Getting electric, buzzing feeling in head, (brain), and eyes!! | Narcotic (Opioids) Drugs Dependence discussions | Emotional & Mental Health center (2023)

FAQs

What is the opioid reaction in the brain? ›

One of the brain circuits that is activated by opioids is the mesolimbic (midbrain) reward system. This system generates signals in a part of the brain called the ventral tegmental area (VTA) that result in the release of the chemical dopamine (DA) in another part of the brain, the nucleus accumbens (NAc) (Figure 1).

Opioid overdose induces respiratory depression that can lead to anoxic or hypoxic brain injury. “As the number of drug overdoses continues to rise, doctors are struggling to cope with the increasing number of patients facing irreversible brain damage and other long term health issues.”

Cognitive dysfunction among patients with OUD in treatment often includes specific deficits in executive function, memory, attention and communication skills. Persons with OUD exhibit poorer decision-making and longer deliberation times, increasing their affective impulsivity.

Hallucinogens (also called psychedelics) are drugs which affect sensation, thinking, self- awareness, and emotion. Changes in time and space perception, delusions, and hallucinations may range from mild to overwhelming, depending on the dose and quality of the drug.

Opioid misuse can cause slowed breathing, which can cause hypoxia, a condition that results when too little oxygen reaches the brain. Hypoxia can have short- and long-term psychological and neurological effects, including coma, permanent brain damage, or death.

Opioids receptors trigger such widespread effects because they govern more than just pain pathways. When opioid drugs infiltrate a part of the brain stem called the locus ceruleus, their receptors slow respiration, cause constipation, lower blood pressure and decrease alertness.

Long-Term Mental Effects of Opioids

Studies show that the continued misuse of opioids can increase one's likelihood of developing an anxiety disorder and/or depression. Unfortunately, depression can cause an increase in physical and emotional pain, which can feed into the continuation of an addiction.

Anoxic encephalopathy, or hypoxic-ischemic brain injury, is a process that begins with the cessation of cerebral blood flow to brain tissue, which most commonly results from poisoning, as is the case, for example, with carbon monoxide poisoning or drug overdose, vascular injury, or insult, or cardiac arrest.

A significant hypoxic brain injury can result in coma and possibly post-coma unresponsiveness. Symptoms following a return to consciousness can include memory difficulties, abnormal movements, weakness in arms and legs, lack of coordination and visual problems.

What medication can I take to make me feel happy? ›

Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft, Celexa, and Lexapro, are just a few brands of serotonin that we prescribe for those who suffer from depression, and/or anxiety disorder. There is evidence that these drugs can also improve premenopausal symptoms, even a role in the treatment of obesity and parkinson's disease.

Different drugs, different effects

Drugs affect the body's central nervous system. They affect how a person thinks, feels and behaves. The seven main types are depressants, psychedelics, stimulants, empathogens, opioids, cannabinoids, and dissociatives.

Substance and Alcohol Use Disorder and Alexithymia

Individuals with illicit drug use frequently (45% to 50%) exhibit alexithymia (20, 21). Research suggests a correlation between alexithymia and craving for drugs and/or alcohol (22–24). Around 45% to 67% of subjects with AUD reported high alexithymia scores (23).

Direct risks of long-term opioid therapy are not limited to opioid addiction and overdose. Potential medical risks include serious fractures, breathing problems during sleep, hyperalgesia, immunosuppression, chronic constipation, bowel obstruction, myocardial infarction, and tooth decay secondary to xerostomia.

With low baseline cerebrovascular tone (e.g. nitrous oxide background anaesthesia), opioids induce cerebral vasoconstriction and decrease cerebral blood flow. Increases in intracranial pressure after opioid infusion are associated with decreases in arterial blood pressure.

Continued opioid use despite related social or interpersonal problems: Personality changes such as irritability may indicate an opioid problem. "A person can get very defensive about their drug use; arguments with family, friends or a health care provider are a sign," Morrow says.

Although the threshold of long-term opioid therapy has ranged from one week to one year, most of the previous studies had used ≥90 days of continuous opioid therapy to define long-term opioid use.

Opioid use disorder is the chronic use of opioids that causes clinically significant distress or impairment. Opioid use disorders affect over 16 million people worldwide, over 2.1 million in the United States, and there are over 120,000 deaths worldwide annually attributed to opioids.

Neurostorming occurs when the brain's ability to regulate the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems is damaged. As a result, the body's “fight or flight” response becomes extremely sensitive to stimulation. This may result in sudden spikes in blood pressure, body temperature, and/or heart rate.

