Lesson video

Hey, everyone, welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Ms. Mytum-Thomas, and I'm gonna be with you.

Thanks for choosing to work with me today.

Today we're going to be learning about stimulants.

And some parts of the lesson might be upsetting or uncomfortable.

You're required to have an adult with you.

And if at any stage, you find uncomfortable or you feel uncomfortable or upset, you should close the screen and speak to your adult.

Let's get started.

Let's have a look at what the outcome of today's lesson is.

I can describe what stimulants are and explain why people might use them and what the risks of taking them are.

Before we get into the main body of the lesson, let's have a look at some ground rules.

So Laura says listen to others.

That means it's okay to disagree with each other, but we should listen properly before making assumptions or deciding how to respond.

When disagreeing, challenge the statement but not the person.

And now we have Andeep.

And he says, "Respect people's privacy.

We can discuss examples, but don't use names or descriptions that identify anyone, including ourselves." A great top tip here is to say, "My friend," and then we don't know if it's you, a friend you're talking about, a relative, someone you've seen on TV, you've read about in a book.

We don't know.

So if you always say, "My friend," then that keeps everybody safe.

Next we've got Izzy, and she's saying choose the level of participation.

And that means that everyone has the right to choose not to answer a question or join in a discussion.

No one's gonna be put on the spot.

And that means we don't ask people personal questions.

And then Jacob says there's no judgement.

We can explore beliefs and misunderstandings about a topic without fear of being judged.

And that also means that there's no such thing as a silly question.

So if you have a question that you want answering, I'm really sure that there'll be other people who want it answered too, so don't be afraid to ask.

Now let's look at the keywords in this lesson.

You'll see them highlighted throughout the lesson in bold.

And we will go through them now.

So firstly we've got stimulant.

And a stimulant is something that speeds up bodily processes.

And then we have nervous system, which is the body's command system, which includes the brain, the spinal cord, and the nerves.

Then we have dependency.

And that means when someone feels like they need a drug to do their day-to-day, their normal activities.

And then we have the word tolerance.

And that means someone feeling like they need more of a drug to achieve the same effects as before.

Here's the lesson outline.

Firstly, we're going to look at why people take stimulants.

Then we're gonna look at what are the risks of taking stimulants.

And then we're going to have a look at finding and giving help for someone who's taken stimulants.

So let's make a start.

Why do people take stimulants? So firstly, let's remind ourselves what a stimulant is.

It speeds up bodily processes.

They do this by speeding up the central nervous system to increase neural activity in the brain.

And that means that your brain is working harder.

It's passing messages more quickly.

Everything is speeding up.

Stimulants affect the body in several ways that give the effect of being energised.

Let's have a look at those now.

It can make people feel more awake.

It makes you feel less hungry.

It suppresses your appetite.

You can feel exhilarated, which means like really excited, really happy, really high, causes buzz.

It helps people feel stronger.

And it increases the rate of respiration, which is about how your body is breathing and using calories, all of those processes.

Let's see how well you were listening and do a check.

True or false, stimulants slow down bodily processes.

True or false? Take a moment to think and choose your answer.

So if you said false, you'll be right, so well done.

Let's find out why.

So stimulants speed up bodily processes.

They do this by speeding up the central nervous system to increase neural activity in the brain.

Great work.

Well done if you got that one right.

Now, let's have a look at this.

Stimulants speed up the bodily processes.

Caffeine found in coffee is a really well-known legal stimulant.

Laura says, "Can you think of any situations or functions that someone may want to speed up?" Have a think, can you think of any? Let's see some examples now.

Meeting a deadline.

So maybe someone feels like they need to work harder or more quickly to meet a deadline that's approaching.

Studying.

They feel like they really wanna concentrate and work hard.

Maybe as a way of fending off boredom.

Let's have a think.

Keep thinking about why people might choose to take stimulants.

So here's some examples of some specific stimulants that people might use.

So firstly, we've got gabapentin, which is a prescription for pain or for epilepsy.

And then we have methamphetamine, which is also known as crystal meth.

And then we've got performance enhancing drugs.

So these are things like steroids sometimes that people involved in sport or bodybuilding, they sometimes choose to take, 'cause steroids help build muscle.

