HOUSTON -- When you think of a crystal methamphetamine addict, the image that comes to mind may be far removed from reality. The typical addict is probably someone you know, or even worse, your own child.

KPRC Local 2 interviewed a young woman who is struggling to beat the drug and gives advice on how to keep it away from your family.

"I come from Sugar Land. I used to live in Sugar Creek. I went to Dulles High School," Liz said.

She does not want to reveal her last name. Liz is a crystal meth addict.

"It is literally the best feeling in the world to be high," she said.

For more than a year, she snorted and smoked the drug.

"I denied it. I was not an addict, no way, dude. I can quit any time. Did I? No," she said.

Until now.

"Tomorrow, tomorrow will be 20 days," Liz said.

Clean less than one month, she agreed to talk to KPRC in hopes of breaking the stereotype of those who use meth.

"Good people, people who were raised with good morals, good values, good principals, to be good people. But they just do this stuff and it makes you trash," she said.

She also wants to warn parents of its powerful hold on Houston teenagers.

"It's just so easy to get sucked into, and it happens overnight, literally," Liz said.

KPRC asked Liz to simulate using the drug in hopes of alerting parents to the warning signs that their child could be using meth.

"The one thing to look for is erratic behavior," she said.

Erratic behavior includes constantly misplacing things, lying and skipping school.

Parents should also be concerned if a teenager isolates himself or herself, or even becomes paranoid.

Eating and sleeping patterns should also be monitored.

"They come home and they literally stuff their face, and then go to sleep for five hours, wake up, stuff their face, sleep for 12, stuff their face and sleep for 18 hours," Liz said.

Parents should check a child's room for telltale clues, such as straws used to snort the drug or discarded straw wrappers.

"(Look for) cards that you can crush up your lines with, mirrors obviously (used) to crush it up with," Liz said.

Be on the lookout for lighters, specifically butane torch lighters that can be refilled, as well as gum wrappers because the drug makes the user clench his or her jaw.

"Having something to chew on helps. Look for chewed-on straws as well," Liz said.

Liz said parents should also look for chewed-up pen caps and hollowed-out pens.

"Take out the inside and you have a nice little straw to stick up your nose," she said.

The body can also be a clue, such as burns on a thumb from constantly using a lighter, or even a burn on nostrils.

"If your child has a burn on their nostril, they're doing dope, bottom line," she said.

"Dope," "speed," "twack" and "tweak" are all names kids use for the same substance -- crystal meth.

"It is not OK to do this stuff. It will kill you if you don't kill yourself first," Liz said.

It was that fear that finally made Liz get clean and get help.

"It's just bad. It's really bad," she said.

Teens Use Meth For Weight Loss

Crystal meth is the most addictive drug on the planet. While there is no stereotypical addict, there is a growing group that is using the drug -- Houston teenage girls.

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Video: Dominique Sits In On Support Group For Recovering Meth Addicts

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KPRC Local 2 interviewed a group of local teens to find out more about the drug and their addiction.

"You can smoke it. You can snort it. You can hot-roll it," Liz said.

Liz joins other recovering drug addicts twice a week at support group meetings. They let KPRC's Dominique Sachse sit in on one of the sessions.

"What would make a young woman start dabbling with crystal meth?" Dominique asked.

"Weight loss. That's why I did it," Liz said. "That's the only reason I did it."

"How much weight did you lose?" Dominique said.

"I lost about 50 pounds," Liz said.

"There's a stereotype that we're supposed to be these Barbies. I started using crystal meth at 115 pounds to lose weight. I didn't need to lose weight," an addict known only as Lauren said.

Neither did Stephanie, another member of the group. She said she started on meth to shed a few pounds.

"I just remember thinking, 'This is the miracle weight loss drug' because after a couple days you can already see, you've lost a pound or two," Lauren said.

It doesn't help that the drug is so easy to get.

"How accessible is all this? The way you guys talk about it at the drop of a hat, you can get these things -- from where? Anybody? Anybody at school?" Dominique asked.

"I can pick people out who do it in the crowd. You can just tell, and people need to hear this because there are parents at sitting at home saying, 'Well I need to know what this behavior is like so describe somebody on crystal meth.' (They are) secretive. They talk a lot, but it's all a façade. That's what I did," Liz said.

"What else would they see behaviorally in you?" Dominique said.

"Their emotions are just very erratic -- a lot of ups and down, you know, one minute they're talking a lot. An hour or two later, they're not talking at all," Lauren said.

So, what should parents do if they discover warning signs?

All of the recovering addicts interviewed by KPRC said parents should immediately drug test their child.

In fact, they suggested that all parents do random drug testing even if they don't suspect their teenager is using.

The reason -- once someone starts using crystal meth, it's almost impossible to stop.

All of the teenagers said they started using alcohol first and then marijuana at about 13 or 14 years old before they tried meth.

The recovering addicts said they are now clean with the support of each other and Houston Recovery Network Services.

Houston-Area Addiction Specialists:

Lisa C. Routh, M.D.
Board Certified Neurology/Psychiatry
Specialist in Addiction
(713) 796-0022
www.brainwavesnic.com
Richard A. Cain
Licensed Chemical and Dependency Counselor
Recovery Network Services, Inc.
(281) 391-9650
www.rnstreatment.com
Debbie Knauss, R.N.
(281) 395-9911 (Answered 24 hours/day)
Family Support Groups and Referrals