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  • BDD Moderators: Keif’ Richards

Do people use specific drugs because specific neurotransmitters are out of whack?

the_integerian

the_integerian

Bluelighter
Joined
Apr 15, 2010
Messages
112
OK, this is a weird question. Do people self medicate with certain drugs to treat chemical imbalances? I know people self medicate with mind altering chemicals to treat negative emotions, but do they use certain drugs because those drugs effect certain neurotransmitters that are imbalanced? What I mean is, is the reason that people self medicate with alcohol technically because their brains don't produce enough or correctly process GABA? Is the reason that people use cocaine or amphetamine technically because their brains don't produce enough or correctly process norepinephrine and dopamine?
 
yes, an alcoholic could take xanax or valium instead because they are self medicating a condition that involves the GABA receptors. someone with ADHD may self medicate with cocaine due to it's affinity to the dopamine receptor...etc... interesting subject.
 
I think self-medication is definitely real, and different people obviously have different drugs of choice, but I don't believe it has to do with neurotransmitters being out of whack. My mother and father were both opiate addicts, I love opiates myself, but I honestly don't think it has to do with neurotransmitters being out of whack. I think there might be genetics behind how drugs effect different people, but I don't think an alcoholic self-medicates because he isn't producing enough GABA for example. Maybe he or she is nervous, anxious, or depressed, but I highly doubt it has to do with fucked up neurotransmitters. Different people do have tendencies toward different drugs, and a lot of it might be based on how they feel, what they want to accomplish, etc., but as far as neurotransmitter inbalances and all that, I just don't buy it.
 
Well, once drugs become involved, yes neurotransmitters start changing all around, but I am talking disposition to certain addictions being related to lack of certain of neurotransmitters.
 
Certainly. Depressed/anxious people have a disposition to alcohol, barbiturates, opiates and benzos. I love opiates/benzos and alcohol. I'm also very Irish/Welsh, which (most likely) has something to do with it.

On the other hand, I do throughly enjoy Dexedrine.

This is a very interesting topic indeed. I'm interested in what other's opinions on it will be...
 
Prescribed lorazepam for anxiety

Currently using buprenorphine and kratom to ween off a 4-5 year opiate habit.

Cannabis smoker, from time to time

Alcohol user, 4-5 days per week
 
I think the "neurotranmitter" theory applies to some people for sure. I've heard so many people say opiates made them feel "normal" for the first time in their lives (myself included) that there has to be something to it. When it comes to depression and other mental disorders, I think it's more than just neurotransmitters--hormonal imbalances, nutrient deficiencies, genetic susceptibility...all that comes into play.
 
Well of course opiates make you feel more "normal", they feel fucking good! All is right with the world, and you feel fantastic. I honestly don't think neurotransmitters have all that much to do with potential addictions to certain drugs. Drugs that effect neurotransmitters sure can help with depression/anxiety/nervousness etc., but I don't think depression/anxiety/nervousness is caused by neurotransmitter imbalance as many like to think. Stimulants help those with ADD, but I doubt all those with ADD have whacked neurotransmitters.
 
^Interesting point.

That and, after a while, opiates do make me feel normal (yes, I know this a sign of addiction), but looking back, I feel like I never felt normal until I started taking opiates.
 
I've always been curious as to whether or not certain people who have a predisposition to opiate addiction, especially those who experience feeling and looking normal for the first time on opiates, are deficient in endorphins. As far as I know, there have been no studies on endorphin deficiency, and I would be curious to see one, as well as a study that looks for a correlation between a potential endorphin deficiency and opiate addiction.
 
Oh, I believe in predisposition to be addicted to certain drugs, but I just don't buy the lack of neurotransmitter activity theory.
 
Alex000, just for argument's sake, if my neurotransmitters aren't out of whack, then what about me predisposes me to be addicted to certain drugs?

(again, just for argument's sake)
 
Well, I think there is a certain behavioral component to predisposition. My mother, much like me at this point always lived in a world of her own, and by nature sought out pleasure. She became an opiate addict. Of course there is more, her body tolerated opiates fairly well, and she wasn't one of those who can't seem to enjoy opiates, nor was she one who was especially sensitive. I think just who you are predisposes some to certain addictions. Someone who is esepcially nervous/neurotic might have a higher chance of developing an addiction to alcohol for example, than someone who is not.

All of this, though, doesn't take into account the most important factor, drugs make us feel good. Now, cocaine or amphetamines might not be all that fun for an especially anxious person, but for someone who needed more concentration and engergy they might be more of an attractive choice for an addiction.

Some of us are a little "off", a little "nutty", a little "blue". Whatever it is, drugs make people feel better, and for some of us who need to feel better (in which ever way) might be predisposed to certain addictions over others depending on who they are, and how they operate, and function.

I am not sure if all of this makes sense, but I just don't buy all the neurotransmitter defficiancy bullshit, sorry just seems fishy to me.
 
Makes sense to me, I've always had a hyper-sensitivity to pain, which would probably explain why I like opiates so much.

And, and you mentioned, they make you feel really freakin' good.

Stimulants are great too, but they do increase my anxiety...
 
I think that the neurotransmitter deficiency angle should at least be explored, and could possibly explain why some individuals are predisposed to addiction to certain drugs.

We acknowledge deficiencies in serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine, and we prescribe drugs in order to balance these deficiencies. Is it not possible that endorphin deficiencies could lead to opiate addiction?

