# Naltrexone



## thy (Oct 7, 2015)

*If you are included in the list below and you have more up to date info on your experience with naltrexone, please post about it on this thread.*

*insaticiable*

I'm given 50mg to take at bedtime. I am going to start my first dose tonight.

I'm also taking N-acetyl-cysteine 4x daily for OCD.

Last night, I took my first dose of Naltrexone, and about 20-30 min in, I kinda felt elated and super happy, and I remember I was looking at pictures on facebook, and they just seemed more ''real.'' I dont know if real is the correct term to use, but it just felt more bright, like the fog wasnt there. hard to describe. But I was able to sleep like a baby lol.

Today: Woke up, superrrr sedated and tired, but that is to be expected with the side effects. No nausea, just tiredness and lethargic.

Another thing that I read was that it can have pronounced effects on the liver, and my doctor has ordered a liver panel to be done to check my liver and see if it is okay.

Day 2: I'm starting to feel really iffy about this whole Naltrexone thing. There's a theory that says, ''the endogenous opiate system may play a part in the pathogensis of depersonalization." (dunno the quote word for word), BUT, what if im NOT not one of those people? What if the endogenous opiate system doesnt play a part in MY depersonalization? There's no way to know for sure.

I've started to feel a little down and under the weather (and i KNOW that this is a side effect of the medicine). I guess I'm just really looking for a quick fix, and become alarmed at the slightest changes in my mood or affect. I just don't know if I should take it if I continue to feel down and under the weather and just downright, depressed.

Hey I was prescribed Naltrexone several months ago at a low dose of 50 mg. I didn't see any improvements or noticeable changes, so my doc uppsed the dose to 100mg. I have been taking that for about 2 weeks now, and still no changes. Perhaps, Nalaxone (the injection form of Naltrexone) may be more effective in your case.

*phaeton*

I'm a doctor and I live with my DD for at least 10 years. I tried many medications, but they just help me to cope with my comorbid depressive simptoms, leaving derealization intact... I'm going to try naltrexon, because It makes sense from patophisiological point of view!

I will try to start with 25mg/d of Naltrexone, or maybe Naloxone injection of 0,4 mg...

in the evening I took 25mg of Naltrexone orally. In about 2h after that I found myself even more derealized. I experienced a short period of ambivalent emotions, felt a slight restlessness. After that I concluded that I felt a very slight euphoria with apparent slight psychic anesthesia.

The effect did not remind me Naloxone much, but the feeling of beeing calm, a little relaxed, carefree and light-hearted that came much later was the same (in about 4 hours after ingestion).

I found Naltrexone to be interresting for further studying, so before going to bed I took 25mg of Naltrexone + 15mg of Mirtazapine + 3 mg of Melatonine.

Today is the day after Naltrexone use.

During the whole night I have vivid dreams. In the morning there was the feeling of light neusea and sleep deprivation. My condition remainded me also of acute SSRI effect - yawning and stretching a lot. I was calm. I had better mood. It was much easier for me to do little things, but it was steel difficult to find motivation for great deels - I experienced lack of inspiration. There was no psychic anecthesia. But reality still remains undetectible. Now I'm a little bit sceptic towards Naltrexone can "repersonalize" me and help to "realize" reality. High doses of Naltrexone (150mg) maybe may be more beneficial, but... I can not organize my motivation to try...

If I do not receive a good effect of Naltrexone within next few days (after 50 mg/d steady serum concentration is achieved) I will remain on doses of milnaciprane (150) + mirtazapine (30).

*nabber*

I was just prescribed naltrexone 3.5mg , I'm going to start it next week. I'll keep you , and everyone updated on how it works.

It's a really low dosage so i'm skeptical , but might as well give it a try.

I will go back in a month and see her, and see if it has had any effects at all. I take Xanax XR, Lamictal, and Lexapro right now. Seems to 
be a good combo, but I'm sort of in a rut right now with the economy being so bad I think I spend to much time focusing on negative things.

I guess I'll give the 3mgx2 daily a month trial then see about titration. The biggest drawback I see to Naltrexone is local pharmacies dont have it, you have to special order it from an outside pharmacy, and I'm not sure if my insurance will cover it. 3mgx60 is 25 dollars. I hope the 50mgx30 isn't insanely overpriced.

I was prescribed LDN after I told my doc I was using opiates. I took 5mg for about 3 weeks, did nothing for me.

*MiketheAlien*

I have just been prescribed Low dose Naltrexone as an off-label, highly anecdotal treatment. The past 2 years I have been off of all medication and have been doing great in regards of anxiety and panic attacks, I no longer experience them, but I still have 24/7 Depersonalization.

This leaves me feeling "Brain Fogged" and "Cognitively Declined" with a terrible memory and awful sense of time.

I am starting a course of Low Dose Naltrexone in the hopes of any beneficial repsonse in my life. In the Studies they used high doses for the treatment, which I may try later on in the future, but I have my own research and theories to why I have the Depersonalization that I have, and that Low Dose Naltrexone may help out tremendously.

I will be taking pills, each night, at the doses of 1.5mg for the first week, 3mg the second week, and then staying at 4.5 for the following weeks.

People using LDN can experience effects as soon as the first day of treatment. Most people experience effects between 1 day and 3 months.

Day 1: A bit of a hard time falling asleep last night after taking the 1st dose. I had very vivid, intense dreams though, when I did eventually fall asleep. Surprisingly, It was very easy to get up and get going this morning, even without a good sleep. I had breakfast and was out the door by 9am for a bike ride. I felt a bit more energetic than I usually do. No huge effects for Depersonalization but I do feel slightly more "fluid" and it is easier to read and type today. My mood has been really good today .

