I trust the mods will move this if it's in the wrong place.

I have had severe depression for ten years. My body reacts differently to meds, so this may be specific to me. I was prescribed Tramadol for pain from an infection recently. Now, I am way past an age that recreational drugs impress me, so what I am saying is totally objective.
I am blown away by the effect that this has had on my depression. For once, I can say that there was some relief. I am on Wellbutrin, and it does help some, but not like this.

I know I can't stay on it, but I am SO SO SO glad that it gave me a day off. I remember, now, what my old "normal" was like.

[CANDC]

Glad you found relief from Tramadol. One side affect from meds like that is it can be habit forming. Depression can increase when stop taking med.
Here are links that explain.
Psych Central - Search results for Tramadol habit forming

[Clara22]

Tramadol reduces anxiety-related and depression-associated behaviors presumably induced by pain in the chronic constriction injury model of neuropath... - PubMed - NCBI

I used to take tramadol for fibromyalgia pain before Effexor & Cymbalta were available. I got a very mild antidepressant effect from it. I think it has a weak SSRI type effect.

I know that some people do have problems with it being habit-forming. When I first learned of that, though, I had a really hard time believing it. I took it every day for years and sometimes ran out for 4-5 days and didn't really notice any difference (except for more pain.)

It wasn't terribly great for fibromyalgia pain - it just sort of took the edge off.

Have you taken an SSRI antidepressant before? (Would be surprised if you hadn't.)

If I remember correctly from when I took it, Tramadol is an SNRI besides being an opioid. So it isn't strange that you have some antidepressant effects.

[robcalher]

Trmadol is actually not an opiate. It is not derived from the poppy plant. It is also not a narcotic but it is a controlled substance. It is schedule IV. However, it is "narcotic-like" as it works on the same receptors as opiates and does have "narcotic-like" properties. In other words it can give you a "high" and sense of euphoria, making it addictive and a candidate for abuse. I suffer from depression and I have taken tramadol before for back pain. I enjoyed it and it did give depression relief. A side affect of tramadol is central nervous system stimulation. So it is a stimulant painkiller that can alleviate mood. Not classified as a narcotic but again making it narcotic like.

[pretzel1234]

I was on both but not at the same time... I am curious, did you ever have problems with nausea and wellbutrin?

[imadeitanotherday]

I take tramadol when things get really bad and I can't seem to handle my life. It truly does help me, even when nothing else does. However, it does cause a high feeling and yeah, there's always addiction.

[robcalher]

Pretzel1234 if that question is for me, since you posted after my post and I am on Welbutrin at the moment, I do have a lot of nausea throughout the day but I can not say it is from the Welbutrin. I believe it is from my GAD as I've had nausea many times from anxiety even before I was on Welbutrin. Although this is true, a side effect of Welbutrin can be anxiety because it has a stimulant effect and this can be exasperated in combination with caffeine.

[Happy pills]

Tramadol definitely boosts my mood but I wouldn't want to take it unless it was prescribed for my depression by my pdoc. If they prescribed it for my mood then I would happily take it as I know it works well for me.

[Pierro]

Tramadol is an opiate and is habit forming, just be aware of the dose that you take. Over time it happens sometimes that we take more than we should to get the same effect. Just keep this in mind. Best wishes.

[pretzel1234]

I didn't realize a side effect of Wellbutrin was anxiety... But I can see how it helps with smoking cessation because it made me fee nauseated a lot! Tramadol, for me, didn't work. It made me feel really anxious and off. Tramadol would probably help with depression in the short term, but perhaps your doc could find something else that would help? Maybe Xanax could help or something that is a muscle relaxant and targets anxiety? Just some thoughts. I've had friends that liked using Tramadol for pain but it just didn't work for me. :-(

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[pretzel1234]

Interesting fact: Tramadol is used as a pain med for canines. Just saying.

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