Lack of Oxygen to the Brain Symptoms

Initial loss of consciousness may result in a comatose state. Other symptoms of an anoxic or hypoxic brain injury occurring may include slurring and difficulties with speech, confusion and disorientation or facial drooping.

What is storming medical? ›

A term commonly used by nurses caring for these individuals to describe this phenomenon is storming. Symptoms can include alterations in level of consciousness, increased posturing, dystonia, hypertension, hyperthermia, tachycardia, tachypnea, diaphoresis, and agitation.

Symptoms of mild cerebral hypoxia are: Having a hard time paying attention. Poor judgment and decision making. Memory loss.

What is hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy? Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a type of brain dysfunction (brain injury) that occurs when the brain experiences a decrease in oxygen or blood flow. HIE can occur before birth, during labor and delivery or after birth.

Cerebral ischemia or brain ischemia, is a condition that occurs when there isn't enough blood flow to the brain to meet metabolic demand. This leads to limited oxygen supply or cerebral hypoxia and leads to the death of brain tissue, cerebral infarction, or ischemic stroke.

Opioid induced neurotoxicity includes symptoms such as hy- peralgesia (heightened sensitiv- ity to the existing pain), allo- dynia (pain response from a non-painful stimuli), agitation, delirium with visual, tactile and auditory hallucinations, with or without myoclonus.

Most common side effects are predictable consequences of opioid pharmacological actions and include nausea, vomiting, constipation, pruritus, dizziness, dry mouth and sedation. Side effects are extremely common with opioid therapy.

The term “happy pills” is a colloquial phrase used to describe a medication that helps treat different symptoms of mental illness. For example, in most cases, people say “happy pills” when they're referring to depression medication.

Fluoxetine Capsules or Tablets (Depression/Mood Disorders) Fluoxetine is a medication that treats depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder and eating disorders. It increases the amount of the hormone serotonin in your brain to help regulate your mood. The brand name of this medication is Prozac®.

Does the brain send electrical signals? ›

Think about catching a ball: your brain tells a neuron to send an electrical signal to the neuromuscular junction synapse, and this causes neurotransmitter to be released onto your finger muscles, so that they contract to catch the ball.

Numbness or tingling. Weakness or a reduced ability to move any part of the body (not caused by pain). Tremors, tics, or other unusual movements, such as a walking (gait) change or mouth smacking. Coordination problems, such as dropping things, tripping, or falling more often.

One of the widely-reported side effects of SSRIs is 'blunting', where patients report feeling emotionally dull and no longer finding things as pleasurable as they used to. Between 40-60% of patients taking SSRIs are believed to experience this side effect.

Affect dysregulation, defined as the impaired ability to regulate and/or tolerate negative emotional states, and has been associated with interpersonal trauma and post-traumatic stress.

Short term use of opioids, even when prescribed properly, can cause permanent changes to one's brain structure. When these medications are abused (not taken exactly as prescribed), the severity and chances of this damage becoming permanent increases.

Studies show that long-term opioid treatment increases the risk of fractures, infections, cardiovascular complications, sleep-disordered breathing, bowel dysfunction, overdose, and mortality.

Long-term opioid use is strongly associated with mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, personality disorders and both attempted suicide and suicide. More than half of people who use illicit opioids fit the criteria for a psychiatric diagnosis.

Opioid use in the elderly is associated with an almost 40% increased risk of dementia, in new findings that suggest exposure to these drugs may be another modifiable risk factor for dementia.

Side effects from using opioids may include respiratory depression, confusion, tolerance, and physical dependence.

What is the biggest risk of opioid use? ›

Prolonged Duration. Prolonged use is associated with significant risk of addiction. Physical dependence and addiction to opioids may occur in as little as a few days. As many as one in four people receiving prescription opioids long term in a primary care setting struggles with opioid addiction.

ASA - caffeine - codeine is used for the relief of mild-to-severe pain, fever, and inflammation. It may be used to treat conditions such as headaches, pain due to cold symptoms, toothache, pain of menstrual cramps, arthritis pain, and the pain caused by muscle strains and sprains.

Examples: Acetazolamide (Diamox), carbamazepine (Tegretol), gabapentin (Neurontin), lamotrigine (Lamictal), levetiracetam (Keppra), oxcarbazepine (Trileptal), pregabalin (Lyrica), rufinamide (Banzel), topiramate (Topamax), valproic acid (Depakote) and zonisamide (Zonegran).