PSY 2012 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Methamphetamine, Psychological Dependence, Barbiturate
Document Summary
Act on the nervous system to: alter consciousness, modify perceptions, change moods. Tolerance -> increasing amounts for same effects. Psychoactive drugs increase dopamine levels in brain"s reward pathways: ventral tegmental area (vta, nucleus accumbent. Induce an altered state of consciousness: affects a person"s, emotions, perceptions, behaviors. Addictive drugs: produce dependence, biological, psychological, withdrawal leads to a craving for the drug that, in some cases may be nearly irresistible. Psychoactive drugs that increase the central nervous system"s activity. Increase neural firing and arouse the nervous sytem. Increased confidence: mood elevation, sense of energy and alertness, decreased appetite, anxiety. Withdrawal symptoms: apathy, general fatigue, prolonged sleep and bizarre dreams, depression and suicidal thoughts, disorientation, agitated motor activity. Increased body temperature: face picking, bizarre and repetitious behavior, vivid hallucinations, convulsions, possible death. Depressants: psychoactive drugs that slow down mental and physical activity. Depressants: alcohol, barbiturates: decrease nervous system activity.
