# Dihydrocodeine for anxiety?



## Ash09 (Apr 27, 2009)

I was wondering if dihydrocodeine has any effect on anxiety, because they sell it in pharmacies here in the UK.


----------



## euphoria (Jan 21, 2009)

DHC, like most opioids, is extremely powerful in relieving anxiety and making you feel good. Unfortunately, tolerance and dependency will develop unless you have a plan to prevent it, and also they sell DHC with paracetamol here in the UK (bad for the liver, obviously). If only there was a way to extract the DHC from the pills...


----------



## Ash09 (Apr 27, 2009)

I only need it for 1 or 2 days a week, wouldn't want to take it more than that, it costs about £4 for 32 paramol tablets (240mg DHC) which makes it seem like good value assuming I can extract it successfully. Is doing this even illegal?


----------



## Madison_Rose (Feb 27, 2009)

Let me know if you're successful extracting the stuff - I looked into it but couldn't see a way of doing it. It probably is a tiny bit illegal, but I bet your unlikely to get in trouble as long as you're not selling it! Oh, and there a reason why opiates like codeine are strictly controlled - they're highly addictive. Take care!


----------



## belfort (May 3, 2009)

opiates are literally a godsend for people with anxiety/depression..i found that out 9-10 years ago, i started skinpopping nubain and it made me feel very good, anxiety was decreased and depression was long gone....fast forward years later and i was broke after a bad dope habit...nowadays, my depression/anxiety is worse so...


----------



## Ash09 (Apr 27, 2009)

Madison_Rose said:


> Let me know if you're successful extracting the stuff - I looked into it but couldn't see a way of doing it. It probably is a tiny bit illegal, but I bet your unlikely to get in trouble as long as you're not selling it! Oh, and there a reason why opiates like codeine are strictly controlled - they're highly addictive. Take care!


Cold water extraction is the method used to do it.


----------



## Ash09 (Apr 27, 2009)

Constipation seems to be a common side effect of opiates, is there anyway to counter that, perhaps with metoclopramide? I have a whole stack of the stuff.


----------



## euphoria (Jan 21, 2009)

Don't take metoclopramide, it blocks dopamine receptors in the brain which are involved in the euphoria from opioids. Buy some domperidone; it's OTC here and will only block dopamine receptors outside the brain (hence, no effect on mood, but still on nausea).

Another idea is to just take loads of magnesium supplements. Will relieve constipation, with the added bonus of blocking opioid tolerance.


----------



## Ash09 (Apr 27, 2009)

Thanks. How does magnesium reduce tolerance developing?


----------



## euphoria (Jan 21, 2009)

> Thanks. How does magnesium reduce tolerance developing?


http://www.anesthesia-analgesia.org/cgi/content/abstract/86/4/830
http://www.opioids.com/nmda/plasticity.html

At least one part of the opioid tolerance process appears to be mediated through NMDA receptors. I believe it's the glutamate receptors, not glycine, that are involved in tolerance but I'm not 100%. Magnesium blocks the glutamate-NMDA receptor which is involved in learning, drug tolerance and other stuff.

I can only gather very vague information on the net about this, and it seems pretty complicated. Magnesium may enhance the NMDA receptors in some situations rather than block it. The research claimed magnesium doesn't block the glycine site if I remember correctly, which would explain the lack of psychosis at therapeutic magnesium dosages.


----------



## Ash09 (Apr 27, 2009)

Do you have experience with dihydrocodine? I've been trying to find out the effective dose for SA purposes, but all I've found so far is analgesic doses and recreational dosages.


----------



## euphoria (Jan 21, 2009)

You will be wanting a recreational dose for SA purposes. Recreational dose = makes you feel good.


----------



## screwjack (Dec 19, 2008)

Ahh good old dope for SA. It might relieve your symptoms, but at what price? Tolerance sets in quick and you get as addicted to the rituals and "the life" as you do whatever opiate you are ingesting. When you get clean you'll find yourself back at day one but with a bigger hole to fill in than when you started. If you think you are one of the very rare people that can manage your own drug use theraputically with other drugs or sheer will power then more power to you.


----------



## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

What is the rationale that UK lawmakers follow when they allow opiates to be OTC?


----------



## StPatrick317 (Dec 4, 2008)

korey said:


> What is the rationale that UK lawmakers follow when they allow opiates to be OTC?


Maybe not being as big of a Nanny state is the UK usually is. Where a table of bureaucrats in a far-off building decide how your life should be lived.

If the United States actually followed the constitution, any adult would have right to do any drug/herb/supplement they wanted without Government intervention.


----------



## Ash09 (Apr 27, 2009)

Tried 60mg today, had no noticeable effect.


----------



## DMBfan (Aug 29, 2008)

korey said:


> What is the rationale that UK lawmakers follow when they allow opiates to be OTC?


Low dose, it's very effective with low abuse potential. They add tylenol (and sometimes caffeine) in an attempt to thwart recreational use. In Canada you can get Tyelonol with 8mg of codiene OTC and in New Zealand they sell 12mg of codeine with Ibuprofen OTC. I suspect it's more of a cultural thing, in the UK they are more liberal with painkillers (OTC and prescription) but stricter with benzos. You can't get xanax through their national healthcare system, you need to pay a private doctor to prescribe it.

Just to give you an idea, prescription DHC is sold in 30-40mg doses in instant release form. So taking even a few 7.5mg OTC pills when the typical recreational dose is 70mg+ isn't likely to be very fun.


