fr0st2k

i recently started taking lexapro for depression. I smoke every once in a while (usually once a day). Any ideas on how to get the best high when using lexapro with MJ? i heard MJ might counter the effects of SSRIs but havent really noticed it.

Anyway, id really like to know if anyone knows how to get the full affect of lexapro. like chewing or taking more? i only prescribed 10mg now though.

soo.. waiting to hear from you experts out there.

narc emery

I have been taking Zoloft for 8 months, and have felt no side-effects, or a diminished "high'' when I smoke cannabis (which is daily).

Lexapro, like Zoloft is an SSRI (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor), obviously regulating serotonin re-uptake, thus tricking the brain into feeling enhanced and prolonged pleasure at daily activities. THC on the other-hand, affects the brain's dopamine activity (not sure why, or how), tricking it into thinking your that your happy and hungry. But because SSRI's, and cannabis work on two differant neurotransmitters in the brain, there should be no interferance between them when consumed at the same time

Keep in mind that everone's physiology is differant-but generally speaking there should be no perceivable change at all when you smoke.

As for taking the Lexapro, assuming it was perscribed to you for legitimate medical benefit, I would just follow doctors orders. Zoloft is a time realease pill that take affect over a 24 hour period, I'm sure Lexapro is engineered the same way. Chewing it will diminish the the way it works, but it will not give a 'supercharged manic high' - I've tried... no luck.

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"Our life's desitination is not controlled arbitrarily by fate, but rather dictated by the depth of our conviction to seek it out" -- Me, HS Graduate

Buzzby

This article, "The Tolerance Factor", says that marijuana doesn't work by stimulating dopamine production:


Drugs that stimulate dopamine production are often highly addictive. THC binds to the brain's endocannabinoid receptors, an entirely different chemical system.


To get the "full effect" follow your doctor's instructions. Modern antidepressants work by gradually building up to the proper levels in your blood. They are not short-working "happy pills". They often take weeks to become effective and there's no way to speed up the process. The guidelines for Lexapro say that it should begin to have an effect after a week or two and that the full benefits take 4 to 6 weeks to develop.

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narc emery

Interesting article, here's mine:Psychiatric Times

narc emery

This article also theorizes that there is a direct connection between THC and increased dopamine activity in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), which is connected to both the nucleus accumbens (the reward center of the brian), and the prefrontal cortex.

Speculation also exists that suggests the the actual release of dopamine may be attributed to pre-synaptic receptors on neighboring GABA(gamma-aminobutyric acid) internuerons that trick the brain into releasing it. Increased activation of dopamine receptors causes increased production of cAMP (cyastic Adenosine MonoPhosphates), inside the post synaptic cell, which somehow changes the normal activity of the nueron.

From what I gather, cAMP will often exert an excitatory effect on the membrane of the postsynaptic cell, by opening a depolarizing ion channel on that membrane. Which in turn, somehow affects and re-increases receptor activity in that region of the brain, thus causing a "cyclic" effect on dopamine release/receptor activity. How and why THC causes this, seems to be the question of the moment...

narc emery

Clarifyication: in regards to the earlier post - when referring to the article as "mine"...not saying that I am the author, merely stating that it was my source of information....