Opiates and Blackouts?

[redbandit]

When I was given morphine by paramedics, I blacked out entirely for at least four hours. I was belligerent and tried to fight the paramedics. This has happened a couple of other times, all legally administered in hospitals. I am also a blackout drinker. Have any of you had this reaction? Is it related to alcoholic blackouts?

[Forthesevenlakes]

well, morphine can induce amnesia, although swim has never heard of this occuring before. was swiy on any other drugs or drinking? maybe getting blackout drunk makes it easier to black out on other things...kind of like how if you have a concussion, its easier to get subsequent concussions. the threshold could be lowered from drinking, you know?

[sammydaze]

interesting. Id also like to know more about opiate black-outs. It sounds it would be frightening in hindsight

[redbandit]

No, I hadn't had anything to drink, and I don't use. I do wonder if the threshold thing could be true. I know it is for alcoholic blackouts. Isn't the opioid receptors close to or the same as the alcohol receptors?

[Forthesevenlakes]

nah, opioid receptors are of a few subtypes of which morphine binds three (kappa, delta, mu) if swim is not mistaken. alcohol binds the GABA and to a lesser extent the NMDA receptors. alcohol blackouts probably occur by too much binding to the GABA inhibitory receptors near the hippocampus, thus preventing new memories from being encoded even if the person is conscious. opiates would probably cause blackouts in a different way, and theres some controversy as to how much effect they have on memory. perhaps in high doses they could inhibit the hippocampus action in a similar or indirect way. swims theory is that somehow the alcohol blackouts lower the threshold for further ones. or maybe there was somehow a localized seizure that led to the blackout, opiates could MAYBE cause that but swim isnt sure how.

[Alicia]

people only black out when they do to much of opiates or go into respiratory depression, never herd anything like that thou can say yes if u were taking something else then anything is possible in that sense as u did'nt. then that kinda strange, but we are all different.

[redbandit]

I talked to my doctor, and she said that it could be an allergic reaction. I'm doing a little more research now. It couldn't have been an overdose, since it was an EMT that administered. All of my vitals were perfectly normal during the blackout. The doctors told me that.
I really want to know so that I know what to tell paramedics in an emergency. Sooo, I guess it's back to google for me.

[Forthesevenlakes]

an allergic reaction, hm maybe. opiates do release histamines which is what causes the facial itch from it, but didnt know those reactions could cause blackouts. please keep us posted as to what the doctors say.