Drug addiction can develop after the first try, regardless of the type of drug, Evgeniy Brun, chief narcologist of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation, said in an interview with RIA Novosti.
Narcotic drugs - substances of synthetic or natural origin, drugs, plants included in the List of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and their precursors subject to control in Russian Federation, in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, international treaties of the Russian Federation, including the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961.
Types of drugs
Opiates- drugs that have a sedative, “inhibiting” effect. This group includes natural and synthetic morphine-like compounds. All natural narcotic drugs of the opium group are obtained from poppy. They cause a state of euphoria, calm, and tranquility. Joining in metabolic processes, lead to the rapid emergence of severe mental and physical dependence. They have an extremely destructive effect on the body. Drug addiction symptoms caused by opiates are very difficult to treat. Opiates include: heroin, poppy straw, acetylated opium, raw opium, methadone.
Signs of use - a short-term state of euphoria, unusual drowsiness at the very different time; slow, “drawn out” speech; often “lags behind” the topic and direction of the conversation; good-natured, flexible, helpful behavior up to complete submission; the desire for solitude in silence, in the dark, regardless of the time of day; pallor skin; very narrow pupil that does not respond to changes in lighting; slowing heartbeat, breathing, reducing pain sensitivity; decreased appetite, thirst, reflexes and sexual desire.
The consequences of using opiates are a huge risk of contracting HIV infection and hepatitis due to the use of shared syringes; liver damage due to the low quality of drugs: acetic anhydride remains in them, which is used in preparation; severe decrease in immunity and, as a result, susceptibility infectious diseases; vein diseases, tooth decay due to calcium metabolism disorders; impotence; decreased level of intelligence. There is a very high risk of overdose with serious consequences, including death.
Cannabis preparations. Hemp grows in regions with warm temperate climates. The further south the plant is grown, the greater the narcotic effect produced by the drug produced from it. Active ingredients- cannabinoids. The impact is a change in consciousness. The characteristic smell of burnt grass lingers in the room for a long time. Clothes also retain this smell. The most common cannabis preparations: marijuana, hashish, etc.
Signs of using cannabis drugs are euphoria, a feeling of carelessness; incontinence, increased talkativeness; a state of severe hunger and thirst, redness of the eyes; with a small dose - relaxation, heightened perception of colors, sounds, increased sensitivity to light due to greatly dilated pupils; with a large dose - inhibition, lethargy, confused speech in some, aggressiveness, with unmotivated actions in others; unbridled gaiety, impaired coordination of movements, perception of the size of objects and their spatial relationships, hallucinations, groundless fears and panic.
The consequences of use are confusion in thoughts, disappointment, depression and a feeling of isolation; impaired coordination of movement, memory and mental abilities; slow sexual development and maturation; when taking a large dose of the drug, hallucinations and paranoia may occur; the formation of mental dependence, when smoking does not bring satisfaction, but becomes necessary; provocation of simultaneous alcohol consumption and transition to harder drugs; bronchitis, lung cancer.
Amphetamines- drugs that have a psychostimulating, “stimulating” effect. This group includes synthetic substances containing amphetamine compounds. In most cases, they are administered intravenously. These drugs are derived from medications containing ephedrine. Ephedrine is naturally found in the ephedra plant. The effect of the drug lasts 2-12 hours. Mental and physical dependence is formed. Long-term use requires a constant increase in the dose of the drug. Temperance, anger, and aggressiveness worsen. Over time, unreasonable anxiety and suspicion appear. Suicide attempts are possible. Amphetamine addiction has the nature of “binge” or “session” - periods of drug use are replaced by “cold” periods, the duration of which decreases over time. The most common types of amphetamines: ephedrine, pervitin, ephedrine, etc.
Signs of use - a feeling of serenity and euphoria; increase in frequency heart rate and increased blood pressure; dilation of the pupils of the eyes; excessive physical activity, strong sexual liberation; talkativeness, activity is unproductive and monotonous; no feeling of hunger; disturbance of sleep and wakefulness.
The consequences of using amphetamines are dizziness, headaches, blurred vision and heavy sweating; heart attacks, strokes; nervous exhaustion; severe mental changes and irreversible changes in the brain; defeats of cardio-vascular system and everyone internal organs; liver damage due to the low quality of drugs - iodine, potassium permanganate and red phosphorus, which are used in the preparation of the drug, remain in them; risk of contracting HIV infection and hepatitis due to the use of shared syringes; severe decrease in immunity, danger of overdose with serious consequences, including death.
