The Essential Guide to Psychoactive Drugs in Canada, Third Edition

The Essential Guide to Psychoactive Drugs in Canada, Third Edition provides a practical understanding of psychoactive drug pharmacology and physiology, accessibly unpacking the risks and therapeutic applications of the most commonly used and misused drug families, including depressants, opioids, stimulants, hallucinogens, and psychotherapeutics. Rick Csiernik demystifies the misuse of prescription compounds, as well as drugs that are new to North American communities, such as captagon, xylazine, and nitazene.

This third edition continues the work of the previous editions, featuring thoroughly updated references as well as new boxes focusing on key contemporary pharmacological issues including differences in opioid versus stimulant overdose, e-cigarettes and vaping, psychedelic-assisted therapy, microdosing, and Δ8-Tetrahydrocannabinol. The appendices are expanded to include an easy-to-read summary of the effects of active drug use and withdrawal, as well as the effects of psychoactive drugs on adolescents and seniors.

Light on jargon and heavy on evidence, The Essential Guide to Psychoactive Drugs in Canada supplies the blueprints that every service provider needs to dispense sound, evidence-based care and is an ideal resource for counsellors, therapists, instructors, and students looking to acquire an in-depth, practical understanding of drug use, medication, and addiction.

Features:

• Updated references with a focus on contemporary pharmacological issues
• Uses accessible language suitable for foundational undergraduate courses
• Instructor resources include PowerPoints, a test bank of multiple choice and true/false questions, and an extensive instructor’s guide comprising group activity and discussion questions, suggested short assignment questions and critical thinking essay questions, and additional resources