[curious_jorge]

Background for a seemingly bizarre question... For many years I had been diagnosed with ADD based on symptoms of lack of focus and difficulty in task completion, particularly in writing. This led to me pulling 'all-nighters' for the last fifteen years between academics and work tasks. The challenges I've faced have really interfered with my life, so fed up, I did formal ADD testing last spring understanding it would be a precursor to defining a course of appropriate CBT for my ADD. Following testing, I was shocked to hear that I did not have ADD after all and through sessions with a therapist, the therapist concluded i had anxiety and perfectionism issues that manifested in ways that looked like ADD.

Enter hydrocodone... I was prescribed this medication on two occasions...once for a general back injury and once following a car wreck. On both occasions of use, I noted that unlike the side effects suggested (as well as anecdotes from all the friends I knew who'd used it) that instead of making me extremely tired and 'foggy minded', the hydrocodone made me extremely alert and focused to a greater degree than i ever feel in my daily life. During the time i was taking the medicine, i was able to take on many organizational tasks that had previously been overwhelming and also could quickly accomplish tasks that normally take me forever such as writing more efficiently. Though I know it's inappropriate to take medicine outside it's intended use, i admit that twice in the last year, i was in such a bind with work projects that i found it worthwhile to give taking half a hydrocodone a shot to see if it could help my focus in the same way it had previously... and it completely did!!! I really don't attribute this to some sort of placebo effect given my expectations from how the drug worked before, because the difference in my clarity of mind and ability to complete tasks efficiently and to my satisfaction was night and day. I have also seen a few mentions of euphoria associated with hydrocodone, and I can honestly say that I can't fathom describing my mental state as euphoric.

Given this information, here are my questions: Is there any known influence that hydrocodone has on the brain chemistry or otherwise that is associated with anxiety or perfectionism disorders that might have caused this rare focus/clarity in me? If so, is there any equivalent sort of treatment that i could use that would simulate this effect and be medically advisable? I am quite clear on the fact that I should not be taking hydrocodone unless necessary, but I'm desperate to figure out how i could achieve the same outcome that taking it causes, because having that sort of focus on a day to day basis would be completely life-changing!

[greenday]

curious jorge,
You have just described me to a "T". I wish I had read this thread when you posted it. I am exactly the same. Hydro/Oxcy make me focus, not tired. I wonder if there is anyone else out there like us? Have you found any more information on this? Please share if you have.

[curious_jorge]

greenday,
I wish I could share some interesting findings with you, but I haven't really discovered anything more. I did have some responses to another post that suggested that if I do have anxiety problems that the hydrocodone may relax me to the point I am able to finally focus. this seems like a reasonable response absent any other more specific information about the effects hydrocodone can have. it was suggested to me to discuss anti-anxiety meds with my doc which is something i haven't done given that i thought i was dealing with ADD before and not anxiety.

[mrsi]

PLEASE READ THIS!!!
To you two who just posted that Hydrocodone makes you feel better and focus more, I warn you: YOU ARE HEADED DOWN A DANGEROUS ROAD. TURN BACK!!! I felt and still feel the same way about opiates, and now I have been in rehab for an addiction to them for six months! I was an addict for three years. You will become an addict, no ifs ands or buts! If you take those pills for any extended period of time, even for a month, you will become an addict. And it will ruin your life. You will spend all of your money, time and energy on getting more pills so you won't be sick, and just to feel normal. I know that you probably think you aren't like me, but it doesn't matter who you are! If the Pope took pain pills for more than a month he would be addicted! I am begging you to stop and think about the consequences before it is too late for you.

[mpvt]

Hydrocodone seems to act on the brain like oxycodone does.You get that energy from it.I can tell you that after awhile that euphoria turns to dysphoria and your life turns to hell.Hydrocodone even though it is a reletively weak pain killer is an opiate and addictive and will turn your life into a wreck.
So take it from us!!!The little high you get from hydrocodone will turn on you and you will end up having to take much stronger opiates which will further throw you into the depths of no return....Dave

[greenday]

Uh, HELLO, five and a half months clean from exactly what you are describing. I was just responding to the original post to see if there were any explanations to the "focusing" puzzle. Thanks for your warning, but for me, it was too late! I am fairly stable now with the exception of occassional cravings that come out of nowhere.

Thanks for your responses. Greatly appreciated.

[greenday]

MVPT,
Just curious...why do opiates affect people differently? Some people can take the exact same drug in the exact same circumstances and one will get sleepy and go to bed while another will get "high". Got any ideas?

