Drug Dependence

Question 1

Psychoactive Drugs

Answer 1

• Drugs that can alter our consciousness, and perceptions.
• They can alter our perception, increase our mood, calm us down, make us feel more alert, etc.

Question 2

Psychoactive Drugs: Depressants

Answer 2

• Are drugs that lower your body’s basic functions and neural activity, lower CNS activity:

Example:

• Decrease Heart Rate
• Decreased Blood Pressure
• Decreased Processing/Reaction time (makes us act/think slowly)

Three categories:

1. Alcohol
2. Barbiturates
3. Benzodiazepines

Question 3

Depressant: Alcohol

Answer 3

• Decreased inhibitions, so decreasing cognitive control.
• Lack of coordination, impeeds speech
• Think more slowly, disrupt REM sleep

Question 4

Depressant: Barbiturates

Answer 4

• Used to induce sleep or reduce anxiety (calm them down)
• Depress your CNS.
• Examples: Anesthesia or anticonvulsant (drugs that reduce seizures)

Question 5

Depressant: Benzodiazepines

Answer 5

• Are the most commonly prescribed suppressant.
• Treats Insomnia, Anxiety or Seizures
• Enhance your brain’s response to GABA. They open up GABA-activated chloride (Cl-) channels in your neurons, and make neurons more (-) charged.

Question 6

Stimulants

Answer 6

• Are drugs that excite your CNS, increase HR/BP, alertness, more awake, more energetic.

Examples:

• Caffeine: inhibits enzyme that breaksdown cAMP
• Adderal: blocks dopamine re-uptake and stimulate presynaptic dopamine release.
• Methamphetamine
• MDMA
• Cocaine: blocks dopamine re-uptake.
• Nicotine: acts on acetylcholine.
• THC: increases dopamine and GABA activity.

Question 7

Hallucinogens

Answer 7

• Distorted perceptions/hallucinations - seeing or hearing things different from how things actually are.

Question 8

Hallucinogens: LSD

Answer 8

• Modifies serotonin neurotransmission, especially the 5-HT2 receptor family.

Question 9

Opiates

Answer 9

• Decrease CNS function
• Decrease HR/BP
• Cause relaxation
• Induce sleep

It is NOT a depressant.

Question 10

Hallucinogen: Cannabis

Answer 10

• A mix of all.
• Can be a hallucinogen and also be a depressant or a stimulant

Question 11

Hallucinogen: MDMA

Answer 11

• Can be a stimulant or hallucinogen.

Question 12

Routes of Drug Entry: Oral

Answer 12

• Is ingesting something, one of slowest routes because goes through GI tract – half hour.
• Example: Pill, Alcohol.

Question 13

Routes of Drug Entry: Inhalation

Answer 13

• Is breathing or snorting or smoking, because once you inhale goes straight to brain.
• Example: Tobacco or Cocaine

Question 14

Routes of Drug Entry: Injection

Answer 14

• Most direct, intravenous means goes right to vein.
• Takes effects within seconds.

Question 15

Routes of Drug Entry: Transdermal

Answer 15

• Drug is absorbed through skin
• Example: Nicotine patch.
• Drug in patch has to be pretty potent, released into bloodstream over several hours.

Question 16

Routes of Drug Entry: Intramuscular

Answer 16

• Needle stuck into muscle. Can deliver drugs to your system slowly or quickly.
• Example: Epinephrine Pen – given to someone experiencing an allergic reaction which starts closing airways. EpiPen delivers epinephrine quickly and allows airways to open. Usually on thigh because it has the most access points to blood vessels

Question 17

Reward Pathway in the Brain

Answer 17

• Brain releases neurotransmitter called dopamine.
• Produced in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), in the midbrain.
• VTA sends dopamine to the amygdala (controls emotions), to the nucleus accumbens (NAcc , controls motor functions), to the prefrontal cortex (focus attention and planning), and the hippocampus (part of the temporal lobe, involved in memory formation).
• NAcc, amygdala and hippocampus are part of the mesolimbic pathway.

Question 18

Tolerance

Answer 18

• Means you get used to a drug so you need more of it to achieve the same effect.
• Example: Just took cocaine, lots of dopamine in synapse. Post-synaptic neuron has receptors for dopamine. Long-term stimulation can lead to brain shutting down some receptor because of high levels of dopamine; therefore same amount of drugs won’t cause same high.

Question 19

Withdrawal

Answer 19

• If you go through period of not having the drug, you experience withdrawal symptoms.

Question 20

Addiction

Answer 20

• Once you’ve built up tolerance, need drug to feel “normal” again, not euphoric.
• This is a sign you are addicted.

Question 21

Drugs: Intoxification

Answer 21

• When drug enters body and exerts effect on somebody

Question 22

Drugs: Withdrawal

Answer 22

• Exits after a period of use.
• Two Stages:
  1. Acute: (few weeks, physical withdrawal symptoms, different for each drug/person).
  2. Post-Acute: (fewer physical symptoms, more emotional/psychologic symptoms, same symptoms for everyone)

Question 23

Withdrawals: Post-Acute Withdrawal Symptoms

Answer 23

• Mood swings
• Anxiety
• Irritability
• Tiredness
• Variable energy
• Low enthusiasm
• Variable concentration
• Disturbed sleep

Question 24

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

Answer 24

• Psychological treatment for drug treatment.
• Addresses both cognitive and behavioural components of addiction.
• Patients learn to recognize problematic thought patterns and develop more positive thought patterns and coping behaviors.

Question 25

Motivational Interviewing

Answer 25

* Involves working with patient to find intrinsic motivation to change. * Very focus, goal directed therapy.

Question 26

Relapse

Answer 26

* Is when patient can slip and go back. * Depends on environmental triggers and drug they were addicted too. * More addictive substances make relapse more likely. * Encountering anything that one used to associate with the drug makes relapse more likely as well.