10 replies to this topic

[disaster]

Hi, this is my first post here. I think I ought to briefly tell my story before I get into what questions I have.

I've was very addicted to cocaine, as well as crack, using big doses ona daily basis for 4-5 years. During this time I also used other drugs, mainly THC and LSD.

Since just over a year I am clean, no illegal drugs, no alcohol and it feels great.

I'm currently getting sertraline(50 mg) and mirtazapin(45 mg) from my psychiatrist - it was by my own suggestion that he prescribed it and it has helped my sleep well and get past my anxiety, I function all right.

However, I find tht my libido is very low, my ability to concentrate is low, I'm very passive and it's no wonder - my dopamine receptors must have been pretty burnt. My psychiatrist is very accomodating and gives me what I ask for if I can motivate it.

I've been spending some time on the internet trying to figure out if there is other medications that would fix this but the information sea is so vast and I need some advice.

I started looking at diseases that have similar symptoms as my own condition and I found two nootropics that I find interesting

1. Selegiline
2. Piracetam

Now, I have read somewhere that Selegiline shouldn't be mixed with sertraline but is that true even for low doses? if so, why?

Do you have any other suggestions or advice, please share it with me!

[disaster]

today I received the bottle of cyprenil that I ordered and tomorrow will have my first try. I had a friend buy a lot of Piracetam for me while he was in Latvia but I wont get that for another week. I have an appointment with my psychiatrist on Friday to discuss my new medications.

[luv2increase]

I would suggest you do take the following:


NAC (n-acetyl-l-cysteine) 500mg-1g daily ---> has been shown to help individuals overcome an addictive nature ---> studies were even done with cocaine addicts if I remember correctly

L-Tyrosine ---> 1-2g daily in divided doses ---> helps with your possible deficient amount of neurotransmitters in the brain

Caffeine source ---> if you can tolerate it, and it won't trigger relapse

Cyprenil ---> no more than 3mg daily or 21mg a week

Piracetam ---> 2-6g daily in divided doses

Multi-Vitamin

Fish Oil

Vitamin D3

Rhodiola Rosea ---> very good adaptogen to help you cope with stress ---> plus it makes you feel good

Calcium / Magnesium supplement

Acetyl-L-Carnitine and Alpha Lipoic Acid combo ---> 500mg ALCAR 200mg ALA 3x a day

Piracetam ---> helps with anxiety ---> improves memory

Centrophenoxine ---> choline source (the best) and lipofuscin remover and brain repair





The above, of course, are recommendations for you after you have complete cessation from your currently prescribed medications. I think you need to work with your psychiatrist in a taper-down game plan in order to do this.

If you have any other questions, shoot me a PM.


Good luck!



BTW, I've been bitten by the cocaine bug before, rather hard too which lasted for way longer than it should have. Now, all is dandy, and I don't even drink alcohol anymore. Life gets much much better I can definitely assure you without a doubt.


EDIT: You may want to throw in Milk Thistle Extract (150mg-200mg 3x a day) in your regimen also. I'm sure you drank a lot of alcohol while doing cocaine. This is a horrible combination that puts much stress on the liver due to the combo creating a chemical called cocaethyline. This is very toxic to the liver.

If the liver is in bad shape, it can cause all types of psychological problems such as depression, lack of drive, etc....

Don't drink anymore alcohol either if you still indulge.

Edited by luv2increase, 21 July 2008 - 04:30 PM.