[greenday]

PS I unfortuately fell into the second catergory.....lol

[Robert_325]

Originally Posted by greenday

PS I unfortuately fell into the second catergory.....lol

greenday ... we are all different and metabolize drugs differently just like food. Some of us eat twice a day and gain weight .... others eat fives times a day and look anorexic. The amount of drugs I consumed would kill most anyone, but I drove my car around working taking 30 30mg Roxies in a day plus Somas and Benzos. It's almost an impossible question to answer with any accuracy in my opinion.

[greenday]

Robert,
You should write your life's story. It is quite remarkable and would be appreciated by many people. You should seriously consider it. It's apparent you have talent for writing. Put it to use. I mean this with all kindness and respect.

[Robert_325]

greenday ... thank you for the kind words. Don't know if I could really do that honestly without seriously incriminating myself.

[curious_jorge]

i saw my doc today for an unrelated issue and fessed up to her about using my hydrocodone prescription for focus issues. i was surprized to find that she was not too concerned under my particular circumstances. i have to qualify that she did express how highly addictive such drugs could be, but since she was the one that gave me the original prescription for 15 pills in july 2006 and realized i still had several left, she did not think the rate at which i was using them was a concern.

it was definitely a jumping off point, however, to discuss why she thought hydrocodone helped me focus and what that indicated would be a more appropriate long-term solution for me. she thought that the hydrocodone relaxed me enough to reduce anxiety so that i could write. to get at the underlying anxiety for the long haul, she prescribed an SSRI for me that she suggests i take for 6 months to a year under her monitoring. she anticipated the seratonin leveling effects would address my anxiety on a more consistent basis. i imagine this was the underlying cause of why a previous doc prescribed zoloft to me, though that doc failed to elaborate on why she chose that drug as opposed to a stimulant. i was prescribed a different ssri since previously i did not like the zoloft effects.

my current doc said given that i was struggling and the lexapro would take a while to kick in, she would normally have provided me with a few doses of xanax to help me accomplish my short term goals. she interestingly said that since i already had the hydrocodone and was taking such a low dose (half of the lowest prescribed dose of the medication and only when i was really struggling) that she was comfortable with me continuing to use the hydrocodone as opposed to the xanax. the low dose combined with the limited number of pills i had remaining were what put her at ease that it would not be a scenario in which i could become addicted. it was a case of sticking with what we know works until the lexapro has time to become effective.

i know this is not the typical use of this drug, and i don't mean to recommend this approach to anyone else. just tying up my story with the best insights i can provide on what i deemed an oddball reaction to an opiate.

[curious_jorge]

i saw my doc today for an unrelated issue and fessed up to her about using my hydrocodone prescription for focus issues. i was surprized to find that she was not too concerned under my particular circumstances. i have to qualify that she did express how highly addictive such drugs could be, but since she was the one that gave me the original prescription for 15 pills in july 2006 and realized i still had several left, she did not think the rate at which i was using them was a concern.

it was definitely a jumping off point, however, to discuss why she thought hydrocodone helped me focus and what that indicated would be a more appropriate long-term solution for me. she thought that the hydrocodone relaxed me enough to reduce anxiety so that i could write. to get at the underlying anxiety for the long haul, she prescribed an SSRI for me that she suggests i take for 6 months to a year under her monitoring. she anticipated the seratonin leveling effects would address my anxiety on a more consistent basis. i imagine this was the underlying cause of why a previous doc prescribed zoloft for me, though that doc failed to elaborate on why she chose that drug as opposed to a stimulant. i was prescribed a different ssri since previously i did not like the zoloft effects.

my current doc said given that i was struggling and the lexapro would take a while to kick in, she would normally have provided me with a few doses of xanax to help me accomplish my short term goals. she interestingly said that since i already had the hydrocodone and was taking such a low dose (half of the lowest prescribed dose of the medication and only when i was really struggling) that she was comfortable with me continuing to use the hydrocodone as opposed to the xanax. the low dose combined with the limited number of pills i had remaining were what put her at ease that it would not be a scenario in which i could become addicted. it was a case of sticking with what we know works until the lexapro has time to become effective (two weeks or so before i might start seeing results).

i know this is not the typical use of this drug, and i don't mean to recommend this approach to anyone else. just tying up my story with the best insights i can provide on what i deemed an oddball reaction to an opiate.

[greenday]

I went to a pysch dr last week for the first time. Went there to address focusing problems and I also told her how the vicodin helped me get more done. She said it was not the norm, but for ADD people it does happen. I am not hyperactive but have trouble staying on task which results in anxiety because I don't "finish" anything. I am very level as far as moods go, no temper or outburst problems. She gave me adderall which I am going to be very careful with as I have read it can be addictive and abused. I also got ambien for sleep. We will see how it goes as I just got the adderall filled last night. I will keep you posted on how it goes.

