|
tigger2021
Stranger
Registered: 08/23/21
Posts: 1
Last seen: 1 year, 3 months
|
Treating depression with micro-dosing and getting off antidepressant meds
#27439403 - 08/23/21 10:38 AM (2 years, 5 months ago) |
|
|
Hi, I'm new here so hopefully this is the correct place to post this.
My wife has always had issues with anxiety and a few bouts with mild-moderate depression over the years, but after having our first child she had bad postpartum depression leading to intrusive suicidal thoughts and some of the darkest months in her/our lives. The good news is after 1-2 years on Wellbutrin Xl 300mg Tab and Phentermine 30mg Cap she is in a much better place. She really wants to get off the these meds as the meds are causing memory issues, insomnia, and other side effects. She could easily get off the Phentermine as she is just taking that to combat with the weight she was gaining due to the depression and Wellbutrin. And with the Wellbutrin she is at a place that her doctor feels like she could try going off them, but we are scared at the possible return of the depression and suicidal thoughts when we are in a good place.
So we have been looking at ways to help with her depression after getting off the meds. There are several articles online mentioning the benefits of micro-dosing shrooms to treat anxiety and depression. Some even mentioned that paired with therapy after 2-3 sessions their depression was basically cured for several years. While that sounds amazing, we don't have anywhere that offers shrooms with therapy yet. So we want to try micro-dosing by itself and possibly pair it with therapy through a service like BetterHelp or something without them knowing she is micro-dosing. I'd love to hear feedback from others who have been in a similar situation themselves though. Our biggest questions are around people's experience did micro-dosing to help with depression, did you need to pair it with therapy, and also any experiences or info that answer whether she could start micro dosing now before coming off the meds or if she needs to be 100% off before starting micro dosing?
I tried to do some research on these forums and found references that say mixing shrooms with with Phentermine(https://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/16739853) would lead to a bad trip on a full dose, and that it seems like Wellbutrin cancels out a full trip(https://www.erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=28129). So it seems like the benefits of the mushrooms are likely wiped out by the meds, but all of these were in relationship to having a full trip on shrooms vs micro dosing.
One additional thing to mentions is that she does smoke a bowl or use a vape every night to help her fall asleep so that is also in the mix.
Appreciate any info people can provide and I know that anything said here isn't medical advice as not much actual research has been allowed due to laws, just people's own experiences and opinions.
Thanks. Tigger2021
|
During
|
|
|
After
|
|
|
After + stop smoking too.
|
|
|
Other: Read forum comments.
|
| |
Votes accepted from (08/23/21 12:00 PM) to (10/31/21 10:34 AM) You must vote before you can view the results of this poll.
|
CreonAntigone
Stranger

Registered: 05/30/21
Posts: 2,875
|
Re: Treating depression with micro-dosing and getting off antidepressant meds [Re: tigger2021]
#27439427 - 08/23/21 11:07 AM (2 years, 5 months ago) |
|
|
I wanted to put a sum-up at the top of this post: There are a few options depending on what her and her doctor decides. The only option I really don't recommend is going off the medications then starting microdosing at the exact same time. If she does, how will she be able to distinguish between potential side-effects or benefits of microdosing versus the withdrawal? Plus subjecting the body to a lot of changes at once (going off medications AND introducing new ones are both changes) increases the risk of side-effects. I actually think the best option is one you haven't really considered much here, which is beginning microdosing immediately for 2 weeks before withdrawal. Then she is getting used to her new medicine before she gets off the old ones.
So the good news is that Wellbutrin is far, far easier to go off of than other anti-depressants. It has a much lower chance of withdrawal symptoms. Wellbutrin has no activity with serotonin so it doesn't interact with psychedelics in any meaningful way, the main risk of interaction would merely be that the stimulating actions of it may increase the risk of trip anxiety, however with a microdose this wouldn't apply so I think it would be safe to go off Wellbutrin at the same time as microdosing.
I really don't know much about Phentermine though. I looked it up and it appears to be a mild stimulant, structurally related to other stimulants (eg Adderall), and it does increase serotonin. This one might be trickier to go off of when combined with microdosing. Does she plan to go off both at the same time? And does she plan to go off cold turkey or taper? What does her doctor suggest? This one will likely be trickier in relation to mushrooms. I'd suggest she begin tapering this first before trying anything new including microdosing. I don't think it'd be a problem per se if she was in the middle of tapering it and tired a microdose however. But I would suggest this: wait one week after beginning the tapering, if there are no major problems begin microdosing. If there are major problems, reconsider the speed of the taper.
Quote:
tigger2021 said: I tried to do some research on these forums and found references that say mixing shrooms with with Phentermine(https://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/16739853) would lead to a bad trip on a full dose, and that it seems like Wellbutrin cancels out a full trip(https://www.erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=28129). So it seems like the benefits of the mushrooms are likely wiped out by the meds, but all of these were in relationship to having a full trip on shrooms vs micro dosing.
Those reactions are really individual. Both Wellbutrin and phentermine are stimulant-type medications. Some people have stronger reactions to shrooms on stimulants, some weaker. You really can't fully predict how the interaction would go. The only way to determine this would be to proceed carefully and see how she reacts. One possibility to consider is starting microdosing before the withdrawal process is even begun - so, keep the current medication regimen, introduce microdosing for 2 weeks, THEN begin withdrawing. That actually might be the safest possible option. I think she is far more likely to experience negative side-effects from the withdrawal as opposed to from the microdose. So if she gets used to the microdose it might make withdrawal much easier.
Edited by CreonAntigone (08/23/21 11:20 AM)
|
|