General opiate inquiry

[norcolepsy]

First off, is the power of a given opiate in direct porportion to its depency rate? for example, if one was looking at an opiate equivalency chart and saw that a chemical like hydrocodone was rated a '3' in strength and its cousin oxycodone was a 6. Does this theoretically mean that A.) it will take twice as long to become physically dependent on hydrocodone? and B.) Following the same guidelines, if swims air conditioner were to take 10mg of hydrocodone one day and 5mg of oxycodone the next time, and continued that regimen, would that delay the onset of physical dependency? if so, how effective would it be? thanks

[OhCasey]

If youre not skipping any days in between use of the Oxy & Hydrocodone i cant see it really delaying the onset of physical Dependence.

[samuraigecko]

Originally Posted by norcolepsy

First off, is the power of a given opiate in direct porportion to its depency rate? for example, if one was looking at an opiate equivalency chart and saw that a chemical like hydrocodone was rated a '3' in strength and its cousin oxycodone was a 6. Does this theoretically mean that A.) it will take twice as long to become physically dependent on hydrocodone? and B.) Following the same guidelines, if swims air conditioner were to take 10mg of hydrocodone one day and 5mg of oxycodone the next time, and continued that regimen, would that delay the onset of physical dependency? if so, how effective would it be? thanks

It depends on how one is referring to the equianalgesic dosage.
If the dosage for each type of drug is equianalgesic then the dependency rate will not change.

Here is a small example of equianalgesia SWIM found a while back on the InTeRnUt . . .

60mg morphine PO control dosage.
Equianalgesic dosage Hydrocodone 30mg PO
Equianalgesic dosage Oxycodone 20mg PO

This shows that even though the dosages are equivilent no one or other has a higher affinity at the equianalgesic dosage than the other and thus opiate dependency rate would not be effected because all of the above drugs work on the same endomorphin receptors. If the endomorphin receptors become accustomed to flooding from an outside influence and that influence is equianalgesic in potency no matter which type is taken then the dependency rate would remain the same.
Spacing dosages with days between would be a far better alternative than swapping opiate types daily.

Hope this has been of help

[Orchid_Suspiria]

I've found that science is often thrown out the window when discussing opiate addiction.Everything in it varies from person to person and no two people are the same.One person might find codeine better than morphine for example and get addicted in that manner.It all depends.

Reputation Comments on this post:

nice clean and quick post ( that has been of help :) )

[samuraigecko]

well stated, and strongly agreed.

[Orchid_Suspiria]

One thing I have noticed is alot of people here will try to bring addiction down to an exact science like geometry or chemistry.Yes it involves biochemistry and other very scientific factors but it also involves some human factors that can in no way be seen in such a rational and sterile manner.

[samuraigecko]

Originally Posted by Orchid_Suspiria

One thing I have noticed is alot of people here will try to bring addiction down to an exact science like geometry or chemistry.Yes it involves biochemistry and other very scientific factors but it also involves some human factors that can in no way be seen in such a rational and sterile manner.

And yet clinical researchers and doctors try so hard to achieve this. SWIM is more for a personal approach to addiction rather than such clinical detachment and just a label. Again he agrees quite strongly.

[crunchyblack]

I think everyone's body is different so you can't really say. Swim says he gets addicted fast and has shitty withdrawal symptoms a lot more than anyone else he knows even using relatively small amounts 15mg-20mg a day everyday

[norcolepsy]

Thanks all for the responses.
@samgecko: swim pretty much assumed thats how it worked, just wanted to solidify those thoughts. thanks.

@orchid: swim of course knows and agrees that human factors are always largely at play. But you're right swim was trying to break strictly the physical dependence down to a science. Regardless of what one likes or preferrs, I was just trying to find a concrete pattern in how the physical dependence is formed in direct porportion to the strength of opiates. SWim also know that we all have different rates (and tastes for certain opiates for that matter) for the onset of physical dependence,,but also thought that perhaps there could be a universal breakdown. for example, for some swimmers it may take longer for them to become physically dependent (in general) but perhaps the strength of the opiate is still going to act on a universal level and the dependency will develop slower/faster than if another opiate was taken. Swim doesn't mean to make this sound more complicated then it is it seems the answers are already laid out. but yes, SWIM was negating human factors and still looking for a scientific relationship.