP can be detected via urinalysis for up to 30 days after the last use. If you are not a PCP addict, the drug can be detected in your urine for up to five days after the previous use.
When the saliva test is conducted, PCP can be detected within 24 to 48 hours after the last use. For hair analysis, the drug can be detected for up to 90 days after consumption. Whereas for a blood test, PCP can be detected within one to four hours; this is because, during this time, the plasma levels are high.
Why does PCP stay for long in the system?
Each individual metabolizes PCP at a different rate. Furthermore, the dosage and frequency of the drug affect the duration in which it will remain your system. If you use PCP often, the medication will build up in your body fat tissue.
The time in which your body will take to metabolize the drug will be extended each time you consume some more. The only way you can clear your body from PCP is to stop using the drug.
What are the harmful side effects of PCP?
When used at a reasonable dosage, PCP is said to increase heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate, and body temperature.
However, when overdosed, PCP tends to have a reversed effect whereby your blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing rate is reduced dangerously. Furthermore, PCP overdose is associated with the following;
- Muscle rigidity
- Seizures
- Kidney failure
- Heart arrhythmias
- Possibly death
Since PCP numbs and features pain-killing properties, some users are seriously injured without noticing they hurt when using the drug. Using PCP for long is associated with memory problems, stuttering, or slurred speech, and cognitive difficulties.
Effects of withdrawing from PCP
Stopping the use of PCP is associated with severe withdrawal symptoms. Some of these withdrawal symptoms include;
- Confusion
- Feeling unease or fear
- Agitation
- Anxiety
- Weight loss
- Hallucinations
- Confusion
- Increased body temperature
- Twitching
- Seizures
Treatment
When you require a more significant amount of PCP to be high as you were once, it could result in addiction. You will, therefore, need a residential treatment program to get rid of PCP addiction.
Here our withdrawal symptoms will be monitored, and you will receive medications that will help in reducing withdrawal effects.
Conclusion
You should note that, unlike alcohol and other highly addictive drugs, PCP does not have medication for treating its addiction by reducing the craving for the drug. Currently, behavior therapy is the only effective PCP addiction treatment available.