[InACorner]

can you get this drug over the counter??

[Direction]

I would tend to agree - I doubt that those of us with mental conditions would be prescribed this.

Pentobarbital is in a class of drugs called barbiturates (bar bi TURE ates). Pentobarbital depresses the activity of your brain and nervous system.

Pentobarbital is used to treat insomnia (for up to 2 weeks) and to induce sleep before surgery.

Pentobarbital may also be used for purposes other than those listed in this medication guide

My guess is that there would be a high potential for OD

[InACorner]

jw thank you

[Juliana]

I doubt you would even be able to get a prescription for pentobarbital/Nembutal. It's a Schedule II narcotic. I think it's mainly used for sedation in the hospital and for euthanizing animals. I had a friend who worked in an animal research lab and they used pentobarbital to euthanize lab rats. It's used in assisted suicide too. So, it's pretty tightly controlled.

When I was talking to my mum about my depression back in the fall, she told me to ask my doc for phenobarbital. LOL. She told me she had "baby blues" in the 60s and her doc gave her phenobarbital and it made her feel "wonderful!" Docs don't hand out scripts for barbiturates so readily these days, though. I think that's a very good thing. Once the benzodiazepines came on the market, they took the place of the barbiturates because it's much easier to OD (even accidentally) on barbiturates and they're more addictive than the benzos.

[okiedokie]

Hi Juliana,
I'd have to say they would be AS addictive as benzos. I could be wrong, of course, but have experienced dependence/addiction (I don't much care what ya call it.) with benzos.
Take care,
Okie

[Juliana]

You might be right. I just read an article a few minutes ago that stated that some benzos (like Xanax) has been found to be just as addictive as barbiturates and maybe even more addictive. And then I read another article that stated the opposite and said that barbiturates were much more addictive than benzos. So, there seems to be some disagreement amongst the pros.

I take Clonazepam occasionally and haven't had any problems, but it seems to be the least addictive of the benzos.

[okiedokie]

Hi Juliana,
Post addiction, this week I actually got put back on clonazepam -- .5 or 1 mg at night for sleep and to get rid of the daytime tension, headaches and anxiety. And boy is it effective! Trying not to feel like a failure for having to return to taking them...
Okie

[Juliana]

You're not a failure. Taking meds to help you get better is not a sign of failure. It's a step towards being able to live a fuller life. I had to take them almost every day (0.5 mg usually) for a couple of years. When my anxiety level is high, they really do help. If it wasn't for Clonazepam, I'm pretty sure I would still be agoraphobic. They also help to filter out the sensory overload I get when my inner ear is acting up. I'm down to just one or two a week now. I'm hoping I can stay at that level or... even better, not need them at all some time soon. I'm pleased that I've never felt like I'm addicted to them. That was a big fear when I started taking them.

[Rhapsody]

No....... you cannot get this OTC for this medicine requires a doctors Rx in order to obtain it.

My daughter (God rest Her Soul) - took Pentobarbital in liquid form for her seizures.... this medicine is often used to depress brain activity when seizures are out of control. My daughter was even given this as an IV Drip to induce a coma to stop multiple seizures that were still going strong after 72 hours (3 days) - the induced coma lasted 3 weeks.