Posted by Elizabeth on October 16, 2001, at 18:33:46
In reply to opiates and major depression, posted by androog on October 16, 2001, at 16:49:58
> Does anybody out there know of a psychiatrist in the Chicago/Oak Park area that has experienced major depression firsthand, and/or is open-minded enough to try opiates in the treatment of major depression?
Oof. Not a question I can answer, but I hope you find someone. Maybe Dr. Bob can suggest a few names, since he's at the U of Chicago?
> I have suffered from depression for over 30 years and have tried about every antidepressant on the market to no avail.
I know where you're coming from (only 15 years here though).
> I've even had 17 sessions of ECT which left me with nothing more than a bad memory and a huge bill.
I refuse to have ECT; the medications that I'm taking now may be unorthodox, but I feel confident that they're safe.
> About 2 years ago during a root canal, I was prescribed the painkiller Ultram. I discovered that it alleviated my depression almost entirely, and did so within 2 hours.
I tried Ultram and I guess it wasn't strong enough or something because it didn't work for me even when I tried a higher dose than the official recommended maximum. I'm glad it works for you because it's a good opioid for chronic conditions and it seems to have milder side effects than other opioids.
> I can't tell you what a relief this was.
You don't need to.
> Since the psychiatrist I was seeing wouldn't prescribe Ultram for me, I took matters into my own hands and started self-medicating with the online Ultram.
People will probably not want to hear/read this, but I think that "self-medicating" is sometimes necessary. It's preferable to have a doctor monitoring the situation, but that's not always possible, as you've seen.
> I figured, and still do, that I'm better off with a drug habit than I was when I was constantly crying, contemplating suicide and withdrawing from life.
I don't think that you're necessarily an "addict" just because you take tramadol regularly. "Physiological dependence" is not a pathological response to regular use of these drugs; it's normal and to be expected.
> When I bring up the topic of opiates, synthetic or otherwise, with any of the 4 psychiatrists I've recently seen, the room fills with an uncomfortable silence followed by a refusal to consider this topic any further.
Bring in peer-reviewed references? I could give you a couple citations if you like. Another thing that might help would be to keep a list of all the medications you've tried and what happened with each of them; that might drive home just how serious the problem is. (What have you tried, exactly, BTW?)
> I'm hoping that I can find a doc that has experienced major depression and knows the measures that one will go through to alleviate this awful disease.
FWIW, I want to go to medical school and possibly go into psychiatry, as soon as I have my own sh*t sorted out. And I obviously see the utility of opioids for psych disorders, since I use one myself.
> I'd appreciate any feedback I can get so that I can stop paying $150 only to be told by various psychiatrists that opiates are not an option. Period.
I hate that! I wish they'd talk to you on the phone before an appointment so that you can decide if they're right for you or not and not waste the huge initial consult fees.
> PS- With the exception of one person here in the States, nobody knows I've been taking the Ultram. But those people who know about my depression comment constantly on the fact that I'm doing so well. My work, my social life and my interest in life have all improved a hundredfold.
I'm not surprised. I get the same remarks too, even from people who don't know that I'm taking buprenorphine.
> Thanks for taking the time to read this rambling letter and for any advice you can give.
It's not rambling. And I really feel for anyone who's in this situation where they need opioids in order to function normally. It's sort of like we have much of the suffering of an addict without ever even having gotten high! Does that sound right? (Really unfair, isn't it?)
-elizabeth
poster:Elizabeth
thread:81414
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011015/msgs/81424.html