I have been away from home, taking a course, living on an isolated island with little to no internet availability. It has been a drama-filled, hectic, roller-coaster ride of life events the past few days since my return so I haven't had much time to "catch up" on the net. Anyways, thats that, Now I will try my best to fill in any important updates from my experience with Low Dose Naltrexone.

First 3-4 days:

Slight nausea after taking starting dose of 1.5mg at bedtime. Extremely vivid nightmares/weird dreams, even some sleep talking. Lol.

1st week:

Nausea is not as bad as first few days, system adjusting to new medication. Still having very vivid dreams but no more nightmares or talking in sleep.

2 week:

Dose is now up to 3mg, going well, no side effects other than very slight nausea after dose, sleeping very well!, feeling pretty good about the past few days, a slight feeling of relief and a rising feeling of more energy during the days. No breakthroughs yet.

3 week:

Dose is now up to 4.5mg and will stay at this dose for the remainder of my prescription, unless decided otherwise. Days are going, dare I say, great! I haven't had this much energy in a long time. I still don't feel any major breakthroughs but I am actually enjoying my days and nights, almost no worries or thoughts about DPDR, interactions with the world and people seem "easier" and a bit more "normal?". I definitely haven't felt this good in a long long time, My days are filled with activities and chores, feeling like smooth sailing man. Placebo effect or not, I am going to continue this dose, continue to eat extremely healthy, continue to exercise, continue to shoot for the stars and hope for the best.

Week 4:

Like I said, I have had no major breakthroughs, but the last month has been awesome, my body feels better than it ever has, I have more energy, I am out and about doing things again, and most of all, I am enjoying it!! I still feel detached, Depersonalized, and have strange thoughts, but they are all at a lower level of occurrence and strength. Even if I never get back to normal, I feel like I am headed the right direction and my body feels great. I will continue to use the 4.5mg dose of Naltrexone, before bed, for the next few months and hopefully there is more positive results to come!

Also, Since I am tolerating the Low dose Naltrexone so well, and feeling great results, I may discuss with my Doctor to try a higher dose to see if it will effect my Depersonalization. From the studies I have read, it is the higher doses that have the most beneficial results for Depersonalization. I am using LDN for some issues unrelated to DP, but again, hoping it will have some effect on my DP.

*AlexH*

I've been on Naltrexone for quite a while and it seems to help enough to get me through my day-to-day life, but it definitely hasn't "cured" my DP.

About me: started off with low dose, probably about 1mg, slowly increased to 10mg, then jumped to 50/100/200. I think the highest dose per day I've been on was 200mg. Am currently taking 50mg/day, mostly because I still want to take it but any higher is just too goddamn expensive.

*university girl*

I used to post a lot on this forum but did end up getting some relief from Seroquel and Paxil and so haven't been on here much lately. Recently I was given the opportunity to try Naltrexone. I started out at 25 mg and was only able to get up to 50 mg before having to stop it. I did not tolerate the med well. I felt dizzy, nauseous, and weak. Naltrexone is not known to interact with either Seroquel or Paxil and the dose was quite low so I am not sure why I had this reaction. I am considering lowering my Seroquel dose and trying Naltrexone again later.

I don't want to give up on naltrexone. I could cut the pills smaller but Im going to wait until i quit smoking and decrease my seroquel. Im still not sure why i reacted the way i did. I take meletonin as well but it should not interact with that.

I got the side effects right away and had them for 5 days until i stopped taking the med. The side effects were not tolerable. I tried an even lower dose, 12.5 Mg and again couldnt tolerate the side effects

*kate_edwin*

I was on 150 and 200 mgs for quite some time for self harm, worked like magic for that. More recently I upped it to 250, it may be having an affect on my dissociation. Don't remember ever having major side effects

So I had to stop my naltrexone because I'm having surgery and want to be able to take more then tylenol and rx nsaids. It's only been a couple days without taking any after tappering for 3 days, hasn't noticed any change yet, I'm affraid that might mean it wasn't doing anything to help me. I might try a lower dose after I'm off pain meds. I was on a super high dp study dose. I just hope it won't bring back sled injry urges becuase I did help that a whole lot before.

Just thought I'd let y'all know. And if anyone's wondering, I've had absolutely no side

effects or withdrawl coming off it

*Sketch2000*

My current medication regimen consists of -

100mg Luvox (generic) twice daily (morning and night)
2.5 klonopin daily (.5 in the AM, 1mg in the afternoon, and 1mg at night)
150mg lamictal (at night)

Therefore, I will be adding the naltrexone in the AM, beginning at 50mg for 2 weeks and then increasing to 100mg.

CORRECTION -

I wont be starting with 50mg of Naltrexone but with 25mg.
(25mg - week 1, 50mg - week 2, 100mg - thereafter).

*I just wrote this to my Pdoc (via email) - *

I have a huge increase in anxiety, dissociation, and derealization. I feel really wierd (not good). Its almost as if the Naltrexone is trying to make me more "aware" but I'm becoming "too aware" (depersonalized). Not sure if i should stick with the 100mg or decrease tomorrow.

If you get the chance let me know your thoughts.

Chris

----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Christopher Barrett 
To: 
Sent: Sat, January 2, 2010 4:57:51 PM
Subject: From Chris - brief

Dr.

