(Remote?) possibility of low-level nitrous oxide use causing cognitive impairment

[wayab]

B12 is dietary only, but should be reasonably plentiful.

from what i know b12 gets to the most part destroyed in the stomach.

my grandfather had an episode of forgetfulness and paranoid delusions that were cured with some b12 injections only.

 

[Survived Abortion]

It is done in what I would consider a fairly safe way- one large breath full, then probably at least a minute of regular breathing before the next period without.

I don't think oxygen deprivation is likely to be a major issue since he is unlikely to be without fresh O2 intake for more than 60 sec or so, which is going to be less of a stress on the system than swimming the underwater laps I used to do regularly as part of training.

Actually it's completely different to holding your breath underwater. In that case, you are holding a lungful of atmospheric gasses. When doing balloons of nitrous oxide the way you described, you are holding a lungful of nitrous oxide for 60 seconds with virtually no oxygen. This will cause hypoxia related problems, especially with extended use. 60 seconds is a pretty significant time to go without any oxygen in your lungs whatsoever. If you are intentionally depriving your self of oxygen on a regular basis then you are depleting yourself of vitality and, in the long run, causing damage.

There's not much point going to the doctor if you're not going to tell him about the nitrous. How would you expect him/her to make an informed diagnosis of the problem?

There's one simple answer to this: just get your partner to stop using nitrous (which will most likely require that you do the same). His nervous system will heal on its own, but B12 supplements won't hurt. It wouldn't do him bad to come off the SSRIs either, they won't help in the long run. And he should definitely stop drinking if he wants to get better too - regular alcohol consumption will deplete vitamins and minerals, and is all round a pretty toxic thing to be imbibing in large amounts on a regular basis.

 

[bloodshed344]

I read the whole topic I REALLY think it's antidepressants.

Many of them have long lasting mental effects, usually negative. Memory impairment and emotional imbalances are common.
For an example, here's a couple of pages (a study and a forum post of 300+ anecdotal reports.) on venlafaxine and memory loss
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22449479
http://depression.about.com/b/2006/06/06/effexor-xr-and-memory-loss.htm

 

[sertra]

I am worried that it may be the antidepressant. The escitalopram (in doses normally only given to adolescents or the elderly) seems to have made a marked improvement on anxiety- changing from controlling levels to generally merely present and unpleasant (which is something more easily worked with). It would be a pity to have to give all that up.

While I know it may seem I have been resistant to the idea that it has been the nitrous oxide, to be honest if it was that it would be great. Something so simple and giving fairly small benefit as it is- it would be great if we could get rid of all of these problems so easily and with so little sacrifice.

 

[jambabomba]

My partner and I have been sharing a box or two of bulbs a week (so 5-10 bulbs each, ISI if it matters) for the past few months.

If that use of nitrous oxide would do some damage then I would be braindead.

In the past when my usage of drugs was a bit more selfdestructive (well, when I was young and didn't care) than today I did nitrous something like 600-1200 8gm bulbs per few weeks. Also sometimes I did those hours a day and if I remember correctly my "record" was something like 10-12x 8gm without breathing between them. Well there was a friend watching beside me and we would take those stupid competitions sometimes. So I have used it many months and sometimes many weeks straight and even hours a day and haven't had any cognitive or other problems from that.

When I went to rehab at 2008 (mainly because of benzos) I was done neuropsychologic tests - wich is done to everyone there who wants - it didn't show any problems. Infact, I did get better scores than avarage and especially my memory was excellent. So at least to me it hasn't caused any problems and it is very hard for me to believe that so minimal use of yours could cause any problems.

Also, about b-12. Syanocobalamin isn't very effective and some people have difficulties of absorpting it through diet (because of lack of intrinsic factor). Methylcobalamin under tongue is best option I believe.