Jabberwocky
Frumious Bandersnatch
- Joined
- Nov 3, 1999
- Messages
- 84,998
I've mentioned this in a few threads to general disinterest but given the number of (a) meth users and (b) people who hate seroquel around here I think it worth a discussion. Apologies if already discussed, I searched and couldn't find anything.
The use of meth is known to be neurotoxic causing cognitive impairment particularly around memory, relatedly it can permanently damage the dopamine, serotonin and other systems in your brain. Meth is also well known to cause highly anxious comedowns. Furthermore, without some chemical intervention to make you sleep meth leads rapidly to psychosis as the days of use add up.
As the attached paper shows (there are several such research studies showing similar results), seroquel (quetiapine) and possibly other atypical antipsychotics (ATP), especially olanzipine) provide a neuroprotective effect against these three serious problems of meth use. Now of course seroquel itself is "addictive" with its own cessation problems after extended use so I would not recommend taking it on a daily basis. However, if you are a 2-3 days on / 4-5 days off kind of meth user like I was then I think it may offer a lot of benefits. Certainly the evidence presented by the research I have read is AT LEAST as strong as that which is used to encourage people to take 5-HTP, L-Tyrosine and other supplements for neurotoxicity reasons i.e. works in rats. However, in addition to rats I've used it a lot and considering the quantity of meth I have injected over the last 6 months I'm pretty surprised by how minimal my comedowns are and how little cognitive impairment I seem to have once a few days have passed since my last hit (I still definitely have some) .
Of course there are also people who believe that seroquel will reduce your meth high. This may well be true but Abilify, another atypical antipsychotic, is thought to increase some of the effects of meth and may have anti-neurotoxic benefits as well however it does not have the benefit of making the user sleep. In any case, the studies suggest dosing with seroquel after the meth still provides the protective benefit (although how long after is not clear)
Based on reading all of this and my own experience I believe that if I was to continue using (which I don't plan to) enjoying a meth high of no longer than 36 hours awake followed by a 50 mg dose of seroquel to give sleep and substantially reduce anxiety systems during comedown would be a better strategy than using benzos or other substances to end the ride. Of course, one downside is that the smoothness of the comedown on seroquel and the reduction of neurotoxic effects may encourage greater use of meth by the user which may create more risks (especially for IV users)
Any thoughts or arguments against this view? No doubt I have missed many of the downsides of atypical antipsychotics.
The use of meth is known to be neurotoxic causing cognitive impairment particularly around memory, relatedly it can permanently damage the dopamine, serotonin and other systems in your brain. Meth is also well known to cause highly anxious comedowns. Furthermore, without some chemical intervention to make you sleep meth leads rapidly to psychosis as the days of use add up.
As the attached paper shows (there are several such research studies showing similar results), seroquel (quetiapine) and possibly other atypical antipsychotics (ATP), especially olanzipine) provide a neuroprotective effect against these three serious problems of meth use. Now of course seroquel itself is "addictive" with its own cessation problems after extended use so I would not recommend taking it on a daily basis. However, if you are a 2-3 days on / 4-5 days off kind of meth user like I was then I think it may offer a lot of benefits. Certainly the evidence presented by the research I have read is AT LEAST as strong as that which is used to encourage people to take 5-HTP, L-Tyrosine and other supplements for neurotoxicity reasons i.e. works in rats. However, in addition to rats I've used it a lot and considering the quantity of meth I have injected over the last 6 months I'm pretty surprised by how minimal my comedowns are and how little cognitive impairment I seem to have once a few days have passed since my last hit (I still definitely have some) .
Of course there are also people who believe that seroquel will reduce your meth high. This may well be true but Abilify, another atypical antipsychotic, is thought to increase some of the effects of meth and may have anti-neurotoxic benefits as well however it does not have the benefit of making the user sleep. In any case, the studies suggest dosing with seroquel after the meth still provides the protective benefit (although how long after is not clear)
Based on reading all of this and my own experience I believe that if I was to continue using (which I don't plan to) enjoying a meth high of no longer than 36 hours awake followed by a 50 mg dose of seroquel to give sleep and substantially reduce anxiety systems during comedown would be a better strategy than using benzos or other substances to end the ride. Of course, one downside is that the smoothness of the comedown on seroquel and the reduction of neurotoxic effects may encourage greater use of meth by the user which may create more risks (especially for IV users)
Any thoughts or arguments against this view? No doubt I have missed many of the downsides of atypical antipsychotics.