Chapter 6: Drugs & Hormones

A) Your friend is experiencing clinical depression and is researching anti-depressants. They discover that monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors, tricyclics, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are all prescribed for depression but work in different ways. 

State how each drug works differently to achieve the same end goal?

How long will it take before your friend starts to experience any antidepressant action? Why?

B) A stressor is a stimulus that challenges the body’s homeostasis and triggers arousal. Stress responses are physiological and behavioural, and can both arouse or reduce stress. The brain turns stress responses, which are normally brief, on and off. 

What can happen if the stress response is not turned off?

Which structure does Sapolsky argue is important in turning off the stress response?

Explain how prolonged high cortisol levels can lead to a vicious circle of stress.

What disorder might this vicious circle contribute to in humans?