Taking Hydrocodone For Depression (Page 5)

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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REPORT

A few years back I fell into a slump. My entire world collapsed around me. I lost my job. Discovered my wife was having an affair and was diagnosed with cancer all within 2 months. To make matters worse it was right around the holidays which has always been a difficult time for me. I have always suffered with moderate to light depression but was always able to maintain to a certain degree. I got to where I didn't even feel like myself anymore. Didn't want to work. Didn't want to do chores. Didn't even want to play with my kids. The walls were literally closing in on me from every direction. I couldn't breathe anymore. All I could think about was how things got so bad so quick. Finally through some help from some close friends I went to get help. I started on Paxil. That was the most awful drug I've ever taken. Made me feel like a zombie. Them on to Zoloft. Wellbutrin. Effexor. None of it worked. In fact it seemed to do the exact opposite. After having surgery to remove a malignant tumor my doctor prescribed me loritab 10's. The pain was rough for awhile but I began to notice that I felt like my old self again. Was able to get out more and do the things I needed and wanted to do. Had 10X more energy and ambition. Like most of you I too feel that hydrocodone is the only thing that helps severe depression and is the only reason I'm still here today. My only advise is to maintain a high level of caution while using this drug and use extreme discipline because one is never enough. If you're not careful you will find yourself taking more than is needed for depression. I've heard stories of people taking as many as 15-20 a day. If used properly this mediation is worth it's weight in gold. If abused the effects can be catastrophic. I am now a 2&1/2 year cancer survivor that is happily divorced and climbing the ranks of a new job. My best advice to anyone whose experiencing any of what I went through is to never give up hope. Never quit. There's always a way out you just have to find it and work toward it.

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I have suffered from Major Depression for my entire adult life. I am 56 now. It was determined 10 years ago that I have TRD (Treatment Resistant Depression). If you look it up under your Search Engine, say Google, you will be amazed at all the things I have been through. I was subjected to everything there is for TRD. Five years ago, I had a serious injury and now also suffer from chronic pain. Hydrocodone was prescribed to me at first, and I did get some relief from my depression that no other medication my Psychiatrist prescribed for me. I got used to the Hydrocodone and was switched to Oxycodone. That also relieves my depression. Off the pain medicine subject, the medication that my Psychiatrist prescribed for me as a last resort was Nuvigil and my insurance didn't cover it, so he switched me to Provigil. That wasn't covered either. They are both known to help depression, but are not FDA approved for it, so the insurance won't pay. These are both Stimulants and with samples he gave me, it was unreal how it changed my mood and gave me the drive to do more things. Since he couldn't keep me in samples and I can't afford it, I have been getting it Overseas, under the name Modafinil. So, between pain medicine and a stimulant I got more relief than any psychotropic drug or combination, thereof, ever gave me.

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If hydrocodone can make this many people and more, not want to kill themselves, get stuff done you would never do, enjoy life and the people around you, and sleep eat and function normally than why dont they stop looking for alternatives and give us the help we know to work. We are all wired differently and hydros arent for everyone, but i would rather keep my hydros over what else is legal right now. (Cigs and booze). Have been taking hydros for about 6 years now after a bad snowboarding accident. Somas, clonazepam, tramadol and 1 more were others ive tried for different problems. Hydrocodone is the ONLY one that kills everything! Pain, depression, eating, sleeping, going to the bathroom and im sure theres more. This shouldnt be a huge deal, its our bodies and our lifes we want to make better. This needs to change. Depression is bad in my family and i dont want to deal with it anymore.

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I take Oxycodone, but it's really ROXYcodone No Tylenol. I mentioned earlier that I can only that since I have liver damage (which was from taking Simvastatin for cholesterol and the enzymes were up to 723!). I could have died. Now they are at 143. I have gotten so that if I take that and it helps me or Modafinil (please all with Major Depression, I urge you to check that out. I get it overseas w/ out a prescription, but my Doctor knows about it) or whatever, I don't even care what the long term effects are. With the Major Depression in full force for me, I WASN'T LIVING, I WAS EXISTING! Good luck to everyone on what you take. Please be careful of the addiction of some of these medications. Thanks for reading.

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I think it is a Miracle drug. I have been on it for close the 3 years and the most I have had in one day would be 4 10mg. When I don't have it my social anxiety and my IB syndrome comes back full force, but when I do take it my bowel movements are normal, my social anxiety goes away and it actually makes me think faster. Also no depression at all. I feel like I want to accomplish things which I do. I Wish they would make them over the counter just so I could see a hope for my present and my future.

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Yes hydrocodone Works great for depression I want to figure out how to get it for depression to

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Wow.. Real regal of you with your stated 'position' to make threats to people on an online message forum of people that deal with REAL depression every single day and are trying to communicate in an efficient manner about something that truly does help them. We are not on here condoning drug use but rather speaking from our own experiences. You must be one very bored woman to threaten 'IP addresses', but I doubt you would understand what to do, not to mention the fact you need a court order to do anything to even pull and do anything with said IP addresses. Good riddance to people like you Donna!

