Substance Abuse DSST

[lindaesp]

Is InstantCert enough to pass the Substance Abuse DSST test? Does anyone have any additional study advice.
Thank you

[cdrankey]

I passed the exam using only Instantcert. I will not say it was easy, because it was the hardest exam I have taken so far. If you use Instantcert, and brush up on how different types of drugs affect your brain you should have no problem.

[hornj]

Here is this test's page in the exam feedback section of this forum:

Drug and Alcohol/Substance Abuse DSST

[jandrade]

i found this to be the easiest test i've taken, heres to your health included, i studied for 45 mins before taking the test and scored a 443

[christofer3]

I used IC almost exclusively for this exam and scored a 460. Just make sure you understand the concepts in each flash card and you'll be fine.

[ERAUCJ]

I just took this test and passed with minimal effort in studying. I used the I/C study guide and the Peterson's practice test. The test was more difficult than I thought it would be. I scored a 428. If I would have spent a little more time studying I know for a fact I would have scored higher. This test went further than just the "everyday" knowledge of drugs and alcohol.

Here is a list of what I saw. Be familiar with it. (Going by memory here)

For those of you who are going to take this test make you know SPECIFIC drug types, drugs that are abused, drugs that are used for treatment, and drugs that are considered illegal and legal. Know the schedule level of drugs (i.e. Schedule I, Schedule II, Schedule III, Schedule IV, and Schedule V).

Gateway drugs
Designer Drugs
Over The Counter Drugs (OTC)
Licit Drugs
Illicit Drugs
Metabolites
Pharmacological
Questions about Hallucinogens
Legal Instrumental Use – taking prescribed or over the counter (OTC) drugs for illness.

Illegal Instrumental Use – using drugs to achieve some goal other than the prescribed use, for example taking pills to stay awake and drive all night.
Legal Recreational Use – licit drug use, alcohol, tobacco, caffeine
Illegal Recreational Use – illicit drug use, cocaine, marijuana etc

"Opioid" is another word for "opiate". Opiates are drugs that contain opium or one of its derivatives. Common opioids include morphine, codeine, heroin and methadone. Opioids depress the central nervous system (CNS).

Stimulants include cocaine, amphetamines, methamphetamine, caffeine, and nicotine.

MDMA (Ecstasy)

Neurotransmitters

Autonomic Nervous System

Central Nervous System CNS

Dopamine

GABA

Endorphins

Norepinephrine

Serotonin

Glutamate

Synthesis

Safety margin

Potency

Know the ays specific drugs are taken (oral, injection, smoking)

Tolerance

LSD

Pharmacodynamic tolerance

Lipid solubility

Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC)

Behavioral tolerance

If all of the following consumed the same amount of alcohol at the same speed, which one would have the highest BAC? (120 pound woman, 135 pound woman, 150 pound man, 170 pound man) Answer: 120 lb woman

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)

Many studies have indicated a possible genetic link to susceptibility to alcohol dependence, but this has never been definitively proven.

Detoxification

Delirium tremens

Alcoholics Anonymous

CNS depressants

Barbiturates

Benzodiazepines

Nitrites

The predominant style of tobacco use went from pipes to snuff to chewing to cigars to cigarettes.

Transdermal

Bupropion

Amphetamines

Cocaine. Quite a few questions here.

Freebase

Neurotransmitters

Paranoid psychosis

Methamphetamine

Xanthines

Caffeine is the world’s most popular drug and frequently used stimulant.

Codeine

Heroin

Opioid

Heroin

Intestinal flu

Opioid triad

Drugs that block the action of morphine, heroin, or other opioids are called opioid Antagonists.

Nalorphine

Naltrexone

Methadone

Fentanyl

Mainlining

Ganja is made from the dried tops of female plants. Hashish comes from the concentrated resin, and Sinsemilla is made from the buds and flowering tops of female plants.

Marinol

Dronabinol

Cannabinoids

Synesthesia

PCP

Entactogens

Ketamine

Chlorpromazine

Psilocybin

Switching

Phenothiazines

Clozapine

Tardive dyskinesia

Although conventional antipsychotics work well on positive symptoms, atypical antipsychotics are effective for both positive as well as negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Negative symptoms of schizophrenia include lack of emotion, social isolation, and lack of initiative.

DSM-IV-TR

Norepinephrine

SSRIs

Remember when studying the I/C study guide to read the explanations as well.

Good Luck!

[JanusthePhoenix]

I just took this test and passed with a 441. I didn't like this one. It seemed like a lot of the questions and/or answers were somewhat ambiguous; that is, a number of the answers could be right depending on who you were talking to. In any case, I studied for one day on Wikipedia and that was enough.

One of the peterson's practice questions asked me something like, "Which of the following drugs has the higher street price?" :confused: I'm not a drug dealer or consumer, so why would I know that??

[trayc38]

I took this 6/13/09 and passed with a 470. I used the IC cards and passyourclass study guide. I had 95 questions. some notes

as of 2003 people that report heroin use? 1.6% I think??

It seemed that even with studying there could be more than one correct answer on some of these question. The information gave you good base.

[nick94]

congrats on passing!

[malcs]

Instantcert + the exam forum worked well for me. I did well, but did not find it all that easy. There were a lot of drug names to remember, and some of the questions seemed ambiguous.

I would figure that studying 2 hrs per day for a week would push you way over the top on this one.

This segways nicely into Here's to your health, since there are a lot of drug alcohol questions on that as well.