Posted by paulk on May 29, 2001, at 13:11:30
In reply to Re: Codeine for Depression Treatment » paulk, posted by LynnKhat on May 28, 2001, at 4:01:36
> > I have heard of using opiates combined with a narcotic blocker for treatment of depression – kind of a last resort thing – but that may have more to do with drug politics than it should.
>
> Hmmm. I'd hazard the guess that codeine works to alleviate depression because it's a grand high. Which is why a lot of people have trouble with pain medications.
>
Perhaps I did not make it clear – it is the use of an opiate COMBINED with an opiate blocker – which blocks the euphoric effects – that has been used as an antidepressant. (I doubt with overwhelming success or there would have been some write-ups in the press.)I am not encouraging the use of opiates – although I would rank them as a lesser evil than alcohol. Most people, if given a free supply to opiates would chose not to use them – I wouldn’t. I just don’t see why alcohol is legal – even though it is clearly a very dangerous drug – while we criminalize other dangerous drugs.
It is my contention that IF opiates combined with an opiate blocker turned out to be an excellent antidepressant it wouldn’t be prescribed because of the social stigma attached to opiates.
Again – just to be sure this is not miss understood – I am not recommending anyone use opiates, alcohol or any other dangerous drug – I don’t myself and haven’t seen anything that suggests that they are a long term therapy to depression.
poster:paulk
thread:64320
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010522/msgs/64598.html