I began Naltrexone at 25mg on Saturday December 12th.
Increased to 50mg on Sunday December 20th, and increased to 100mg Sunday December 27th.

Its hard to (continually) keep track of how you are feeling. But since going to 100mg, I have had 2 quite long dissociation spells. One of which was during a clear sunny day (which is usually when i feel the most comfortable) and the other on New Years Eve (at night, lasted hours, but this happens frequently). Its normal for me to be depersonalized for some time, and then it to wear off (despite the fact i suffer tremendously during the time I'm DP'd). Anyway, given that these episodes occurred during the first week of going to 100mg, is it okay if i go back to 50mg? Or do you think i should stick with the 100mg a little longer?

Its hard to tell if its the medication or not, or just my chronic depersonalization. I always have a level of DPD, and did have some "bad spells" (from looking at my diary) on 50mg of Naltrexone, but the one that troubles me was during the day on 100mg. Perhaps I should just give it more time. I don't know? In addition, it is quite sedating, so I am sleeping longer.

Chris

** Today I am feeling REALLY WIERD - ANXIOUS, HYPER AWARE, ETC.

** I'm not going to lie to you, I've had A LOT OF FULL DP FREE DAYS! EVEN BEFORE I BEGAN THE NALTREXONE. THE PROBLEM WAS, WHEN I HAD DP SPELLS, THE SEVERITY NEVER CHANGES, THEY ARE ALWAYS REALLY REALLY BAD. SO I FIGURED F- IT, I'M GOING TO TRY THE NALTREXONE AND SEE IF IT PUTS THIS THING TO REST FOR GOOD.

** AT 25 AND 50MG I CITED ONLY ONE BAD DP SPELL (BUT AGAIN, HOW DO U KNOW IF ITS THE MEDS, ETC...OR JUST THE DP PLAYING UP). NEWAY, I DID FEEL "FINE" HOWEVER, I DIDN'T FEEL WIERD LIKE I AM NOW.

** NOW, AT 100MG, I'VE HAD ONE REALLY OUT OF THE ORDINARY DP SPELL, IT LASTED HOURS DURING THE DAY (WHICH IS REALLY UNUSUAL, IT WAS REMINISANT OF WHEN I WAS ONLY ON LUVOX - NO LAMICTAL OR KLONOPIN. REALLY BAD, I WAS "SOUL-LESS" AS COULD BE, AND I KNEW IT...EVENTUALLY "I" CAME BACK. THE OTHER TIME WAS NEW YEARS EVE, GOING TO A NIGHT CLUB WITH MY BRO...FOR THE FIRST 3-4 HOURS OF THE NIGHT I WAS PRETTY DP'D BUT IT WAS MANAGEABLE. AFTER THAT I WAS FINE.

** I'M WAITING ON A RESPONSE FROM HIM BUT DOUBT I'LL GET ONE UNTIL MONDAY. HE MAY WANT ME TO JUST CONTINUE ON 100MG UNTIL MY BODY GETS USED TO IT. BUT WITH THE WAY IM FEELING TODAY I MAY JUST GO DOWN TO 50MG TOMORROW.

** REALLY HARD TO TELL IF I'VE HAD ANY IMPROVEMENT IF ANY. BECAUSE EVEN BEFORE THE NALTREXONE I WAS PRETTY GOOD WITH RELAPSES, ETC. I HAVE GOOD AND BAD DAYS AND THEN DAYS WHERE IM OKAY AND IN BETWEEN. SO ITS REALLY, REALLY HARD TO KEEP TRACK OF IT ALL.

** BUT ONE THING IS FOR SURE, OVERALL, I FELT BETTER AT 25 OR 50MG OF NALTREXONE. I WAS NOT MORE ANXIOUS, DISSOCIATED, ETC...AND IT SEEMED LIKE USUAL.

CHRIS

given that the 100mg of Naltrexone was making me feel so weird. I decreased to 50mg today. I'll stick with that and see how I go.

I went down to 50mg and am feeling SIGNIFICANTLY better!

In addition to the London combo, the naltrexone, and all the "brain food" I have taken over the last year (and am still taking), I think it really has made a difference.

CURRENT MEDICATION REGIMEN - Luvox 100mg twice daily, klonopin 2.5mg daily, Lamictal 150mg daily, and Naltrexone 50mg daily (recently started).

I can go most of the day without any DPD whatsoever with this combination. Sometimes even longer. I had the last week or so be pretty good (New Years eve was bad). Then today had a 2 hour stint of severe DP. Then it was back to usual.

*Naltrexone isn't working for me....*

*I just sent this to my Pdoc via email - *

I am writing because the Naltrexone is making my Depersonalization worse.

From checking my diary, the month prior to beginning Naltrexone (11/12/09 - 12/12/09) I only recorded 3 severe Depersonalization spells (although they were likely more than this, as I was not recording them as much).

During the month of taking Naltrexone (12/12/09 - 01/16/10) I have recorded 14 Depersonalization spells, 5 of them being extremely severe and "out of the ordinary."

I don't think this medication is working for me Dr., and would like to stop it ASAP (its been a month, one week on 25mg, one week on 100mg, and 2 weeks on 50mg).

Please give me guidelines on stopping the Naltrexone ASAP (sorry to write so late).

*MY EMAIL - *

Thanks. One more thing please -

On 12/20/09 (which is when i went up to 100mg of Naltrexone) the pharmacy gave me a different type of Lamotrigine (different generic, its called tablet MYL / Instead of the tablet TEV) TEV being the one i had being taking.