Cocaine- psychostimulant plant origin, obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The addiction develops imperceptibly, but persistently. Cocaine freezes the area from the eyes to the chest - the body becomes insensitive. Differs between cocaine and crack.
Signs of use - causes a short but intense feeling of euphoria and increased performance; stimulates the central nervous system; increased heart rate, breathing, increased blood pressure, sweating; dilated pupils, lack of appetite; excessive activity, agitation, anxiety, insomnia.
Consequences of use - arrhythmia, bleeding and other damage to the nasal cavity; destruction of the mucous membrane and loss of smell and taste; deafness; paranoid psychoses, hallucinations, aggressiveness; death as a result of cardiac dysfunction (myocardial infarction) or respiratory arrest.
Hallucinogens- heterogeneous in origin and chemical composition a group of psychedelic drugs that alter consciousness - sensations, thoughts, emotions and perceptions. These include: LSD, psilocin, psilocybin, etc.
Signs of intoxication - increased heart rate, high blood pressure, dilated pupils, trembling hands, dry skin. Drug intoxication is accompanied by a change in the perception of the outside world - those who take hallucinogens say that they “see sounds” and “hear colors”; hallucinations, strong feelings of happiness, overexcitement; disturbances in the sensation of one’s body, coordination of movements; loss of self-control.
The consequences of use are irreversible changes in the structure of the brain, mental disorders of varying degrees of severity, up to the complete collapse of the personality. Even a single dose of LSD can alter the genetic code and permanently damage the brain. Mental disorders indistinguishable from the disease schizophrenia. The drug accumulates in brain cells. Staying there long time, even after several months it can cause the same sensations as immediately after taking it. The effect of the drug lasts 2-12 hours. Mental and physical dependence is formed. Long-term use requires a constant increase in the dose of the drug. Temperance, anger, and aggressiveness worsen. Over time, unreasonable anxiety and suspicion appear. Suicide attempts are possible.
Ecstasy - common name for a group of synthetic stimulant drugs of the amphetamine group, often with hallucinogenic effects. White, brown, pink and yellow tablets or multi-colored, often with pictures, capsules contain about 150 mg of the drug. Ecstasy is an expensive drug, and its users usually turn to systematic use of heroin or amphetamines.
Signs of intoxication - the narcotic effect lasts from 3 to 6 hours. The central nervous system is excited, the tone of the body increases, endurance and physical strength increase. Under the influence of ecstasy, the user can endure extreme emotional and physical exercise, don't sleep, don't feel tired. You have to pay for the artificial “acceleration” of the body: after the cessation of the drug’s effect, a state of apathy, depression, severe fatigue, and drowsiness is observed. This condition can last for several days, as the body needs to restore expended strength.
Consequences of use - mental dependence; depression, even suicide; physical and nervous exhaustion; the nervous system, heart, liver, dystrophy of internal organs suffer; changing the genetic code. Deaths from dehydration, overheating, and acute renal failure are possible.
Sleeping pills- a group of sedative (calming) and hypnotic substances found in the form of official drugs, usually tablets ("wheels") or capsules. There are many varieties, the most dangerous are derivatives of barbaturate acid, but others, more or less freely sold in pharmacies, can cause mental and physical dependence. Sleeping pills are usually taken orally, but are sometimes given intravenously. They are highly addictive both physically and psychologically. Particularly dangerous when used with alcohol.
Signs of intoxication - confusion, slurred speech, clumsiness, lack of coordination, disorientation similar to alcohol intoxication; aggressiveness, rudeness, irritability, depression.
Consequences of use - persistent insomnia; brain damage clinically similar to epilepsy; psychoses with hallucinations, delusions of persecution; dystrophy of the heart muscle; liver exhaustion; death from overdose and from rapid withdrawal of large doses.
Inhalants- volatile narcotic substances. Contained in household chemicals: dyes, solvents, glue, gasoline, hairspray, insect repellents. They are not drugs in themselves. An intoxicating effect is possible if the amount of the substance entering the body is very large.
Signs of intoxication - the occurrence of hallucinations; defiant, inappropriate behavior; impaired coordination of movements.
Consequences of consumption - sneezing, coughing, runny nose, nosebleeds, nausea, heart rhythm disturbances and pain in the area chest, loss of coordination, balance; acute intoxication psychoactive substances, up to death; toxic liver damage after 8-10 months; irreversible brain damage; frequent and severe pneumonia; change in character, retardation in mental and mental development.
