Taking Hydrocodone For Depression (Page 7)

I am wondering if anybody else out there has taken Hydrocodone and noticed that symptoms of depression are alleviated? I find that many of today's anti-anxiety and antidepressant drugs come with unpleasant side effects, whereas while taking Hydrocodone they aren't there. The caveat to all of this is that yes, I know that Hydrocodone and opiates in general can be addictive. So long term use would result in withdrawal symptoms. I'm just wondering who else might agree with me on this?

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Being without hydrocodone for one month...exactly.....as of today, the depression is still bad. I'm trying ways to relieve it, such as exercise, staying busy and various herbs...however the darkness remains. I have tried an anti depressant that only made me sleep deprived and not wanting to eat anything.Ten days of pure hell until I stopped the med.Anti-depressants are evil as I have tried a few and none worked for me. My advise to anyone is...stay away from hydrocodone.I was useing for 3 yrs. and kept increasing the dosage as my body needed more to get the right feeling.After 3 years I decided that I could not continue and still remain the same person so I decided to give it up for a better life. The depression is unbearable and I honestly wish I would have never got into this horrible habbit.Now I am at the point of doing just about anything justifiable to help me from the depression...it is sooo bad.
I sincerely hope this story helps another in need.

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Hydrocodine is much better for depression than other drepression meds.Just take 2 per day and stick with that amount and you will have very little withdrawal if you decide to get off of it.Diasapam and other drugs for drepression tend to cause mood changes while taking them and cause panick attacks when stopping.

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Oh...u noticed that when u take hydrocodone, think u said 10 mg., must be Loratab; u don't have any depression or anxiety... amazing!!! Yes there is a Santa Claus!! And withdrawal "symptoms"...well, that's called being "strung out" or addicted! Yep, only draw back to narcotics or "opiates", as they seem to be called more nowadays. I'm old-school. I call them "dope" & the users "junkies"! Oh yeah, & I call withdrawal..."HELL!! You sound young or very inexperienced. I'm not trying to be mean or a smart a**! But seriously, if we could all take narcotics for depression. ..it would be a very happy planet...just not very productive! I'm from the 60's...peace, love & happiness. We actually lived that way daily. As much as I hate to say it...drugs are what killed us. You see what starts out as "no depression" turns into a need for that drug & nothing else...I mean nothing else. Nothing but the dope! It only takes 4 or 5 days to develop a "habit"; depending on which drug, ur size & ur "tolerance"...which has nothing to do with ur gender, size, etc. I'm only 4 ft. 10" & I would take EIGHT 30mg. Roxicodone AT ONE TIME...& still walk & drive around.

My dr. was prescribing 240 roxis, 30mg. plus 90 MS Contin 30 mg.(morphine). For the other person who wondered about getting a dr. to write & monitor ur usage...they have 'em. Their called "pain management" drs. In fact, they r only ones who can prescribe anything stronger than oxicodone 10 mg., or oxi 10 mg. W/acetaminophen, commonly known as Percocet 10. U must go to pain management (with medical proof...herniated discs r most common ailment). Long story short. ..of course dope cures depression. ..for a time. I did alot of drugs in 60s...even H...never got hooked on it. Thank God. Got clean when I married & had sons. Remained that way till 2004 & went to dr & found out I had herniated discs in lower back. The crack pot (or I should say "pusher") started me on roxi 30 mg. W/ Morphine as long term med. I didn't even know what they were. It had been that long since I'd done drugs. Here I am in 2015 still on oxi 10 mg. without acetaminophen cause I have hepatitis C & cirrhosis, along with too many other illnesses caused from hep C. I was told in 1982 I had Hep C. ..but drs. didn't know anything about it then & just said don't give blood. Had I known all the damage it does...I would have never drank alcohol.

I just turned 64 & I am amazed to be alive! Four husbands, (last killed in auto accident in 2011; 2 sons...17 yr. old killed in auto acc. in 1996; its just my 26 yr old, who has Downs Syndrome; and me living by ourselves. I'm still prescribed oxicodone 10 mg. (which is not much stronger than what u take. I cut myself down that much. So I could function & endure the pain. Oh yea...the depression? Worse than ever. I forgot to mention I'm Bipolar. The dope actually stabilizes my moods. But no depression is so bad compared to the "up's" & "downs" of drug addiction (or alcoholism). The feelings AT FIRST are so wonderful u think you've reached heaven...they'll get shorter as ur tolerance gets stronger...and then you'll get ur lows which is despair & Desperation at its worst. U will find that u can't live without drugs...but u can't live with them, either. I know its long...but I hope you all took the time to read it cause I've lived it & am still living it. I've learned how to manage it. And remember...you've got to come down. I have lost so many friends, so many loved ones...most importantly, I lost so much of my life...realizing it now, when theres not that much time left for me. I know antidepressants don't work. Tried them all. But please...from one whose been there... Find another way! I pray that sharing my life with you...will save you from having to go out there & finding out urself!! God bless you all!

