Bumping my own thread, I conducted pretty extensive experiments with 50mg demerol tablets, think I had about 70 in a couple of very cheap deals. In terms of potency, I'd have to agree it's on the weak side, - for me, 50mgs demerol more or less =30mgs dihydrocodeine, but is both more euphoric and less effective as a painkiller. I get severe tension headaches (not migraines, Jewish stress-neurosis), and whereas 3 prescription strength co-codamol (30mgs codeine/500 apap) will generally clear them, or 60mgs DHC (I'm addicted to morphine, but still get analgesic effects from milder opis) will get rid of them with a little ibuprofen (or 2 x 5/500 vics), it takes about 120-150mgs of oral demerol with 500mgs apap to do the job. Recreationally, too, I'd say they're inferior to high-dose DHC or oral morphine, just because they're so short-acting. I won't bother with them again, except perhaps as an occasional condiment of sorts - they were nice at the end of some long, hard workmg days mixed with MScontins and fent patches - but by that point, I was chomping up to 500mgs demerol while on 180mgs Mscontin and low-dose fent, so it's notsuprising they packed a bit of a rush. I'd take the same kind of dose of DHC to get a little noddy - and DHC isn't neurotoxic in high doses. So, on balance, I join the consensus - thumbs down on demerol, it's a poor many's oxy.
I was a little dissapointed - I'd read good things about demerol in old novels, but, in retrospect, it was always about IV use, and I imagine (I don't do needles - no self-control, I'd be dead within months if I started) than an IV demerol rush would be briefly utopian.. I'd rate pethidine above codeine phosphate, below DHC and Vicodin and waaaaay below oral morphine - if used at dangerously addictive doses and potentiated or....but no, let's not go there, it doesn't qualify as harm minimisation.
Play safe.