PSY100H1 Chapter 16.3: Biomedical Therapies
65
PSY100H1 Full Course Notes
Verified Note
65 documents
Document Summary
Psychopharmacotherapy: use of drugs to attempt to manage/reduce clients" symptoms (most frequently used biomedical option) Psychotropic drugs: medications designed to alter psychological functioning. Designed to cross blood-brain barrier: network of tightly packed cells that only allow specific types of substances to move from the bloodstream to brain in order to protect brain cells against harmful injections & other substances. Designed to cross barrier then affect specific neurotransmitters: antidepressant and mood stabilizers, antidepressant drugs: medications designed to elevate mood and reduce other symptoms of depression. Target brain areas that are rich in monoamine neurotransmitters (serotonin, dopamine, & norepinephrine: monoamine oxidase inhibitors (maois): first type of antidepressant developed & widely used. Work by deactivating monoamine oxidase, enzyme that breaks down serotonin, dopamine, & norepinephrine at synaptic clefts of nerve cells. Fewer of these neurotransmitters are metabolized, which leaves more of them available at synapses.
