Drugs and Their Effects – Dissociative Drugs

April 18th, 2011

Dissociative drugs blog certain signals within the brain and result in various hallucinogenic effects.  Within this category are Ketamine, PCP, Salvia and Dextromethorphan (DXM).

Of these drugs, Salvia and DXM are available over the counter.  Salvia is legal in most states in the U.S. and generally not regulated.  Though there have been motions to make Salvia illegal, most have fallen through.  Chewed or smoked, effects tend to be short lived but can be quite intense.

DXM is a main ingredient in many over the counter cough syrups such as NyQuil, Vicks and Robitussin, among others.  The amount of the products available for purchase tend to be regulated.  After being consumed, effects vary, but include vomiting, blurred vision, slurred speech, hallucination, and impaired motor functions.  Even normal uses of the drug have been linked to sudden infant death syndrome.

PCP and Ketamine are both illegal, however Ketamine is the most dangerous of the dissociative drugs, considered more dangerous than all the Hallucinogenics as well as Ecstasy.  While maintaining similar effects of Salvia and DXM, Ketamine can lead to severe complications, especially with repeated use, including cognitive impairments including memory problems such as verbal, short term and visual memory.  Other effects include respiratory depression and arrest, and may even result in death.

Sources

http://www.drugabuse.gov/DrugPages/DrugsofAbuse.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dxm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvia_divinorum

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketamine

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