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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 6 of 6. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 23, 2013, at 13:04:27
well its been a year and 3 months since I used methamphetamine but right im im such a state of depression, I wanna just get it in my system and feel alive...the difference between Desoxyn and cystal methamphetamine is the crystals have fast and rush hit, the feeling of your in power, and feel like getting things done, god I know everyone here has their opinion of me, but just ... I know I can't do it, what I leanred about using it, you constnalty have think about how to increase the feeling, using more and more, and then don't sleep for 4 days or more.....it makes you skinny and causes malnutrintion due to its hunger suppressant effect. And then it also alters normal behavior signifantly, you do weird thing, and usally in a hyperfocus mode, like clearning the kitchen over and over again....going shopping for hours and hours....mental activation significantly stuf like that....it makes have feel good OCD.
the nuvigil is not, like I've been saying it doesn't take effect sometimes and my doctor says its in my head....its not, god I wished I wasn't in this state of not responding to meds, and having to contstantly pray to God for healing both of this, and other health problems.
is there anything that can make this nasty craving go away? I feel drained right now, no energy.....it may be the zyprexa....but yea
anything?
r
Posted by Hugh on May 23, 2013, at 14:23:55
In reply to bad craving....need advice, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 23, 2013, at 13:04:27
The muscle relaxant baclofen may make your cravings go away. The End of My Addiction by Olivier Ameisen has a ton of information on baclofen. This site has some info on baclofen for meth addiction:
http://www.mywayout.org/community/f20/does-baclofen-work-meth-54297.html
Posted by Tomatheus on May 23, 2013, at 15:00:28
In reply to bad craving....need advice, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 23, 2013, at 13:04:27
> well its been a year and 3 months since I used methamphetamine but right im im such a state of depression, I wanna just get it in my system and feel alive...
RJ,
It sounds to me like you've just stated what your problem is, and from what you've written it sounds like you want to use methamphetamine as a means of alleviating depression so you can feel more alive and more energetic. Would you say that my assessment is correct?
If one of the main problems that's driving your methamphetamine use is some sort of depression, then I think that your top priority needs to be finding a treatment for your depression that's more effective than the treatment methods that you're currently utilizing. Now, I know that finding an effective treatment for a depressive disorder can oftentimes be easier said than done. And despite what others sometimes say, I don't think that I can say with 100 percent certainty that you'll find an effective treatment even if you try everything that there is to try. But one thing that I can say for sure is that your condition isn't likely to improve if you keep limiting yourself to the same treatments that you say yourself don't work. It's my opinion that if you do find a solution to the problem that is your depression, it's only going to happen after you decide to do take a different approach to your treatment than the approach that you've been taking.
So, what can you do differently? For starters, I would recommend talking with your prescribing doctor about what medications you feel aren't working and then discussing options for replacement medications. Given the fact that you've been considering using methamphetamine (again) at least in part as a means of self medicating your depression, I think that your depression needs to be treated aggressively. If your prescribing doctor is afraid to treat your depression aggressively, then maybe it would be a good idea to get a second opinion from a different doctor who'd be more open to using medications like the tricyclics or the MAOIs. Have you ever tried a tricyclic or an MAOI? If you have, what effects did those medications have on you?
I also think that if the only form of treatment that you're using right now is medications that you should consider utilizing other treatment methods. Having a therapist can be very helpful, especially if you're struggling with substance abuse issues. I'm not saying that it's a bad idea to ask for advice from people on Psycho-Babble when you're feeling really symptomatic and also have strong cravings for methamphetamine or other damaging drugs, but the person best equipped and best qualified to give you advice when you're in the kind of situation that you're in right now is a mental health professional, such as a therapist. Therapists have the training and experience to handle individuals with mental health and substance abuse problems, and I think that being in regular contact with a therapist at the very least might help you cope to the extent that you don't find yourself turning to methamphetamine as a means of alleviating your depression.
