Stimulants By Samantha M. and Drumil B UCLA 2014

Stimulants Can you name a few?

●Controlled Substances: o Cocaine o Amphetamines o Adderall o MDMA ●Everyday stimulants: o Caffeine o Nicotine Common Stimulants

●Increases heart rate, blood pressure, movement, attention, and overall arousal ●Euphoria Stimulants

Dopamine ●Involved in a lot of different functions ●Affected by many different types of drugs

●Involved in: o movement o reward o new experiences Dopamine

●Chemicals sent by the brain to communicate across cells (neurons) ●Different neurotransmitters for different messages. For ex. some can excite cells while others can restrict signaling Neurotransmitters

Transporters

●Comes from coca plant mainly found in South America ●Stimulant ●Legality Cocaine

●Works by blocking dopamine transporter ●Increased dopamine in synapse ●Increased euphoria and happiness Cocaine

Before Cocaine After Cocaine

●Artificially increasing heart rate and blood pressure increases chance of heart attack ●Hallucinations ●Increased risk taking! Cocaine

●Smoking ●Injecting ●Oral Administration ●Snorting (insufflation) Cocaine

●Stimulant ●Made illegally in labs ●WWII o keep soldiers alert o increased risk taking o kamikaze Methamphetamine

●Schedule 2 o high risk for abuse o medical use ●Medically used to treat: o Narcolepsy o ADHD Methamphetamine

Before Meth After Meth Methamphetamine - Efflux

Different Ways Meth Can Be Taken: o Smoked - crystals o Injected - liquid o Snorted - powder o Oral - pills Methamphetamine

●Short-Term: o loss of hunger o increased heart rate, blood pressure, temperature o Seizures ●Long-Term: o Meth Mouth o Depression o Paranoid o Insomnia Methamphetamine

●Behavioral Treatments: o 12 step programs o relapse prevention techniques o family involvement Methamphetamine