Tramadol and Depression: What Users Say (Page 2)

• skl...
• August 9, 2017

For Pain "Started tramadol years ago as an add-on medicine with Vicodin (hydrocodone) from a car accident shoulder injury. I stopped taking it because the Vicodin did the job. Then doc told me that new prescribing procedures advised against taking tramadol with Vicodin. I switched to tramadol only 100 mg, and it works and lasts longer than Vicodin or even Percocet, and I have more energy. I also have chronic depression and anxiety, and tramadol does make that go away. It is an unusual drug and seems to work well for some and not good for others. I suppose some people lack the enzyme to convert or metabolize tramadol into the more effective O-desmethyltramadol, also known as Nucynta, so it doesn't work for them. Well. Have a nice day. No pain."

• May...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 11, 2018

For Depression "I have been taking 100 mg at once during the morning about every 3 to 4 days, and I’m amazed how it calms me down. Unfortunately, not taking it for 3 to 4 days makes me a little more depressed. Would love to take it once a day every day, but am afraid to."

• MDM...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 12, 2018

For Back Pain "Was given this pain killer by my doctor due to a back injury. The doctor didn't really tell me much, just said it was a good pain reliever. Taking 8x50mg daily, the pain reduced, but felt that I was becoming dependent. If I missed a dose or was running late, I would start to feel sick. After 6 months, I have now started to reduce tramadol. PLEASE - If you can find another pain killer able to manage your symptoms, use it. Tramadol is difficult to stop. The withdrawal coming off tramadol is terrible. No sleep, diarrhea, dizziness, restless legs, cramps, sweats, unable to function, headaches. Tramadol is really not worth taking when you weigh up the pain relief and the withdrawal. AWFUL. PLEASE SPEAK TO YOUR DR OR PHARMACIST ABOUT THIS DRUG BEFORE STARTING. EVEN IF THEY SUGGEST IT, GET ANOTHER OPINION. I feel like an illegal drug addict trying to stop this."

• rnd...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• October 23, 2017

For Depression "Without going into a long story, I feel much better on tramadol even if only 1/2 to 1 tablet a day. Without it, I feel pretty shitty at times, similar to flu symptoms, depression, anxiety. I'm hesitant whether to tell this to a psychiatrist. How likely would they go along with it or encourage getting off of it? It's been very hard to get off even this low dose."

• Ost...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 16, 2017

For Chronic Pain "Slightly more effective than Tylenol, best when taken with Tylenol, but even then not enough for my pain. I took for about 2 years, 250 mg a day along with Flexeril. When I went off it, I felt a little depressed for 2-3 days, that's it. No addiction issues. I now need something stronger, but what a laugh. The FDA and DEA are more interested in getting billions to help addicts than they are in helping the 100 million chronic pain sufferers in the USA."

• Sha...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 1, 2022

For Depression "I was prescribed Tramadol for pain after a hysterectomy. I took it twice a day for 8 weeks. After 1 week, I noticed my mood was consistent contentment. Not elevated or elated, but a complete sense of well-being. I did research on the medication and realized it was the Tramadol. I have experienced depression and anxiety my entire life. I was blown away. No weird side effects either. I can't remember the dosage, I think they were 50 mg."

• Jac...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• March 20, 2022

For Depression "Taken tramadol for 16 years helped me with my pain and depression. Taken off of me because of opioid addiction, which is ridiculous. I’m now taking Cymbalta, which I have no motivation, low self-esteem, don't want to go anywhere. Weight gain. Way more depressed now."

• Jac...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• March 20, 2022

For Depression "Taken tramadol for 16 years helped me with my pain and depression. Taken off of me because of opioid addiction, which is ridiculous. I’m now taking Cymbalta, which I have no motivation, low self-esteem, don't want to go anywhere. Weight gain. Way more depressed now."

• Chr...
• October 28, 2016

For Chronic Pain "Had spine surgery, and Tramadol hasn't touched the pain. When Darvocet N-100 was available, my pain was managed, and it's not a narcotic! Yet, the FDA, because a few people had cardiac issues (probably had before taking the med), took Darvocet N-100 off the market! Now the government wants to limit the narcotics we get and keep us in constant pain, so our daily lives are spent trying different avenues to ease the pain. I've had so many complications from Tramadol that I can't read, I fall, I can't drive, and I'm greatly depressed. None of which I was having before. This is a sugar pill, and I have stopped taking it since it only causes me harm...thinking of going to a naturopathic physician since the government is involved in big pharma."

