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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 11 of 11. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by starsky on January 9, 2004, at 13:04:33
i have never taken any antidepressants at all...i got these medications yesterday...i told my doctor i smoke pot about three times a month and rarely drink...and he told me he'd give me these medications but i could not smoke pot or drink becasue it would be very dangerous...although i do not smoke a lot, i wanted to know if anyone has combined these medications with marijuana...and what they experienced...
also...last night was the first night i took lexapro...i woke up with a huge headache, and was kinda restless at about 6 in the morning...like a hangover...is this one of the side effects?
Posted by Mariposa on January 9, 2004, at 14:05:45
In reply to marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by starsky on January 9, 2004, at 13:04:33
> i have never taken any antidepressants at all...i got these medications yesterday...i told my doctor i smoke pot about three times a month and rarely drink...and he told me he'd give me these medications but i could not smoke pot or drink becasue it would be very dangerous...although i do not smoke a lot, i wanted to know if anyone has combined these medications with marijuana...and what they experienced...
>
> also...last night was the first night i took lexapro...i woke up with a huge headache, and was kinda restless at about 6 in the morning...like a hangover...is this one of the side effects?Bad headaches are a side effect of Lexapro, should go away in a couple of weeks. I took OTC remedies until mine stopped.~~~8|8
Posted by john1022 on January 9, 2004, at 14:48:28
In reply to Re: marijuana + klonopin + lexapro? » starsky, posted by Mariposa on January 9, 2004, at 14:05:45
I will just share my experience, but please use your best judgment.
I took Effexor, Ativan and smoked marijuana together daily for many months and didn't have any problems.
Some doctors warn against mixing AD's and marijuana, but I think they do this just to be safe meaning I don't think there is any actual proof that it could be "dangerous" or they might be worried about some strange uncommon reaction occuring. But I don't want to persuade you one way or the other, please just be careful.
My last pdoc told me he didn't want me to stop smoking marijuana while I was on Elavil (which has similar AD's properties as Lexapro) and Ativan. He said that sometimes quitting marijuana while in depressed or unbalanced states can make those states even worse because quitting will change the chemistry in your brain.
He said to continue smoking pot as I normally do and to work on the quitting smoking pot once I was more stable and the depression was gone.
Posted by CraigD on January 9, 2004, at 15:41:18
In reply to Re: marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by john1022 on January 9, 2004, at 14:48:28
When i was on Celexa recently (which is Lexapro) and I knew I was going to be smoking pot, I would take a valium (a benzo like klonopin) first because pot generally makes me anxious but is sometimes hard to turn down.
Use your own judgment of course, but I didn't experience any problems. The pot actually helped bring back my sex drive.
Posted by mtdew on January 9, 2004, at 18:54:14
In reply to marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by starsky on January 9, 2004, at 13:04:33
Marijuana has no known dangerous drug interactions, to my knowledge.
Posted by Jackd on January 9, 2004, at 19:59:35
In reply to marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by starsky on January 9, 2004, at 13:04:33
Sure, I've done it countless times. No noticeable difference, except maybe less anxiety (once the lexapro kicks in).
Posted by katalina on January 9, 2004, at 21:47:29
In reply to marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by starsky on January 9, 2004, at 13:04:33
I think I would heed his advice on the drinking, but not necessarily the pot (a lot of docs probably think they go hand in hand for a lot of people or have no experience with it themselves). I've smoked quite often on klonopin and lexapro and noticed no interaction whatsoever.
I take Lexapro and Klonopin along with Adderall and had quite a few black outs while drinking when I first started the Klonopin. I'm talking going from sober, then mildly buzzed and waking up with barely any memory. I've since stopped drinking heavily on klonopin and lex, but still have a couple drinks once a week with no problems. Benzos and alcohol can be a very dangerous combination for some people. Also, from what I've heard Lexapro can cause a lot of people's tolerance of alcohol to lower dramatically.
Just my experience. Hope that helps.
Posted by brussell on January 10, 2004, at 20:54:40
In reply to Re: marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by katalina on January 9, 2004, at 21:47:29
The klonopin and lexapro will likely increase the effect of alcohol and possibly that of the marijuana.
If you decide to drink or smoke, I would do so at home, and carefully, so you can see what the effect is.
From my point of view, the danger is that the meds will cause you to get wasted faster and you could cause a wreck after consuming a quantity of alcohol or marijuana that would normally not have seriously impaired you.
Personally, I have found that marijuana and alcohol can set off my depression, so I tend to avoid them. The dirtweed my friends always have isn't worth smoking anyway!
Best Wishes.
Posted by Siraris on January 11, 2004, at 4:01:29
In reply to Re: marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by mtdew on January 9, 2004, at 18:54:14
Marijuana will not interact with your drugs.
What are you taking the meds for? If it is anxiety/panic, I would warn you not to do it because as you know, marijuana amplifies your emotions and feelings, so if you are feeling anxious about something, you'll probably freak out. I know last time I smoked, I had a crazy experience, waxing and waning between having a panic attack and not having one for like 2 hours, it was crazy.
That's all I can think of... if it's depression, I guess if you got really depressed you could get suicidal, but it would not react with your meds. My pdoc actually told me that Marijuana is the best anti-depressent/anxiety treatment there is, if it works and doesn't make you go insane. He's never seen something work better, with the lowest mortality rate in 40 years. He obviously doesn't perscribe it, but he doesn't say "nonono don't smoke weed". I was floored when he told me that.
Posted by starsky on January 11, 2004, at 20:36:45
In reply to Re: marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by Siraris on January 11, 2004, at 4:01:29
thanks everyone...you guys have been extremely helpful...i am taking lexapro for depression and klonopin for social phobia. i will be careful as you guys warned...i just wanted to know becasue the doctor kinda freaked me out...also another thread talked about some guy getting seratonin syndrome...anywho...i am pretty moderate when it comes to that...tahnks again...
Posted by CareBear04 on January 12, 2004, at 11:19:09
In reply to marijuana + klonopin + lexapro?, posted by starsky on January 9, 2004, at 13:04:33
I've combined Lexapro and alcohol with no problems, and the doctor said I could drink on it, but he explicitly said not to take lexapro and smoke pot. I didn't ask why, but I assumed something really bad would happen.
This is the end of the thread.
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