[cmorera]

I would suggest you do take the following:


NAC (n-acetyl-l-cysteine) 500mg-1g daily ---> has been shown to help individuals overcome an addictive nature ---> studies were even done with cocaine addicts if I remember correctly

L-Tyrosine ---> 1-2g daily in divided doses ---> helps with your possible deficient amount of neurotransmitters in the brain

Caffeine source ---> if you can tolerate it, and it won't trigger relapse

Cyprenil ---> no more than 3mg daily or 21mg a week

Piracetam ---> 2-6g daily in divided doses

Multi-Vitamin

Fish Oil

Vitamin D3

Rhodiola Rosea ---> very good adaptogen to help you cope with stress ---> plus it makes you feel good

Calcium / Magnesium supplement

Acetyl-L-Carnitine and Alpha Lipoic Acid combo ---> 500mg ALCAR 200mg ALA 3x a day

Piracetam ---> helps with anxiety ---> improves memory

Centrophenoxine ---> choline source (the best) and lipofuscin remover and brain repair





The above, of course, are recommendations for you after you have complete cessation from your currently prescribed medications. I think you need to work with your psychiatrist in a taper-down game plan in order to do this.

If you have any other questions, shoot me a PM.


Good luck!



BTW, I've been bitten by the cocaine bug before, rather hard too which lasted for way longer than it should have. Now, all is dandy, and I don't even drink alcohol anymore. Life gets much much better I can definitely assure you without a doubt.


EDIT: You may want to throw in Milk Thistle Extract (150mg-200mg 3x a day) in your regimen also. I'm sure you drank a lot of alcohol while doing cocaine. This is a horrible combination that puts much stress on the liver due to the combo creating a chemical called cocaethyline. This is very toxic to the liver.

If the liver is in bad shape, it can cause all types of psychological problems such as depression, lack of drive, etc....

Don't drink anymore alcohol either if you still indulge.

nice suggestions, but may i inquire as to why the caffeine was listed?

[luv2increase]

nice suggestions, but may i inquire as to why the caffeine was listed?

Mainly because it will help with focus and concentration. It will also help with upping the amount of good feeling neurotransmitters in his brain, and it is good for the liver.

[Humanescence]

Modafinil ?...

Despite years of active research, there are still no approved medications for the treatment of cocaine dependence. Modafinil is a glutamate-enhancing agent that blunts cocaine euphoria under controlled conditions, and the current study assessed whether modafinil would improve clinical outcome in cocaine-dependent patients receiving standardized psychosocial treatment. This was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial conducted at a university outpatient center (from 2002 to 2003) on a consecutive sample of 62 (predominantly African American) cocaine-dependent patients (aged 25-63) free of significant medical and psychiatric conditions. After screening, eligible patients were randomized to a single morning dose of modafinil (400 mg), or matching placebo tablets, for 8 weeks while receiving manual-guided, twice-weekly cognitive behavioral therapy. The primary efficacy measure was cocaine abstinence based on urine benzoylecgonine levels. Secondary measures were craving, cocaine withdrawal, retention, and adverse events. Modafinil-treated patients provided significantly more BE-negative urine samples (p=0.03) over the 8-week trial when compared to placebos, and were more likely to achieve a protracted period (> or =3 weeks) of cocaine abstinence (p=0.05). There were no serious adverse events, and none of the patients failed to complete the study as a result of adverse events. This study provides preliminary evidence, which should be confirmed by a larger study, that modafinil improves clinical outcome when combined with psychosocial treatment for cocaine dependence.


http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/15525998

[Humanescence]

duplicate

Edited by Humanescence, 26 July 2008 - 03:48 AM.

[dopamine]

Hi, this is my first post here. I think I ought to briefly tell my story before I get into what questions I have.

I've was very addicted to cocaine, as well as crack, using big doses ona daily basis for 4-5 years. During this time I also used other drugs, mainly THC and LSD.

Since just over a year I am clean, no illegal drugs, no alcohol and it feels great.

I'm currently getting sertraline(50 mg) and mirtazapin(45 mg) from my psychiatrist - it was by my own suggestion that he prescribed it and it has helped my sleep well and get past my anxiety, I function all right.

However, I find tht my libido is very low, my ability to concentrate is low, I'm very passive and it's no wonder - my dopamine receptors must have been pretty burnt. My psychiatrist is very accomodating and gives me what I ask for if I can motivate it.