• Zan...
• December 13, 2019

For Chronic Pain "The doc said this was not addictive and that I could take up to 6 pills a day. I built up a tolerance and always ran out early. I also found out that I may have anxiety and depression because I felt like I was on cloud 9 on this stuff. But running out... running out is like plunging from heaven and falling to the depths of the ocean. Even reducing my dosage or waiting 2 hours from my regular schedule, I would start feeling the withdrawals... sweating, terrible diarrhea, body zaps, and restless legs. Constant wishing that I had just one more pill... sleepy during the day and cannot sleep at night. Feeling like I would do anything to relieve the pain. This stuff is more addictive than hydrocodone, but it is also an SNRI, so the taper has to be no more than 10% each week. Now I am currently taking hydrocodone again as well as Cymbalta... I wish I had never heard of tramadol... if you have an addictive personality and run out of your meds early, DO NOT TAKE THIS DRUG."

• Fiz...
• March 29, 2017

For Pain "I was prescribed tramadol because I couldn't tolerate other pain meds with codeine or Tylenol. Tramadol is great until you run out. I have taken this drug for approximately 7 years now. I wish I'd never started it. It's just been a roller coaster for me, it helps me feel better, but does zero for the pain, and then you build a tolerance up, and it just gets worse from there. I've had withdrawals from this a few times. I've never had such horrible withdrawals as with this med: sneezing, coughing, hot, cold, chills, sweats, restless, depressed, and irritable to name a few, with lethargy. I am due for a refill tomorrow, I'm not picking it up. It's really hard right now, but going through this agony isn't an option again."

• art...
• January 14, 2016

For Chronic Pain "While this drug may work for pain (worked great for that), coming off it was a diff. story. I was on it for 6 months, and it worked alright beside some depression issues. Tried talking to my doctor and basically got told all people who come to his office are addicts, and he swears there are no side effects. When I stopped taking it, ohh boy. My girlfriend noticed I was short-tempered, depressed (severely), and just all around unpleasant. I was crazy, almost checked myself on a 48-hour hold. Now a week out, and I feel a lot better. No tramadol and no craziness."

• SCa...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 5, 2019

For Back Pain "This medication is awful. I have severe back pain and leg pain that, when it gets at its worst, I can’t do anything without screaming and crying. I can’t even stand, sit, or lie down. Due to the opioid crisis, I was prescribed tramadol, and it did absolutely nothing. I kept taking it because I was desperate for anything to help. The only thing I got from it was awful withdrawals from when I finally stopped taking it after a couple of weeks. I didn’t sleep but 2 hours a night for months, I had awful anxiety and depression and was severely agitated all the time for no reason. I would never recommend taking this to anybody."

• ter...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• May 23, 2017

For Chronic Pain "This works great for me for migraines, neck pain, and in the past for severe menstrual cramping. However, I find that I need to take about half the dose. Instead of 50 mg every 6 hours, I have to take less (25 mg), maxing out at 225 mg per day. I rarely have to take that much anymore. I tend to take Dramamine with it now or meclizine to avoid nausea (although it doesn't always cause me to have nausea). I did have one episode of respiratory depression after taking the normal dosage of 50 mg every six hours for menstrual cramps. About an hour after the third dose, I started feeling like I couldn't remember how to breathe. It was a very scary feeling. My husband watched me carefully, and I probably should have gone to the emergency room."

• Lea...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 16, 2025

For Chronic Pain "I had severe Lyme in '99, requiring 6 months of IV antibiotics. A year later, I developed chronic pain, diagnosed as fibromyalgia. I call it Lyme's arthritis. I was prescribed oxy, requiring a pill every 4 hrs., producing addiction and withdrawals. It was hell. I then took morphine ER, reducing it over time. It also produced withdrawals, and I didn't like feeling 'high.' I just needed pain relief, to be functional. Several years ago, I was prescribed Tramadol, up to 150 mg/day. I usually take 100 mg. Godsend! As a synthetic opioid, it's as if they deleted the mental 'high' and left the pain relief. Plus, no withdrawals. Thank you!!! As a Schedule IV drug, it has a lower possibility of addiction (correct!). I've had depression since I was a child. The pain relief allows me to be productive, improving it. Please see the Diary of a CEO podcast with the Stanford Addiction Clinic doctor re: dopamine and addiction. It's not you, it's your body. Bless."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 14, 2015

For Pain "I have taken Prozac for a long while. It's the only drug that helps my depression I have dealt with for 9 years. Don't take this drug if you take a drug that raises your serotonin. You will be at risk for serotonin syndrome, which can be fatal. This drug is for pain, but it is also an SNRI. This made me extremely depressed and did nothing for my pain except make me lightheaded and have an opiate-like high, except no pain relief."

