So I asked my pharmacist brother about it. We both agree that opiates have anti depressant properties. He has never heard of one being prescribed for depression.

Sub has been approved as a pain killer and to help addicts get off of other opiates. The initial drug company claims were that you could not get high and the withdrawals were not near as bad. They claimed that the sub would fill up all the get high receptors and it didn't matter if you took double the dose because the receptors would be full.

It turns out you can get high off of sub but not near to the extent you could off of oxy or heroin. The original plan was to put an opiate addict on sub and then wean them off over six months. This didn't turn out to well and they changed it to a year. So it turns out the withdrawal is much worse than they claimed. It is however much much better than methadone and a big improvement for the treatment of opiate addicts.

He said he knows one girl who has been on a low dose of sub for seven years but lives a full and normal life whereas she used to be a street junky. So very effective for a compliant person serious about recovery.

As far as depression we both think no go. Addiction and withdrawal to dangerous. Worse than benzo's.