Amphetamine Use and Abuse

Aaliyah continues to struggle with balancing her work hours and her schoolwork. She has been drinking coffee to help her stay awake, but it is no longer working. She has an exam coming up and needs to stay up to study.

Aaliyah decides to take an amphetamine to stay awake to study for the exam. She promises herself that she will only take it this one time for the exam. The drug allows her to stay awake and alert while she is studying for the exam. She also feels that she is learning the material better as a result of the amphetamine. When the grades are in, Aaliyah receives an A on her work.

As the semester continues, Aaliyah turns to amphetamines more and more often to help her stay awake to complete her schoolwork. Soon, Aaliyah finds that one pill no longer keeps her awake as long as she needs.

She starts taking more than one pill at a time. She knows that taking amphetamines so often is not good for her health, and she finds she experiences an increase in headaches when she takes them, but she continues to take them because they are helping her be successful in school and at work.

Based on the case study, prepare a paper that addresses the following:

• Examine the change in amphetamine use and abuse in the U.S. from the 1950s to the present.
• Explain to which schedule amphetamines belong and why they are on the Schedule of Controlled Substances.
• Explain the effects Aaliyah might be experiencing as a result of her regular amphetamine use. Be sure to include:
  • Acute effects, chronic effects, and withdrawal
  • Effects on physiology (brain and body), behavior, mood, and toxicity
• Give at least three indications from the case study suggesting there may be a problem with Aaliyah's substance use. That is, describe at least three likely behaviors that Aaliyah is likely to exhibit if she is misusing amphetamines.