ABSTRACT
The terms, “stimulant” and “hallucinogen” are ambiguous words. They encompass many drugs, some of which are highly susceptible to abuse and others which are rarely associated with excess usage. A straightforward definition of a “stimulant” is “a drug which stimulates some bodily function.” Cocaine and amphetamine addicts often consume 10 to 50 times as much drug as would be indicated for novice. Also, for both agents there are no prominent physical withdrawal symptoms, except for depression. Almost all addicts become psychotic on one or more occasions. The psychosis is very similar for amphetamine and cocaine and difficult to distinguish from paranoid schizophrenia. A differential neurochemical mediation of euphoria and the psychotic effects of amphetamine and cocaine is hinted at by differences in the clinical features of the two phenomena. Low doses of amphetamine produce moderate euphoria and increased alertness in adults.