I checked drugs.com to ensure that it was the correct drug. It is, just made by a different manufacturer.

I did some research, MANY people don't like the MYL form.

People reporting effects of the switch from TEV to MYL -
http://www.topix.com...13R4N1SOVCN7/p7

Can you call my pharmacy and have them switch me back to the tablet TEV that I was taking. It may prove to have a difference.

We may be able to try the Naltrexone down the line if in fact it was the switch in generics that caused the increase in DP spells the entire time (it was switched the same time i increased to 100mg of naltrexone and have been using this new form ever since).

I don't need to be switched to the BRAND Lamictal. Only to generic TABLET TEV.

But yes, the naltrexone did make me worse. The problem is now that I'm not sure if it was the change in lamictal generics - but i seriously doubt it.

But perhaps the reason why naltrexone is working for you is because you are not using lamictal (and i am, and thats why it didn't work for me).

I only used 50mg (thats the dose I got up to) and only for a month.

*hd83*

I'm just about to start 75mg naltrexone (I've been weaning myself up to this dose). I feel about 10 to 15% better, but not where I want to be with my treatment. I'm going up to 100mg and then may go up higher if I need to.

I am on 1mg of Klonopin, 40mg of Paxil, and 75mg of Naltrexone a day. I take the Klonopin in the morning and Paxil and Naltrexone at night time.

No new updates here. I'm on 100mg still and still feel about 10 to 15% better.

I am on Naltrexone & have been trying Naloxone as well. I've been on 50mg of Naltrexone (the pill form) for about....6 months or so and it has helped alleviate my DR symptoms about 15 to 20%. I mainly have Derealization, not Depersonalization so much. I am also on 1 mg of Clonazepam per day (have been on that for about....3 or 4 years now) and 40 mg of Paxil per day (been on that for about....2 to 3 years now). The combination of Naltrexone, Clonazepam, and Paxil has made me feel about 15 to 20% better with my DR symptoms, and has completely alleviated my anxiety symptoms. However, I have also been prescribed Naloxone by my psychiatrist (I am one of the lucky ones). It is an intra-muscular injection, and I had my local pharmacy special order it for me. It's extremely expensive (as I don't have insurance), but if you can get your doctor to prescribe it, you should be able to get it ordered from a pharmacy like Rite Aid, Kerr Drug, or some other pharmacy. I started off injecting just 0.4 mg/mL, then 0.8 mg/mL, then 1.2 mg/mL, then 1.6 mg/mL, then 2 mg/mL, then 4 mg/mL, then 6 mg/mL, and lastly 10 mg/mL. I tried these different doses over a period of about 3 to 4 weeks. Unfortunately, I felt absolutely no difference in my DR symptoms with any of the above doses. 10 mg/mL is the largest dosage I tried, as it was the largest dosage given during the Naloxone trial. Honestly, I could have injected myself with water and felt the same thing. I felt no side effects nor any benefits. And I used a 1 1/2 inch needle, injecting it into the muscle in my thigh, so it definitely went into my muscle (where it's supposed to go) but didn't feel anything. I am kind of confused as to why I felt some benefit with Naltrexone, but absolutely nothing with Naloxone (which is supposed to be the more potent and effective drug). I don't know if it was because it was an intra-muscular injection instead of an IV injection, or if it's just not the right drug for me.

Even though it didn't work for me, I still highly recommend that people try Naltrexone and Naloxone. You never know, just because it didn't work for me 100%, doesn't mean it won't work for you!

Naltrexone has helped lessen the symptoms to make it more manageable, but not a cure.

*darkedge1212*

My name is Matthew and I've had depersonalization for over 5 years now. I had my first single episode when I was 13 then became increasingly depressed up until college where I had my second episode (triggered by an excess use of marijuana). Since then the episodes started to become more frequent and longer until I started developing an underlying derealization too. Over the next 5 years the disorder slowly became worse and I felt like my mind was literally falling apart. I broke apart from reality in a way I didn't think that was possible to come back from. A permanent detachment from a grounded existence. My personality began fragmenting and time itself started to lose consistency. I avoided drugs and alcohol like the plague and desperately jumped from one mood stabilizer or anti-psychotic to the next in hopes for a cure. I sought out specialized therapy and any experts I could find to help me. It was a horrible nightmare these last 5 years, but I found something unexpected that dramatically changed me and now I feel like I finally have a chance to make a full recovery.

http://www.dpselfhelp.com/forum/index.php?/topic/47492-an-unexpected-cure-how-i-became-whole-again/

*_blossom_*

First off I have been suffering from depersonalization disorder for about eight years, from the age of about 14 to 22. It was a result of suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (there were many causes) and an un-diagnosed case of bi-polar "disorder" (not sure if this directly contributed to the dpd but I think it partly did). Now, Throughout the years my DPD has varied in severity. I've gone through bouts where my DP has subsided somewghat...but has never FULLY gone away. I have gone through times where I've been virtually a cripple (the dpd has effected my motor functions which has caused wierd symptoms like randomly losing feeling in my arms and legs). As well as my ability to think clearly and function normally on a daily basis (I've been fired from many jobs for being "too slow"). I also experience the extreme emotional numbness and also a degree of physical numbness. Recently I thought I was somewhat on a road to recovery. I actualy managed to get a life, go to school and be in a relationship. However, it was recently triggered in a HUGE way and my DP has returned almost worst than ever. I've had to be taken to emergancy twice because of my random ability to not be able to walk properly...scarely).

the only times my DPD has EVER returned is when something traumatic happens in my life which triggers a "nervous breakdown" in a sense and It becomes too much to handle so I just "leave".