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Hello Everyone,

I have read many of your posts and appreciate your input.

To get right to the point, I currently take Hydrocodone for chronic pain. I have tried nearly every type of medication available and none has worked like Hydrocodone. No brainer! With that said, Hydrocodone does, indeed, elevate my mood and decrease my depression levels, too. However, I know I could never rely on Hydrocodone as an anti-depressant because I know it starts to wear off within hours and it results in terrible withdraws that make me feel even more depressed! As much as I would love to rely on it as an anti-depressant, I know I could never due to its withdraw symptoms (even one day).

My question is how do those of you avoid building a tolerance to Hydrocodone? How do you cope with withdraw symptoms if you run out (for even one day)? How do you avoid becoming addicted?

Kudos to you that you can rely on Hydrocodone as an anti-depressant. I wish I could, but I know what the repercussions could be for me . . .

Your input is much appreciated!!

Jasmine

Hydrocodone acts as an opiate by binding to specific receptors (neurotransmitters) in the brain that control mood. The opiates cause the neurotransmitters to fire at a high rate, thus producing more dopamine than your brain is used to. This results in an elevated mood and a decrease in depression for many of us. However, the effect wears off very quickly, resulting in the need to increase the dose quite often.

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I feel exactly the same. I am productive and get all sorts of things accomplished. Help my daughter with homework and get excited about life. But running out of meds is no joke the withdraw is terrible. I never take more than three a day but everyone convinces me to get off of the hydro. When I do I start sinking....FYI for those that say just go exercise....I pay a personal trainner for top care and excercise six days a week..

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Did you ever find any research that explains or promotes the understanding of hydro and depression positive benefits?

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Hi Hydrorelief,

There is a wealth of information that supports the science that Hydrocodone (opiate) elevates mood! While Hydrocodone is a magical medication that elevates mood, it is not typically prescribed for depression or anxiety. Most medical doctors know that Hydrocodone (opioids) wear off quite quickly, thus resulting in the need for an individual to take more in order to maintain the same effect. Over time, the individual inevitably builds up a tolerance to Hydrocodone, thus resulting in the need to increase the overall dosage. At one point, the individual will need to take more and more in order to achieve the same effect which is not only dangerous, but also can lead to the inevitable and dreadful withdraw effects, should the individual choose to decrease his or her dosage or stop all together. Many times individuals "run out" of their prescriptions and are forced to endure horrible withdraw effects. In short, this is why medical doctors do not prescribe Hydrocodone as an anti-depressant. It is highly addictive and will cause more depression via withdraws. It becomes a vicious cycle.

This is what I have been told by several doctors. This is what I have experienced. And, this is what I have learned from extensive research.

Please, feel free to share any other information you find on this subject. I am always open to hear other opinions:)

Sincerely,
Jasmine

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Oxycodone relieves my depression. I have treatment resistant depression, and no medication I have ever been on for depression, no shock therapy and the Vagus Nerve Stimulator didn't help my depression. This does. As long as I take it as prescribed, I am going to consider it a gift that I get relief. When/If I don't need it for pain anymore, I will go back to laying in bed doing nothing like I used to.

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I've noticed the same thing. Was on vicodin for 1.5 years, back injury. Lost insurance, went off of it. Withdrawls weren't bad. Then i lost my job, cared for my mom while she died of cancer, and afterwards a severe v depression with anxiety set in. Shrink tried multiple ssri's, ssni's, etc that have eased the anxiety but not the depression. Iv recently regained insurance and am restarting back treatment. Started back on vicodin and immediately noted a lift of my mood, more energy, clearer thinking. All of the the things the anti depressants were supposed to do. I was not high, I just felt like me again. I do not get the same results from other opiates. So I'm wondering if there's some science to it... that whatever is triggering the imbalance in my brain is balanced by the vicodin but not the other standard depression meds. Yes it is habit forming, you become dependent on it( there's a huge divergence between dependency and addiction) but guess what? You also become dependent on anti depressants, and the withdrawl from those are often worse than withdrawal from opiates. Or perhaps from being on vicodin for so long, that IT altered my brain chemistry permanently, which fed into the onset of my depression even though I'd been off of the vicodin for months... and now only the vicodin works to relieve it.

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Hi Cat,

I completely understand where you are coming from. My Hydrocodone helped elevate my mood better than any type of anti-depressant! Even though I am in no position to tell someone what medication they should or should not take, I would take an Opiate type of medication, too, if I were resistant to the positive effects of anti-depressants. No joke.

However, my point was that doctors do not typically prescribe Opiate type medications for depression because they are not only highly addictive, but they also have such a short-term effect which requires the individual to take them more often than say, an anti-depressant.

Regarding the science behind brain chemistry, many individuals, such as myself, are simply born with brain chemistry that lacks normal levels of Serotonin or Dopamine or maybe has too much or too little P Source. So, when people like me take an Opiate type of medication, the Opiate effect fulfills the reward system in the brain for "mood" by producing more Serotonin and Dopamine, thus resulting in the feeling of an elevated mood or even simply a "normal" mood, instead of depression.