Let's do another check how well have you been listening.

Have a think.

Why might someone take stimulants? A, to relieve pain for an illness such as epilepsy, to help them sleep or relax, to improve their performance in sport? Have a little think.

Which do you think are correct? There's more than one.

So if you said a and c, you'd be correct.

Well done.

Stimulants aren't gonna help people sleep or relax because their brain and their body is working harder, their processes are sped up, so stimulants wouldn't help someone relax.

Well done if you got that right.

Great listening.

Let's move on.

Task A, let's do some practise now.

With your partner, discuss Sam and Alex's questions.

Sam says, "What are some other names of stimulants and what do they look like? And Alex says, "What do stimulants do?" Now, you might wanna write some of these things down.

You might want to talk with your partner.

We'll take some feedback in a moment.

So if you want to pause the video while you're doing that, that's great.

Come back when you've got some ideas.

Okay.

So here's some feedback.

These are the sorts of things that you might have said.

So remember, Sam's question was, what are some other names of stimulants and what do they look like? So you might have said some names of stimulants might include ecstasy or performance enhancing drugs.

You might have mentioned caffeine as well or maybe energy drinks.

They can all look different.

You might have said something as well like they might come in tablet form, they might look like crystals, they might come as a drink.

Lots of different ways that they can appear.

And Alex's question, what do stimulants do? You might have said something like, it speeds up the body, it speeds up the brain, it makes your body work harder and faster.

Anything like that, you're absolutely right.

Very, very well done.

Here's part two.

Jay and Amira are heading out for the evening.

Amira has a stimulant in their pocket.

Amira tries to persuade Jay that Jay should try taking the stimulant with them.

Plan the conversation where Amira tries to persuade Jay to try the stimulant.

Now, I've got some sentence stems to help you.

So maybe Amira might say something like, "It'll really help you to.

." And then Jay might say something like, "I don't like feeling out of control." Another sentence stem, "It's great.

When I take it, I feel.

." So you can use those sentence stems to help you.

You're gonna write Amira's part of the conversation and Jay's part of the conversation.

Have a go.

You might wanna write some things down.

You might want to talk with a partner.

And you might wanna pause the video so you can have a go.

We'll take some feedback in a few moments.

So your job is to plan the conversation between Jay and Amira, where Amira is trying to persuade Jay to try the stimulant.

Maybe you said things like, "It will really help you get in the mood." Maybe Jay might say, "I don't like feeling out of control.

I don't feel safe." Well done if you've included those reasons or anything like it, where Jay is refusing and Amira is trying to persuade them to take the drugs.

Good effort.

Well done, everybody.

Let's move on to the next part of the lesson.

What are the risks of taking stimulants? Remember, we said at the start that stimulants affect how your body works.

Laura asks, "Can you think of any side effects that you might get from your body speeding up, from working harder?" Now, here are some examples.

People might feel like their heart is racing, that it's beating faster than it normally would.

Maybe they have an inability to relax.

They can't sit still, they can't stay calm.

Maybe their body's moving all the time.

And insomnia, which means an inability to sleep.

So they are some things that might be a side effect from your body speeding up from taking stimulants.

So different stimulants can have a range of different risks.

So here are some examples here.

Nicotine, first of all, is a stimulant found in cigarettes.

And that can cause cancer and increase dependencies, that people feel like they need it to carry out their day-to-day activities.

Anabolic steroids, which we talked about as an example of a performance enhancing drug, they create erectile dysfunction.

That means that someone with a penis couldn't get an erection.

And it can create feelings of paranoia.

And then there's cocaine.

And cocaine can create heart attacks, depression, a feeling of dependency, so people need it to function, and tolerance, which means that people feel like they need more and more cocaine to achieve the same effects as before, to achieve the same kind of feeling of high or the same feeling of buzz that they had from it.

Okay, so let's do a check.

True or false, all stimulants have the same risks associated with them.

So that means all stimulants have exactly the same risks as each other.

Let's think, true or false? Take a moment or two to decide on your answer.

Have a think about why.

Okay, so if you answered false, you'll be right.

Well done.

Let's find out why.

So stimulants have different levels of risks and different kinds of risks as well, as we saw on the previous slide.

So well done if you chose false.

You're correct.

