Stimulants and Depressants

Solution Preview

Sellman (2010) emphasizes that the key to understanding drug use or abuse is that it is compulsive behavior. He cites 10 facts to understand concerning the addiction of drugs: (1) it is compulsive behavior, (2) behavior is initiated outside of consciousness, (3) addicted behavior is 50% heritable, (4) most people with drug addiction have other psychiatric problems, (5) adds chronic relapsing disorders in the ongoing life of people, (6) difference psychotherapies appear to produce similar treatment outcomes, (7) "To state come back when motivate" is no longer a sound therapeutic response, (8) more individualized treatment results in better outcomes, (9) epiphanies are difficult to manufacture, and (10) change takes time.

Examples of stimulant and a depressant drug include (1) alcohol, and (2) Cocaine.

(A) Depressants produce a relaxed euphoria that temporarily boosts self-esteem, Side effects include impairment in mental and motor functioning, and mood swing. For instance, alcohol appears as a stimulant, because it elevates moods. However, alcohol is a depressant as it depresses central nervous system activity, and bodily functions [e.g. beer, wine, distilled spirits] Pinel, 2006. Lynch, Sanchez, & Smith (2013) note that physical activity, such as exercise has the potential for a treatment for drug addiction such as alcohol. Lynn et al discuss clinical and preclinical evidence for the efficacy of exercise at different phases of the addiction process. As they point out, neurobiological mechanisms are also discussed focusing on interactions with dopaminergic (dopamine) and glutamatergic (glutamate) signaling and chromatin remodeling in the reward pathway.
Although, most exercise generally produces an efficacious response, certain exercise conditions may be either ineffective or lead to detrimental effects depending on factors such as: (a) the level/type/timing ...