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wow i thought i was the only one it helps so much more than my antidepressant !? hydrocodone vs anxietyand depression meds

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I definitely feel that hydrocodone is an excellent alleviator of symptoms of depression and anxiety for the appropriate individual. However, using it in this way means that you must be vigilant of the way your body/mind feel when the drug begins to clear your system. You may become a little "edgy", feel like you might "need more" and that's when you must not yield. The effects of opitates are indeed habit forming only if you let them without mindfulness, become that way. Your body will become physiologically addicted in a short period of time (just a few days).

I believe that you can manage treatment resistant depression and anxiety with a combination of things -- one in my rotation, is norco 5/325. I also use a beta-blocker, Clonidine .2mg one to three times daily…usually one time in the afternoon/evening is the best as that is when I notice I am still feeling anxiety rather than the drop in energy most people have when the sunlight begins to wane. Also, Clonidine, for me, really takes the edge off and actually helps more than Xanax -- this is all personal experience. I have been taking Xanax for about 20 years and just taking the Clonidine in the past year -- it's been much better at short-cutting "the loop" that happens in the brain with norepinepherine. I still take the Xanax for sleep, but haven't increased my dose in the time I've started taking Clonidine -- which is great. ALSO, Clonidine helps with the effects of the opiates leaving your system…there is a great article regarding therapeutic off label use of clonidine for withdrawal from many substances.

Back to the opiates: I do believe they have helped me tremendously in managing my debilitating depression, but I also am hyper vigilant in the way I take them. I also exercise regularly, use caffeine sparingly, eat pretty healthy and see a therapist regularly and take my lexapro as directed. What I'll share about my ten year relationship with Lexapro is that now I cannot get off of it without vertigo like symptoms -- even at a very, very tapered dose over a month. So, I think that of all the "addictive" drugs out there -- wow, never thought it would be the Lexapro! Anyway, not a rant..

Bottom line: I feel like at almost 50 with half my life in and out of treatment for major depression: I know myself, I know what works and I am in control of how I feel - and when I can't control it, meaning that dreaded heaviness creeps up on me, I can help myself. If I need something to help me, I can take that. If I don't need it, I don't take it (meaning the norco), but everything else I keep taking and doing (exercise, etc…) -- the norco is for when it's difficult. I would very much appreciate being able to be honest with a Dr. about what works for me without feeling like I'm drug seeking -- however, isn't it ironic you can get as much Lexapro as you'd like and over time, you may be addicted to that...

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Have used hydrocodone for years. It eases post-mastectomy nerve damage, helps with a neck and back injury, and eases the depression I've lived with almost all my life. Have no idea why the doctors are so afraid of it since it doesn't have the nasty side-effects of the anti-depressants, and I've tried many, and I've never used more than two of the 5-325 dose hydrocodone tablets a day. By the way, I'm 80, and these pills are keeping me going. Yes, I have stopped using them at times and cut back to 1/2 a tablet at other times just to see if I can, but I feel much more stable when I take the prescribed dose.

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I agree with you…in the way you take it for yourself.

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My personal intake of this particular MU agonist have been reduced. The risk of a accident occurring during operating a motor vehicle or high power equipment is a possibility very much leading to morbidity and mortality.
Off topic, I've never seen anyone impacted by a high speed train before this AM at 8 AM PST. My word, the teenage female was killed instantly. A true tragedy trying to "surpass " the train before it arrives at the point of the crossing. If this is too grafic, don't think on it too very sorrowful.

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you make a valid point regarding operation of a motor vehicle. I usually take half of a 5/325 if I take it during the day - otherwise I can feel the effects of drowsiness. The lowest possible effective dose helps me with both the discomfort from arthritis that the anti-inflammatories do not resolve and mood.

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Absolutely correct. Pain medication gets rid of depression in an hour. Can't get it though.