[turpin41]

well, opiates in small forms, low does of oxy, hydro, and others are stimulants. that is why you get talkative and focused, but real opiates like dilaudid, fentanyl, methadone, are in the depressent stage of opiates, which that is what opiates really are. depressents, but small doeses are stimulants.
take 10mg of dilaudid and tell me if you get talkative or motivated at all!
bet ya wont

[jen2bjen]

even if my pain is still bothering me, I have enough energy and focus to clean my entire house...including the bathrooms then move along to the gardening. Hydro definitely gives me a mental and physical boost. I think this applies to those of us who suffer from chronic pain, we tend to have a tolerance. But let me tell you; when you're down, YOU ARE DOWN. Now you hurt ten times more than you should because you acted like Minnie Mouse on Crack, running around trying to fit three days worth of errands into whatever that orange bottle says: "four to six hours" One day at a time...One day at a time. "The motto of many mottos"

[mpvt]

Hi Greenday:
I'm sorry for not getting back to you sooner but I had been looking after my dad who had terminal cancer.
Anyway, what usually happens when people who produce enough natural endorphin's is that they tend to get sleepy and they don't generally like the feeling they get.
When people like us take percocet or heroin we get a great buzz (unfortunately the buzz turns to dysphoria after a few years) mainly because we have very few natural endorphin's.When you flood the brain with morphine (which is what all opiates are converted to before reaching the brain) you get a sudden release of dopamine and a host of other protiens.Because we don't have many endorphin's we get a high or rush.Someone that all ready has enough endorphin's doesn't get the huge rush of dopamine and the other protiens.I hope this helps answer your question........Dave

[rustysneakers]

Originally Posted by jen2bjen

even if my pain is still bothering me, I have enough energy and focus to clean my entire house...including the bathrooms then move along to the gardening. Hydro definitely gives me a mental and physical boost. I think this applies to those of us who suffer from chronic pain, we tend to have a tolerance. But let me tell you; when you're down, YOU ARE DOWN. Now you hurt ten times more than you should because you acted like Minnie Mouse on Crack, running around trying to fit three days worth of errands into whatever that orange bottle says: "four to six hours" One day at a time...One day at a time. "The motto of many mottos"

jen2bjen I thought you were describing me to a "T" for a minute when you said about the cleaning streak!!! etc. I know what it is like to get a little "overly ambitious" because I finally have enough pain relief to get something done, (oh, and in the begining, for everyone else who's curious, yup, SUPER FOCUSED, NEVER TIERED, A BIT AKIN TO A VERY SMALL DOSE OF COKE, OR RIDDILIN,- 15 YEARS LATER- & having no medical options but meds. WELL, JUST CALL ME RUMPLSTILSKIN...LOL mpvt is on the money with what happens in the early yrs. vs. overtime) and have certainly crammed 3 days worth of chores into 12 hours as a result. And I absolutely paid dearly for it as well, LOL.
Thank God I Learned TO PACE MYSELF NOW, AND to FORGIVE MYSELF NOW IF I CANNOT ACOMPLISH THE ENTIRE DAILY LIST. Or if I'm down for several days in a row.

I just had to post that because the "minnie mouse on crack comment" really made me LMFAO. (pardon my french.) because that is EXACTLY what is like when chronic pain ppl get enough relief to finally do something, especially if it's the first few times they have experienced real relief in a long long time.

[VinylTulip]

After my child was born last year, I suffered from a herniated disc in my lower back. The pain was excruciating and I was prescribed Vicodin - at this point, I have never taken it or had any idea what it was. After a few months I noticed a change... I was optimistic, had energy and enthusiasm, cleaned like a wild woman, felt like super-mom! 6 months in ot it I'm up to 3/day and can't stop. Finally I ran out and had HORRID withdrawal... but could not get more. I sunk into a depression lasting months. You see, I've dealt with anxiety and depression and mood issues my WHOLE life. I've been to therapists, taken numerous antidepressants, and drank to numb the uncomfort caused by depression. This was the first time in my life I felt free. I can't explain it. I never felt sleepy on it - it's like a cloud lifted and I saw clearly - people even commented of my attitude change and my overall outlook on life. I'm ultimately glad I don't take it anymore, since it is very addictive... but I take Tramadol now and it works wonderfully without the side effects... I know it's not technically given as an anti-depressant, but it's changed my life. I feel wonderful (and no, not "high") but focused, happy, fulfilled.. in a way I never knew I could feel. If I stop taking it, I'm doomed to going back to my old, down, pessimistic self that loathes herself. That terrifies me more than stopping the Tramadol.