Regarding Opiate withdraws, most people who take Opiate based medication would agree that Opiate withdraw is not easy. Sure, not everyone may feel the same physical or mental effects when decreasing it or stopping it all together, but for most of those who depend on Opiate based medication, they know that Opiate withdraw is notoriously dreaded.

Regarding anti-depressant withdraws, sure people will feel withdraws from them, too. However, the withdraws are not the same as Opiate withdraws because they are simply two different types of medications with different withdraw symptoms.

In short, kudos to you if you can take your medication responsibly and avoid becoming addicted. It is not easy for me!

Sincerely,

Jasmine

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Tony,
All due respect, but you are apparently unaware that depression is not a choice. It is a lack of dopamine production from the brain. If your brain doesn't produce enough there is no other way you can feel. This attitude is one we deal with constantly in our lives of judgment by the uninformed, which only serves to make a difficult situation tougher. Thats like telling a cancer patient to just choose not to have it and it'll all be better. As they say; its better to keep your mouth closed and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and prove it.

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Hi Tony,

I agree with you! Depression is not a choice. Each individual must do what it takes in order to live a life worth living.

I also agree with you that those who are not educated about the science of depression or medication tend to be judgmental about them.

I also agree that sometimes it is better to just keep the mouth closed and move on:)

When I took Hydrocodone for my chronic pain, I was judged quite often. Of course, my chronic pain led to my depression. So, I took antidepressant medication to treat the depression, and I still do. Again, I was judged for that, too. As a result, I have learned to say it like it is to those around me (strangers, friends, or family). That is, I tell them I take pain killers for my chronic pain and I take antidepressants for the depression caused by my chronic pain. I say it in a manner that is firm and educational. If they don't like it, they can lump it and kiss my booty! LOL. No one says anything to me these days:)

I say to each his own:)

My point about the Hydrocodone is that if I, personally, take it to treat my depression, I know I will become addicted to it because it makes me feel, oh so normal and nice!

Sincerely,
Jasmine

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I have been addicted to hydrocdone for maybe 7-8 months. I took maybe 5 at the most a day. On feb 28th I decided to go cold turkey, 29th still none. March 1st I couldn't deal with how depressed I was. So I took one and a half, today march 2nd I just took my last one and a half. Is Tomo going to be worse? I am overthinking and really wished this feelin I have will go away! I feel like it will never end. What's in store for me? Will everything be okay?

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Hello Donenomore,

First of all, you should give yourself credit for taking the first step in quitting Hydrocodone! Simply reducing your dose of Hydrocodone is difficult enough!

Although most likely you will feel awful while experiencing Hydrocodone withdrawal symptoms, you will be fine in the end. Keep in mind that when MOST individuals reduce or come off Hydrocodone, they are faced with withdrawals symptoms. Typical symptoms include: depression, anxiety, fear of the unknown, lack of sleep, some physical pain, nausea, etc.

With that said, remind yourself that no matter how terrible you feel, you will not die from Hydrocodone withdrawal symptoms and that any acute depression or anxiety you experience will last probably 4-5 days. Even if you are depressed already or by nature, you will bounce back "up" after your body and brain chemistry adjusts back to what it was before you took the Hydrocodone. In other words, you might feel hopeless, but it is a temporary feeling.

I have heard that Wellbutrin (an anti-depressant which can only be prescribed by a physician) helps with opiate withdrawal symptoms!! Also, I have heard that Buspar works with opiate withdrawals symptoms. Currently, I am on Buspar to help myself get through the Hdyrocodone withdrawals that I am experiencing. Many people claim that Buspar is weak, however I think it is working a little for me. Everyone responds differently to medication. Either way, there are medications that can help aid you through your withdrawal symptoms, as well as depression in general.

I am in exactly the same boat you are in. I tried to reduce my Hydrocodone dose and succeeded for over a month! However, I started to slide back into taking more again. Now that I am on Buspar, I might just try to quit cold turkey. At least I know what to expect. It isn't easy!!! I want to quit and never take it again.

There is so much more to say about our situations . . . Feel free to ask ANY QUESTIONS. I have been there and done that a few times now! This time, I am fighting for good:)

Good luck. You can do it.

Sincerely,

Jasmine

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THIS IS TRUE. I've been Hydrocodone free since Oct. 2013. My company folded and I became unemployed for the 1st time in 30 years thereby losing my BCBS insurance.
I went from taking 1 or 2 a day to 4-5. A prescription for 30 would be gone in 5-6 days.
My withdrawals lasted about 3 weeks,but once they were gone and my doctor adjusted my paxil and ativan,I feel ok. Not great but ok. I gained employment and just stay busy which keeps me from really thinking about them anymore.

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I am so glad that I have found this thread!!! I suffer with depression with anxiety and soon to be dx and put on the right medications. I visited with my Dr yesterday and I have felt bad in the past for feeling "normal" when I have taken Loritab for pain. I explained this to the Dr and his reply was hmmm. I assured him that I was not seeking to get this medication. I was in hopes that it might help them to dx me and to get me on the right medications. I thought I was the only one that has felt this way..

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