Withdrawal physical sickness

[peacefulwarrior]

So Ive been in and out of addiction and every time I withdrawal I usually only make it Max 2 weeks. Within about a week I start developing a horrible cough with congestion in my lungs and a red colored throat. 2 doctors have said they think its some kind of bacterial infection so they give me antibiotics that dont do anything. I just finished 10 days of strong antibotics (which seemed to keep things from getting worse) but now the heavy cough is back. Has anything like this happened to anyone? i really have no clue what to do. if this shit keeps up im goin back to using-- at least i feel healthier that way

[salutaridine]

Yeah, i get sick alot when I quit taking opiates. like clockwork..........just when you are starting to feel better, you get sick for real. I would get bronchitus or ear infections, throat problems.
The topic of opiates as immune boosters has been going around for decades....I can attest that I do not get sick as much when I am maintaining on opiates...I might throwup or have sickness from taking the drug, but it seems that bacterial infections are limited. this coming from a person who would get chronic ear infections, which, over time can damage the heart, if it is a strep infection.
Looking at individual compounds some act as immune boosters, or even immunity reducers, it just depends which one you are looking at, and their isnt data on each and every known opioid pertaining to immune reaction.
I maintain on a relatively moderate opiate regimine, daily, for years now. As I switched from illicit heroin and oxy use to legal scripts for the minimalist tramadol or codeine my health got generally better. I think that the immune response could be just as strong in very low opioid doses as higher....or at least it seems that way to me.

[sage99]

I use oxy's on a pretty regular basis and i have encountered the same problems with getting sick when detoxing. I get horrible UTI's that take months to get rid of when i'm not using OC's. No matter how much antibiotics i take or how strong it won't Get rid of the infection.... i pop an ox and feel 10 times better. I'm not sure however if i just don't notice the infection because I'm so high.:cool:

[muz]

Indeed, I have heard from a former junky that H completely clears up (almost) any type of sickness you might have. While on methadone through a couple of different winter, i can testify that i didn't even get so much as a comoncold, when i'm used to at least one or two sinus infections a winter and having to take antibiotics to get rid of them. Just don't forget how sick you get when you kick, and how expensive it can be. :mad: ;)

[shaunclo]

This is so true, I would never get even a cold (even when everyone else in the office would be getting sick) when I was using. But low and behold, right when I quit and went on to suboxone, my immune system is on vacation. I got sick so much that my doctor had me on like a month of serious antibiotics. It would just keep me from getting worse, it wouldnt cure me at all. I just finally started to get healthy over the last couple of months. I also believe that when your that fuckered up, I think you just dont pay attention to or dont care about the sickness. So when your using, you might be sick but might not notice or care about the symptoms. Ahhhh the good 'ol days!!:)

[kramorph]

Well obviously i also agree, most junkys only get one type of sickness, and we are all familiar with that. I have often gotten sick after w/ding and then use again to treat my new sickness. often flu,colds,sore throats gut infections etc.Use again and it clears up.Fuck abstinence i think i will stay an addict.Despite what people think. shooting carefully and cleanly is not at all harmful.Although i recently met a bloke whilst scoring who unfortunately lost his left hand through shooting up, but he did try and shoot into his brachial artery????(pulse artery in wrist).STICK TO VEINS PEOPLE.(the blue ones).And clean ya fit or use new ones.We used to use straight bleach before cleanies were widely availabele here in oz.

[Zoop]

Yall REALLY think opiates protect the body from infection? C'mon. I mean it could be true I guess...

I will remain open-minded about the possibility, but I will just put this out there -

When doped up, people DON'T NOTICE that they're sick!

[jacky]

opiates are natural hormonal messengers in the human body. some opioids have a suppressing effect on the bodies immune system. some may have a boosting effect on the immune system.

the reason that more knowledge hasnt been accrued about opioids and opiates is in part that they have a dirty name, and drug companys will do anything they can to make patentable chemicals without opioid activity.

I consistantly find that while on opioids I do not get chronic ear, throat and lung infections, which I have been succeptable to my whole life, I used to get strep infections twice a year. Strep infections can damage the heart and other organs over time, even from standard infections that seem the routine and part of the seasonal change.