• Edw...
• June 18, 2017

For Pain "As a person who took this medicine for approximately 2 years, leave this stuff alone! I started using this medicine after having pain from ulcers. When I first started using this medicine, oh man, the feeling! I was in my early 20s. I felt above the world, so much energy, I lost weight, I could literally have sex for hours upon hours. So being in college at the time and taking this, all I can say is OH MAN =D!!! But one night I got really depressed, like depressed as if my parents died level of depressed, and my mom called my PCP. To make a long story short, I was told to wean myself off of this medicine. I took it a step further and stopped completely. It took approximately 5 to 7 days for the W/D symptoms to stop."

• FMP...
• September 9, 2015

For Pain "Took tramadol for excruciating back pain. Worked marvelously for three weeks, pain 80% decreased, but affected my judgment as I saw events and people in an unrealistically positive way. After three weeks, I started imagining black ghosts at night, got depressed and negative, my face felt like sunburned at night, nausea. Needless to say, I stopped taking the drug, withdrawal made the experience worse. I am back with pain waiting for surgery. Bad drug!"

• Jus...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• June 20, 2018

For Fibromyalgia "I started taking Tramadol for chronic pain due to many years of fibromyalgia. It helped somewhat with pain, the true problem was the depression that started almost immediately. I tolerated the depression for as long as I could. I was not on a high dose, only up to 3 daily, but even at 1, the depression was constant... waking me at night with despairing thoughts. When I chose to stop taking it, I was miserable. Worse than coming off of oxycodone in higher amounts and worse than benzos. Restless leg syndrome was constant for a week, and then the psychosis that almost sent me to the emergency room. Stay away from this drug. If you don’t have issues with depression, DO NOT take Tramadol. It will screw up your brain. It’s been two weeks, and I’m starting to feel happy again."

• Anonymous
• October 28, 2011

For Back Pain "I've been taking tramadol for a year now after a failed microdiscectomy. My pain is definitely reduced, however, I find myself in a very hyper, impatient mood for about 2 hours. I take 2, 50 mg before work and top up if I need to. I try not to take it on my day off or until I have to, as I find the come-down quite depressing and my energy crashes. I have taken a lot of pills and medications for my pain, and tramadol is the best one for quick pain relief if you don't mind the mood swings."

• JEL...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 5, 2022

For Anxiety "I have taken tramadol daily for the last five years. It works to alleviate a wide variety of conditions I used to suffer with, including headaches. It helps alleviate my anxiety and depression on a whole new level. However, after the continued use and over 200 mg daily, I now notice if I don’t take it or have it, severe withdrawals and depression occur."

• Bac...
• October 14, 2019

For Back Pain "I have had negative experiences with SSRIs in the past. I had no idea that tramadol acted on serotonin and norepinephrine. This has greatly increased my depression, which was already close to unmanageable. I feel betrayed by my doctor and pharmacology as I was hesitant to be put on anything in the first place."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 26, 2018

For Chronic Pain "This medicine made me feel absolutely terrible. I was prescribed this to take for migraines, and after dealing with the side effects/withdrawal symptoms... I think I’d rather just deal with my migraine. Nausea, vomiting, itching, heart palpitations, sleeplessness, anxiety, depression, etc. You name it, I was experiencing it. And have been for 3 days. Take at your own risk."

• Ded...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• July 24, 2021

For Fibromyalgia "Been reading the comments. I can relate to mostly all of them. I have fibromyalgia, spinal stenosis. Neuropathy, it's at the point nothing anyone can do. I have tried many drugs which did nothing but set me in deep depression, so I finally got off of them. My doctor asked me to try tramadol and it has saved my life. I can get up and be productive and calmer. It has been 8 years. I hope that I can stay on them, but I'm up to a dose of 300 mg a day. I am just thankful that my pain manager doctor believes in it and not strong opiates for me. I do yoga, walking. I'm 69, not ready to sit and cry, I love these pills."

• Nat...
• August 25, 2021

For Depression "I have been on tramadol for 8 months now for chronic lower back pain. I take between 100-200 mg each day depending on the pain. Some days I don’t have any pain in my back, and so I don’t take any tramadol. The way I feel when I am not taking these tablets is something I have never felt before. Really bad depression, anxiety, and no energy to do anything with my children. I just want to sit down and cry. The drug is amazing for my back pain, but now I feel like I am also taking it for my mental health."