My antidepressant has obviously stopped working...

CupofTea - sounds like you have an issue feeling unsafe, with zombies invading your bedroom and being unable to turn on the light to see them... in short, insecurity (probably nothing new there). Codeine itself will give you weird dreams, probably more than any other opiate. As you say, you don't want to make that a habit.

MMJ is legal where we live and my wife enjoys it. She would like me to join her more often but I have trouble keeping my head out of dark places. As we both have cancer it was not difficult getting a script but for me if it's unpleasant, why do it. Oddly, forty years ago I was high all the time.

Thanks for your insight on OCD, it seemed to me Cymbalta has more physical therapeutic properties and Effexor more mental, hence my choice of the latter (my Dr would have given me either). Fortunately my legs have not been much trouble lately. TBH two surgeries in the past two weeks and I haven't been standing much lately. Long story.

I'm certain that I would not be able to handle everything that's been thrown at us if it were not for the AD.

Thanks, yeah I had researched RSO. Also we can buy CBD here in shops, no Rx needed, but I hate the taste. My wife likes the higher THC though her oncologist recommended against it. She's now in full remission and all this has transpired in just the past month. My main concern now is getting underway with radiation, which was originally scheduled for last March... now hoping for the surgery to be healed in time to start salvage radiation in August.

The pressure is like nothing I've experienced before. Each decision has ripples downstream... feel like I'm constantly walking on the edge. For me, the AD has been a godsend and I should have been on it years ago.

Post Edited (RobLee) : 6/1/2017 10:40:32 AM (GMT-6)

many healing thoughts to all.

Hi folks :p

@Karen - Wasn't sure whether I could talk about that aspect here, but no, it's not legal in the UK. I strongly think it should be for medical purposes, but we're years off from that. Our politicans are such pusillanimous cowards (tautology, yeah I know). I'd much, much rather go the legal route too: it's safer and better all round. I mean, I could pop over to Amsterdam I suppose, but getting it back into the UK might be a problem. I liked Holland when I was there though; I'd like to go back there >_>.

@RobLee - Reckon you've hit the nail on the head about insecurity actually. I have been feeling highly insecure of late, like everything could be taken away from me - not an irrational fear with the Tories in charge! I'm on benefits and haven't been able to work for years, between various things. I've already had one benefit taken away (which I'm in the middle of appealing). On a wider scale, I genuinely fear for this country's future, what with Brexit and other things. I try not to worry about years away, but I guess it's coming out in my dreams instead - I dunno. Sometimes they turn violent or nasty by the way - I described one that didn't or, at least, I woke up before it could.

Anyway, the upshot of all this fear and insecurity is that I'm less likely to be able to work, not more likely. Removing a third of my income makes it harder to do the things you need to do to get back on your feet: travel around, join classes, etc. Sorry, I got on my soapbox for a bit there, I'll get off now... :/

I'm glad at any rate your wife is in remission and that the AD is helping you. I don't regret taking mine, as it did get me out of a quite a bad hole at the time - if I fall into another hole, I'll go back on it. I'd stay on it permanently, but I just really don't like the side-effects.

@HT - Thanks. Hope you're doing okay today. And everyone else too.

NiceCupOfTea said...
... tried to make do with the Tramadol only.

FYI (not sure if this is common knowledge) but Tramadol and SNRI's are contraindicated due to something called "serotonin syndrome". In other words, you can't or shouldn't take one while taking the other.

I had used Tramadol regularly for over ten years following my leg injury, and had to go off it recently to start Effexor, or Cymbalta. That led to a couple weeks of sleeplessness from "discontinuation syndrome". I'm not sure if I wrote about that here or in another forum. It came down to the bad memories hurting more than the leg injury and so that won out over the Tramadol. Also hence my frequent mention of Cymbalta for fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis versus Effexor for OCD and PTSD.

You never know what surprises are lurking in the meds you take. I just today learned that the anti-nausea med they gave me in the hospital post-op is also incompatible with SNRI's. Fortunately it was only a single low dose. Pharmacies are suppose to flag those kinds of interactions.