Opioids Can you get an enorphin rush whilst on methadone maintenance?

[Artificial Emotion]

Or is it like trying to get high off codeine with a huge habit i.e. it ain't gonna happen?

Also are buprenorphine implants a viable option for someone going to a prison where they don't offer substitution therapy? What happens if you get into an accident after having one put in (like slipping on a shank)? Do they just keep pushing morphine into you until you get adequate analgesia?

Finally is it just my imagination or do doctors have a tendency to view and treat opiate dependent patients as if they're sub-human? I sometimes feel as if they can't see past the label and just write me off as a druggie. Sometimes I feel as if they think I'm there just to score drugs or manipulate them even if I come in with something that doesn't even involving pain. I feel dirty, like I'm just a pathetic homeless junkie when I know myself and I know I never even acted out like a stereotypical druggie in the first place. I never stole, I never lied and I barely even broke the law when I got addicted to poppy pod tea. I worry about being in pain and being denied painkillers in an accident which doesn't help my anxiety but I guess my hands are tied for the foreseeable future.

 

[soundphaRm]

It'd be quite difficult to get a natural endorphin high (you mean like runner's/soccer player's high, right?), while on a powerful, long lasting opioid like methadone. That being said, the rest of your post reminds me of when I had to go to the ER for a broken ulna (clean break, non-compound Fx). The doc kinda' suggested that I might be exhibiting some drug seeking behavior...my response was, "Well, doc, I am in a lot of pain here, and if you have a drug that can help alleviate some of this pain, I'd be grateful to have some...so I guess you're right, doc, I am seeking something to help with the pain of this broken arm. If "drug seeking behavior" is what you want to call it, well then I'm guilty as charged." That pretty much left him speechless, as he didn't know what to say after that!
As a side note he ended up giving me 4mg Dilaudid (IV push), and sent me home w/ a prescription for 20 30 mg oxycodone IR! So, I'm saying this as an RN AND as a patient...most of the time they appreciate your honesty...YMMV...

 

[Jabberwocky]

Yes it's completely possible to get an endorphine rush while on opiates. I'm not sure about methadone but it sure is on a huge dose of oxy as I demonstrated to myself tonight, after an hour of hardcore sex with my girlfriend I was and still am covered in a blanked of endorphin euphoria. It's incredible. It's the best i've felt on opiates in a long time actually. Ahhhhhhh

Also - yes. Doctors tend to do that, and it's a shame and frankly immoral and unjust. It's pathetic on behalf of the doctor to do it as well, unless you find a caring and nice one, which is hard to come across but luckily I do have a very kind, caring shrink and the same with my general health doctor.

 

[Cane2theLeft]

If you mean from running/working out, new research actually shows that it's anandamide (endogenous cannabinoid) responsible for the effects. They thought it was endorphins because they CAN be found in the blood after strenuous exercise but endorphins do not cross the BBB and are not released centrally from these activities.

Anandamide is also observed in the blood after exercise and DOES cross the BBB.

 

[DrugOmen]

If you mean from running/working out, new research actually shows that it's anandamide (endogenous cannabinoid) responsible for the effects. They thought it was endorphins because they CAN be found in the blood after strenuous exercise but endorphins do not cross the BBB and are not released centrally from these activities.

Anandamide is also observed in the blood after exercise and DOES cross the BBB.

yeah i read this too, it also makes since because im on suboxone and can still get this rush.

 

[RobotRipping]

i'm sure that rush also involves the release of other neurotransmitters, mostly NE i'm thinking, if it's something like sky diving or sex. As for runner's high, it really feels more like an opiate buzz to me than a cannabis one but i guess that's not a scientific method of figuring out how it works.

 

[Cane2theLeft]

^ yeah, activities like skydiving certainly get the adrenaline (epinephrine) pumping which is categorically different than the effects of strenuous exercise.

I remember when I was a lifeguard I would get a huge adrenaline rush when I would have to jump in to save someone. That certainly felt a lot different than a runner's/swimmer's high which I also frequently experienced at that time.