[Rose76]

I was going to put this in the adduction forum, but I figured it would just pi$$ off people there. Maybe it will do the same here, IDK.

I have Vicodin (hydrocodone) available for pain, but I often take it for depression. It is one of the most helpful drugs I've ever used for depression or anxiety. (And I've tried near everything.) Elsewhere on the Net, I see honest discusions about this. It seems I'm not the first person to find that this drug makes me feel better mentally. (which I suppose is why it is addictive.) I've been doing this for a few years and I've never gone haywire with it.

I'm not offering this as a suggestion for how to deal with mental pain. I'm just interested to know if anyone wants to talk a little about the fact that opiate medication can feel soothing when you're depressed. I understand that that has been the gateway to Hell for some people. Maybe I'm just lucky that it hasn't gone that way for me . . . or not yet, anyway.

After doing pretty well mentally for a few months, I've gotten more depressed lately. I am just starting to notice that the dose of Vicodin I take (10 mg.) doesn't help as much as it did. Lately, I am very unmotivated. It has occurred to me that one of the effects of opiates is to make a person apathetic. At least I thought I heard that somewhere.

So I've been thinking that maybe these tablets are doing me more harm than good. But I don't really believe that, either. I think I've just relapsed into being depressed lately.

I used to like to drink when I felt upset by something. Though, if I got really depressed, I would have no interest in drinking. For a few years now, I've pretty much lost interest in drinking to excess. I don't really seem to have the makings of becoming any big-time substance abuser.

I've given up completely on getting any more help from doctors on managing depression. I take an antidepressant that I've been on for years. I'm not as miserable on it, as I get when off it. I spent a few years letting pdocs add all the drugs they wanted to try, and that ended up being a waste of time and effort. Well, I guess it's not a waste to find out what doesn't help. I also lost respect for psychiatry. When I told a pdoc that Seroquel did not make me feel better, he said that just meant I needed to take more of it. That seems to be their whole blind faith: that psych meds will help you - and, if they don't - then you need more psych meds.

I'm glad the Vicodin helps somewhat. I feel very grateful for that. Often, over the course of my life, mental misery has meant that I needed to change something about how I was living. Making the needed change often straightened out a lot of the misery. I don't know that there is much left that I can change. No psychiatrist or therapist ever contributed the least little bit in helping me figure out what I needed to change. Anything worthwhile that I ever figured out - I figured out alone.

[jacky8807]

So the opiates give me a euphoric feeling and so yeah I don't feel depressed. But when I stopped them after the script was out since your not getting that feeling anymore you feel worse(this is just my experience) you will also continue to need more and more to even have the same effect . i use to think thy Would be good antidepressants too but take out even the addiction factor which is pretty huge even if it never happened before, I have seen ppl prescribed them for chronic pain who later got off because thy said you become a totally numb person walking in a fog not dealing with life
And I agree with you that if that's all that psych meds do for someone than they are not technically working either
My goal is to be stable AND high functioning AND to stay away from substance abuse
Damn hard line to walk for some of us lol

[Noca86]

Chronic opioid use will deplete androgens, and actually cause depression, a depression likely much worse than you had before you began. This is often an overlooked problem with opioids, even by doctors who specialize in pain management.

Opioid-induced androgen deficiency (OPIAD). - PubMed - NCBI

I should also note that I have never met or heard of a single person who successfully used opioids to treat either anxiety or depression long term and didn't have their life implode. Using opioids by way of self medicating is even worse. It won't end well for you if you go down that road, I guarantee it, choose another path.

[Rose76]

Thank you, both of you. I have been feeling increasingly like I am "in a fog not dealing with life."

Maybe these pain pills are having negative effects on me.