I've been spending some time on the internet trying to figure out if there is other medications that would fix this but the information sea is so vast and I need some advice.

I started looking at diseases that have similar symptoms as my own condition and I found two nootropics that I find interesting

1. Selegiline
2. Piracetam

Now, I have read somewhere that Selegiline shouldn't be mixed with sertraline but is that true even for low doses? if so, why?

Do you have any other suggestions or advice, please share it with me!

Pharmacological treatment for stimulant abuse has been a neglected avenue of research, especially when compared with other addictive substances like alcohol and opiates. One of the problems pointed by some researchers is that stimulant abusers chronically seek-out a "fix" in order to accomplish basic daily tasks, leading to both abuse in the first instance and subsequent seeking-out of a "replacement" that could, in part, replicate the originally desired effects. But the observation is true of other chemical addictions, and "replacement" therapies are often used in alcohol addiction (primarily cloradiazpoxide). The valuable point, I think, is not to fall into the same psychological circuitry that led to the addiction in the first place. In the U.S., stimulant addiction doesn't seem to be treated with a great deal of seriousness, and probably has a great deal to do with cultural recognition/acceptance.

The two drugs that have shown most promise are bupropion (a dual DA/NE reuptake inhibitor) and modafinil (a wakefulness-promoting agent), which represent what is called "agonist therapy" for stimulant addiction. Pre-cursors and herbals may also have some useful applications. Because you are on sertraline (Zoloft) I would recommend against using Selegiline. Low-dose methylphenidate is another option, but abuse potential is much higher. Stimulant withdrawal has very perceptible effects, as I'm sure you know, and lack of concentration and energy are very typical symptoms. Keep reading up on the options, and talk with your physician about what would work best for you.

[disaster]

Thanks for all the input/advice.

Luv2increase - as I was about to order l-tyrosine, I read a warning that it shouldnt be taken together with seregiline - any thoughts on that?

regarding modafinil - I'm currently undergoing investigation to determine whether I have ADHD, I'm fairly convinced that I do, and anyways I know how to convince my psychiatrist. Hopefully I can start trying out different meds to determine what will be beneficial for me.

I have lowered my dose of sertraline to 25 mg for now and I have been taking 2 mg of Cyprenil for a couple of days now. The most significant effect so far is a much higher level of energy/drive. I cleaned my entire house the first two days and did a bunch of other things that I have been neglecting for a long time. At such low doses of Cyprenil I don't think there should be any risk of MAO-A inhibition, and in any case I plan to get off the Sertraline completely within a month, next week i will start to lower the mirtazapin as well.

[luv2increase]

Luv2increase - as I was about to order l-tyrosine, I read a warning that it shouldnt be taken together with seregiline - any thoughts on that?

I don't know. Maybe they think there may be a chance in some individuals of being too much stimulation due to the dopamine. I don't take l-tyrosine anymore.

Actually, just today I started DL-Phenylalanine again.

I figure 750mg x twice daily along with 50mg PEA thrice daily and 2mg deprenyl along with chocamine, green tea extract, and coffee would be a good combo.




If you are going to try it disaster, start low for each of them. I can assure you that 1-2mg of deprenyl along with anything less than a gram of l-tyrosine won't have any negative interactions. Heck, 1-2mg of deprenyl will hardly inhibit MOA-B! If it does, it will take a few weeks of dosing or longer to get to that point.

You'll be fine.

[disaster]

hi,

whats the difference between DL-Phenylalanine and L-Phenylalanine, effect-wise?

I have 100 grams of the latter at home and I have considered taking 1 gram of that together with B6 and vitamin C, but again - the label says that you shouldnt take it if you're on SSRI's. I really want to disregard it since it would boost my dopamine levels significantly, wouldn't it? Or should I be patient and stop with the sertraline first?

I know that my psychiatrist wouldn't approve of this kind of experimentation, but it's my body and brain. I put myself into this condition and it would feel good if it was me who took me out of it.