Anyway, eventually he asked me what medications I was on and I told him that I took wellbutrin (an anti-depressant) but that I was trying to use it to treat my DPD (since many have found that that more "stimulating" drugs have more succsess in treating DPD.) SO then he told me about a drug called "NALTREXONE" and its use in treating DPD (as well as a huge list of other disorders).

Now my doctor said that some patients have recovered from their DPD after taking this drug. I don't know what percentage of them had FULL recovery or how much their DPD went away but this at LEAST gives us some hope. Right?

I have yet to start the drug. I start it tomorow. SO who knows...that is partly why I wanted to wait to post this but I had to get my theory off my chest.

*StixZadinia*

I just wanted to let you know that I got prescribed Naltrexone for DP/DR yesterday and it had an immediate positive effect on me. I'm taking 25mg right now and for the first time in 3 years my perception feels like it once did. I'm honestly saying that I felt 75% better today on my first day then I have in a long long time. My vision cleared up and with that came not thinking about how my vision is so distorted I'll never get out of this, but this took away all of that. I know it's early on in my use of this medication but there is a lot of hope behind that things will keep getting better from here. I highly recommend everyone try their hardest to get it prescribed even if it's just once to see if you may get the results out of it like I have seen over the last 24 hours. I wish everyone the best of luck fighting the good fight, and never give in. I'll keep everyone updated on my continued use of it.

I have been prescribed a ton of medication for this condition in hope of it "curing" or relieving me from it somehow with the same optimism as I have with this one and have never had the same effect on me as this one. And it doesn't hurt knowing that a Russian study saw vast improvements in individuals. This is just MY experience a new one at that but mine. Do with my new experience what you will, but it seems very promising.

The trial went very well for a few weeks, DP/DR was down about 80% and I believe I was on 100mg. I ended up stopping it because of the terrible anxiety that I was getting. It may have been because my reality was once again completely shifting or something in the actual drug itself that was causing it. There is definitely something to opioid receptor antagonists that could be key to helping people such as ourselves out down the road. I'm currently only taking 150mg of Wellbutrin and just cut down my klonopin to .5mg. I think the klonopin was actually making my symptoms worse then better. Either way I still think Naltrexone is worth a shot.

*jen43*

I also just started naltrexone Im at 25mg for a week then up to 50 and so on

*[rula]*

After I couldn't convince my halfwit pysch to prescribe lamictal, cuz he read how it "failed to show efficacy", he prescribed Naltrexone instead cuz it was the latest Mt. Sinai research...at $10 dollars a pill (no insurance) I excpected it to do something, but nada!

*Chillma*

Hello, I am from Germany and I suffer from DPD and depressions (dysthymia) since 17 years. I tried many antidepressants and nothing really helped compeletely. Now I am on Naltrexone since 4 weeks. I take 150 mg, but I don't think, that it helps me. Do you think there is still a chance, that it 'll help? I have only side effects, my stomach is aching and I feel a bit sick.

*johndeets*

I developed Depersonalization in a very odd way two and a half years ago..

Most of you developed Depersonalization from Trauma. I like everyone else have experienced a lot of trauma as well, however my depersonalization did not start until the first time I did Marijuana.

I remember after I smoked marijuana the first time it was great, I tried it a second time a few days later, and then afterwards it felt like the effect wouldn't wear off. I felt almost like I was in a constant high state, and it started driving me crazy. I told myself if it lasted one more week (it had been three at the time) that I was going to kill myself because of the stress it was causing me.

Luckily enough the feeling of depersonalization went away and I was so happy it did.. I lived life pretty comfortably until about 6 months later, it hit me again, and at this time I had not smoked marijuana since the second time I tried it..

I thought this was going to be just like the last time it had happened.. but it never went away.. and it's been almost three years now.

I NEED help from this. It is taking over my life. I can barelly function as a human anymore. It is effecting my relationship and my ability to make new friends. I constantly feel like I'm trapped in my own mind and It's driving me crazy.

So I came to this forum looking for medication.. My first thing I've tried is Naltrexone. I've never had a panic attack in my life, but since taking this medication (two days now) I've had one major one and one that almost came on but my boyfriend helped me out of it.. (The first one was so bad my boyfriend called the ambulance, we had not known it was a panic attack until after they arrived)

It is not effecting my dissociation, and as a matter of a fact I think I feel worse. My boyfriend tells me I seem more with it, but I personally feel more OUT of it..

*Reflection*

I also tried naltrexone about 5yrs ago and the first night I took it I woke up and felt that for the first time in about 8yrs that my dp had gone. It didn't last very long though and unfortunately it never had that effect on me again. I've only just glanced over the link but from what I have read it seems that naltrexone has a different effect at a lower dose? I can't remember how much I took but I know it was much higher than that.

