The Little Blue Book

All drugs of addiction are psychoactive. This means they affect the central nervous system and brain function, causing changes in mood, emotions, perceptions, behaviour and consciousness. They can be either legal – like alcohol, nicotine and various prescription drugs (pharmaceuticals) – or illegal, like street drugs such as ice, cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy and heroin. Psychoactive drugs are commonly grouped as stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens or opiates. Stimulants speed up the central nervous system, temporarily increasing alertness and energy as well as increasing blood pressure and heart rate. Common stimulants are nicotine, caffeine, methamphetamine (ice), cocaine and ecstasy. LSD, ‘magic mushrooms’, MDMA (ecstasy, also a stimulant) and cannabis (in high doses) are classified as hallucinogens. This means they can trigger hallucinations and disorganise thinking, among other psychoactive responses. Opiates are powerful painkillers derived from opium. Heroin, morphine and opioid pharmaceuticals (like codeine and oxycontin) are opiates. These substances, which have high addictive qualities, typically produce intense feelings of pleasure followed by a sense of well-being and calm. Depressants , like alcohol, barbiturates, and various tranquillisers and psychosis medications, slow the central nervous system and brain activity, slowing heart rate, breathing and reaction-time (inhibiting communication between the brain and the central nervous system). Inhalants and solvents – such as petrol, industrial glues and aerosols – are also depressants (and very dangerous to health). Whether stimulant, or depressant, each drug acts in different ways on the body and, when misused, can pose serious risk to health and well- being. They can also distort thinking and judgment in ways that can be hazardous to affected individuals and those around them (at work, on the road, and in social situations). Each can lead to dependence and addiction with associated chronic health and societal costs. Despite these risks, around 8% of people in Australia aged 16–85 years have had a drug-use disorder (including harmful use/misuse and/or dependence) in their lifetime. 1 DRUGS: legal & Illicit RECOGNISING DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, AND OTHER DISORDERS 92