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| There are 243 entries in the glossary. | Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 » |
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| Term |
Definition |
| decondition | The unlearning of classically conditioned responses. Helping addicts identify and neutralize the cues of triggers they developed while they were addicted. |
| | dendrites | The branches that reach out from a neuron's cell body to receive messages from the axon terminals of other neurons. |
| | denial | Unconsciously refusing to admit that someone is addicted. Denial occurs among addicts themselves and among those who are close to them. |
| | dentate gyrus | A key part of the hippocampus that contains one of the highest concentrations of cannabinoid receptors in the brain. |
| | deoxyribonucleic acid | (DNA) The chemical compound that makes up genes. |
| | depressants | Drugs that relieve anxiety and produce sleep. Depressants include barbiturates, benzodiazepines, and alcohol. |
| | designer drug | An illegally manufactured chemical whose molecular structure is altered slightly from a parent compound to enhance specific effects. Examples include DMT, DMA, DOM, MDA and MDMA (ecstasy). |
| | detoxification | The process of removing a drug from the body. This is the initial period addicts must go through to become drug-free. Withdrawal symptoms appear early during this process. Depending on the drug, detoxification lasts for a few days to a week or more. |
| | diversion | Taking legally prescribed medications (e.g., methadone, tranquilizers) and selling them illegally. |
| | DMA | A hallucinogenic "designer drug" with psychedelic properties. |
| | DMT | A hallucinogenic "designer drug" with psychedelic properties. |
| | DNA | Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) The chemical compound that makes up genes. |
| | DOM | A hallucinogenic "designer drug" with psychedelic properties. |
| | dopamine | The neurotransmitter that produces feelings of pleasure when released by the brain reward system. |
| | dopamine transporter | A structure that straddles the cell membranes of axon terminals of dopamine-releasing neurons and rapidly removes dopamine from the synapse. |
| | double-blind trials | Studies of an experimental drug in which neither patient nor doctor knows whether the patient is receiving the experimental drug or some alternative (which might be a placebo if no treatment already exists). |
| | Dronabinol | The generic name of synthetic THC. |
| | drug abuse | Using illegal drugs; using legal drugs inappropriately. The repeated, high-dose, self-administration of drugs to produce pleasure, to alleviate stress, or to alter or avoid reality (or all three). |
| | drug treatment | A combination of detoxification, psychosocial therapy and, if required, skill acquisition to help people recover from addiction. |
| | drug-free treatment | A approach to helping addicts recover from addiction without the use of medication. |
| | dynorphins | Peptides with opiate-like effects that are made by neurons and used as neurotransmitters; one of the endogenous opiods that binds to opiate receptors. |
| Special Thanks:
Addiction Studies Program - Wake Forest University School of Medicine
False Messengers: How Addictive Drugs Change the Brain by David Friedman, PhD, and Sue Rusche, Harwood Academic Publishers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1999. [www.addictionstudies.org]
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