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Yes, i noticed the same thing. Its the only thing that relieves my depression

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Hydrocodone/benzodiazepines, drugs like CNS depressants such as tramodol, the previously unscheduled Rx Soma is not indicated for depressed Pts. Rather

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I am 67 and like you have suffered depression since the 70's. Takeda every antidepressant on the market and it lifts you in a tiny way. Hydrocodone is the only thing that rids my depression.My point...so what if you are addicted. No different than being addicted to food or sleep.

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You are so right...stopping the drug as I did after 3 years, left me in such a bad depression and it has taken months to get normal again. I'm now on Zoloft to help me feel better. Fortunately it is working. I will never use hydrocodone again, as much as I liked it, I can honestly say it was pure hell getting off of it. I suffered kidney problems after the long use and also not sleeping at night. I would drink wine to help me get some sleep. I knew that something had to give. Now I've been free from it for 4 months and can say that I will not touch this drug again.

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Thanks for sharing your story. I feel for you and what you are deeling with as I have a daughter in the same situation. I honestly hope things get better for you and I wish you all the best. Take care and hang in there....things do change if you let them.

Leanna

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I agree with you. So what if you are addicted. There are those of us who are obese, drink too much. Who care you are addicted to them, What are you suppose to do, just crawl, in a corner? You didn't do anything to make yourself depressed, it just like diabetes or any other ill.
God luck to you. How do you find a dr. to give them to you?

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I have fibromyalgia, hashimoto's disease and depression. I took methadone for pain for 2 years. The entire time my pain and my depression was 100% better. I never abused the drug or felt it had stopped working. It also never made me high like Vicodin did. It just helped me incredibly. I stopped taking it with mild withdrawals. I was afraid it would hurt my body with longterm use, but my depression and pain have been severe since I stopped. It has been about 3 years since I stopped. I have been thinking about the side effects and some of the anti-depressants have terrible side effects and don't seem to work. So I am hoping that some pharmaceutical company somewhere will come up with a study of opiates to treat depression. I think it is a good thing, but with all of the abuse and controversy over these medication I doubt it will ever happen.

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Yes! I have treatment resistant depression. I had a major depressive episode (disorder) that lasted 6 years, chronic, severe without remission. 6 YEARS! Accompanied by panic attacks 3-4 per day! I had agoraphobia (I wouldn't come out of my house and ran when people knocked). It was so bad they gave me 90 MG Adderall + 3mg xanax per day. No help.

I happen to have degenerative disk disease with facet arthropathy. My pain led me to treatment. The magic drug hydrocodone was given. I started at like 5mg 2x a day. Within months, I had energy again. I was happy! I could sleep at night and get up at sunrise. My panic attacks vanished! I started leaving my house! I started minimally socializing again. I thought "this is what normal people feel like!" I'm now 5 years into treatment. I recently witnessed something horrible that gave me ptsd. Low and behold, my pain management bumped me to percocets (oxy) 10mg 4x day. I still don't have depression. No panic attacks. I do have horrible nightmares, and a few other ptsd issues but my mental health is overall bearable. This also caused me to lose my desire to smoke or drink. I havent had a drink in 5 years or a cigarette in 3.5. I was put on disability it was so bad before the opiates. Yes, I am physically dependent, meaning I will withdraw if I suddenly stop. However, that is not an addict. An addict craves, takes more and more, etc. I never do. I take my dose at the appropriate intervals exactly as prescribed every day.

I understand there have been studies on this and they know the opiates work. There is evidence not all depressions are serotonin or norepinephrine related, but rather a defect in the endogenous opioid system in the brain.

I've been on everything...they were suggesting ECT! Then I was prescribed these. I DO NOT CARE that I am dependent. I can play with my kids. I answer the door and go in stores again! Unbelievable. I am a chronic pain sufferer so I must tow the line and not skip up, ever. So in short, I'd say it cured me.

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My position is this, I've been suicidal more times than I can count, I've tried every anti-depressant out there, what does it matter if I become addicted to Vicodin or anything else if it will save my life?

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I am a nurse and had never heard of this until I got on medschat. Did a little research and sure enough there it was. Makes sense, relieve the pain and you feel better. kind of a no brainer but it doesn't fix the problem. Pain and depression go hand in hand. Have to find out why your in pain and why you are depressed and work on both of them. Took me several years to finally find the right combo of meds, and good counseling goes a long way.

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