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Persisting physical and mental issues a year after heroin overdose

Dude Man

Dude Man

Bluelighter
Joined
Nov 3, 2008
Messages
108
Location
La Grange IL
About a year ago my girlfriend had a near fatal heroin over dose. Still to this day has major physical and some mental symptoms that have improved but still very severe hand twitching and balance issues as well as difficulty with memory. She had an MRI about a month after and they said it showed nothing unusual so they believed it was all mental. The twitching is far worse on the left side and she is left handed so she can barely write. Also she has severe balance and coordination issues. As for the memory thing her memory was much better before. Any suggestions for diagnosing the issue and or possible treatments or remedies?
 
sounds like brain damage,fuck MRI,the damage can be so small that its hard to see,balance ussues,memory... cmon man I know its hard to accept but it is what is is
 
Dude Man said:
About a year ago my girlfriend had a near fatal heroin over dose. Still to this day has major physical and some mental symptoms that have improved but still very severe hand twitching and balance issues as well as difficulty with memory. She had an MRI about a month after and they said it showed nothing unusual so they believed it was all mental. The twitching is far worse on the left side and she is left handed so she can barely write. Also she has severe balance and coordination issues. As for the memory thing her memory was much better before. Any suggestions for diagnosing the issue and or possible treatments or remedies?
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, there are no scans that are available for testing brain chemicals that relate to issues with brain chemicals that had been disrupted or affected by drug use. I also have had tests for a somewhat similar problem but was told that the symptoms all relate to anxiety. The only thing I can suggest is that you wait it all out for longer and see if the symptoms improve otherwise you can always go back to the doctor to get tested again or inquire about the issues that are still happening. For now, no more drugs and live a healthy lifestyle ok?
 
Her Current drug use is pretty light. Like h two to three a week at low doses. The symptoms are same severity when she is sober or high. May relate to anxiety since benzos help a lot but she blacks out easy so can take low doses. In the past she has been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, socail anxiety, bipolar, clinical depression and borderline schizophrenia. Tryin to see if they can help.
We were thinking about physical therapy as well.
 
^You can also see if she can try cbt as well if the anxiety is really bad. I am no doctor but since you have mentioned these other issues that she has then it seems like this is leaning towards anxiety. I would still not recommend the use of H because her brain is still healing itself from what has happened. I am not trying to preach here but if a part of a body is trying to heal up you should leave it alone :)
 
Silly question, but the doctors are aware of her prior OD? I agree with Maya that your girlfriend probably shouldn't be using H now as her brain is healing. The H is following the same neural pathways which could be damaged so her H use may be delaying their repair (if that's possible).
I had an eye twitch for a couple months following a psychotic break. Definitely anxiety/stress related and I was able to get back to normal.
This is just so scary and sad. How is your girlfriend's diet and exercise? I'm sure there are things she can do to help with the twitching. As for her balance, has she been tested for vertigo?
 
Good point on the h possibly slowing healing but she was off of it completely for over five months and the recovery slowed down after three months regardless. Though at first she could not even walk correctly and her brain was fairly scattered...so still using opiates but it is a form of self medication for those preexisting disorder s I mentioned. Will look into some of those suggested things for sure. Also what is CBT? As for exercise we both are trying to do more but she is otherwise in physical shape.

Also are there any suggestions of foods vitamins or supplements that may help
 
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CBT is called cognitive behavioral therapy:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_behavioral_therapy

I have read some threads and posts about how CBT helped some of our fellow blers when it comes to battling their anxiety, so this may help her in the long run.

I also suffered from a drug reaction, there is also a possibility that I took way too much and that's the reason why I experienced the symptoms of anxiety etc. The supplements that helped me are as follows:

multivitamin x 1
omega (I was taking this 3 x a day as per the max dosage on the bottle but I only advise once a day should be enough)
vitamin c x 1
Vitamin b complex x 1
magnesium malate x 1

I have read some information about vitamin b complex and omega as the necessary vitamins/minerals that helps with maintaining good brain function. As for magnesium, this has helped me reduce the twitching/brain zaps I experienced which were worse on the first 5 months. The multivitamin and the vitamin c are pretty self explanatory but you can always research some more information through online research.

A little warning about Magnesium though, for some people this may cause stomach problems or diarrhea so make sure that you do not go over the recommended dosage.
 
Will definitely look into CBT. And will obtain those supplements once get the funds. I also have sevre anxiety so I could benefit from taking them well
 
This is so obvious I am appalled it hasn't already been mentioned:

Exercise. Light exercise, obviously. Improved blood flow and nervous system will help things tremendously; you don't need a Ph.D. to grasp that.

Yoga would be perfect, as nothing repairs, regenerates and stimulates blood flow and the nervous system more completely.
 
Thank you everyone. We knew the obvious approaches but are both broke currently plus I have pending legal issues. All of these things cost money...which we do not have as of yet. But she will b applying for disability to help cover this and since makes it almost impossablle to hold a normal job ATM. So first thing will start with is supplements, improving diet and regular exercise which r good lifestyle choices for us all. Already research king CBT. I love her and have for years before started dating in Nov and i want her to get better. Not to mention that many of these approaches will help us both with our mental issues and that may help with her physical I hope
 
I don't pay a dime to practIce yoga. YouTube Sun Salutations. The 10-15 minutes of that alone will be just fine.
 
Ilikestims aren't you a yoga instructor? Perhaps you can teach him some moves that you know that can help her with doing yoga.
 
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