Smoking mixtures(or smoking mixes) consist of herbs and extracts. The herbs that are part of any smoking mixture are entheogens and have been known to mankind for a long time.
Expert studies show that the use of smoking mixtures with an intoxicating effect causes mental disorders. Having smoked, a person loses the ability to concentrate, and the ability to perceive the world is impaired. A person, having smoked such a cigarette, suddenly begins to laugh for no reason and cannot communicate with those who are nearby. These behavior changes can last a long time. According to the chief state sanitary doctor of the Russian Federation Gennady Onishchenko, the effect of smoking mixtures can change a person’s personality not temporarily, but forever, transform normal person in a drug-dependent patient, lead to severe disability.
Consumption statistics
In Russia, as of February 2010, about 550 thousand drug users are officially registered. Expert estimates place this figure at approximately 2.5 million, or almost two percent of the population. Every year, almost 75 thousand people try drugs for the first time, and 30 thousand die as a result of their use. Specialized drug treatment institutions have registered almost 138 thousand children and adolescents suffering from drug addiction disorders. Almost 90 percent of drug addicts use opiates of Afghan origin.
According to a report by experts from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Prevention, published in October 2009, Russia ranks first in the world in heroin consumption, accounting for 21% of all heroin produced in the world and 5% of all opium-containing drugs.
The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources
The use of psychoactive substances has Negative influence, both on the health of each person and on the health of the population as a whole: morbidity, mortality, disability are increasing, and the birth rate is falling. Serious economic damage is caused to society. The state spends huge sums to provide medical care, the implementation of law enforcement activities, suffers losses from a decrease in labor productivity, from committing crimes while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Smoking, drug use or alcohol use by women during pregnancy places an additional burden on society in solving social problems, including caring for children left without parental care.
Alcohol and drug abuse often causes family and educational breakdown more single-parent families. In addition, people suffering from drug addiction (mostly young people) cannot and do not want to start a family, much less raise children. Thus, the basic social function population reproduction, which negatively affects the demographic situation in the country.
Currently, there is an increase in the number of patients with severe forms of alcoholism, alcoholic psychoses, and severe somatic disorders as complications of alcoholism. Today, the opinion that alcoholism is a purely male “prerogative” is becoming a thing of the past. Over the past few years, in serious social problem female alcoholism has developed. The ratio between men and women suffering from chronic alcoholism is beginning to level out. The increase in the number of alcohol abusers is mainly due to young women.
Drug addiction, among other things, also entails such a dangerous problem for society as AIDS. In Belarus, intravenous drug use is the main method of HIV transmission. Another common mechanism of HIV transmission is sexual. And some drug-addicted women engage in prostitution in order to be able to buy psychoactive substances.
First of all, this the desire to try everything in life, or simple curiosity. “If others can do it and enjoy it, then why should I deprive myself of the pleasure?” - such a person asks himself. Sometimes this thought turns out to be subconscious, but determines behavior. This is a kind of curiosity and jealousy regarding the activities (rather, entertainment of other people), the desire to in this case not so much to avoid standing out from some group of people, but rather to ensure that you don’t fall behind in enjoying certain “benefits”, and not miss out on “what’s yours.” This is facilitated by an attitude of permissiveness, when life is understood as a chain of pleasures.
Another reason - imitation. There are several types of it. Firstly, this is a deliberate imitation of members of any company into which the teenager wants to be accepted; mastering company-specific manners; the nature of behavior facilitates this process, especially since, as we emphasized earlier, teenage and youth groups are prone to rigid conformism. Secondly, this is an imitation significant person. Here the maximalism characteristic of an immature mind can manifest itself - if you imitate, then in everything, even in what should be recognized as a shortcoming of the chosen object of imitation, as well as the inability to understand the qualities of another person - to distinguish good from bad, the main thing from the secondary. Thirdly, imitation may be unconscious. So, if adults smoke in the family, then smoking is a natural form of behavior for the child.
The next group of motives is related with a desire for adulthood. A teenager, boy or girl, strives to demonstrate his maturity and independence to others. This is especially true for him if parents and teachers constantly emphasize to him their special rights and his dependent position. For example, constant statements like: “I can, but you can’t,” “It’s too early for you.” It is clear that in such cases, adoption of certain habits and manners of adults, including the use of tobacco and alcohol, becomes for a growing person a symbol of his increasing independence, independence, and adulthood.
