Prescribing Substances of Abuse in Psychiatric Care.

The article reviews the history of prescribing substances that can lead to addiction as treatment for mentally ill patients. Topics covered include the psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud's support of cocaine as a mental stimulant, opioids' use for depression treatment prior to antidepressant medications in the 1950s, and barbiturates' long-standing prescription as anxiolytics and hypnotics. Also noted are hallucinogens' use as an adjunctive treatment in psychotherapy.