Dissociative
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Dissociatives, colloquially dissos, are a subclass of hallucinogens that distort perception of sight and sound and produce feelings of detachment – dissociation – from the environment and/or self. Although many kinds of drugs are capable of such an effect, dissociatives are unique in that they do so in such a way that they produce hallucinogenic effects, which may include dissociation, a general decrease in sensory experience, hallucinations, dream-like states or anesthesia.
Key facts
- Drug class.Image
- Ketamine2DCSD.svg
- Drug class.ImageClass
- skin-invert-image
- Drug class.Caption
- Chemical structure of ketamine, one of the most well-known dissociatives.
- Drug class.Width
- 150px
- Drug class.Use
- Recreational, spiritual, medical
- Drug class.Mechanism_of_action
- NMDA receptor antagonism (most dissociatives)
- Drug class.Biological_target
- NMDA receptor (most dissociatives)
- Drug class.Chemical_class
- Adamantanes, arylcyclohexylamines, diarylethylamines, morphinans, simple inhalants, others
- Drug class.legal_status
- Variable
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- Commons category
- Dissociatives
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~4 min read
Article
7 sectionsContents
- Effects
- Use
- Medical use
- Recreational use
- See also
- References
- External links
Dissociatives, colloquially dissos, are a subclass of hallucinogens that distort perception of sight and sound and produce feelings of detachment – dissociation – from the environment and/or self. Although many kinds of drugs are capable of such an effect, dissociatives are unique in that they do so in such a way that they produce hallucinogenic effects, which may include dissociation, a general decrease in sensory experience, hallucinations, dream-like states or anesthesia.
Despite most dissociatives' main mechanism of action being tied to NMDA receptor antagonism, some of these substances, which are nonselective in action and affect the dopamine and/or opioid systems, may be capable of inducing more direct and repeatable euphoria or symptoms which are more akin to the effects of typical "hard drugs" or common drugs of abuse. This is likely why dissociatives are considered to be addictive with a fair to moderate potential for abuse, unlike psychedelics. Despite some dissociatives, such as phencyclidine (PCP) possessing stimulating properties, most dissociatives seem to have a general depressant effect and can produce sedation, respiratory depression, nausea, disorientation, analgesia, anesthesia, ataxia, cognitive and memory impairment as well as amnesia.