A cigarette, a glass of vodka or a drug also becomes one of the ways self-affirmation for those who have not developed within themselves internal foundations self-affirmation and is forced to resort to such external signs. The desire to show oneself more mature in front of peers, that is, to stand out from a certain group of people, to take a more significant place in it, albeit in this way, leads to the constant use of psychoactive substances. Another way of self-affirmation is the desire to adopt “fashionable” manners in order to convince others of your originality and modernity, and thereby increase your prestige. In such cases, for example, one has to observe a particularly “chic”, demonstrative manner of smoking. The main thing is that the use of surfactants is part of a person’s “value system” and is considered by him as a useful activity in one way or another, even if it is harmful in many other respects. This “usefulness” is determined by a specific situation, but the harm is only assumed. For example, peers are more likely to recognize a smoker as an adult, and Negative consequences smoking will become obvious after a few years. All this contributes to the prestige of smoking, drinking alcohol or drugs. This is confirmed by the fact that teenagers sometimes organize competitions to see who can smoke or drink the most.
Surfactants often become an element that facilitates communication, which in a teenage environment is a “super value” due to age-related communication characteristics and a relative excess of free time. In the communication of people, certain moments of unification are of great importance, emphasizing the similarity of those communicating on some basis. This is, for example, the process of smoking. Smoking makes it easier to get involved in the communication process: just go up to smokers and light up with them. It can be difficult to find another reason, but this one is always at hand. In addition, smoking itself creates an environment for communication, without requiring a special place or any other conditions. In comparison with non-smokers, smokers have a certain sense of solidarity and mutual understanding, based on the awareness of a common need and the perception of similarities in certain aspects of activity. The lower the level personal development communicating, the more important the similarity in views and aspirations is for them. That is why peer pressure on a teenager or young man is always stronger than on an adult, and the point here is not only that adolescents and young men themselves are less resistant to such pressure, but also that this pressure is exerted by those around them especially intensely, the latter intolerant of differences from them. During a focused interview, one of the schoolchildren said: “Despite the fact that I didn’t like it the first time, we smoked again and got into it. And in order to quit, the company gets in the way.”
The same is true for alcohol, which becomes a means of improving communication and inducing positive emotions. If there are traditional age problems in relationships, alcohol temporarily helps to solve them, it is, as it were, universal remedy liberation, overcoming shyness, makes it possible to forget about real, and more often imaginary, defects in appearance.
Among the motives for using psychoactive substances are those associated with the false idea that psychoactive substances promote good health. This is evidenced by the answers of young people: “to cope with stress,” “out of grief,” “because of a bad mood.”
Separately, it should be said about the immediate reasons for using narcotic substances. First of all, it is necessary to emphasize the differences in possible motives for drug use between those who have experienced their influence and those who have not. Among more “competent” teenagers, among the subjective motives for drug use, justifications are more often mentioned - “dissatisfaction with life”, “desire to escape from problems”. And “incompetent” teenagers believe that the main motives that encourage minors to use drugs are “curiosity” and “group pressure” 1 . Thus, the main risk factor for the onset of drug use is social maladjustment of the individual (and not boredom and curiosity), manifested in a feeling of dissatisfaction with life and oneself. Young people who do not understand the nature of the changes that are happening to them may find the experience of taking drugs attractive, believing that it will help them discover their “I” and overcome an identity crisis.
Stages of addiction formation
Dependence on surfactants sequentially goes through several stages. Each subsequent stage does not replace the previous one, but adds more and more new manifestations to the picture of the disease.
First samples. They are possible “in the yard” or even in educational institution out of curiosity, the desire to “be like everyone else”, under a certain set of circumstances.
Group addiction. It is formed according to the mechanism conditioned reflex: taking a substance under normal conditions or in a certain familiar company. Outside the specified framework, the child does not experience a desire to use psychoactive drugs.
Mental dependence. The emergence of a need to take surfactants in order to experience pleasant sensations again and again.
Pathological (irresistible) attraction to a psychoactive substance. A condition manifested by an uncontrollable urge to immediately introduce surfactants into the body. It can act as an extreme manifestation of addiction.