Sam says, "What are some of the physical risks from taking illegal stimulants?" Great question, Sam.

Let's have a look at some of those.

So people can feel dizzy.

They can have tremors or shakes.

Maybe their hands shake, for example.

People can get headaches.

Their skin can be flushed.

They can get chest pain with palpitations, which means their heart rate changes.

Maybe it speeds up, slows down.

Excessive sweating.

They can have vomiting and also abdominal cramps, so tummy aches.

Taking stimulants regularly can cause your body to get used to them.

The effect can be reduced, meaning you need to take more.

That's called tolerance.

Taking an overdose can potentially result in convulsions, which means fits, or cardiovascular collapse.

And that may come before somebody dying.

So cardiovascular collapse means basically that your heart and lungs stop working properly.

And if that happens, it really risks you dying.

Alex asks a great question.

He wants to know if there are psychological risks as well as physical risks from taking stimulants.

And the answer is that there are psychological risks associated with using illegal stimulants, such as paranoia, psychosis, and depression.

All of those things are pretty serious mental health conditions.

So taking stimulants can really mess with how your brain is working.

Lucas has another great question.

So there are legal risks as well.

So he wants to know what are the legal risks if you get caught in possession or selling stimulants.

Here's a table which goes through the different classes of stimulants and the penalties for possession and the penalties for supply and production.

You'll notice that there are three different classes, A, B, and C.

And there are different penalties for possession, which means just having enough of the drug on you for personal use.

And there is a different penalty for supply and production.

So that means either supplying the drug or making the drug.

If you were caught with enough of the drug on you that the police thought was more than would be enough for one person, then you would be accused of supplying, of having more than you should just for personal use.

So let's start with Class C, which has got the lowest penalties.

So an example would be BZP.

You would get up to two years in prison, an unlimited fine, or both.

Up to 14 years in prison and an unlimited fine for supply and production.

So let's look at Class B.

So the penalty is increasing now.

An example would be amphetamine, or otherwise known as speed.

And that would give you five years in prison, an unlimited fine, or both.

And that would be for possession.

And if you were supplying or making the drug, that would give you up to 14 years in prison, an unlimited fine, or both.

And then class A, which is the most severe penalties.

Cocaine, MDMA, which is also called ecstasy, methamphetamine, or crystal meth.

The penalty for possession would be up to seven years in prison, an unlimited fine, or both.

And then for supply and production, up to life in prison, an unlimited fine, or both.

So there are pretty strong legal consequences if you are caught in possession or you are selling or making illegal stimulants.

Let's see, there was a lot of information on that last slide.

I wonder how well you were listening.

So what might be the legal risks of taking Class B stimulants? How much can you remember from the last slide? There was a lot of information, so let's do a check.

What might be the legal risks of taking Class B stimulants? So we're talking just about possession here.

Would it be a limited fine? Would it be up to 14 years in prison? Would it be up to five years in prison? Or would it be an unlimited fine? There's more than one right answer here.

So if you said c, up to five years in prison, and if you said an unlimited fine, you would be correct.

Well done, really great listening.

Let's do a task.

I'd like you to extend that conversation earlier that you wrote between Amira and Jay.

I'd like you in this part of the conversation to talk about the risks that are associated with the specific drug that you chose earlier.

Maybe you were writing about BZP.

Maybe you were writing about speed, also called amphetamine.

Maybe it was cocaine, or ecstasy, or crystal meth.

Whichever it is, think about the risks.

So you might want to talk about the physical risks, what might happen to the body.

What about the psychological risks and what about the legal risks? So you're gonna need to think back to that table where we were talking about fines and prison terms. Think about what might happen if you're caught in possession.

And also think about what might happen if there is supply involved because Amira is trying to supply Jay a drug.

So that means the consequences would be more severe.

I've got some sentence starters to help you.

You know you're at risk of, if you take that.

And, sometimes that drug can cause.

You might want to use those to help you.

So I suggest you pause the video now.

Have a go at doing the task and we'll take some feedback in a few minutes.

So have a think 'cause we're looking at these different conversations.

Did you write about any risks that other pairs came up with? Do you think there's any more risks that are more common than others, that are more common across different drugs? Have a listen and let's feedback on what you're doing.

