Psychotropic drugs are a group of medications that act on the psyche of humans. Therefore, they are used to treat symptoms that occur in the context of mental disorders and neurological abnormalities.
What are psychotropic drugs?
Psychotropic drugs are used to treat symptoms that occur in the context of mental disorders and neurological abnormalities. Psychotropic drugs focus on a symptomatic effect: they do not change the causes of a mental or neurological disorder, but only address its manifestations and accompanying symptoms. The group of psychotropic drugs includes all substances whose effect is aimed at the psyche of the person, i.e. at his or her experience and behavior. The classification is based on the effects of the respective substance, i.e. as follows: Antidepressants (for the treatment of depression), neuroleptics (for psychoses), tranquillants (for extreme anxiety), phase prophylactics (for the prevention of acute phases), psychostimulants (for stimulation), hallucinogens (mostly intoxicants), antidementives (psychotropic drugs for relief in dementia). This classification includes stimulants such as alcohol. In the narrower sense, however, psychotropic drugs are medicines used specifically to cure or alleviate a disease or disorder.
Application, effect, and use
Psychotropic drugs are often used to support psychotherapeutic treatment. Because the interactions between (bio)chemical processes in the human body are very complex, psychotropic drugs can usually achieve only a diffuse effect: They alone cannot cure a mental or neurological disorder. However, psychotropic drugs can alleviate or temporarily abolish the symptoms of the actual disease; in this way, they often create the conditions necessary for the actual treatment. However, treatment of the mental or neurological disorder goes beyond simply administering psychotropic drugs. Medications can be administered on an outpatient or inpatient basis. In outpatient treatment in particular, psychotropic drugs are usually taken in the form of tablets. In principle, however, any form of administration is possible. Psychotropic drugs intervene in neuronal biochemical processes and can, for example, inhibit neurotransmitters or enhance their effect. However, if a substance is to exert its effect directly in the brain, it must be able to cross the blood–brain barrier. For this reason, psychotropic drugs often contain precursors of a specific neurotransmitter, which is then converted into the required substance by the body itself.
Herbal, natural, and pharmaceutical psychotropic drugs.
Herbal psychotropic drugs contain (as their name implies) only herbal ingredients. These remedies are much milder than, for example, chemical psychiatric drugs, since the concentration of the actual active ingredient in a plant is usually quite low. For this reason, however, the effectiveness of herbal psychotropic drugs is lower – although this also applies to their side effects. For this reason, herbal psychopharmaceuticals are particularly suitable for mild, chronic manifestations of mental disorders. Homeopathy also offers a wide range of psychotropic drugs. Like all homeopathic remedies, however, they are controversial because they contain the actual active ingredient in only a vanishingly small concentration. Chemical or pharmaceutical psychotropic drugs account for the largest share of all psychotropic drugs. They are often produced in large quantities and are therefore more attractive in terms of price. In addition, synthetic production ensures that pharmaceutical psychotropic drugs always contain exactly the same concentration of the active ingredient.
Risks and side effects
Although psychotropic drugs are manufactured and tested with great care, like all medications they have risks and side effects. These are very diverse, as there are very large differences between individual preparations. Therefore, it is not possible to make a concrete statement about them. However, a fundamental problem of psychotropic drugs is their diffuse effect: they do not only have an effect where it is desired, but also in other places. In a very small number of preparations, lethal effects cannot be ruled out, for example in the case of neuroleptics. Even among these, however, the number of such extreme risks is only in the range of about 0.2%.The intended effect of many psychotropic drugs does not occur immediately, but only after several hours, days or even weeks. Within this time, however, they can even intensify the symptoms; this is the case, for example, with antidepressants. Typical side effects of psychotropic drugs include loss of libido, weight gain, loss or increase in appetite, sleep disturbances, concentration problems, and fatigue or inner restlessness.
