Posted by Peter S. on October 20, 2001, at 16:48:31
In reply to Re: opiates and major depression, posted by androog on October 19, 2001, at 23:26:35
> Hi Peter,
>
> Initially I started with the normal dose of 4oomg per day. I have taken four times that much in a day and it didn't seem to make much of a difference one way or the other in terms of my level of depression.
>
> I really should mention that I am non-practicing alcoholic who stopped drinking in 1985. I hate the term "recovering alcoholic" because it implies that an alcoholic will one day be free of the disease, which I don't think ever happens, otherwise I'd've figured out how to swing that a loooong time ago.
>
> When I was in the middle of my ECT treatments this past February, I started drinking again. This is something I never thought I'd do because I have absolutely no doubt that alcohol is something I have no control over. I don't even remember any of the drinking, but according to my wife I was going at it pretty hard. I somehow managed to quit again, but don't really remember that, either. I can't stress how much the ECT affected my memory. Well, that and the booze. It's kind of interesting that I'd show up at the hospital legally drunk, and they'd go through with the ECT regardless. Especially since they start you off with an IV of valium. Sounds like fun. Wish I could remember it.
>
> Anyway, I think the point I'm trying to make is that I'm an addictive person prone to substance abuse. It's not surprising to me that I was taking far more tramadol than I needed. When it gets right down to it I need about 800mg, or twice the recommended amount, daily to maintain an even keel. I should repeat that I told nobody but my wife that I was taking the tramadol (kind of a blind taste test), and all I heard from family and friends was how good it was to see me back to my old self. I guess what I'm getting is that i haven't become some drooling, nodding out junkie. Just a motivated and happier one.
>
> There's no doubt in my mind that my depression is at the root of my substance abuse, not the other way around. It's just a guess, but I'd say a good majority of substance abusers are suffering from some form of depression. I further believe that the reason we abuse certain substances is that we're trying to make up for something lacking in our brain chemistry - something that occurs naturally in others. I know all the talk is about serotonin, but I'd bet the house that what we substance abusers are lacking in are endorphins.
>
> Anyway, I just got a call back from the one doc I'd called earlier who sounded as though he might be willing to give the tramadol a try. In his return call he said he couldn't find enough evidence to back up my claim that opiates have been successfully used in the treatment of depression. I found this odd because it took me only a few minutes on the internet to find a study conducted by the Harvard School of Medicine that supported my claim.
>
> If anybody out there knows of any respectable websites whose findings are pro-opiate in the treatment of major depression, please let me know. I know way down deep that I'm right, at least to some degree, on this one. Of course, I've said that before and been wrong, but hey: you can't blame a feller for trying.
>
> Thanks much,
> Androog
poster:Peter S.
thread:81414
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011015/msgs/81814.html