Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) is a medicinal leaf harvested from large trees native to southeast Asia.
They contain many natural, medicinal alkaloids, including some which react with mu-opiod receptors, giving the herb numerous positive, therapeutic effects including aiding depression, fatigue, and from increasing studies, assistance with opiate dependence.
I began experimenting with Kratom about 3 months ago as I was tapering off a year of buprenorphine maintenance and still struggling with post acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS). I've found it, personally, to be almost a miracle herb in this process and have been eager to spread the word about this natural, legal alternative.
To an opiod dependent/tolerant person the effects of Kratom will be different/diminished compared to someone who is naive, but there are still many benefits to be found to those of us who are actively reducing intake of full agonist opiates, or at the tail end of tapering off a maintenance program such as suboxone or methadone. You will want to be pretty damn close to clean to reap the highest benefits of Kratom but for the long haul this herb has helped immensely with the lingering phases of w/d, particularly with the fatigue, dysphoria, and chills.
Many online retailers of Kratom and its extracts can be found through a simple google search. Some sellers tout "stronger" extracts and tinctures.. I have not tried these so I can't vouch for their potency but I generally shy away from gimmicky "head shop" products in general.
I have been using plain powdered leaf from a great company called MuSynergetics; having about a tablespoon (approx. 10g) of it in the morning in a cup of tea or mixed into some yogurt or applesauce. It has a mild, yet definitely noticeable effect of a clean energy and mood boost, and it really helps with curbing cravings and preoccupation with other 'addictive tendencies'. I'm not affiliated with Mu in anyway but have simply found their product in particular to be consistent and of high quality at an extremely fair price.
I must stress that to someone with a large habit, or if you are looking to get "high" Kratom will NOT satisfy "that itch" by any means. But if you are a recreational opiate user or are struggling with the end of a taper this herb can be a great reprieve from the traditional western options that are most regularly available to us. Kratom can also have its own minor habit forming properties but to someone conditioned to dealing with a full agonist opiate dependence it really is nothing in comparison.. Personally, I have not noticed any issues with this so far (although I try to dose only every other day to be safe..)
Please feel free to leave any thoughts or questions in the comments here, or drop me a line and I would be happy to expand on any musings by this topic.
This has been a Harm Reduction post.
Stay well Jynxies, and remember you ARE in control of your health and happiness!
12 comments:
So sad that your life sucks so much that u can't live without drugs.
Hey, anonymous - how do you know this person can or can not live without drugs? You should keep your opinion to yourself, considering the nature of this blog.
And to the blog owner - AWESOME collection of wonderful pictures))))
Hey-
Thanks for a great blog. Found you via this kratom post (I've been experimenting with kratom for a while), but taking a look I really love all the stamp pics. Very cool. My hardcore dope days were on the west coast, so it was just plan old balloons of tar. Always thought the east coast stamps were cool though, so it's cool to be able to take a look at whats going down at he moment.... keep up the good work-
Thanks Tony! My "hardcore" days have passed for the most part as well but I still find the market fascinating and hope to be able to keep the blog alive and support people who need it.
Kratom has become an invaluable tool for me. Obviously, "recovery" (damnit, I hate that word!) takes time but I really feel this natural herb to be a much better option for me rather than succumbing to another addiction to methadone or suboxone maintenence..
hey jynxie
i hear you. i cleaned up from heroin / methadone around 8 years ago. had my first habit out in LA (black tar) and then in london (afghan brown). i dont do the whole aa / total abstinence thing.dont believe in it. part of the rationale for me to be able to get out of the methadone clinics was the idea that one day i'd be able to drink / do other drugs and even dabble in opiates once in a while without it becoming an every day thing. i just wanted my life back, i didnt wan to become a saint. kratom definitely helps with that. i dont know if it would have done me much good when i was strung out, or in acute withdrawal, but for someone who used to use all the time it tickles some of those same receptors in the brain, and is a less risky thing to do than score smack. i look at the same way that i look at getting pills. if i get pills from the dentist of the dr's, i look at it like a bonus. the difference between me now, and me then is that i dont immediately go out once the pills are gone and hit up every dr in a 10 mile radius with a phony pain story. i'm just as uncomfortable with the term recovery as you are, those evangelical AA types put me off of it.
i wrote a thing about getting clean over at a site called the fix. check it out if you want, maybe you might find it interesting....
http://www.thefix.com/content/against-abstinence-0?page=all
take care...
Extracts: These can be incredibly affective, moreso than plain leaf. The tinctures as well (the good ones) are very good (do not underestimate the tincture- the process of making it removes quite a bit of the opiate antagonist that exists in kratom. I don't really like bringing it up for fear that the wrong people will start getting it - but the cat is out of the bag. speciosa.com = the best tincture i have found on the internet. their enhanced bali is also a lifesaver. if i use enough, i have very little withdrawal symptoms. so i can use kratom extracts (enhanced bali is my person favorite, for economic reasons. the tincture is much better.. i think of the tincture like hydrocodone. for me it is as strong or stronger [hydro doesnt do anything for me anymore]) to get my tolerance down very low, and eventually jump off. i do this for at least 2 weeks every year.
I used kratom while comeing off hydrocodon it helped alot. But you still then need to come off the kratom http://ukratom.com
CAN THIS BE USED ALONG WITH AN OPIOIDE TO HELP TAPER OFF?
@ anon above.. Yes, kratom is a great taper/detox aid.. although you will probably want to wait until the tail end of the taper to reap the most returns with it. It really helps most with the lingering fatigue and depression that comes with post-acute w/d. Still, if you are working on a quick taper it should definitely help keep you above water through the worst of it.
Just don't expect to feel "high"..its not that kind of thing.
well aslong as the system is based on money theyll rather keep the addicts on subutex, suboxone, methadone and all that kinda shit cause thats how you make money: on comebacks(and i mean what is more convinient for comebacks than legal smack???) not on helping and curing
closet-junkie101.blogpot.com
This is definitely a blog worth following. You've got a great deal to say about this subject, and so much knowledge. I think that you know how to make people listen to what you have to say, especially with an issue that's so important. I'm glad to know this blog. Two big thumbs up, man!
hi
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