Mental Health Disorders & Addiction Vocabulary

Mental Health Disorders & Addiction Vocabulary List

A

• Acetylcholine – A neurotransmitter involved in neuromuscular transmission, parasympathetic control, and central modulation (cholinergic).

• Addiction – A chronic, relapsing disorder characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use despite harmful consequences.

• Adenosine – A neuromodulator that promotes sleep and suppresses arousal.

• Agonist – A substance that activates a receptor to produce a biological response.

• Alcohol Dependence – A condition involving tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, and compulsive use of alcohol.

• Antagonist – A substance that blocks or dampens a biological response by binding to a receptor.

• Anhedonia – Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once found enjoyable, commonly seen in depression.

• Anxiety Disorder – A mental health disorder characterized by chronic worry, restlessness, and physical symptoms like muscle tension and fatigue.

B

• Blood-Brain Barrier – A selective barrier that protects the brain from potentially harmful substances in the bloodstream.

C

• CNS Depressants – Drugs like alcohol, benzodiazepines (e.g., Xanax), that slow down brain activity; withdrawal may lead to seizures or agitation.

• Cognition – Mental processes like thinking, learning, memory, and attention.

• Conditioning – A learning process in which a behavior becomes more likely due to association with a stimulus (important in addiction).

• Cortisol – A stress hormone that may be elevated in mood disorders and linked to inflammation.

D

• Dependence – A state where neurons adapt to drug presence and function abnormally without it.

• Dopamine – A neurotransmitter involved in reward, motivation, and motor function (dopaminergic).

• Dysphoric Mood – A general feeling of unease or dissatisfaction, common in mood disorders.

E

• Endorphins – Natural opioid-like neurotransmitters that reduce pain and create a sense of well-being.

• Excitatory Neurotransmitter – A neurotransmitter (e.g., glutamate) that increases the likelihood of a neuron firing.

G

• GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid) – The main inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain, calming neural activity (GABAergic).

• Glutamate – The primary excitatory neurotransmitter involved in learning and memory (glutamatergic).

H

• Histamine – A neurotransmitter that promotes wakefulness and alertness (histaminergic).

• HPA Axis – Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis; plays a key role in the stress response and is implicated in depression.

L

• Lethal Dose (LD50) – The amount of a substance required to kill 50% of a test population.

M

• Mesolimbic Pathway – A dopaminergic pathway in the brain associated with reward and pleasure.

• Mesocortical Pathway – Dopaminergic pathway involved in cognition, emotion, and executive function.

• Mood Disorder – A category of mental health disorders that includes major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder.

N

• Neurotransmitter – Chemicals that transmit signals across synapses between neurons.

• Nigrostriatal Pathway – Dopamine pathway that regulates movement; degeneration is linked to Parkinson’s disease.

• Norepinephrine – A neurotransmitter involved in arousal, stress, and sympathetic nervous system responses (noradrenergic).

O

• Opioids – Substances (natural or synthetic) that bind to opioid receptors, often used for pain relief; highly addictive.

P

• Pathway (Neural) – A series of connected neurons that control a specific function (e.g., reward, mood).

• Potency – A measure of drug strength or effectiveness.

• Prediction Error – The difference between expected and actual outcomes, used by the brain to learn and adjust behavior.

• Psychostimulants – Drugs like methamphetamine or cocaine that increase activity in the brain.

R

• Reuptake Inhibitor – A substance that blocks the reabsorption of neurotransmitters, increasing their availability in the synaptic cleft.

• Reward Prediction Error (RPE) – A process where unexpected rewards cause a dopamine spike, reinforcing future behaviors.

• Route of Administration – How a drug is taken (e.g., oral, IV, inhaled, sublingual).

S

• Serotonin – A neurotransmitter associated with mood, sleep, and appetite regulation (serotonergic).

• Stimulants – Drugs that increase neural activity and energy (e.g., caffeine, cocaine, meth).

T

• Tolerance – The need to take more of a substance to achieve the same effect.

• Tuberoinfundibular Pathway – A dopamine pathway that regulates prolactin secretion.

W

• Withdrawal – A set of symptoms that occur when stopping or reducing intake of an addictive substance. Symptoms often include the opposite of the drug’s effects (e.g., irritability after stopping alcohol).