PSYCH 14 Lecture Notes - Lecture 19: Sukha, Mesolimbic Pathway, Avolition
Document Summary
Increase heart rate, blood pressure; dilate blood vessels; suppress appetite and sleep. Dizziness, confusion, panic; psychosis, irregular heartbeat, seizures, coma, death. Tolerance builds up quickly and crash afterwards. Risk for psychosis increases with increased use (with and without predisposition) Brief pleasurable rush at the time of use and positive effects for 30-60 minutes. Builds up and can eventually last for majority of day, everyday. Cognitive impairment, sexual dysfunction (not as common) Tolerance builds up quickly (esp. benzos) can experience withdrawal effects after 3 weeks of consistent use. Discontinuation syndrome: irritability, paranoia, sleep disturbance, agitation, muscle tension, restlessness. Impaired judgement, slowness of speech, lack of coordination, narrowed range of attention reaction . Rare: disinhibition of sexual and aggressive impulses; rage. Warm, pleasant feeling similar to opiates when injected- intense. Binds to cannabinoid receptors; increases da through reward system. Temporal disintegration: difficulty retaining and organizing information; attention and concentration issues. Withdrawal unlikely in casual users, but documented in heavy, consistent users.
