Consciousness and the Two-Track Mind: Drugs

Vocabulary flashcards focusing on psychoactive drugs, tolerance, dependence, addiction, and major classifications including depressants, stimulants, and hallucinogens from Module 7.

Psychoactive Drug

A chemical substance that alters perceptions and mood, thereby affecting consciousness.

Tolerance

The diminishing effect with repeated exposure to a psychoactive drug, requiring larger quantities to obtain the desired effect.

Withdrawal

The undesirable effects experienced upon stopping the use of a drug after addiction.

Dependence

A condition in which the absence of a drug leads to feelings of physical pain, intense cravings, or negative emotions.

Physical Dependence

A state in which the absence of a drug leads to physical pain and intense cravings.

Psychological Dependence

A state in which the absence of a drug leads to negative emotions.

Addiction

A craving for a chemical substance, despite its adverse consequences.

Depressants

A class of psychoactive drugs that reduce neural activity and slow body functions, including alcohol, barbiturates, and opiates.

Barbiturates

Drugs that depress the activity of the central nervous system, reducing anxiety but impairing memory and judgment (examples include Nembutal, Seconal, and Amytal).

Opiates

Opium and its derivatives (such as morphine and heroin) that depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety.

Stimulants

A class of drugs that excite neural activity and speed up body functions, including caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, ecstasy, amphetamines, and methamphetamines.

Methamphetamine

A highly addictive drug that stimulates the central nervous system.

Ecstasy (MDMA)

Methylenedioxymethamphetamine; a stimulant and mild hallucinogen that produces a euphoric high and can damage serotonin-producing neurons, resulting in permanent deflation of mood and impairment of memory.

Hallucinogens

Psychedelic (mind-manifesting) drugs that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input.

LSD

Lysergic acid diethylamide; a powerful hallucinogenic drug also known as acid.

THC

Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol; the major active ingredient in marijuana (hemp plant) that triggers a variety of effects, including mild hallucinations.

Near-Death Experience

An altered state of consciousness reported after a close brush with death, often characterized by sensations such as moving through a dark tunnel with a light at the end.