External Factors Affecting Mental Health

A persons mental health may vary through the course of their lifetime, and it can be influenced by external factors, the main one being the use of drugs. Drugs such as cannabis, alcohol, heroin and ecstasy have the ability to affect a person’s well-being because they are psychoactive drugs. These drugs interfere with the chemicals in the brain, this then affects the messages those chemicals are trying to send and as a result of the changes to the brain a person’s mood and behaviour will be altered.
Psychoactive drugs can cause any number of temporary mental health problems whilst they are being consumed and as they start to clear from the body, a person may suffer from a temporary unstable mental condition as a result of anxiety, mood swings, depression, and sleeping problems. Drug induced anxiety disorder is when a person will have periods of very severe anxiety; heart rate will increase, with trembling, sweats and a fear of losing control. They could also feel as if they are losing their personal identity and sense of reality. Similarly, psychoactive drugs can cause delusions and hallucinations; this is …show more content…
For some people, the drugs trigger a mental health illness they didn't know they had, for others, the drugs change the way certain chemicals affect the functions of the brain. For example, ecstasy is an amphetamine that causes hallucinations. It works by making serotonin more available and gives the user a sense of euphoria when taken. Serotonin is the chemical naturally found in the brain which regulated your mood. Taking ecstasy causes the brain to release a much higher level of serotonin usual. Over a period of time, the natural amount of serotonin found in the brain may drop at such a level that the user may never have the same levels as they did before they started using drugs. High levels of serotonin means a sense of euphoria, therefore a lack of this chemical causes