Stimulants I am looking for help on what to do to combat severe (-10% functionality) CFS. UK

[tired-and-enough]

HI I will firstly state this is no way a sourcing thread but an advice thread. In the US CFS is treated by both an amphetamine based drug eg adderol or similar and the physical retraining here in UK it is ONLY retraining. I have my report and I have only -10% functionality and it says in the document I may never be fully recovered which is fine except my treatment keeps getting put back latest letter now says end of April, this is because of the current cut backs and staff leaving etc. Right to my question, I have no idea where to start looking for off the street meds, I live in a tiny village in the countryside so this would not be easy or even possible BUT there must be some legal substitutes. I have tried guaranna(sp) tablets which is basically caffeine and made me ill. I have tried every vitamin supplement I could find ALL CRAP so please help me find something I can try without breaking any forum rules. I have read of ephedra which is available in cough mixture and some diet tablets but all the info I have is US based so do not have any names of UK based meds which contain the wonder ingredient and when I asked the lady as Barretts if they had any Ephedra tablets she looked at me as if I had committed murder so obviously not something I can buy as a straight up tablet from the health shops. Please help and if I have broken any rules please let me know and I will make changes to get within the rules as I am in desperate need of help and have no where else to turn.. Kind regards

 

[kleinerkiffer]

You should look into modafinil or adrafinil

 

[tired-and-enough]

Thank you will look into this, is it safe t order over the net or better in a health shop/ pharmacy (do not want the look of death again)

 

[Hodor]

Ephedrine/pseudoephedrine is the basis for making methamphetamine, so it's kind of understandable they'd give you odd looks.

Anyway, if you're properly diagnosed, a psychiatrist/neurologist might actually write you an off-label prescription for Modafinil - it's just that it's not a cheap drug, we're talking about ~150 Euros a month in Europe (unless the drug is actually approved for chronic fatigue and your insurance covers it, which I doubt).

 

[tired-and-enough]

Hi I am properly diagnosed with about 20 pages of report from the specialist and even then my doc has said they are not allowed to prescribe the meds for CFS, as to cost I can tell you right now if I have to sell my body on the streets of Norwich(okay maybe not but you get the idea) I would find the money if I had to go private, you get to the point when life stops being life and become a bare existence. I will approach my doctor again and ask for the meds maybe persistence is what is required even if the prescription needs to be private I do not care.. Thanks for help

 

[tired-and-enough]

Knowing now what Ephedra does makes the ladies reaction a bit more understandable HaHa she probably thought I had lost it. Oh well as you can see I am new to this whole clandestine world, I must just make sure I do into get into trouble.

 

[JoeDobbin]

Not to be breaking any rules either, as I am also newer to this board and community; generically speaking, what is everyone's opinion on Internet Pharmacy for sourcing medication like Adderall? I am not asking which online place to get it, but rather the general sentiment of getting it like this?

My fear would be getting something random instead of the real drug. Yet, I have read that some of these entities provide the real deal, while shipping internationally.

-Joe

 

[kleinerkiffer]

Not to be breaking any rules either, as I am also newer to this board and community; generically speaking, what is everyone's opinion on Internet Pharmacy for sourcing medication like Adderall? I am not asking which online place to get it, but rather the general sentiment of getting it like this?

My fear would be getting something random instead of the real drug. Yet, I have read that some of these entities provide the real deal, while shipping internationally.

-Joe

I would never buy drugs off the clear net, most if not all are scammers.

 

[kleinerkiffer]

@OP
You could look into research chemicals, there are a few stimulants that could help you, like adrafinil and are still legal to buy, but RCs come with a few dangers, you need to find a good vendor you can trust and most of the RCs have only little to no history of human consumption, so there could be long time effects nobody is aware of now.
Another thing you could look up are nootropics, like piracetam
One hint I'll give you: answers lay in the dark, where onions lead you and you can pay with a bit of a coin

 

[Hodor]

Hi I am properly diagnosed with about 20 pages of report from the specialist and even then my doc has said they are not allowed to prescribe the meds for CFS, as to cost I can tell you right now if I have to sell my body on the streets of Norwich(okay maybe not but you get the idea) I would find the money if I had to go private, you get to the point when life stops being life and become a bare existence. I will approach my doctor again and ask for the meds maybe persistence is what is required even if the prescription needs to be private I do not care.. Thanks for help

"The meds"? Did you ask them for amphetamines, or Modafinil?
Amphetamine has a high abuse potential, so it's obvious why doctors wouldn't be too eager to prescribe it off-label. Modafinil, on the other hand, is not an amphetamine, and produces markedly different effects, to the point where it is generally considered a "wakefulness-promoting agent" rather than a true stimulant, and there is little reason for a doctor to refuse writing that person a prescription for someone legitimately diagnosed with CFS. As I mentioned earlier your health insurance most likely won't cover it though, so the doctor would have to write you a script where you agree to pay for it yourself, which can be rather expensive.

 

[Ozle]

Amphetamines should really be your last resort. They can screw you up, causing horrible anxiety and all kinds of other side effects, and in some cases they do little to help.

Modafinil and armodafinil are good alternatives, I personally found they woke me up better than amphetamines ever did. They ARE habit-forming though, no matter what anyone tells you, so be careful.

 

[Hodor]

Modafinil and armodafinil are good alternatives, I personally found they woke me up better than amphetamines ever did. They ARE habit-forming though, no matter what anyone tells you, so be careful.

