Question

Please briefly discuss the different categories of psychoactive drugs. Please be sure to provide details in your discussion.

Answer 1

Different psychoactive drugs have different ways of acting in the brain and produce different effects. They bind to different receptors in the neurons, and can increase or decrease the activity of neurons through a range of mechanisms. Consequently, they have different effects on behaviour, vary In terms of their tolerance and withdrawal symptoms. These psychoactive drugs can are divided into four groups:

• Depressants, such as alcohol, sedatives/hypnotics and volatile solvents, decreases the activity of the central nervous system by reducing neural reactions and lowering the strength of response by stimulating the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA. There are serious social problems involving depressant drugs like Alcohol and Heroin. Many people are highly addicted and suffer from actual physical reactions, like sweating or tremors when deprived from using these drugs.
• Stimulants, such as nicotine, cocaine, amphetamines and ecstasy, increase the activity of the central nervous system. improve performance on many tasks as well as in keeping someone awake in a period of time. Continued use in these drugs may lead to a cycle of arousal. It will be then followed by depressions in the time that the effect of the drugs wears off. They may induce high drug dependence and consequently high tolerance a social the individuals may require higher and higher doses of the drug to experience the same intensity of high from the drug.
• Opioids, such as morphine and heroin, are primary relaxants that relieve pain, dull the senses, and induce sleep. They produce a feeling of light headedness, alertness and euphoria and stimulate the production of endorphins in the brain which helps to create feelings of elation and pleasure.
• Hallucinogens such as the tropical morning glory plant, the psilocybin mushroom and cannabis hemp, others like LSD and PCP been produced synthetically, produce perpetual and temporal distortions and affect the perception and thinking by producing distortions. The perceptual distortion produced in the form of visual hallucinations, delusions might be pleasurable or it may be upsetting and frightening. They can have drastic negative psychological effects and anti-social behavior.

Although Cannabis, is classified as a hallucinogen, also displays characteristics of depressants and stimulants. Knowledgeable of the different drugs is crucial to planning an appropriate approach to substance use treatment and de addiction programmes as these different substances repsond differently to the treatment modalities.