In this course, the variety of mood-altering chemicals are identified in both the language of the street and of the academy. This course provides a history of drug use and abuse. The biochemical, cultural, psychological and spiritual motives for drug use and abuse are introduced. Physical and pharmacological effects of mood altering chemicals are explored. The debate over the nature of addiction, habituation and dependency is reviewed relative to the pharmacology of drug action and the psychology of obsessivecompulsive behavior. The self-help approaches of Therapeutic Communities and 12-Step Programs (i.e. Narcotics Anonymous) are discussed relative to mental health oriented interpretations of drug dependence. HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), Tuberculosis (TB), and hepatitis are discussed. Relapse is considered relative to polyaddiction and cross-dependency, and the debate over the abstinence vs. harm-reduction concepts of treatment is introduced.

A description for this course has not been provided