Physical dependence. Inclusion chemical compounds, which are part of surfactants, into the body's metabolism. In case of abrupt cessation of taking drugs, disorders defined as withdrawal syndrome may occur, causing severe suffering, including physical disorders, feelings of melancholy, anxiety, anger, aggression towards others and self-aggression, including suicide attempts.
Increasing tolerance (tolerance) to a psychoactive substance. A state of the body when there is an increasingly less pronounced expected reaction to a certain dose of the administered drug. Getting used to it occurs, as a result of which the required dose increases by 10-100 times
compared to the original one. Accordingly, the destructive toxic effect drug.
Drugs have a specific effect primarily on the nervous system, as well as on the entire human body. This action consists in the development of special states, which are called states of narcotic intoxication: they are removed painful sensations, mood, mental and physical tone changes. There is a feeling of lightness, euphoria, concentration on one’s own unrealistic feelings, liberation from the burden of problems and worries.
When repeated doses are taken in a short period of time, severe medical consequences develop chronic poisoning body: damage to internal organs, nervous system, brain. Various mental disorders arise, personality degradation and loss of working capacity increase, gradual complete disability, high mortality are noted, and often early, at a young age. The death of patients is caused not only by complications of serious diseases resulting from constant drug intoxication (such as acute heart or liver failure), but also by drug overdose, accidents while intoxicated, suicides in a fit of melancholy, during withdrawal pains. Patients die from blood poisoning when using dirty syringes, from vascular thrombosis, and in last years– from AIDS, viral hepatitis B and C.
Drug addicts destroy themselves not only physically, but also spiritually. They are characterized by mental disorders such as mental emptiness, callousness, coldness, loss of the ability to empathize, emotional contact, and deep selfishness. During the course of the disease, energy and volitional tone drops sharply, all drives and needs fade away, except for the craving for drugs. Often the immorality of patients, their tendency to antisocial behavior, and readiness to commit crimes come to the fore.
Real harm to the human body from drugs
All drugs, regardless of the route of introduction into the body, necessarily damage to a greater or lesser extent:
- nervous system (including the brain);
- immune system;
- liver;
- heart;
- lungs.
Cannabis: smoking it causes chronic bronchitis, lung cancer, impaired immunity, cardiovascular failure, myocarditis, cardiac arrhythmia, liver toxicity, severe brain damage.
Opiate drugs: in view of them intravenous administration risk of contracting three the most dangerous diseases: AIDS, syphilis and hepatitis. Hepatitis in drug addicts is caused by two viruses at once, the so-called associated hepatitis B and C, it has an aggressive course and, as a rule, becomes chronic. The result chronic hepatitis B and C become: liver failure and liver cancer; resistance to diseases and natural immunity decreases, reaching the level of “chemical AIDS”; purulent-infectious complications develop - sepsis, thrombophlebitis, phlegmon, pneumonia, etc.; hyperthermic reaction (so-called “shaking”); encephalopathy; diseases of bone and dental tissues.
Psychostimulants: sharply increase metabolism, including in the brain, sharply increase heart rate and increase arterial pressure. In this case, the energy necessary to activate vital systems is drawn from the body’s reserve reserves. The reserves themselves do not have time to be restored when using psychostimulants. A shortage of the body's vital resources quickly sets in. The cardiovascular system suffers - severe arrhythmias occur, death from cardiac arrest, myocardial infarction is possible, severe depression develops, reaching the level of psychosis.
Hallucinogens: In principle, the same complications as with the use of cannabis preparations, with the exception of lung damage, since these drugs are not smoked. The brain always suffers; it’s not for nothing that they are called “psyche-destroying.” They cause psychosis and always cause irreversible mental damage when used regularly.
Hypnotics and sedatives: the spectrum of damaging effects is as follows: “brain-liver-heart”, persistent and prolonged insomnia, specific brain damage (encephalopathy), hallucinations, damage to the cardiovascular system, seizures and suicide attempts.
Negative Impact drugs on the reproductive system of women and men, fetal development
Drugs have an extremely negative impact on the state of the reproductive system of men and women, affecting a person’s sexual life, and subsequently on his children. It has been proven that drug use eventually drives people apart. Thus, women's sexual attraction to men weakens as a result of nervous and hormonal disorders, as well as violations of the most complex coordination between the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. It is these parts of the brain that are responsible for the sexual function of the body. Examining men who smoked marijuana for a short time, researchers did not find mature sperm in their seminal fluid, but they did count a large number of ugly forms of germ cells. Under the influence of drugs, a person’s level of sex hormones in the blood plasma decreases, and mainly testosterone, which is a biological chemical that increases the sexual sensitivity of the nerve endings of the skin and mucous membranes. In sexual partners, sexual reactions may be dulled or completely absent.
