# Dopamine/Serotonin balance... and weed withdrawal. HELP PLEASE LOL



## Chziime (Jul 5, 2010)

Hey gentlemen, so, brief background... I am on Namenda 20mg for treating OCD/anxiety and it works, but I still had some mild depression/lack of motivation/disconnection, so I quit my daily marijuana habit 12 days ago. Withdrawal sucked and still does... depression, moodiness, anger, sleep ain't easy. I still have the same lack of creative motivation (unless I take amphetamines, I'll get to that), and a waver between feeling mentally dull and, especially after taking loads of Vitamin D, over-stimulation where I think too much and can't connect to anyone or any one thing. So, I think I have too much dopamine (I get headaches, premature ejaculation... which is especially apparent after taking Ritalin, with which I ejaculate without even freaking realizing it, and also I eat too fast and crave food often, unless my stomach hurts). So, I want to maybe try 2.5mg lexapro to offset that, and actually harness its sexual side effects. I don't like SSRI's side effects such as eye problems, though, so I'm thinking maybe 5-HT instead? Or incorporating a good B-Complex to produce neurotransmitters such as serotonin (somewhat) naturally?

I've been a HUGE mess lately with this weed withdrawal, so my main concerns are:
-premature ejaculation
-lack of motivation
-feeling dull and not knowing what to say to people.
-Not feeling as "carefree" and "joke-able" as when I smoked... feeling too "serious"
-Yesterday during one of my anger spells, my thyroid area really hurt. I've been paranoid in the past that I am hyperthyroid...

Of course I could try Dexedrine or Adderall XR but that would increase dopamine even more..?

Sorry this is so broad and I don't know what I'm talking about, I am kinda floaty on klonopin right now and am just letting everything out.

*I take:* 
Magnesium Glycinate/Lysinate
C-1000 ascorbic acid extended release (definitely upsets stomach, still)
D3 2000IU 2x/day
Beta-Alanine and Whey for workout purposes
And soon I will add Jarrow's B-Right, which is one of the best formulas. I stopped taking it in the past, probably due to stomach upset or whatever.
I eat a lot of fish/walnuts/flaxseed so I may be good on Omega 3s.

EDIT- So, I guess I'm asking for supplemental, nutrition, or lifestyle advice as opposed to more pharmaceuticals...


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## crayzyMed (Nov 2, 2006)

Chziime said:


> Of course I could try Dexedrine or Adderall XR but that would increase dopamine even more..?


They do increase dopamine alot more then cannabinoids wich is a good thing since dopamine has been implicated in social anxiety disorder? Stimulants should also counteract the premature ejaculation.


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## Canadian4Life (Sep 27, 2010)

Dexedrine and adderall are poor ways to increase dopamine. They force it to be released and cause levels to drop badly after prolonged use...and cannabinoids to increase dopamine? I highly doubt that..it dulls me it has no pro-dopamine effect at all on me but mellows me out.


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## crayzyMed (Nov 2, 2006)

Canadian4Life said:


> Dexedrine and adderall are poor ways to increase dopamine. They force it to be released and cause levels to drop badly after prolonged use...and cannabinoids to increase dopamine? I highly doubt that..it dulls me it has no pro-dopamine effect at all on me but mellows me out.


Yeah cannabis increases dopamine in some reward related pathways but it also causes a big decrease in the HPA axis causing cortisol levels to drop guite dramatically, and cortisol is anxiolytic, releases dopamine, it increases and lowers both dopamine at the same time wich is probably the reason its so bad for social anxiety.

In my case weed makes me feel absolutely worse in every aspect.


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## mikoy (Aug 12, 2010)

Low dose of SSRI would me a good thing. It's making wonders for my premature ejaculation - it's good signal of low serotonin. SSRI in some way increase my memory/concentration. But now in combo with mirtazapine it's really good for my sleep/apetite/restlesness.


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## Chziime (Jul 5, 2010)

What about 5-ht instead though? Or at least not every day? Would it have less side effects or a more pronounced effect on depression, etc?


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## euphoria (Jan 21, 2009)

Mirtazapine/Remeron might be effective for quitting weed. It will help the loss of appetite, insomnia, anxiety/depression, and other things. Best taken with an SSRI, which'll reduce libido like you want (in your case I'd go for an SNRI instead). Then you might want to add Dexedrine for motivation and stuff. At 20mg memantine, starting at zero dopamine tolerance, I'd say you could get away with 3-4 days a week of Dex usage without developing tolerance (as long as those breaks are taken).

Alternatively, opioids.

Basically the deal with drugs + memantine is, it only slows tolerance to them. You still have to take breaks at intervals to keep tolerance down - the interval length I guess depends on your memantine dose amongst other factors. If you're having tolerance problems at 20mg memantine, double your dose to 40 (preferably not all at once though). I take 40mg.


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## mikoy (Aug 12, 2010)

Yeah, Mirtazapine is the best for sleep/apetite and it's decreasing my sweating from SSRI, it's so nice drug. And I noticed very interesting thing, that ritalin work for me so much better when I'm on SSRI/mirtazapine ! Alone it's increase my concentration and that's all. LOL I feel so nice butterflies in my stomach from 5 mg ritalin


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## behappy11 (Feb 26, 2013)

Hi Chziime! I've been smoking pot for 10 years and i had same problem, and if you try to search good you, can find lots of people on internet dealing with that problem! My advice to you is not to take all that medicine, and try make it through naturally. It will take time, but you will feel progress pretty soon Some things that helped me are: 

Hot soaking baths can help the emotions as well as the body.
Drink plenty of water and clear liquids, just like for the flu.
Cranberry juice has been used effectively for years by recovery houses to help purify and cleanse the body.
Really excessive sweating can deplete the body of potassium, a necessary mineral. A few foods high in potassium are: melons, bananas, citrus fruits, green leafy vegetables, and tomatoes
Eliminate fat from the diet until digestion is better.
Greatly reduce or eliminate caffeine until the sleep pattern is more normal or the shakes are gone.
The old fashioned remedy for insomnia, a glass of warm milk before bedtime, helps some people.
Exercise not only helps depression and other unpleasant emotions, it helps the body speed up the healing process.

GL, and hope you get better!


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