25. Knee Jerk Reflex

Join us as host Gianna Richard discusses the film Memento and the role short-term memory loss plays in the film.

In this podcast, we analyze the uses of Ketamine. Here, we seek to understand the creation of Ketamine, new medicinal findings for Ketamine, and understand the abuse mechanisms of Ketamine. Ketamine abuse is a growing problem in our country, so we think it is very important to understand the good and bad things about Ketamine.

Requiem for a Dream (2000) is arguably one of the most critically acclaimed films about drugs in the 21st century. With a multitude of awards and an iconic soundtrack, Requiem for a Dream captures the highs and downfalls of four unfortunate souls who fall victim to addiction. Join Brianna Dempsey, a psychology and neurology student at UNCA, as she delves deeper into the meaning of Requiem for a Dream.

According to the CDC, illegal fentanyl is the main driver of the recent increase in opioid deaths in the United States. What is the history of fentanyl, its uses, and the role in addiction and in the opioid epidemic? Join us on our podcast episode “The Rise of Fentanyl” where we’ll be discussing these points and more.

With America’s Opioid Epidemic in full swing, it is time that we look into the options that we have available to us. This podcast will dive into an alternative medication that has proven to be effective in helping individuals get and stay off opioids with dramatic success: Ibogaine.

In this episode, we discuss the drug cannabis and the social and legal issues surrounding it. Hopefully this will bring some new insight to the ongoing discussion as to whether marijuana should be used medically, and whether the stigma surrounding its use be abandoned or not. Let's get started!

MDMA has shown to be a promising drug for treating individuals with chronic Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) when used as an adjunct to psychotherapy. Tune in to learn more about how this drug can help treat those with PTSD.

Studying longer is always better: or is it? Is putting in all those hours throughout the night to prepare for a test the right way to do it? Stressing to get good grades, lacking sleep, and drinking caffeine to stay up late. Well, it could have the opposite effect than desired.

What is the reflex arc for the knee jerk reflex and what triggers it? 

Psilocybin has been posited as a groundbreaking, yet controversial, treatment for severe depression. But what does the research say about it? In this episode, we discuss the history, mechanisms, legal standing, and efficacy of psilocybin in a therapeutic setting.