https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/105656c9-1134-461c-8bcf-5727f17f3770 Help us preserve, scan and post more rare and endangered films on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/PeriscopeFilm Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCddem5RlB3bQe99wyY49g0g/join Website: www.PeriscopeFilm.com The film "Ups / Downs: The Amphetamines" (1971) examines the growing epidemic of prescription drug abuse among ordinary Americans, revealing how society’s obsession with instant relief has turned legal medications into a new form of addiction. It contrasts the use of amphetamines (“speed”)—stimulants once prescribed for weight loss and energy—with barbiturates, powerful depressants used for sleep and anxiety, showing how both create cycles of dependence and psychological decay. Through interviews with addicts, doctors, and experts, the film exposes how easy access, overprescription, and cultural normalization have led even responsible adults and teenagers into addiction. It illustrates the physical and mental toll of these drugs—paranoia, hallucinations, illness, and death—while emphasizing that true recovery requires painful self-confrontation rather than chemical escape. Ultimately, the documentary portrays prescription drug abuse as a widespread social illness rooted in emotional emptiness and the illusion of control through medication. 0:00 – Society’s desire for quick relief through medication, promoting pain relievers and tension reducers as instant solutions. 0:57 – It warns that this reliance has made drugstores into “temples” for modern worship, as people consume pills daily for comfort. 1:33 – The narrator identifies a new, socially accepted addiction among ordinary “nice people” to prescription drugs like amphetamines and barbiturates. 2:06 – These mood changers—sold as pet pills and sleeping aids—are addictive and deceptively marketed as harmless. 2:36 – A large percentage of prescriptions are for amphetamines, leading even responsible parents to overuse them and expose their children to drugs. 3:07 – Youth observe their parents’ pill use and mimic their habits, normalizing addiction within families. 3:21 – The effects of amphetamines (stimulants) and barbiturates (depressants) 4:08 – Users describe their dependence on diet pills, tranquilizers, and stimulants that keep them awake for days. 5:28 – A black market where legal drugs are sold illegally. 6:00 – The history of amphetamines. 7:12 – A scientific experiment on a spider shows how amphetamines cause disorientation 8:10 – Severe dependence and physical addiction to speed. 9:09 – Former heroin users explain how they replaced one addiction with another—switching to methamphetamines. 9:42 –Speed destroys young lives, leading to paranoia, hallucinations, and violence. 10:11 – Addicts recount contracting hepatitis and mental breakdowns. 11:12 – One user describes near-death health consequences from prolonged use despite repeated medical warnings. 12:00 – Speed-induced psychosis leads to violent delusions. 12:22 – Amphetamines can cause deadly psychological and physical deterioration. 13:00 – A young man’s overdose and death 13:39 – Drug dependency linked to emotional isolation. 14:14 – Barbiturates—powerful sedatives more addictive and lethal than heroin. 14:51 – A young addict named Rich shares his 8-year dependency and the toll it took 15:17 – How barbiturates suppress brain and motor function. 16:26 – The history of barbiturates 17:15 – Addicts describe easy access to pills through doctors and pharmacists, revealing how normalized the trade became. 18:12 – Users describe the impossibility of quitting alone and the severe physical withdrawal symptoms. 19:03 – Medical experts explain that barbiturate withdrawal must be gradual to avoid seizures or death. 19:14 – The dangers of alternating between stimulants and depressants. 20:22 – Addicts explain how mixing uppers and downers leads to erratic, destructive behavior. 21:18 – Experts outline the social types of users. 21:30 – Addicts share how drugs initially boost confidence but ultimately destroy self-control and identity. 22:20 – Recovery is a painful, personal struggle. 22:38 –Addiction is both an illness and self-deception. Motion picture films don't last forever; many have already been lost or destroyed. For almost two decades, we've worked to collect, scan and preserve the world as it was captured on 35mm, 16mm and 8mm movies -- including home movies, industrial films, and other non-fiction. If you have endangered films you'd like to have scanned, or wish to donate celluloid to Periscope Film so that we can share them with the world, we'd love to hear from you. Contact us via the weblink below. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxWpA9cazKM Mirrored from Periscope Film (https://www.youtube.com/@PeriscopeFilm) Thu, 25 Jun 2026 19:06:31 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://peertube.dngr.us https://peertube.dngr.us/lazy-static/avatars/41a6fee9-7f57-42d0-a5fc-5db4f1af2e31.png https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/105656c9-1134-461c-8bcf-5727f17f3770 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://peertube.dngr.us/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.