I doubt that opioids in general are across the board immune suppressors , opioids are ENDOGENOUS chemicals. Our bodies use opiates second to second to support motivational drive, serial learning, MEMORY recall, opioids affect the same receptors as dopaminergics in part, and may have great potential as medicines for ADD and AHDH. I am ADD, and have only taken ritalin once, opiates and opioids in the right dose actually help me focus, why? because they are not just painkillers, but hormonal messengers and also happen to release dopamine in part of the brain.

I am sure that part of opioids effects help cover symptoms of sickness, that is after all what most people use them for. the bulk of claims that opioids boost the immune system seem to come from the people most intimitaly connected with them, the people that use them as dietary supplements , pain meds or euphoriants. I dont think that will change much in the years to come in this country,seeing as how 99.9 percent of the population is IGNORANT of their biological makeup.

opioids are found in MILK and other dairy products, mothers milk, meat, and wheat and gluten products, opioids occur naturally in mammals and most other living creatures down to the most simple worms....opioids are found in many plants that we are just learning about, opioids are all around us. If opiates and opioids were immune suppressors predominately wouldnt we expect certian foods and such to actually be a hinderance to good health?

I once saw a radio ligand photo of an opioid chemical that is radioactive and shot into a rat, the opioids attatched to the receptors and a photo could then be taken that would show each receptor as a glowing point. the point of the photo was to show the prolific spread of opioid receptors in the brain of mammals, which are pretty similiar to each other. anyway this photo ends up looking pretty much like a complete brain, the opioid receptors are everywhere. my point is this, if the brain cannot feel sensation, why all the opiate receptors covering and speckling the inside of the brain? well, I take it they are not being used for pain supression but for brain functions other than we are aware of, or at least that I am aware of. one study on endogenous opiate function is by PHD James H Austin in his book "zen and the brain".....Mr Austin and other researchers find that opiates support motivational drive, memory recall, mathematical and serial learning. In the part of the brain specifically being focused on they found that chronic morphine administration would not precipitate withdrawl when cut off!! this is a very important place in the brain as far as addiction research is concerned I would think. at least a good place to start. Dr Austins group also found that the right dose of opiate also increases dexterity and reaction times. what if the doctors could position a morphine pump feed into this specific part of the brain for people with chronic pain?

I think that most peoples immune systems would be better off if their pain was covered, most people will probably feel better if they are happy. I use opioids for ADD, depression and for a euphoriant, I no longer get chronic strep infections. but if I come off of opioids after a while on them , I always get sick, a cold in the middle of summer, swollen throat, and strep. I have no evidence to support my statements really, but communication with a moderate amount of opioid users leads me to believe that immune responses are either being ignored when concerning opioids..........

[kramorph]

It is not so much that opiods protect from infection, it is just that injecting etc (even extremely clean) introduces bacteria,pyrogenic material etc in small amounts. Therefore you create your own immunity, ie just like commercial vaccinations.Although I did get a nasty cold from scoring from me dealer when they had a nasty cold, so who really knows, and what govt will back this sort of research?

[rebo]

Do you smoke more when using ,I used to ,this combined with the wd's used to make me cough for weeks .
I found that there was no way I could keep food down ,let alone sleep for anything up to four weeks ,of course I got an average of 45 mins sleep at a time and would wake up drenched with a real nasty feel in my throat ,cramps all over and probably worst of all was the mental anguish I always seem to go through.
This has a drastic affect on your immune system and leaves you succeptible to all forms of sickness ,I wouldn't have chosen bacterial as a first choice though , it could just be a combination of factors.

[kramorph]

As soon as I pull the needle out I light a fag. And then as many cones that I have or can smoke.And then another ciggie.More cones, fag,cones,fag etc etc.:o As far as immunity goes I dont think many organisms can live on or in my toxic body lol.

[jacky]

people who use opioids in a healthy manner, while eating and specifically supplementing with vitamins that opioids can deplete seem to enjoy great health. besides the chronic pain that is.

I think alot of detrimental effects from opioids comes from the months of wear and tear on the body. eating little, consitpation, sometimes chronic vomiting, shooting loads of sugar and basically dirt into the bloodstream etc. me and my freinds really didnt take care of ourselves back in the day, and were pretty much broke, but my rich junkie fag freinds seemed to enjoy good health all through their addiction, even one of the guys with HIV.