Drugs and alcohol

LO: Maintain awareness of personal health and wellbeing, accessing appropriate support when required and understanding available sources of help for stress, substance misuse or other concerns

Intoxicating substance - substance that changes the way the user feels mentally/physically
Controlled drugs - covered by the misuse of drugs act 1971
Substance misuse - use of intoxicating substance that harms health/physical/psychological/social/work performance but without dependency present
Dependency - phenomena where a use of psychoactive substance takes much higher priority than other behaviours
Alcohol misuse - drinking in a harmful way, more than 14 units a week
1 unit of alcohol - half a pint, small shot of spirit, small glass of wine (1.5)
Addiction - repeated behaviour that becomes a major focus of a person's life, causing harm or distress, difficult to stop

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Depressants - slow down CNS activity, causing relaxation/sedation
Stimulants - accelerate brain activity, increased alertness and energy
Opioids/narcotic analgesics - relieve severe pain and induce euphoria, high risk of dependence and respiratory depression
Hallucinogens/psychedelics - alter perception, mood and cognitive processes, distorts reality
Cannabinoids - compounds derived from or mimicking cannabis plants that contain THC
Inhalants - volatile substances that produce chemical vapours inhaled for a psychoactive effect
New psychoactive substances (NPS)/legal highs - the Psychoactive Substances Act, UK introduced a blanket ban that makes it illegal to produce supply import or export
- Benzo fury - stimulant
- Spice - synthetic cannabinoid
- Mephedrone - potent stimulant
- Etizolam - sedative
- Clockwork Orange - synthetic cannabinoid
- Methoxetamine - hallucinogenic drug