Psycho-emotional characteristics of persons addicted to synthetic drugs, depending on the timing of drugs cessation

Abstract

The research aim was to study the characteristics of psychoemotional response in persons with dependence on synthetic drugs (synthetic cathinones and synthetic cannabinoids) at different stages of abstinence from consumption of psychoactive substances. Methods. Clinical and pathopsychological examination of 127 patients with dependence on synthetic drugs was carried out. All patients are male. Of these, 83 people with a period of abstinence from 3 to 6 months and 44 people with a period of abstinence from 6 to 18 months. The control group consisted of 55 healthy men. We used a clinical interview, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the A. Bass and A. Darki questionnaire for diagnosing the parameters of aggression, the STAXI questionnaire of the property-state and expression of anger, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, the Life Style Index of KellermanPlutchek. Results. It was found that patients with dependence on synthetic drugs have a significantly higher level of anxiety, aggression, more pronounced manifestations of alexithymia in comparison with healthy patients, regardless of the duration of remission. It was revealed that in persons with abstinence from drug use for more than six months, on the one hand, the ability to control the manifestation of anger increases significantly, on the other hand, depressive manifestations intensify and suicidal risk increases in comparison with addicts with a shorter period of abstinence. Conclusion. Emotional disturbances in addicted to synthetic drugs (cathinones and cannabinoids) are persistent and persist even during periods of prolonged abstinence.