Yeah, I should have added that Modafinil does act as a mild dopamine reuptake inhibitor - meaning it produces a mild mood lift upon ingestion, which is why it is also occasionally prescribed off-label as an atypical antidepressant. Conversely, you'd probably feel a bit depressed if you were to discontinue the drug.

However, Modafinil does not affect dopamine levels anywhere as much as amphetamine does (so the dopamine reuptake inhibition cannot fully explain the extent of its wakefulness-promoting effect), so its abuse potential is much, much lower.

 

[Ozle]

Yeah. Modafinil is comparable in that regard to amineptine, which is nowhere near comparable to amphetamine as a dopaminergic. That doesn't reflect its capacity for promoting wakefulness, though.

It also has basically zero adrenergic effects, which is a big plus.

 

[tired-and-enough]

Hi after a LOT of phone call today I found out while my Endocrine Consultant got the diagnosis report from CFS/ME consultant neither my Psych doc or GP received it I have an emergency appointment tomorrow after I sent copies to both of the doctors I think things are about to change. As to the drugs until writing this thread I had only heard of amphetamine based meds for this type of problem I have now asked if Modafinil is a possibility, tomorrow will tell fingers crossed.. p.s BOTH doctors are very very pissed about not getting a copy of my diagnosis report as my copy clearly sates cc to both of them as well as my social worker and crisis team.. Thanks for all your help guys will let you know tomorrow...

 

[SixBuckets]

I'm prescribed Modafinil for fatigue related to fibromyalgia. I'm finding it effective so far - I've gone from being at risk of losing my part time job due to constant lateness and having to take a two hour nap at work every day to successfully working full time. I don't experience any antidepressant, cognitive enhancing or "speedy" feelings from modafinil - it just makes me not falling asleep at my desk. It doesn't do anything for my fibro pain, which is still sometimes debilitating and stops me attending work, but you may not have that problem if your issue is CFS rather than fibromyalgia.

I got a weird rash when I first started taking it, but it mostly went away when I adjusted the dosage. I also had to increase my dose a few times before I hit a range where it worked, but I've been on this dose for about eight months (taking it three to five days a week) and don't seem to have developed any further resistance.

My psychiatrist prescribes it off label because it's only government subsidised in Australia for narcolepsy. It costs me about $AU180 for 60 tablets and I take three a day (300mg) - so it's a pretty expensive maintenance medication, but it's really no more than I spend on coffee in a work day and without it I probably wouldn't have an income or a career.

I would print out the consumer information material from the web and take that into your doctor, as it's a relatively new drug and they may not be familiar with it. They might be more likely to prescribe it if you can demonstrate that it isn't heavily restricted (it's schedule 4 in Australia, whereas stimulants like dexamphetamine are schedule 8 ) and that it has very little abuse potential.

 

[tired-and-enough]

Thanks a ton waiting to hear from docs as we speak unfortunately here in the UK things do not always move at the quickest pace but have informed doctor I do not require the meds to be NHS based and am fully prepared to pay for them so hopefully there is a higher chance of getting it for CFS as I am not sure it is NICE accepted for CFS but we wait and see..

 

[Gabrillo]

Would you be willing to try one of the stimulant RCs? That could help.

 

[tired-and-enough]

I have no idea what that is but can find out from my doctors, the only stimulants I know about are the adderol type ones(amphetamine)and was going to try and make my own until I realized you had to be a rocket scientist to do it,but to try and answer your question let me put it this way. If someone said they could fix this problem but I would had to have my left testicle removed without the help of an anaesthetic I would do it without hesitation so I hope that answers your question.. Life like this is worse then death because at least in death you feel nothing.

 

[Keif' Richards]

I don't think you want to delve into the world of Research Chemicals in an attempt to treat a chronic issue. There are some really good vendors out there, or so I've heard, never tried, but you still run the risk of not getting what you think you're getting as there's no real oversight. If you are truly desperate, that's your decision to make. I like the idea of using Modafinil or something like it. It will keep you awake like an Amphetamine would, but without all of the side-effects, positive and negative.

This is a real shot in the dark, but I thought I might throw out Gabapentin (Neurontin) or Pregabalin (Lyrica). Some are sedated by these drugs, while others, like myself, actually get a lof of energy. I actually have a hard time going to sleep at night after using a moderate dose of Pregabalin.

 

[tired-and-enough]

Hi all firstly thank you all for your help I have just heard from my GP and although he, the CFS/ME consultant and my Endocrine team agree to the Modafinil prescription my psychiatrist overruled them on the basis he is still my primary health carer due to the fact I am still on section 117 (here in the UK section 117 is aftercare received when you have been detained under the mental health act, in my case section 3) When I decided on my username it was for a reason I gave up the will to live some time ago as each CFS treatment was put back another month or 2 and so I took a massive overdose and then went swimming but was found anyway. I am section 3 and not section 2 because I am already diagnosed with 2 serious mental health problems PTSD and BP. Some of my tiredness is due to the massive regime of meds i am on as I also have some pretty significant physical injuries as well as the host of psych drugs I am on, BUT the consultant made it clear that meds were only partially responsible for my extreme fatigue. I am absolutely devastated as it was like being given a rope when you are in a deep hole only for it to be thrown in with you instead of tied up at the other end. I thank you all for your time but some of us dig in the dirt and find gold and some of us just find more dirt.. Until I get my degree in chemistry hope is now zero. I wish you all a long and fruitful journey may you fly as high as you want and may you never sink as low as you could. Peace and happy experimenting..J