So remember what your sentence starters are.

You know you're at a greater risk of vomiting if you take that.

Sometimes that drug can cause dependency issues.

So well done if you wrote about that.

You might have discovered doing that that dependency is quite a common problem and that stimulants can make people feel sick a lot of the time if they're taken.

So really great work.

Very, very well done.

And now let's move on to the final part of the lesson, finding and giving help for taking stimulants.

So someone might react badly to drugs.

Here are some signs to watch out for.

Someone might get overheated or dehydrated.

Both of those have really serious consequences.

If someone gets too overheated or too dehydrated, then that can be fatal.

They can die.

They might find it difficult to breathe because of that.

They might feel sleepy.

Someone might experience feelings of anxiety, or paranoia, or panic.

So they're are all the signs to watch out for.

And in those situations, someone would need support.

They would need help.

Let's do a quick check.

Feeling an increased sense of anxiety can be caused by taking stimulants, true or false? Have a think.

So if you said true, you'd be right.

Why is that? Stimulants can have psychological side effects, and anxiety and panic are one of those side effects.

So these are some of the actions you might take if you know someone has taken drugs.

Izzy suggests you can stay with them and see if they're well.

Keep an eye on them, make sure they're okay.

Jacob says you could find a trusted person for help.

If there's a group of you, maybe one person stays with them and the other one goes to get help.

And Sam suggests if they're reacting badly, call an ambulance.

So particularly if they are struggling to breathe, or they are too hot, or they're too thirsty, they would be situations where you might call an ambulance.

If you think someone is having a bad reaction to drugs, the most important thing you can do is to keep calm.

If possible, take the following actions, reassure them, tell them that they're gonna be okay, keep them calm, see if you can find out what drug they've taken and how much, stay with them, call for or find help.

So it's really important to do those things.

And most of all though, it's important to keep yourself safe too.

So what can you do to help someone who you think has taken drugs? What do you think? Stay with the person and keep them calm.

Give them lots of water to drink.

Call for help.

What do you think? Here are the answers.

Stay with the person and keep them calm and call for help.

Giving them lots of water to drink isn't necessarily a great idea.

It might make them sick.

And that can also have, if someone has too much water, that can also have some pretty negative consequences.

So sips of water, if they can manage that, would be fine, but it's most important that you keep them calm and that you call for help.

Here's another practise task.

Moss was at a club with their friends.

There were some people using stimulants.

Later that evening, Moss wanted a break from the dancing and went to find a quieter place to relax for a bit.

Moss came across someone on their own who was pale, sweaty, and very panicky.

Moss recognises the person from the group taking stimulants earlier.

Write some advice for what Moss should do.

Have a little think.

Think back through what we've just been saying.

Make some notes about what Moss should do.

You might want to pause the video so that you can have a go at this task and then we'll take some feedback in a minute.

Here are some possible answers that you could have included.

Did you include any of them? So Moss could reassure the person, tell them that they're gonna be okay, that they're there, that they'll stick with them, finding out what they've taken and how much, stay with them, make sure that they're okay, call for or find help.

So they're all really important things that you could have included in your answers.

And well done if you've got those down.

So Task C.

Is there anything Moss should definitely not do? Have a little think.

You might want to write a couple of those things down.

So here's some feedback.

What should Moss not do? Take the stimulants themselves.

They also shouldn't leave the person alone.

Well done if you've got those.

Let's come onto the lesson summary.

So these are all of the things that we've covered today.

A stimulant is a drug which speeds up bodily processes.

Stimulants raise the heart rate and respiration and reduce sleepiness and the desire to eat.

Examples of legal stimulants include caffeine.

Illegal stimulants include amphetamines, cocaine, and ecstasy.

Possession or supply of illegal stimulants can result in a prison sentence or fine.

And lastly, there are side effects from taking stimulants and there are different ways to help people.

If you've been affected by any of the information in the lesson, please talk to a trusted adult.

There are also some other sources of support, and they're all on this website.

NHS Live Well, SafeCall, and Childline would all be places where you could get support for anything that you've covered today in the lesson that's worried you or concerned you.

So thank you very much for being with me in this lesson today.

Thank you for all of your great work.

And I'll see you again soon for another lesson.

Take care of yourselves.