Finally, as far as treatment options are concerned, I think that you might benefit from exploring the options that alternative medicine has to offer. I would recommend checking with your prescribing doctor before adding any herbs or other supplements to your treatment regimen because many supplements can interact with medications, but please, if you're at the point where you feel like no other treatment will help you, at least give some consideration to trying alternative treatments. For depression, some of the first alternative treatments that come to mind are the following: herbs like St. John's Wort and Rhodiola rosea; neurotransmitter precursor supplements like l-tyroisine, l or dl-phenylalanine, l-tryptophan, and 5-HTP; essential fatty acid supplements like fish oil; vitamins like the B vitamins, vitamin C, and vitamin D; and finally, SAM-e. Have you tried these supplements? If you haven't, don't you think it would at least make sense to try taking some of these supplements before using something that you've recognized causes insomnia, malnutrition, and behavioral disturbances? Now, you may say that supplements aren't going to work, and as I've said, I can't guarantee that they're going to work for you, but I do think that with supplements you have so many different options that target so many different biochemical pathways that I think your odds of finding a successful treatment might be better than with any other treatment approach. I will say that right now I'm taking a supplement for my fatigue and hypersomnia, and the supplement that I've been taking has been bringing me significant relief for more than a month. I don't know for sure if the supplement that I'm taking will work indefinitely for me, but right now what's helping me more than anything else is not a medication or a form of therapy, but an alternative treatment that nobody would likely ever think of trying for my symptoms.
My point in writing what I've written so far is to let you know that you have options when it comes to the treatment of your depression, all of which are better than the option that you're considering. I know that you have problems with your medications working the way you'd like them to work, and again, I don't know for sure what results you'd get from trying different treatments, but I can say that you won't know what benefits you might get from trying different treatments until you've, well, tried them. I know that it can be hard to believe that the treatments that you have yet to try are going to work when so many other treatments have failed to produce long-term benefits, but I know from my case that trying different treatments has brought about at least some improvement, and I think that you too might see some improvement if you keep trying different treatment options.
T.
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 23, 2013, at 23:36:02
In reply to Re: bad craving....need advice, posted by Hugh on May 23, 2013, at 14:23:55
thank hugh.....checkin it out I've heard of it before....there's another med called camperal for alcohol cravings but I don't care I drink vodka when I want, lol the bottle and a ciggerette....that's just me....alcohol and drugs are different to me....always keep some drink around when I need relief
thanks...
r
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 23, 2013, at 23:43:51
In reply to Re: bad craving....need advice, posted by Tomatheus on May 23, 2013, at 15:00:28
thanks for the post.....really put thought into it..
jus the treatment im hacing right now for methamphetamine cravings is Nuvigil....its not like an amphetamine stimulat it just wakes me up like coffee without the jitters. No psychostimulant increase....
the thing is my meds....they don't work, so basically what I've been doing is praying to God about this because there's no test that could show why, and even a counsel of doctors discussing the issue about it, they would come up with a lot of therories, and maybe only 1 of them out of 100 would be the case....I told my therapist and he said maybe im getting enough voltage in my brain, I was like.....are you suggesting the shock treatment?? he said yes, but there no indications for use of it. My family would be concerned if I got the shock treatment...but really, that does make sense because when meds don't work, the shock treatment is usally used when its at last. Just go somewhere, get it done quick and get it over with.
but anways back to what we where talking about....its a long road, my faith in God right now is high, Its the only thing I have to hold on to, like hope, everything else seems sh*tty and nothing good is gonna happen, have to believe in the father.
thanks for your post
r
Posted by Tomatheus on May 24, 2013, at 1:41:31
In reply to Re: bad craving....need advice » Tomatheus, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 23, 2013, at 23:43:51
RJ,
Thank you for writing back. I can understand your family's concern about the idea of you receiving electroconvulsive therapy. Although some people swear by ECT, it's my understanding that it can have some damaging effects as far as memory loss is concerned and is probably a riskier treatment for most than medications. ECT might be worth thinking about, but I personally would prefer to take a tricyclic antidepressant or an MAOI antidepressant before subjecting myself to shock treatments. I know that you keep saying that medications don't work, and I don't doubt that you've had a lot of difficulty getting the medications that you've tried to work, but there are a lot of people who've taken most if not all of the newer antidepressants without success only to finally respond to either a tricyclic or an MAOI. I'm not guaranteeing that you'll respond to a tricyclic or an MAOI, but remember that there's no guarantee that you'll respond to ECT either. Just because the medications you've tried haven't worked well doesn't mean that ECT will work or that another medication with different pharmacological properties won't work. I know that one poster here named Jedi has said that he's tried more than 35 different medication combinations and that the only thing that's worked for his atypical depression is a combination of Nardil and clonazepam. For Jedi, medications too didn't work ... until he tried Nardil with clonazepam. So, even though there aren't any guarantees with medication treatment, it sometimes isn't until after much trial and error that patients find a medication that has lasting benefits for them. And as I said in my previous post, I know that it can be difficult to believe that another medication will work after you've tried so many without lasting results, but there are cases like Jedi's in which many medications were tried without success before the right one was finally found.
I just wanted to put that out there.
T.
This is the end of the thread.
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