Objectives- the Student Will

• Describe psychoactive drugs their history: including animal examples

• Analyze the 4 categories of psychoactive drugs and give examples of each

• Analyze the difference between physiological and psychological addiction

Psychoactive drugs

• Drugs change feelings, perception, motivation and other body and mind functions

Classifying drugs

Psychoactive drugSubstance capable of influencing perception, mood, cognition, or behavior

TypesStimulants speed up activity in the CNS.Depressants slow down activity in the CNS.Opiates relieve pain.Psychedelic drugs disrupt normal thought processes.

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Different cultures= different practices

• Jerusalem• Hasidic men• Completion of holy Torah• dancing for hours in the streets• Religious ecstasy

Culture

• South Dakota• Lakota(Sioux) adults• naked• in the darkness• crushing heat of the sweat lodge• Euphoria, transcendence of pain, connection

with Great Spirit

Culture

• Amazon Jungle• Young man training to be shaman (religious

leader)• takes whiff of hallucinogenic snuff • from virola tree bark• Trance and communicate with animals, spirits

and supernatural forces

Early drug states

• All aimed at release of ordinary consciousness• Cultures different• Such practices=Religious connection• HOWEVER attempts to alter mood and

consciousness are universal• William James and Nitrous oxide (laughing gas)• Waking consciousness and different

consciousness

Altered states of Consciousness

• 1960’s attitudes changed• Altered states of consciousness- Psychology and

physiology of psychoactive drugs• Psychoactive drugs- a drug capable of

influencing perception, mood, cognition, and behavior

• Changes body chemistry• Reasons for taking them vary- Decrease pain

Psychological escape, comfort, religion

Humans aren’t only ones getting high…psychological research shows

• Baboons ingest tobacco• Elephants love alcohol in fermented fruit• Rabbits seek hallucinogenic mushrooms

Classifying Drugs= 4 groups

• 1st STIMULANTS• speed up C.N.S. activity• Intense pleasure, self confidence, • Cocaine, crack, speed (amphetamine),

MDMA ( ecstasy)• Legal ones- caffeine, nicotine

Dangers with stimulants

• Frightening hallucinations, paranoid delusions• Increase frequency and dosage• Addictive, effect heart, blood signaling to the

brain

2nd Depressants

• Slow mental and physical activity of the body by inhibiting the central nervous system

• Alcohol, Barbiturates (sedation-sleeping pills),benzodiazepines (antidepressants-minor tranquilizers)

• Inhibits C.N.S. as a results slows down mental and physical activity

Examples of Alcohol

Alcohol effects

• Loose inhibitions- loose self-monitoring• Talkative, quiet, abusive, friendly• Combination of alcohol Ecstasy= problem=

why?• motor skills diminish- D.U.I.

3rd Opiates

• Mimic endorphins• Morphine, heroin, codeine- made from poppy• Highly addictive• Analgesic- pain relief• Started out as Bayer aspirin• Euphoria but can think clearly, cognitive • Take through needle or orally

Example Opiate

4th Drug classification-

• Psychedelic- TIME AND SPACE• Produce change by altering perceptions,

creating hallucinations, and blurring the boundary between self and the external world.

• Most use NEROTRANSMITTER Serotonin• LSD (acid)-PCP( angel dust)- psilocybin

(mushrooms), Marijuana- mild stimulant or sleep

Emotional reactions vary= Trip

82% OF Americans have tried marijuana

Your turn

What kind of drug is alcohol?1. Stimulant2. Depressant3. Opiate4. Psychedelic

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Your turn

What kind of drug is alcohol?1. Stimulant2. Depressant3. Opiate4. Psychadelic

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Physiology of Drug effects

• Tolerance- need more and more to get the same effect

• Withdrawal- uncomfortable physical and mental symptoms that occur when drug usage stops

Physiology of drug effects

Psychoactive drugs work by acting on neurotransmitters. They can. . .Increase or decrease the release of neurotransmitters

Prevent the reabsorption of excess neurotransmitters by the cells that release them

Block the effects of neurotransmitters on receiving cells

Bind to receptors that would ordinarily be triggered by a neurotransmitter or neuromodulator

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Cocaine’s effect on the brain

Blocks the brain’s reuptake of dopamine and norepinephrine, raising levels of these neurotransmitters.Results in over-stimulation of certain brain circuits and a brief euphoric high

When drug wears off, depletion of dopamine may cause user to “crash.”

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Reactions to drugs vary

• Body weight• Metabolism• Initial state of emotional arousal• Physical tolerance of the drug• Number of times a person has taken it• Environmental setting• Mental set- expectations for taking it • Think-drink effect- Men more belligerent when

thought drinking tonic water

Psychology of drug effects

Reactions to psychoactive drugs depend on several factors.Physical factors such as body weight, metabolism, initial state of emotional arousal, and physical tolerance

The number of times a person has used a drug

Environmental factors such as where and with whom one uses a drug

Mental set or expectations of a drug’s effects

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Summary

• 4 classifications of drugs• Examples of effects• Physiology vs. psychology off drugs