As I mentioned I have tried many different meds over the years and not one of them has made any difference to my depersonalization or feelings of depression accept maybe naltrexone. The first time I took naltrexone was about 5yrs ago. At the time I didn't really have any idea how long I was supposed to take it for before I would know if it would be of any benefit. Also any effect that it did have on me was unlikely to be a placebo because I had tried so many other medications in the past that hadn't helped me at all. I remember that just before taking naltrexone I was having the usual constant feelings of anxiety, depression and dp which for me always get worse at night. I took it at about midnight got into bed and didn't really think anymore about it. After about an hour I still couldn't get to sleep and then gradually I started to feel an amazing sense of euphoria and even though I was lying in the dark I felt for the first time in about 9yrs that my dp was gone. I got up and sat on the edge of my bed for about half an hour too scared to turn the light on in case everything still looked strange to me. Eventually I reached for the light and looked around the room and everything that had seemed so unfamiliar and alien to me for so long seemed 'normal' again. I sat there for quite a long time scared to believe what was really happening to me. By this time it must have been about 2am. I turned off the light and fell asleep. When I woke up I felt like none of it had really happened and my dp was back to the way it had been before I took the naltrexone. I took it again the next night praying that the same thing would happen but it didn't do a thing. I carried on taking it for a while but still nothing. I'm not sure what happened to me that first night and I do sometimes wonder if it could have been some kind of placebo effect but I don't think it was. I didn't tell my psychiatrist about the experience at the time but about 6 months later I still couldn't stop thinking about what had happened and so I told him about it and decided to try taking it again but still it didn't have any effect on me.

*Monochrome*

My psychiatrist suggested it because it has been shown to be helpful in some cases of dissociation/DP in trials, be interested to know other people's experiences, although it hasn't really worked for me I'm planning to come off it 

*sid172*

Once my dosage hit about 150mg I noticed a definite improvement, I have to wait before I go any higher due to liver concerns.

I take clonazepam sporadically when my anxiety gets out of control. You know the best way I can describe it is that the naltrexone makes the dp more pliable. So if im feeling calm and upbeat the dp is minimized, if im feeling anxious it goes through the roof. Whereas before I felt dp chronically and severely no matter what I was doing. I have to tell you though I didnt really feel anything until I upped the dosage to 150mg and I plan on going higher. My advice to you would be to try it again and slowly up the dosage. If you look at the famous pilot study all the patients who had dramatic results were taking 250mg daily. You will feel sick the first few weeks, and you might feel depressed. Try and stay positive and socialize, all you have to lose is anxiety







. Also, make sure you get your liver enzymes checked at least once a month. Go slow with upping the dosage, I went up 25 mg every two weeks.

I would say it took about a week or two on 150mg before I noticed a definite improvement

my dp can still go through the roof if I'm anxious. I also felt "weird" around 100mg. Like my mind was stuck between a normal and depersonalized state, which was only exacerbated by anxiety. Once I relaxed, and let the medication take effect, I felt loads better. Currently on 250mg and yes I feel less in a daze, less in a trance. I have actual spontaneous emotions. I tried the London mix for 6 months and I felt closer to reality but it wasn't genuine so to speak. Now I actually feel better, my vision is clearer, me head feels lighter, my laughter is genuine, and I have goals. Chris I hope you understand that its very unlikely any medication will completely "snap" you out of this. Its up to you to finish that last lap towards recovery. I'm sorry if I sound patronizing, but I do have some experience on the subject, I've had DPD for over a decade.

*jasongitar*

Me and another person from the forum decided to give Naltrexone a try last night. I have had it for about a month but wanted to wait until I was in a low stress environment to get the most benefit from it. I started with a low amount of 3mgs. From the research I have done it seems that 3mgs is a good safe amount to start with yet still get some type of results. Also when you get prescribed Naltrexone it comes in either 50 or 25mg tablets, so if you want to take it in lower accurate dose form you have to send it in to a pharmacy to have it compounded which can be expensive and time consuming. I did a little research and found a way to accurately make homemade LDN myself, I guess I can't post it here, if you want the link, feel free to contact me.

After about an hour into taking it I felt very relaxed, almost the identical feeling of when I tried Klonopin for the first time. I could have totally passed out I got so sleepy, which is rare for me, because I normally have a huge amount of anxiety and alertness after trying a new med for fear of yucky side effects. As far as visual perception goes I felt exactly the same, but my physical perception actually changed, Things seemed way less mechanical and more in my control. laying down I could feel all the textures of the bed, blankets and sheets against me, food tasted way better. I watched an old Sci-fi TV episode and was able to totally focus on each scene and get into it. I finally went to sleep and my dreams were slightly more vivid and I woke up feeling totally rested which is also rare for me. So yeah I would say there was a good improvement, placebo maybe? Nah... there was definitely a notable change. I'll stick with the 3mgs for the rest of the week, then I'll up it to 4.5mgs which I understand is the optimal dose for most people. I'll post up again and note any other changes with my trial of LDN.

Well after a few days on 3mgs I'm not noticing anything significant other than a slight higher sensitivity. When I have been around crowds of people, loud music, vibrant colors I seem to feel less dp and more of the stimuli. There has been a light increase in anxiety (like drinking a cup of coffee), and I have been experiencing some bad dreams. Nothing I couldn't tolerate though. Feels similar to to an ssri medication some of the time. I think I'm going to up the dosage to 4.5mgs in the next couple days. I'll update again shortly.

Well it seems that Benny and some of the other people on this forum had better luck with LDN and I was reading online that 4.5 mgs and lower is a good amount to test how you would react with it and move it up in higher dosages depending on how you feel. I'm about ready to start 4.5 mgs from the 3 mgs I was doing. I'm having the same results from when I started, mainly my physical perception feels better. I personally feel that it would work better by combining other meds with it since my depression and anxiety have increased slightly since I started the Naltrexone, I have been prescribed some other ones I want to take along with it and see how I feel.

I agree with your theory since the DP is disappearing in a way my other emotions are coming out from under the rug.

