DRUGS AND MENTAL HEALTH.

This page talks about the possible impacts that use of recreational drugs can have on your mental health. To find out more about each individual drug in more detail, please see the relevant pages.

All drugs have some kind of effect on your mental health. They affect the way you see things, your mood and your behaviour (Mind, 2020). These effects may:

Be pleasant or unpleasant
Be short-lived or longer-lasting
Be similar to those you experience as part of a mental health problem
Go away once the drug has worn off
Continue once the drug has worn off

For some people, taking drugs can lead to long-term mental health problems, such as depression or schizophrenia. Or, you may already have a mental health diagnosis, and use illegal drugs to help yourself cope.

It is important to note that whilst all drugs will impact on your mental health, the extent to which that occurs will vary from person to person. If you have an underlying mental health condition, then taking drugs is more likely to trigger that condition and potentially make it worse. You should always be extremely careful when taking drugs, but be even more so if you know that your mental health is already in a vulnerable state.

Four main types of drugs

Drugs can be broken down into four main categories which each have a different impact on one’s mental health.

These make you feel: energetic, alert, talkative, active & very excited. They can be very dangerous (causing death) at high doses. Repeated use can cause psychosis and paranoia, which may be diagnosed as schizophrenia. They are addictive.

These make you feel: relaxed, chilled out, mellow, possible paradoxical effects – anxiety, nightmares & aggression. They are dangerous at high doses. They are addictive.

These make you feel: a rush of pleasure, in a dreamy state & drowsy. They are very dangerous at high doses. They are addictive.

These vary a lot. The same drug may have different effects at different times. These may make you feel: detached from your surroundings, mood swings, altered sense of space and time, hallucinations, illusions and distortions of reality, feelings of insight & mystical or religious experiences.

The experience may be powerful and not much fun.

Regular use

If you use drugs a lot, or become dependent on them, this can have a negative impact on your day-to-day life. For example, it could lead to problems with:

Money
Education and employment
Relationships
Housing
Low self-esteem
Finding it hard to maintain commitments, including appointments related to your drug use or mental health
Crime – either in possessing an illegal substance or to finance a habit, leading to a criminal record
Imprisonment

Regular use of recreational drugs also increases your chances of developing a mental health condition.

Dual Diagnosis

If you have a mental health condition and a problem with recreational drug use you may be given a ‘dual diagnosis’. This can be much harder to treat and may have a more wide ranging impact on your life. It can also be very difficult for friends and family and other supporters. There is no standard treatment for a dual diagnosis.

New psychoactive substances (illegal highs)

These are synthetic substances created to try to mimic the effects of existing drugs in the categories above, to get around the law. They used to be called 'legal highs' but all such substances are now illegal. Most have unknown effects in addition to their intended effect, and trying them is therefore extremely hazardous.

Recreational drug use and medication

When two or more drugs are taken at the same time (whether they are legal or illegal) they are likely to interact with one another, so that one drug changes the effects of the other. This means:

One or both of them may become toxic.
Their effects may be decreased or increased.

Your age, weight, genes, general health and liver or kidney function will make a difference to the way the drugs work. However, there are some common interactions that many people experience. See this guidance from Mind for more information on the specific potential interactions between mental health prescriptions and recreational drugs. For more information about the impact of recreational drugs on mental health, see below for a more comprehensive guide developed by the mental health charity, Mind.

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DRUGS AND MENTAL HEALTH.

Four main types of drugs

Stimulants

Depressants (sedatives)

Opium-related painkillers

Hallucinogens

Regular use

Dual Diagnosis

New psychoactive substances (illegal highs)

Recreational drug use and medication