Module 18 Notes - Psychoactive Drugs - Appsych PDF

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Psychoactive Drugs Psychoactive Drugs Psychoactive Drugs Psychoactive Drugs...

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Module 18: Psychoactive Drugs To Learn: ✵ Substance use disorders ✵ Roles that tolerance and addiction play in substance use disorders

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How addiction concept has changed Depressants and their effects Stimulants and their effects Hallucinogens and their effects

Tolerance and Addiction in Substance Use Disorders ♠ ♠ ♠ ♠

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Psychoactive drugs: chemicals change perceptions and moods Most people moderately use drugs without disrupting lives ♦ ex) Advil Substance use disorder: continued substance craving and use despite significant life disruption and/or physical risk ♦ Sometimes when drug use crosses over Tolerance: when continue use of some drugs, users experience brain chemistry change while brain tries to adapt offset of drug experience ♦ Users require larger and larger doses to get same effect ♣ Increases risk of addiction and substance use disorder Addiction: caused by increasing doses of psychoactive drugs ♦ Users crave drug and struggle to withdraw ♦ Want drug more than like drug ♦ Therapy can help ♦ Not all people require extra treatment to quit drugs (smoking) Drug’s effect depends on its biological effects and users expectations

Neurotransmitters and Drugs ♠

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Almost all addictive drugs increases activity in dopamine receptors in brian in several different ways ♦ Increase release of dopamine (excite neurons) ♦ Block reuptake (more dopamine floating in synapse) ♦ Decrease neurons activity and inhibit its release (block the blockers) Dopamine’s main effects work on small brain area — nucleus accumbens ♦ Nucleus accumbens: located in basal ganglia; “reward/pleasure center of the brain” ♣ Central for attention and habit formation ♣ Also affects on dopamine by activities like gambling, video game playing, cell phone use ♣ Addiction is not drug — how the body responds to a given stimulus

Depressants ♠

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Depressants: drugs that calm neural activity and slow body functions ♦ Alcohol: a depressant; inhibits neurons ♣ Increases both helpful and harmful tendencies (tipping more, aggression) ♣ Feel sober and acted upon intoxicated Alcohol use Disorder (also alcoholism) ♦ Alcohol use marked by tolerance, withdrawal, and a drive to continue problematic use ♦ Shrink brain ♦ Slows SNS (sympathetic nervous system) activity → slow reactions, slurred speech, deteriorated performance ♦ Drunk people unaware of drunk level ♦ Life threatening — heavy drinking following period of earlier moderate drinking ♣ Overdose ♣ Depress vomiting response ♦ Impair memory formation → neuron death and impairment of synaptic formations ♦ Impair REM sleep ♦ Expectancy effects

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Drinking alone => increased chance of substance use disorder Lies partly in the mind (placebo effect)

Barbiturates ♦ Tranquilizers ♣ Nembutal, seconal, Amytal ♦ Sometimes prescribed to help sleep or reduce anxiety ♦ Large doses → impair memory and judgement ♦ Combined with alcohol → lethal net depressive effect Opiates ♦ Made of opium and its derivatives, found in poppy plant ♦ ex) Heroin (natural), Narcotics, Codeine, Morphine (natural), Methadone, Oxycontin, Vicodin, Fentanyl, Hydrocodone ♦ Flowed with artificial opiates → brain stops producing endorphins + natural opiates, cause withdrawal symptoms ♦ Withdrawing — people take too much relieve withdrawal symptoms and OD

Stimulants ♠ Stimulants: drugs; excite neural activity and speed up body functions ♦ Pupil dilation ♦ Blood sugar levels rise (drop in appetite ♦ Heart and breathing rate increases ♦ Energy and self confidence rise ♠ Nicotine: highly addictive stimulant ♦ Teen-grave smokers have 50% chance dying from habit ♦ Smokers - 10 years less life expectancy than nonSmokers ♣ Also develop tolerance → quitting causes withdrawal symptoms ♦ Affects epinephrine and norepinephrine ♣ Diminish appetite ♣ Boost alertness ♣ Mental efficiency ♣ Dopamine & Endorphins calm anxiety and reduce sensitivity to pain temporarily ♠ Cocaine: powerful and addictive stimulant ♦ From coca plant ♦ Stimulates extra dopamin, serotonin, norepinephrine ♣ Deplete brain’s natural supply ♣ Crash occur within hour → cravings for more of drug ♦ Aggression, emotional disturbances, paranoia (mistrust of others), convulsions, heart attack, respiratory failure ♦ Expectancy effects ♦ Most addictive is crack (also being smoked = potent) ♠ Methamphetamine: drug stimulates neural activities and body functions ♦ Type of amphetamine, but with greater effects ♣ ex) Adderall ♦ Increased energy and mood changes ♦ Trigger release dopamine ♣ Stimulates brain cells enhance energy and mood → 8 hour high energy + euphoria (happiness) ♦ Aftereffects: ♣ Irritability, hypertension, insomnia, seizures, social isolation, depression, violent outbursts ♦ Reduce baseline dopamine levels → user continued depressed functioning ♠ Ecstasy (MDMA) / Molly: stimulant and mild hallucinogen ♦ Derived from amphetamine ♦ Triggers dopamine release ♣ Major effect of serotonin → block reuptake ♦ 3-4 hour high energy, emotional elevation, feelings of connectedness

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Dehydrating effect ♣ Overheating, increased blood pressure, death Long term use: ♣ Deplete serotonin neurons, decrease output, lead to permanent depressed mood Suppressed immune system, impair memory, slows though, disrupts sleep

Hallucinogens ♠

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Hallucinogens: drugs that distort perceptions, evoke sensory images in absence of sensory input ♦ Psychedelics ♣ ex) LSD, MDMA, marijuana ♦ Hallucinations occur with simple geometric forms to start — then more meaningful images — then perhaps emotional past experiences ♣ At peaks, people fell separated from body, experience dreamlike scenes, sense of self dissolved ♣ Similar to near-death experience → enhance spirituality and promote feelings of personal growth LSD: created by chemist Albert Hoffman, who ingested it and hallucinating wonderful colors, shapes … ♦ LSD / acid trips vary from euphoria to detachment to panic ♦ Mood and expectations can color experience Marijuana: ♦ THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) produces mix of effects ♣ Amplifies sensitivity to sensory stimuli ♣ Impairs motor coordination ♣ Relaxes and disinhibits like alcohol ♣ Lasts longer in body ♦ Alleviates chronic pain and chemotherapy-related nausea ♦ Not associated with tobacco-related cancers (i.e. lung cancer) ♦ Predictive of increased risk of traffic accidents ♦ Chronic bronchitis, psychosis, social anxiety disorder, suicidal thoughts ♦ Contributes to impaired attention, learning, memory, academic underachievement

Test Questions 1) Stimulant C) Ecstasy causes high energy, emotional elation, dehydration, and damage to serotonin-producing neurons. 2) D.) Jacob had to increase the dosage of his pain medication when the old dosage no longer effectively controlled the pain from his chronic back condition. (example of drug tolerance)...