I just bumped it up from 3mgs to 4.5mgs on Monday and it seemed to make a difference the first night of taking 4.5, just like previous weeks my physical perception seems to be better, but my visual perception hasn't really changed a whole lot. The DP I have now is slightly different, there is more of a sense of reality. The things I don't like are the weird dreams, and I just want to relax all the time. For a few days I was experiencing some really bad headaches, but I could have been dehydrated and I was also eating unhealthy that week which has caused me to get headaches before. I feel a little more depression and anxiety just like before, but its not too big of a deal or anything I can't handle. I'm ready to combine it with another med to see if I get any better results. I think I will also try boosting the Naltrexone to 10mgs soon and see what happens. All in all I would say it does make a little bit of a difference and I would recommend anyone with DP to try it.

Well I have been sticking with it for almost an entire month now, and over the last couple weeks I have not been thinking about my DP at all. Its still there, visually but definitely not as bad as it was, I would say maybe 50-75% percent gone, which is awesome! I'm totally not obsessed about the dp, I don't even mention it any more, I use to come to this website almost every day I was so obsessed with it, but I haven't since last time I posted which was almost two weeks ago. Like I said earlier it's still there but its totally different, I would almost be fine with this level of DP. A lot of the anxiety has decreased too, the anxiety I do get now also feels different for example, If I got an anxiety moment, the adrenal response would make me very irritable, uneasy, and super dp'd & spaced out for a day or two afterword. Now if I get a little anxiety it almost feels very euphoric and exciting afterword, which is very very strange.

The reason I am not totally jumping up and down happy, is because I'm still getting heavy doses of depression coming in and out. I'll be completely elated one moment, then I'll have no interest in anything, a total loss of stimulation, I'll literally just want to lay in bed all day at some moments. It kind of feels like another part of my brain is releasing some negative emotions I had buried away. I've really been reminiscing my past quit a bit, super super nostalgic. I'm going to start a mood stabilizer tonight and see how that goes in conjunction with the Naltrexone. Then possibly an antidepressant after I see the effects of the mood stabilizer. The head aches and crazy dreams I was experiencing have now gone away. There is still some lucid dreaming, but not anything bad. I'll keep posting any further changes as they happen.

I do feel something within 5 minutes of taking it, almost identical to Klonopin, like total relaxation and no anxiety. Its done wonders for my anxiety almost 100% better, its helped half way with my DP, where I don't think about it anymore, its there but like 50% and it doesn't bother me anymore. It has increased my depression almost double which I do not like, but I'm going to try taking something for that soon. I would say give it about 2-3 weeks, at that point is when I stopped obsessing about my DP and noticed a huge change in my anxiety levels.

LDN has really kicked in for me, I want to say that I finally found one thing that totally eliminates my anxiety, its the only thing has ever really worked 100%, I'm so thankful for that. My dp is still there, but like I said before its at a level where I can finally easily ignore it and get distracted with other things.

I still have some problems with depression, which actually bothers me more than the DP itself which is a first for me.

Whatever you do, don't give up, there are 100's of things out there to try. Naltrexone didn't cure my DP but it was a huge breakthrough for the first time in 20 years to help me with my anxiety.

*aloof*

I think I am going to try the LDN at 4.5 mg first....then maybe go up to the 50 mg tablets if I don't notice anything. I found a local compounding pharmacy that does the LDN for a little under a buck per pill, so i will try 30 @ 4.5 mg just as a trial. I still have Klonopin although I use it much less now as it was causing depression. My shrink also prescribed me a beta blocker to try since I do have physical anxiety symptoms such as high pulse rate. I will probably try the beta blocker first to see what effect it has before starting the LDN trial.

i am also trying LDN and have not noticed much after a week of taking it. I am taking Trileptal which helps keep my mood a bit more stable but not much more than that, no side effects though.

*Angela2006*

I have started the Naltrexone again after trying the higher doses early last summer. I started on 4.5 mgs that I got from a compounding pharmacy in New York. I started this amt. last Saturday along with the usual 40 mg. of Celexa and 5 mg. of Xanax. So far - not difference, good or bad.

still nothing from the Naltrexone. The Celexa keeps me from having night time panic attacks, but that is about all. The xanax takes the edge off the anxiety, dp, and dr sometimes. I really don't have any drug that helps me. Frantically looking, of course, because I've had this for 35 years and I'm tired.

*Steve Cronin*

Today is my third day on Naltrexone for marijuana induced DR and, I must say, I am a bit disappointed so far. Firstly, the drug is extremely difficult for me to tolerate. I switched taking the drug at night, instead of in the morning as prescribed, because the intense drowsiness and low energy is too much and affects my daily life. After the second day, I was convinced my brain fog increased and now it seems as if my derealization is actually increasing. I lowered the dosage to see if it will help. Here's my timeline so far:

Day 1: 50mg in the morning
Day 2: 25mg in the morning, 25 mg that night.
Day 3: 25mg at night.

I'm working my way up to 100mg/day, although I read that 200mg is generally needed to see effectiveness with DR.

*maschine*

I had my first dp 'attack' in my third year of college. After this experience I developed anxiety / panic disorder. I never avoided situations but it was nevertheless very hard to cope. Two years after this experiences I graduated (I'm a clinical psychologist btw) and began to work. In this period panic attacks and anxiety came and went but unreality wasn't always there. It was several years later, when I undertook a trip with my dad that I first had chronic experience of derealisation. Since then (now 10 years ago) it never left me (even when I was anxiety free) and depersonalization slowly creeped in. Things went OK last years but then I decided to try Naltrexone to get rid of my final DP symptoms but I ruined everything. This was a huge blow in my face.

