Psychology Unit 1 Psychoactive Drugs

psychoactive drugs

affects the brain after crossing the blood brain barrier

agonist

mimics the neurotransmitter, activates neural activity

antagonists

blocks the neurotransmitter, stops neural activity

stimulant 

speed up the CNS and other functions- leads to wakefulness, weight loss, jitters- caffeine and nicotine, cocaine, meth

depressants

suppress the CNS and other functions- induce sleep, loss of coordination, relieve anxiety- alcohol, heroin

hallucinogens

distort perception of reality, thoughts, and feelings- altered senses, no sense of time, flashbacks- marijuana, ecstasy, mushrooms, LSD

opioids (type of depressant)

derived from the poppy plant, typically used for pain relief- drowsiness, constipation, euphoria, nausea