----------



## Ash09 (Apr 27, 2009)

Tried 120mg today, again no effect whatsoever. I guess trying this was a waste of time.


----------



## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

My sister had some Rx cough syrup last year that had this stuff in it, but it was too strong for her (she's 9), so it just sorta sat in the cabinet. I woke up sick one morning but couldn't miss organic chemistry lecture so I took a bunch of stuff including a healthy dose or two of her cough syrup and it made me feel pretty nifty. That stuff ran out quickly, though, lol.


----------



## jijiji (Feb 5, 2011)

StPatrick317 said:


> If the United States actually followed the constitution, any adult would have right to do any drug/herb/supplement they wanted without Government intervention.


~yes.~


----------



## DK3 (Sep 21, 2011)

euphoria said:


> DHC, like most opioids, is extremely powerful in relieving anxiety and making you feel good. Unfortunately, tolerance and dependency will develop unless you have a plan to prevent it, and also they sell DHC with paracetamol here in the UK (bad for the liver, obviously). If only there was a way to extract the DHC from the pills...


I'm pretty sure DHC is water soluble like codeine, although I haven't been able to verify this conclusively...if it is the case, the commonly used "cold water extraction" method should work.


----------



## DK3 (Sep 21, 2011)

Ash09 said:


> I only need it for 1 or 2 days a week, wouldn't want to take it more than that, it costs about £4 for 32 paramol tablets (240mg DHC) which makes it seem like good value assuming I can extract it successfully. Is doing this even illegal?


Once you extract codeine or dihydrocodeine from OTC painkillers you're breaking the law (manufacturing controlled drugs) and also the same laws apply as possession of the actual drugs. Dihydrocodeine is a class B drug. Even crushing a dried poppy head and making a cup of poppy tea, or making poppy tea from poppy seeds is exactly the same, although possession of dried poppies and seeds is not an offence.

If you do it on a small scale just for personal use you should be fine though (most likely just get a caution if caught if its a first offence), but it's unlikely anyone would find out anyway really anyway providing you don't go announcing it ;-)


----------



## crayzyMed (Nov 2, 2006)

Opiates when used therapeutically may be best combined with minocycline wich abolishes the euphoria and tolerance while keeping the therapeutic effects.


----------



## Famous (Sep 6, 2011)

crayzyMed said:


> Opiates when used therapeutically may be best combined with minocycline wich abolishes the euphoria and tolerance while keeping the therapeutic effects.


However, long term use may exacerbate depression in certain patients. And increase the associated nausea and vomiting.


----------



## crayzyMed (Nov 2, 2006)

Totally Terrified said:


> However, long term use may exacerbate depression in certain patients.


That is because of tolerance wich things like minocycline inhibit.


----------



## Famous (Sep 6, 2011)

I take both, the minocycline added really makes me ...h e a v y and lethargic, not sleepy though.
Sometimes though, I can take them and puke before they are fully ingested, bummer...


----------



## crayzyMed (Nov 2, 2006)

Totally Terrified said:


> I take both, the minocycline added really makes me ...h e a v y and lethargic, not sleepy though.
> Sometimes though, I can take them and puke before they are fully ingested, bummer...


What if you lower the dose? How does it affect the euphoria and tolerance, perhaps addition of a tiny dose of acamprosate for tolerance.


----------



## Famous (Sep 6, 2011)

The DHC is prescribed for muscle spasm pain btw, not for anxiety,( the anxiety is just a side efect of my crap life)


----------



## Famous (Sep 6, 2011)

crayzyMed said:


> What if you lower the dose? How does it affect the euphoria and tolerance, perhaps addition of a tiny dose of acamprosate for tolerance.


I dunno i just stick to what the doc says, I find if I have some real orange juice close and quickly enough to swallow, even just two mouthfuls can quell the stomach reactions.


----------



## DK3 (Sep 21, 2011)

euphoria said:


> DHC, like most opioids, is extremely powerful in relieving anxiety and making you feel good. Unfortunately, tolerance and dependency will develop unless you have a plan to prevent it, and also they sell DHC with paracetamol here in the UK (bad for the liver, obviously). If only there was a way to extract the DHC from the pills...


Can't you use the cold water extraction (CWE) method then like you can with Codeine? Works with tramadol too, not that it needs extracting usually..but it's water soluble...lot of opiates seem to be?


----------



## Opiman (Aug 8, 2011)

DK3 said:


> Can't you use the cold water extraction (CWE) method then like you can with Codeine? Works with tramadol too, not that it needs extracting usually..but it's water soluble...lot of opiates seem to be?


Yes I believe that is what he was hinting at.

I take it the only advantage of taking dihydrocodeine over a stronger opioid stronger such as hydrocodone is that it's easier to obtain? I mean, 15mg hydrocodone usually works wonders for most people, and you can feel it's effect even at 10mg. But the guy here was saying 120mg dihydrocodeine had no effect..


----------



## Bluemoon659 (Feb 20, 2013)

I just used dihydrocodeine to try and calm my anxiety before a presentation that I had to give to about 100 people, and it DIDNT WORK AT ALL! I dont recommend it all, it didn't alleviate any of the symptoms of anxiety, my knees were shaking my hands were shaking, my heart was racing and my voice kept breaking as result of this. All it did was make me feel foggy and confused which made my performance much worse!


----------

