Mr. Wraga ASACS Counselor

Mr. Wraga ASACS CounselorRHS Health Classes discussion and support ppt 2014

Weed Brain-Impact on Hippocampus

How many hits to slow growth? 3 hits/week and HC stopped growing

Catch up 6 mos to start growing again 2 yrs for every 1 yr of using Only up to age 25

What’s funny about Cheech & Chong (Beevis & Butthead)? Slowed speech; cadence Monotone

cont

Other ways to help HC grow: Sleep Get off your butt Lay off the stupid stuff

Example: Dementia home 50 yr old man, weed since teen, lots of beads and

electricity can’t get to where it wants to go Can’t remember:

Why he lives there, where he should go to the bathroom, what happened 10 min ago…

Impact!

Bat to head: What to watch for: Nausea, lethargy, unconscious, seizures,

headache, death (brain swelling), speech, eyes, disorientation, poor memory

Hangover Black-out, headache, shaking (seizure), light

sensitivity, ….

Both cases HC doesn’t grow for 6 months

Mice addicts

Adol mice given cocaine

End of HC swollen, not growing

No growth for 6 mos

FMRI showed same

Alpha Mouse has long HC Can regulate mood Learn new things

What is addiction?

Addiction is a condition that results when a person ingests a substance (alcohol, cocaine, nicotine) or engages in an activity (gambling) that can be pleasurable but the continued use of which becomes compulsive and interferes with ordinary life responsibilities, such as work or relationships, even health. Users may not be aware that their behavior is out of control and causing problems for themselves and others.

Experimentation

The first stage, experimentation, is the voluntary use of alcohol or other drugs. Many times it involves teens going to a party and drinking or popping pills in order to fit in. Sometimes, the person experimenting is trying to forget about or escape from an issue. An older person may start drinking to cope with depression after losing a job. Experimentation may even include a teenager taking their mom’s prescription painkillers to cope with an injury from a sports activity. At the time the substance seems to solve the problem. The person takes more, and moves from experimentation to regular use, the next stage. Curiosity.

Risky Use

Behavior has changed noticeably and/or suddenly

Consequences begin to build

May continues to drink or use despite the negative effects

Organize around AOD use

risky use may overlap with dependence.

Some risky behaviors include:

DependenceConstant use

Inability to take care of major responsibilities

Repeatedly using drugs in situations that are physically hazardous,

Legal problems

Their risky behavior may also escalate to things such as:

Dependent but “functioning”’

House of cards

Walking on eggshells

Tolerance

Withdrawal

Addiction

Serious psychological and physical changes from constant heavy use of alcohol, drugs, or both.

Uncontrollable craving, seeking, and use, despite repeated negative consequences. 

Addiction is a progressive, chronic, and fatal disease. If left untreated, it can only lead to:

National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions, 2003.

Age

0.0%0.0%

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CANNABISALCOHOL

TOBACCO

Addiction Is A Developmental Disease that starts in adolescence and childhood

Age at tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis dependence per DSM IV

Addiction is a Developmental Disease: It Starts Early

1

10

100

Child Teen Young Adult Adult

67%

1.5%

5.5%

<12 12-17 18-25 >25

26%

Fir s

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se, (P

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Sample of 10,123 teens between the ages of 13 to 18 (2012)

15 percent of the teens met the criteria for lifetime alcohol abuse, and 16 percent could be categorized as drug abusers

The median age for drug abuse with dependence to start was at the age of 14

Archives of General Psychiatry)

Rats Exposed to Nicotine in Adolescence

Self-Administer More Nicotine Than Rats First Exposed as Adults

Collins et al, Neuropharmacology, 2004, Levin et al, Psychopharmacology, 2003

What EnvironmentalFactors Contribute to

Addiction?

Stress

Early physical or sexual abuse

Witnessing violence

Peers who use drugs

Drug availability

Advances in science have revolutionized our fundamental

views of drug abuse and addiction.

Control Addicted

Dopamine D2 Receptors are Decreased by Addiction

Functionally…

D

A D

2 R

ecep

tor

Ava

ilab

ility

Cocaine

Alcohol

Heroin

Meth

Your Brain on Drugs Today

YELLOW shows places in

brain where cocaine binds

(e.g., striatum)

Fowler et al., Synapse, 1989.

0100200300400500600700800900

10001100

0 1 2 3 4 5 hr

% o

f B

asal

Rel

ease

DADOPACHVA

Accumbens

Amphetamine

0

100

200

300

400

0 1 2 3 4 5 hr

% o

f B

asal

Rel

ease

DADOPACHVA

AccumbensCocaine

Time After Drug

Morphine

0

100

150

200

250

0 1 2 3 hr

Time After Drug

% o

f B

asal

Rel

ease Accumbens

Caudate

Nicotine

Di Chiara and Imperato, PNAS, 1988

Effects of Drugs on Dopamine Release

% o

f B

asal

Rel

ease

0

100

150

200

250

0 1 2 3 4 5 hr

Accumbens

0.51.02.510

Dose mg/kgmg/kg

mg/kgmg/kg

Changes in Attitudes Lead to

Changes in Use

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

75 77 79 81 83 85 87 89 91 93 95 97 99 01 03 05 07

Past Year Use Perceived Risk

Monitoring the Future Study, 2007.

COMORBIDITY

Extended Abstinence is Predictive of Sustained Recovery

It takes a year of abstinence

before less than half relapse

Dennis et al, Eval Rev, 2007

After 5 years – if you are sober, you probably will stay that way.

Mmmmmmm??????

Don’t necessarily believe all of this

Don’t necessarily believe a drug being legal means it’s ok Cigarette smoking kills 5.5 million/year Making weed legal is about the drug war not

working, not about weed being ok for you

Just kidding….You should believe all of this….

Estimated Economic Cost to Society Due to Substance

Abuse and Addiction:

Illegal drugs: $181 billion/year

Alcohol: $185 billion/year

Tobacco: $158 billion/year

Total: $524 billion/year

Surgeon General’s Report, 2004; ONDCP, 2004; Harwood, 2000.

RESOURCES

School Teachers Coaches Staff School Counselors ASACS Counselors

Community Parents Religious Leader Coach Counselors

www.nida.nih.govwww.drugabuse.gov