Read through the information about Prescription Drugs.
Click on the links and complete any exercises in the lesson.
| Medications that increase alertness, attention, energy, blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing rate.i | ||||
| Common Commercial Names | Street Names | Common Forms | Common Ways Taken | DEA Schedule / Legal Status |
| Amphetamine (Adderall®, Benzedrine®) | Bennies, Black Beauties, Crosses, Hearts, LA Turnaround, Speed, Truck Drivers, Uppers | Tablet, capsule | Ingested, snorted, smoked, injected | Schedule II / Legal by prescription only |
| Methylphenidate (Concerta®, Ritalin®) | JIF, MPH, R-ball, Skippy, The Smart Drug, Vitamin R | Liquid, tablet, chewable tablet, capsule | Ingested, snorted, smoked, injected, chewed | Schedule II / Legal by prescription only |
| Uses & Possible Health Effectsii | ||||
| Short-term Symptoms of Use | Increased alertness, attention, energy; euphoria; insomnia, wakefulness; increased blood pressure and body temperature, metabolism, and heart rate; narrowed blood vessels; increased blood sugar; agitation; opened-up breathing passages; and violent and erratic behavior. High doses: dangerously high body temperature and irregular heartbeat; seizures; and death from heart failure or suicide. For amphetamines specifically: Paranoia, picking at the skin, preoccupation with one’s own thoughts, and auditory and visual hallucinations. | |||
| Long-term Consequences of Use and Health Effects | Heart problems, psychosis, anger, paranoia, addiction, and chronic sleep problems. | |||
| Other Health-related Issues | Risk of HIV, hepatitis, and other infectious diseases from shared needles. | |||
| In Combination with Alcohol | Masks the depressant action of alcohol, increasing risk of alcohol overdose; may increase blood pressure and jitters. | |||
| Withdrawal Symptoms | Depression, tiredness, and sleep problems. | |||
| Medical Useiii | For narcolepsy, obesity, and hyperkinesis. | |||
| Treatment Optionsiv | ||||
| Medications | There are no FDA-approved medications to treat stimulant addiction. | |||
| Behavioral Therapies | Behavioral therapies that have helped treat addiction to cocaine or methamphetamine may be useful in treating prescription stimulant addiction. | |||
https://www.dea.gov/galleries/drug-images/amphetamines
Opioids are powerful pain-relieving drugs often abused for their euphoric effects.
| Generic Name | Brand Name | Street Names |
| Buprenorphine | Suboxone®, Subutex® | big whites, buse, oranges, small whites, sobos, stops, strips, sub, subs |
| Codeine | Percocet® | captain cody, cody, little c, schoolboy |
| Codeine With Promethazine | Phenergan®-Codeine Syrup | act, lean, purple drank, sizzurp, texas tea |
| Fentanyl | Actiq®, Sublimaze® | apache, china girl, china white, dance fever, friend, goodfella, jackpot, murder 8, tango and cash, tnt |
| Hydrocodone | Lortab®, Norco®, Vicodin® | bananas, dro, fluff, hydros, tabs, vikes, v-itamin, watson-387, 357s |
| Hydromorphone | Dilaudid®, Exalgo® | d, dillies, footballs, juice, smack |
| Meperidine | Demerol® | demmies, pain killer |
| Methadone | Dolophine®, Methadose® | amidone, dollies, dolls, fizzies, mud, red rock, tootsie roll |
| Morphine | Duramorph®, MS Contin® | god’s drug, m, miss emma, monkey, morpho, white stuff |
| Oxycodone | OxyContin® | 30s, as, berries, blues, blueberries, hillbilly heroin, ms, o.c., oxy, oxycet, oxycotton, ozone, roxy,ercs, greenies, kickers, m-30s, percs, rims, tires, wheels, 512s |
| Oxymorphone | Opana® | biscuits, blue heaven, mrs. o, o bomb, octagons, stop signs |
| Propoxyphene | Darvocet®, Darvon® | footballs, n’s, pink footballs, pinks, yellow footballs, 65s |
| Tramadol | Ultram® | chill pills, trammies, ultras |
| Drug Name | Street Names |
| Ambien®, Lunesta®, Sonata® | date rape drug, forget-me pill, mexican valium, r2, roche, roofies, roofinol, rope, rophies |
| Amytal® | barbs, red birds, reds, yellows, yellow jackets |
Benzodiazepines are central nervous system depressants prescribed to treat anxiety, insomnia, and seizures.
Also known as bars, benzos, blues, chill pills, downers, nerve pills, planks, tranks, and zannies.
| Brand Name | Generic Name | Street Names |
| Ativan® | Lorazepam | candy, downers, sleeping pills, tranks |
| Halcion® | Triazolam | candy, downers, sleeping pills, tranks |
| Klonopin® | Clonazepam | k, k-pin, pin, super valium |
| Librium® | Chlordiazepoxide | candy, downers, sleeping pills, tranks |
| Rohypnol® | Flunitrazepam | date rape drug, forget-me pill, la rocha, lunch money, mind eraser, roofies |
| Valium® | Diazepam | eggs, jellies, moggies, vallies |
| Xanax® | Alprazolam | bars, footballs, french fries, ladders, school bus, xan, xannies, z-Bars |
- At low doses, calming effect: employee may seem tranquil or hypnotic
- At high doses, produces muscle-relaxing effect: drowsiness, stupor, confusion
- Over-dose effects: seizures, trouble breathing, severe weakness, coma
Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are medications that are available without a prescription and are typically safe for use at recommended doses.
| Drug Name | Street Names |
| Dimenhydrinate (Dramamine®) | dime, dime tabs, substance d |
| DXM (Dextromethorphan) | dex, dextro, drix, poor man’s ecstasy, red devils, robo, robotripping, triple c, tussin, x |
| Pseudoephedrine (Sudafed®) | chalk, crank, meth, speed |
Dextromethorphan (DXM) / cough suppressant
- Causes a depressant effect and sometimes a hallucinogenic effect
- Hyper-excitability
- Poor motor control
- Lack of energy
- Stomach pain
- Vision changes
- Slurred speech
- Increased blood pressure
- Sweating
Loperamide (anti-diarrheal med.)
- Can cause euphoria, similar to other opioids
- Fainting
- Stomach pain
- Constipation
- Eye changes
- Loss of consciousness
- Can cause the heart to beat erratically or rapidly
- Can cause kidney problems
Sleeping Pills
Sleeping pills are sedative-hypnotics prescribed to treat insomnia.
| Drug Name | Street Names |
| Ambien®, Lunesta®, Sonata® | date rape drug, forget-me pill, mexican valium, r2, roche, roofies, roofinol, rope, rophies |
| Amytal® | barbs, red birds, reds, yellows, yellow jackets |