|
Intoxication
The
night has been going on forever, but it has become all a
blur. You started at the pizza parlor, where you drank pitchers
of beer with your friends. Now, somehow you've ended up
at some party dancing with someone you don't even know.
Not really dancing so much as rocking back and forth while
the room shakes around you. Every time you tip over, you
just pretend it's a dance move. Nobody else seems to notice.
Your
dance partner offers you a joint, and you put it in your
mouth and inhale deeply. Somebody else is feeling your body,
but you're not sure who. Not that you care. One more hit,
and you could pass out. You wonder if you'll remember any
of this in the morning.
This
chapter covers the following topics:
- Intoxication
- Alcohol,
Opiates and Downers Have Sedating Effects
- Cocaine
and Amphetamine Are Stimulants
- Hallucinogens,
and Many Other Substances, Cause Perceptual Disturbances
- Drug
Abuse Can Bbe Confused with Other Mental Illnesses
- The
Symptoms of Withdrawal Are Usually the Opposite of Intoxication
- How
to Cope with Intoxication and Withdrawal
This
excerpt may not be reproduced without written permission
from the publishers.
Fifty Signs of Mental Illness: A Guide to Understanding
Mental Health
Yale University Press / New Haven and London
Copyright © 2005 by James Whitney Hicks
Return
to Table
of Contents > Previous Topic:
Impulsiveness
> Next Topic: Jealousy
|