Drugs have a very strong negative effect on the formation of the fetus. Children born to drug addict parents have various mental and physical disabilities. In addition, drug use by parents has a detrimental effect on the health of their children, not only while they are in the womb, but also after birth. A mother who uses drugs cannot breastfeed her baby. Children born to drug-addicted parents develop poorly and are mentally and mentally retarded. physical development, subsequently study poorly.
Ch. Doctor of the Kanevskaya Central District Hospital L.G. Monko
Psychotropic substances are weapons of mass destruction, the victims of which are currently several hundred thousand people throughout Russia. This is not just from those who died from an overdose or the consequences. A significant portion of addicts have lost normal life, and also prospects for getting out of the social bottom. Constant intake of synthetic poison destroys personality and turns a successful person into a burden for family and friends.
What are psychotropic substances?
The division of prohibited substances into drugs and psychotropics is a convention that has an indirect relationship to reality. Both the first and second drugs cause persistent dependence and negatively affect personality and health. However, psychotropics act somewhat differently, causing changes already from the first dose. mental state person.
The most popular varieties of this poison are salts and spices, which are consumed various methods. The substances are produced using artisanal methods and their quality is not controlled. Unlike “traditional” drugs (heroin, methadone, cocaine, LSD, morphine), the effect of psychotropics on the human body has not been studied enough.
It's safe to say that they instantly reduce cognitive function. To be clear, a spice addict will not be able to learn new language, master another profession, independently understand a complex book. Your thoughts will be occupied with something completely different: looking for money to purchase a new dose.
The most dangerous psychotropics:
- Spice(classical). The substance affects people differently and can cause death. Total deaths resulting poisoning is estimated at several hundred throughout Russia annually.
- Amphetamine. The drug, which has a powerful effect on the body, can cause respiratory arrest and cardiac spasm. A sharp increase in body temperature leads to the breakdown of protein; without qualified help, a person will face inevitable death.
- Methaqualone. The psychotropic, actively used in the United States in the 70-80s of the last century, was mentioned in the famous work “The Wolf of Wall Street”. The main danger of methaqualone is a complex overdose, which is practically untreatable.
- Methylphenidate. The substance was developed to treat lungs mental disorders and diseases, including for the treatment of drug addiction. However, an overdose of the drug has demonstrated side effects: cerebral hemorrhage, tachycardia, complex hallucinations, the occurrence of epilepsy and much more.
- Mephedrone(bath salt). The drug, which was positioned as a cheap alternative to cocaine, is a dangerous psychotropic. And although no fatal cases of poisoning have been recorded, the substance is a “springboard” for the leap to more dangerous drugs.
- Ketamine. The medicine that after long-term use has actually fallen out of circulation, contributes to the formation of voids in the brain. And although many scientists dispute this thesis, it’s definitely not worth experimenting on yourself.
Mechanism of action on the body
Various psychotropic substances and their mixtures can cause certain effects, but drug addicts seek euphoria and pleasure. In addition, spices, salts, mixes, etc. can both calm and excite, provoking action. Given that all illegal substances are homemade, the concentration may vary from dose to dose.
If the relatively safe level is exceeded, irreversible consequences occur. High load on the heart forces this organ to work several times harder, which leads to heart failure. Without qualified help, this will lead to death as a result of poisoning.
Increasing pressure is a “crash test” for all body systems, primarily for the cardiovascular system. The brain suffers, bleeding into which is in best case scenario loss of functions, at worst - a “vegetable” state and subsequent death. Often, after psychotropic drugs, a person ceases to distinguish tastes and smells, and cognitive functions sharply decrease.
How psychotropic substances cause addiction
It should be noted that dependence on salts, spices, amphetamine and similar drugs- somewhat different than from traditional drugs. Opiates, morphine, methadone cause strong physiological addiction, making the production of individual enzymes impossible.
Psychotropics act differently: they “give” a range of indescribable sensations, the whole body seems to be working in emergency mode, spending its “reserves” within a few minutes. This is a release of emotions, absolutely new experience, which the addict wants to return again and again. To do this, you have to increase the dose, but the desired effect no longer occurs. Young people instantly turn into old people who cannot work, study, and need special therapy and treatment.