I still don't know however if this was related to Naltrexone ... has anyone witnessed increased anxiety after taking Naltrexone? I began with LDN very slowly and then built it up to around 75mg/day but it didn't seem to work. Around New Year I had a pretty weird unreal feeling while driving my car (I was at dose 75mg) and it was very hard to cope with that. Anyway, I still coped and moved on, but then in my own therapy something was again 'triggered'. At first I could feel some feelings of loneliness when we went to a quite minor incident in secondary school, but than a huge wave of anxiety came up together with unreality. At first, I thought it would go away, but it didn't and everything around now me is numb, with no feeling, no reason, no motivation. It is like I completely lost my inner compass (while before I still had something) and I'm acting like a robot without knowing what I'm doing and why I'm doing it. Knowing that I have to function like this probably for a long time scares me and I feel like losing hope for recovery.

Is anxiety common in use of Naltrexone or could it be that this had nothing to do with the product?

I didn't have a positive reaction when I was building up to 75mg ...

I've been DP'ed for a long time and don't remember how it was before .

*lexar333*

It's important you see a doctor because, there are pharmacological treatments for DPD, namely

Naltrexone. I started it recently, and I've some amelioration in symptoms.

*sekhmet*

Been suffering from DP/DR for the past 8 months. I'm not a drug user, but I took a whiff of 7x salvia during orientation right before my first year of grad school started along with a bunch of other students. I was tripping balls for 45 minutes while everyone was looking at me with a confused look after their 2 minute trips. Never came out of that dreamland and I've been sleepwalking ever since. On top of that somehow my brain chemistry got so screwed up I plummeted into clinical depression and didn't have the energy to walk for more than 5 meters. I'm at a very prestigious school for my field- and this thing totally ruined all my ambitions and research plans- not to mention my usually chatty and lighthearted personality got wiped away.

Anyway, I took 25mg of sertraline for a month and a half to take away the clinical depression (small dose, but more didn't do any good) but that didn't do anything for the DP/DR as predicted. It's been very very very slowly fading away these past months but the dissociation has still taken a toll on my life;.. grad school is hard enough without something like that. If it doesn't go away soon, I'll have to quit a promising academic career.

These past couple of months I've been taking 150 mg of naltrexone, and that greatly improved my standard of life- prolly 20 percent DP improvement- but its still not enough.

Anyway, it's interesting to note that for the year prior to DP, I was really overworked and burnt out from family/school/friend life and had at least mild anhedonia. Dynorphins are implicated both in chronic stress and anhedonia- and maybe salvia, another kappa opioid agonist, was the tipping point as a kind of "artificial chronic stress." (I guess DP was my reward for hard work). Hopefully KOR antagonists will come out and may be the answer for a lot of people..

*jimmyc*

going on about 2 years with MJ induced dpd. Still no cure. i dunno if more weed could ever solve it. im trying naltrexone and seeing if that helps. if none of that fucking works, then i guess its game over.

*texas2006*

Here's a brief update:

1) Lamictal - up to 300 mg. No real side effects, no real help

2) Added 250 mg of clomipramine. Some side effects, not too bad. Didn't help

3) Modafinil - no help

4) Naltrexone - could only take 50 mg and puked my guts out for days. Discontinued, not sure if it would have helped

5) Currently on Brintellix and tapering up.

*gimpy34*

my doc has let me try selegiline and naltrexone (opioid-antagonist) so it's possible.


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## TDX (Jul 12, 2014)

I fear that you won't find many attempts with Naltrexone, because many doctors refuse to prescribe and it's so fucking expensive. You should also include Nalmefene and Naloxone, which might make the list a bit longer.


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## thy (Oct 7, 2015)

TDX said:


> I fear that you won't find many attempts with Naltrexone, because many doctors refuse to prescribe and it's so fucking expensive. You should also include Nalmefene and Naloxone, which might make the list a bit longer.


Only just started, will see how I get on.


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## TDX (Jul 12, 2014)

I remember the user "Mayer-Gross" tried Nalmefene.



> We're losing so many to follow-up. I think it's probably negatively skewing the results.


I don't think so. If you tried something and it worked you would tell us. I suppose most members would act this way. So I think "Lost to follow up" = 0 or ="unknown".


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## TDX (Jul 12, 2014)

It would be theoretically possible to answer this questions. To create an account an E-Mail adress is required. It would be possible for the Admins to contact these users who were lost to follow up.


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## thy (Oct 7, 2015)

King Elliott said:


> I would but these members with about 10 posts probably wouldn't because they have absolutely no investment in the community. They're probably happy to be able to get the fuck out before they had the chance to get to know any of us.


I agree with this.

If someone is active on here and then start taking a new drug and just fuck off and never come back to make a post about it, it seems very likely its because they have gained, at the very least, a life thats worth living, and just don't think to come back.

The best we can do is make a case by case judgement. Though I don't think we can make an assumption that a medication has worked just because someone didn't follow up. It's a tough one.


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## thy (Oct 7, 2015)

TDX said:


> It would be theoretically possible to answer this questions. To create an account an E-Mail adress is required. It would be possible for the Admins to contact these users who were lost to follow up.


Sounds like a good idea to me.


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## thy (Oct 7, 2015)

How do you get hold of Suboxone? How would *Spectre *have got hold of it?


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