Why use depressants

It is important to note that misusing depressants can lead to both physical dependence and addiction, which is when a person continues to use a drug despite negative consequences. Previous MTF Data. Explore teen substance use trends over time, by grade and substance with an interactive chart featuring Monitoring the Future data from to present. If a friend is using drugs, you might have to step away from the friendship for a while.

It is important to protect your own mental health and not put yourself in situations where drugs are being used. This lesson, provides scientific information about teen brain development and the effect of drugs and alcohol use on the brain. These community activities are designed to help students in grades 6 through 12 learn about the effects of drug use These school activities are designed to help students in grades 6 through 12 learn about the effects of drug use Content on this site is available for your use and may be reproduced in its entirety without permission from NIDA.

Department of Health and Human Services. National Institutes of Health. Prescription Depressant Medications. Expand All What happens to your brain when you misuse prescription depressants? What can happen to your body when you misuse prescription depressants? Short-Term Effects As depressants slow down brain activity, they cause other effects: slurred speech poor concentration confusion dizziness shallow breathing, which can lead to overdose and even death.

Long-Term Effects Long-term effects are not known. In fact, the most widely used depressant in the world is alcohol. Like other depressants, alcohol depresses the central nervous system. Alcohol is highly addictive, and binge drinking or chronic use increases the chance of becoming dependent.

At Ashley Addiction Treatment, clients can begin a program of total recovery. To get to that stage, for example, you can expect therapies that might include:. They are an addictive class of drug that can have serious consequences. Call to get help on your journey to recovery. Skip to primary navigation Skip to main content Skip to primary sidebar What are Depressants? Exactly What are Depressants? Barbiturates Specifically, what are depressants?

In general, when small to low doses of depressants are taken, the following effects may be experienced: reduced inhibitions enhanced mood reduced anxiety slowed reaction time impaired judgement slowed breathing increased risk of accident or injury.

Health and Safety Use of depressants is likely to be more dangerous when: combined with alcohol or other drugs, particularly driving or operating heavy machinery judgement or motor coordination is required a person is alone in case medical assistance is required. If drinking alcohol, stay hydrated and have something to eat before and while drinking. Dependence and tolerance People who use depressants regularly, can develop a dependence and tolerance to them. Path2Help Not sure what you are looking for?

Find out more. Ontario: Addiction Research Foundation; Australian Government Department of Health. Types of Drugs - Drug catagories : Commonwealth of Australia; Benzodiazepine Toxicity.

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Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Depressants are drugs that inhibit the function of the central nervous system CNS and are among the most widely used drugs in the world. These drugs operate by affecting neurons in the CNS, which leads to symptoms such as drowsiness, relaxation, decreased inhibition, anesthesia, sleep, coma, and even death.

Many depressants also have the potential to be addictive. While CNS depressants all share an ability to reduce activity in the central nervous system and lower levels of awareness in the brain , there are significant differences among substances within this drug class.

Some are safer than others and several are routinely prescribed for medicinal purposes. Drugs that are classed as depressants include:. Alcohol, also known as ethyl alcohol, is the second most widely used psychoactive drug in the world caffeine is number one.

While alcohol is a legal drug, it also has a high potential for abuse. Barbiturates sometimes referred to as downers, are a type of CNS depressant that causes euphoria and relaxation when taken in small doses. During the early half of the s, barbiturates were viewed as a safe depressant, but problems with addiction and deadly overdoses soon became apparent.

Barbiturates have a dramatic impact on sleep patterns, resulting in suppressed REM rapid eye movement sleep.