Strattera(NARI) multiplying opiate withdrawal symptoms.

[Droop]

Alright after two experiences i am certain on this now. For some reason being on Strattera some how increases opiate withdrawal , and not just a little.
A couple months back i was put on 80mg Strattera for ADD symptoms. After about a week of being on it, it was still causing me some nausea and shakyness etc.
I then had gotten a large amount of oxycontin and did that for 14 days straight and stopped. The next five days were complete miserable hell. The withdrawal symptoms were the equivalent of doing Heroin for 2 months straight and stopping cold turkey. I could not function, had huge anxiety, nausea, cold sweats, loss of appetite, insomnia, the whole miserable nine yards. During one of the last WD days i lowered my strattera dose to 40mg and the shakyness and anxiety went down a bit.
Now a week ago i did Morphine and OC for about 5 days straight and the days after that, those feelings of the 5 day nightmare came back but werent as strong or lasting.
I want to make clear that in the summer while not being on Strattera i had used opiates such as oxycontin for longer periods then two week in a row , and never had any withdrawal symptoms whatsoever.
I wanted to post this to see if any one had any ideas to why this would happen. Brain chemistry or drug interactions etc....
My only hypothesis to this is when i started taking the Strattera it was building up anxiety in my body, when i took the oxycontin the anxiety was blocked, but when the OC use ended the Strattera sent a bomb of anxiety off.
Any help here would be greatly appreciated.

 

[superbabydoc]

Moving to Other Drugs at the request of Droop.

 

[5-HT2]

This makes perfect sense neurobiologically. Acute opiate administration depresses the activity of norepinephrine-releasing neurons in an area of the brain called the locus coeruleus, which is involved in perceptual processing. Chronic opiate administration causes these neurons to up-regulate their sensitivity to sensory stimuli so that they can function normally while under the influence. However, when the opiates are removed, these neurons become hypersensitive to sensory stimuli, causing the hallucinations and other perceptual distortions that manifest during withdrawal. Adding an SNRI to the mix would increase the symptoms of withdrawal, as it increases the already large amount of norepinephrine in the synapse. In the future, I would recommend that you not take strattera on days when you have quit using opiates; your withdrawal should be attenuated.

 

[Negro-kitty]

While 5-HT2 is correct about the response of the noradrenaline/norepinephrine system in response to habitual use, it is interesting to note that venlafaxine (i.e. Effexor), an SNRI (thus it inhibits norepinephrine reuptake) has been show to significantly reduce withdrawal from morphine.

Thus, while Strattera ISN'T an SNRI (it's a NARI), I still wouldn't expect it to worsen opiate withdrawal symptoms.

I think it's most likely that you are simply experiencing side effects FROM the Strattera itself, and that on top of your opiate withdrawal, you feel all around worse (since you are suffering effects from two drugs). But I don't think that the Strattera is necessarily worsening your withdrawal symptoms.