Psychological addiction is difficult to treat: standard detoxification is not enough, because the breakdown products of psychotropics almost do not accumulate in the tissues. But it is very difficult to get rid of the craving for thrills: it will take years of work.
Stimulating effect
Many psychotropic substances (for example, salts) are used by drug addicts to speed up the reaction. However, it is impossible to control the dose, which would bring only a stimulating effect. After it is exceeded, another extreme will occur - loss of control over oneself, severe intoxication.
In this state, a person is capable of committing senseless and desperate acts. Thus, one young man in central Russia, after taking spice, raped an old woman, for which he received a real prison sentence. In neighboring Belarus, two guys are on psychotropics with bare hands They tore out the third's eyes - he remained disabled for the rest of his life. Such stories can be continued for a very long time - there are hundreds, if not thousands.
Neurosuppressants
However, not all psychotropics cause an attack of activity: some have the exact opposite purpose. They calm you down and help regulate the production of dopamine, serotonin and other hormones that affect mood. In the United States, neurodepressants are called “legal psychotropics,” and hundreds of thousands of people use them in this country.
But these products carry many dangers, some of which have not yet been studied. A banal overdose causes exactly the same sensations as from ordinary spices and salts. The frantic work of the heart can abruptly end when it stops. A sharp increase in pressure is just one step away from a burst blood vessel in the brain, which will lead to irreversible consequences.
Consequences of using psychotropic drugs:
- Rapid wear of internal organs;
- Decreased cognitive function;
- Strong psychological dependence;
- Uncontrollable behavior;
- Negative personality changes (temper, aggression, anger);
- Instant loss of qualifications and ability to learn;
- Deterioration of coordination;
- Decreased physical skills (detrimental to athletes).
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Psychotropic substances are substances that affect higher mental functions and are used in medicine to treat mental illness.
Psychotropic substances refer to psychoactive substances. And all substances of natural or artificial origin that affect the central nervous system are considered psychoactive. Psychoactive substances cause changes in mental state.
Psychotropic substances can have a stimulating or depressive effect on the central nervous system.
Classification of psychotropic substances
According to their spectrum of action, psychotropic substances are divided into: antidepressants, tranquilizers, antipsychotics, psychostimulants and sedatives.
Antidepressants
Antidepressants are medications that relieve symptoms of depression or prevent it.
The human brain is made up of neurons ( nerve cells). There are more than one hundred billion of them in the human body. Neurons are separated from each other by a gap called a synapse. Through a synapse, information is transmitted from one neuron to another using a chemical transmitter. When a person is depressed, the concentration of chemical transmitters in the synapse in his brain is reduced. Chemical mediators There are many. But only three are directly related to depression: norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin, which are called biogenic amines. Antidepressants regulate the concentration of biogenic amines, restoring the mechanism of brain function.
Antidepressants do not cause physiological addiction.
Tranquisizers
Tranquilizers are drugs that reduce the excitability of the subcortical structures of the brain, reducing emotional tension and anxiety. They are called anti-fear drugs. Many of them have a pronounced relaxing effect and cause drowsiness.
Long-term use of tranquilizers can cause drug dependence. Therefore, they are prescribed only in short courses, no more than a month, or even occasionally in small doses.
Neuroleptics
Neuroleptics. They are also called major tranquilizers. This medicines, inhibiting the functions of the central nervous system, eliminating delusions, hallucinations, aggressiveness, feelings of fear and other states of psychosis and severe mental disorders, without disturbing consciousness. Neuroleptics do not have a pronounced hypnotic effect, but enhance the effect of other sedatives and hypnotics.
Psychostimulants
Psychostimulants increase the speed of impulse transmission in synapses, thereby increasing the excitability of the cerebral cortex, resulting in decreased drowsiness, increased mood and mental and physical performance.
Sedatives
Sedatives. They are also called psycholeptics. This medications of plant or synthetic origin, reducing emotional stress and causing sedation without a hypnotic effect. Compared to tranquilizers, they, of course, give less effect. But they also have a gentler effect on the body, and side effects when using them are minimal. They do not have a direct hypnotic effect, but still contribute to the process of falling asleep. Classic example sedative plant origin – valerian root.
Synthetic sedatives have a more pronounced sedative effect.
It should be remembered that taking psychotropic drugs without consulting a doctor is dangerous, as it can cause irreparable harm to health.