I don't think that all opiate addicts are endorphin deficient, but I do believe that a certain number of them are. It seems entirely plausible, considering we have already determined that others are deficient in other neurotransmitters.
 
I don't believe in serotonin/norepinephrine/dopamine defficienies either. I mean, sure they could happen, but I don't believe they are the main cause of depression/ADD/anxiety. I really don't. Drugs effecting those neurotransmitters DO help, but they just increase more of what is already there. They are effective, but I still don't believe that defficiencies are the major cause of such disorders.
 
OPIATES I LVOED ThEM BUT MADE MY BODY ITCh AVE ACTUALLY ONLY TRIED OXYS AND VICODIN ThREE TIMES ThEY MAKDE ME FEEL LIKE I COULD DAY DREAM AAND I LOVVE DAYDREAMING MORE ThAN ANYThING JUST LAY IN BED AND BELIEVE MY LIFE WAS PERFET BUT ONE TIM ThEY GOT ME ALL ITChY AND NERVOUS URING ThANKSGIVING ALSO GAVE ME ThE MUNChIES ThIS WAS WITh OXIES ALThOG OPIATES hAVE DRIVEN ME TO EXPIERIENCE EPIPhANYS AND GIVE ME EUFORIA ONLY 3 TIMES ThE OThER EXPIERIENCE SUCKED ELT LIKE I COULD BREATh GGOT ALL ITCh
ALCOOL MAKES ME FEEL SOMEhOW PRETTY STUPID BUT IF I TAKE A NORMAL AMOUNT I FEEL RELAXED AND hAPPY I ALWAYS ALWAYS GET A hANGOVER ITS NASTY ALMSOT AS IF I WAS GOING ThROUG WIThDRAWAL EVEN IF I TAKE 3 DRINKS WITh A LIL VODKA AND ThEN INSOMNIA AND BLOTING FOR A FEW DAYS IM ALSO GONNA QUIT ThE VODKA IT MAKES ME FEEL DEPRESSED AFTERWRDS ThINKING OD STICKING TO RUM
BENZOS MAKE ME FEEL GOOD BUT STUPID IN GENERAL LIKE I JUST DONT GIVE A FUCK ABOUT ANYThING WhEN I TAKE ThEM AND MY LFIE SEEMS PERFECT TALKIGN ABOUT hIG DOSES WhEN IM ON XANAX I FEEL LIKE I CANT GET ENOUGh OF ThE WORLD AND SLEEP LIKE A BABY..BUT MAYBE I COULD USE MELATONIN FOR INSOMNIA IVE TAKEN IT IT hAS WORK I IMAGINE ITS NOT AS DANGEROUS IM PLANING ON GOING OUT AND BUYING SOME
I USED TO TAKE FOCALIN MADE ME FEEL GREAT I COULD BASICALLY DO EVERYThING FELT EXTREMELY SMART BUT ALSO ANXIOUS I AM A VERY ANXIOUS PERSON WITh ECSYASY I EXPERIENCED PARANOIA AND A ORRIBLE COMEDOWN PLUS MONThS OF DEPRESSION
PROZAC MADE ME FEEL ORRIBLE.. U CANT EVEN IMAGINE
COKE hAS ALWAYS DONE IS WORK AND NOT JUST ThE hIG IT LEAVES ME APPY FOR AT LEAST A MNTh AFTER DOING IT..IDK IF ThIS hAS TO DO WITh MY SEROTONIN NOREPINEPhRINE NORADRENALINE DOPAMINE AND GABA RECEPTORS
I CONSIDER MYSELF A SMART PERSONA LThOUG IMPULSVE I LOVE TAKING PILLS NO MATTER WhAT ThEY R IT COULD BE 5hTP MELATONIN ST JONS EVEN AXPIRINS OR LAXATIVES,,MY BEAVIOR IS CLEARLY ODD TOWARDS SUBSTANCES MAYBE ITS PLACEBO..IM hAVING A STUFY CALLED BEAM AND EEG MAYBE ThIS WILL MEAUSURE ThE ChEMICALS MY DOC OLD ME TO STOP TAKING ANYThING 3 DAYS PRIOR I CANNOT WAIT TO FIND OUT FOR ThE RECORD I WOULD LOVE TO JUST FUNCTION WITh NO DRUGS LIKE EVERYONE DOES...NOT EVEN ALCOOL OR TABACO..MAYBE ITS TOO MUC TO ASK NOT GONNA hAPPEN I hAVE A LOVE hATE RELATIONShIP WITh WEED I hAVE hAD A FEW GOOD TIMES MOSTLY WITh hAS ThE REST JUST LEAVES ME PARANOID...EXTREMELY
I WOULD CONSIDER MYSELF T hACE AN ANXIOUS PARANOID AND ADDICTIVE PERSONALITY BUT I DO WISh I WAS NORMAL..TODAY I COULDNT GET OUT OF BEDLSOT ENERGY SLEPT IT OFF WITh KLONAZEPAM FEEL MOR ENORMAL
Oh IM ALSO SELF CONCIOUS LOW SELF ESTEEM MAYBE MY ISSUES ARE EMOTIONAL..IVE ThOUGT ABOUT OVERCOMING ThEM BUT DRUGS AND hAVING A BAD TEMPER ALWAYS SEEM TO GET IN ThE WAY..WE MUST BE ThANKFUL FOR WhAT WE hAVE I GUESS
PS I LOVE YOGA AND IM A ChRISTIAN
 
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