Barbiturates
Barbiturates are powerful depressant drugs - which means they slow down your central nervous system. That's why the slang word for them is "downers".
They can be bought with a doctor's prescription under such trade names as Seconal, Amytal, Nembutal, Fiorinal, and Tuinal although doctors don't prescribe them very often anymore for anxiety or sleep disorders because there are safer drugs now available. When they are sold illegally on the street they are often named for the colors of their capsules - for example, Amytal is called "blue heaven", and Nembutal "yellow jackets".
Doctors sometimes prescribe barbiturates for people who have a nerve disorder called epilepsy. They also prescribe them for people who can't sleep or are anxious or tense (but these days, they will more likely prescribe tranquillizers, which are less dangerous). These are the medical reasons for taking barbiturates.
But some people take barbiturates for what they think is the "fun" of it. Others are trying to calm down from the effects of some other drug that speeds up their bodies - amphetamines or cocaine, for example.
A small amount (e.g. a prescribed dose) will make you feel calm, relaxed, and mildly happy. Your breathing and reflexes slow down, and you may become sleepy. (However, some people also feel dizzy, nauseated, and mentally foggy.)
A higher dose often has the effect of a few alcoholic drinks. You may become cheerful and talkative or depressed and edgy. Your speech may slur, your vision may blur, and your movements may be clumsy.
If you use high doses of barbiturates often and for a long time, you can start behaving in strange and unpredictable ways because your memory and judgment break down. You may also feel depressed, very tired, irritable, and paranoid (seeing "enemies" everywhere). You may even have thoughts of suicide.
Barbiturates are among the most dangerous of the drugs used illegally. Here's why: your body quickly becomes tolerant to the drug's pleasant effects - meaning that you need a bigger dose to get the "high". But the body does not become tolerant to the effect the drug has on breathing - meaning that the more you take, the weaker your breathing. At some point you may become unconscious, go into a coma, or even die.
Mixing barbiturates with other "downers" such as alcohol, tranquillizers, or heroin, or even with some antihistamines, is very dangerous for the same reason. They also slow your heart and breathing rates.
If you regularly take a lot of barbiturates and suddenly stop, you can suffer symptoms severe enough to cause death.
If you inject barbiturates you run even more risks, such as tetanus or other infections from dirty needles - or hepatitis or AIDS from needles shared with others.
Pregnant women should not take barbiturates except under a doctor's supervision. Prolonged use may cause birth defects or, at the very least, babies may suffer withdrawal symptoms from their mother's drug use.
You can become addicted to barbiturates. Barbiturates used for pleasure - or even prescribed pills taken too long and too often - can cause a strong physical and psychological dependence. Withdrawal can be unpleasant, dangerous, and even deadly. If you are addicted to these drugs, make sure you get medical help to quit.
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