How Kratom Addiction Takes Hold

I’m guessing–if you’re anything like me–you remember a very pleasant first experience of getting “high” on kratom (Mitragyna Speciosa). Or, if it wasn’t a euphoric high, perhaps it was a relieving or stimulating feeling. Whatever your reaction to that nasty green powder, you likely enjoyed yourself as anxiety, depression, and/or physical pain melted away. Perhaps withdrawals from another substance, such as heroin or prescription pain killers, were soothed. Kratom, like other opioids, can be very relieving and satisfying when first used. Unfortunately, as a result of repeated exposure to opioids, that feeling of relief and euphoria is fleeting for regular users.

There are many paths which brought us to kratom dependency, but the perceived benefit from drug use is usually similar. Kratom masks our suffering. All drugs hide reality from us. We take a substance and forget our fear, struggle, and suffering. Drugs provide an easy method to achieve a feeling of well-being and comfort. The alkaloids (naturally occurring chemical compounds) in kratom are capable of mimicking our brain’s own “feel good” chemicals–neurotransmitters known as endorphins. Mitragyna Speciosa contains over 25 alkaloids; some of which are responsible for its similarities to morphine, codeine, opium, and oxycodone.

For me, kratom relieved anxiety while boosting energy and improving mood. As a new user, these effects could last several hours. While suffering with clinical depression, kratom was like a miracle substance. Many kratom users claim the drug provides enjoyment during work or studying; I definitely found this to be true. In fact, my move from Hawaii to Virginia was fueled by the power of kratom. My wife enjoyed my kratom highs; I was a cooking, cleaning, talking fool. Our new house in Virginia ended up looking better than our old one in Hawaii ever had. And this I attribute to kratom. It’s great while the superhuman effects last…your significant other may even enjoy it. But trust me friend, those superhuman days are numbered. If you started using kratom as a relief from depression, you’ll likely be surprised when it begins to make your mood worse than it ever was.

Prior to my first use, I read quite a lot about kratom on the internet. I also watched a plethora of YouTubes from overly confident people who probably don’t know shit about the effects of psychoactive herbs, such as kratom. There was one younger guy with a beard who seemed to be benefiting from regular use…I remember he was influential in my choice. Everything I read was overly positive. People were claiming kratom changed their lives in so many ways. My opinion formed quickly and I viewed kratom as a natural product with very few side effects and low potential for addiction. This is partially true, but there’s an evident bias online.

Eventually a quick Google search lead me Oahu’s premier kratom vendor (a total ripoff, actually) . There was just one smoke shop on the island selling kratom, a cool little head-shop called Smokey’s. My wife and I took a short trip across the Island to Honolulu and picked up my first 20 gram bag of green maeng da. The guy working in Smokey’s gave me a quick rundown on kratom use and even prepared each of us a weak cup of hot kratom tea–even put some honey and lemon in it! I was a little nervous at first, but the kratom seemed to take the edge off. I was excited to get home and experiment with a higher dose.

Looking back at that night, I wasn’t overly impressed by the effects of the exotic herb powder… I basically remember it tasting like shit and it leaving me feeling somewhat sleepy and disconnected from reality. Nevertheless, the experience was enough to keep me interested. I’d been struggling with depression and alcoholism and kratom seemed to have taken the edge off. I tried kratom several more times until I found the perfect dose. I realized kratom’s potential after downing two heaping tablespoons of red maeng da on an empty stomach…I felt completely relaxed and euphoric. Interestingly, I also was motivated to work and socialize. An added bonus: my chronic knee pain was almost nonexistent. Quickly, my kratom position shifted from skeptic to believer.

My legal opioid/stimulant worked so much better than the depression and anxiety medication doctors had prescribed. I could use kratom any time. I was my own doctor. Plus, kratom was cheap, essentially harmless (and natural), and completely undetectable on drug tests. I began getting this giddy feeling of excitement when I was about to dose. I knew I was moments from enjoying euphoria and relief. I call this time period, my “infatuation phase” with kratom. Everything in life was so new and beautiful with kratom! My drug and I were a match made in heaven. I had a beautiful relationship with my super herb!

As time passed. I kept reading online. Occasionally I read tolerance can build quickly and kratom can be mildly addictive. But the examples of addiction weren’t very worrisome and my drug addict denial was functioning well. I didn’t want to face reality and I didn’t understand how opioids work. I believed I could handle kratom once a week, then twice a week, then three times, five times…etc. Eventually, I was dosing during work, before working out, before dates and while watching TV for hours. After a year, I was using kratom every day…sometimes even two or three times. I even became a vendor and sold kratom to people all over Hawaii. Kratom became a complete obsession at that point.

The road from using weekly to daily is a little unclear in my memory. I believe, however, the withdrawals began once I started dosing approximately three times per week. I mistook the withdrawal symptoms as normal feelings of depression. During this time, I would ignore my children and lay in bed feeling teary and isolated from the world. Withdrawals and kratom “hangover” eventually kept me from enjoying the gym and the beautiful Hawaiian beaches near by. It was a very gradual path to addiction, and during this process it seemed kratom was there for me. In the end, I discovered the drug was just pulling me deeper into a pit of despair while giving me a false sense of contentment.

Eventually, having suffered a mild panic attack at work, I decided I would do an experiment; I would use nearly two tablespoons of kratom every morning before work. I knew while using kratom I was capable of public speaking, accomplishing many tasks, and maintaining good relationships with my boss and coworkers. The risks of kratom seemed minimal and the rewards seemed endless! So why not try using everyday? I was desperate. I was being paid well to be a leader at work and having panic attacks while public speaking is not a good way to keep your job. Kratom was a solution, so I took a risk in desperation.

Sure enough, the experiment seemed to work–I did perform excellent for those two weeks. I was a top performer during that time. I felt like I was on fire! Sure enough, I was extra productive, I was social; and most importantly, I unafraid to speak in front of a room full of people.

But what did I do to my brain during those two weeks of drug abuse? Was the risk as low as I had estimated? Was I curing my anxiety and depression? Or, was I simply dulling my emotions and creating new issues? These were questions I was subconsciously asking myself. The answers to these questions would eventually come to light… Unfortunately, it would take a mental breakdown and failed suicide attempt before I could see how addicted and damaged I was from kratom abuse.

So what do I now know about the pharmacology of kratom and how plants’ chemical compounds (alkaloids) effect the brain? Well, I’m not a scientist, but I’ve read enough (and experienced enough) to understand some important things when it comes to this herb’s addictive properties. However, even researchers haven’t answered many of the questions about kratom.

Studying kratom’s chemistry is complicated due to the large variety of alkaloids contain in plant material. Also, there’s several strains of Mitragyna plants–each with a unique pharmacological profile. Other factors, such as the plant’s age; country or origin; and season when harvested, determine the quantity of alkaloids present in plant matter. Essentially, to know the chemical make up of your kratom would require an at home laboratory for testing each batch you consume.

That said, research has shown at least two of the alkaloids in kratom can act on opioid, dopaminergic, serotonergic, GABAergic, and adrenergic systems in our brains. The effects can range from psycho-stimulant to sedative-narcotic. In short, taking kratom at a low dose produces a stimulating “cocaine-like” reaction, while kratom taken in higher doses brings about a “morphine-like” reaction.

The two primary psychoactive alkaloids found in kratom are Mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragine. Both of these alkaloids are opioid receptor antagonists. And while these alkaloids are not generally thought of as dangerous; if taken in higher doses, they are quite powerful. In fact, 7-hydroxymitragine is 17 times more powerful than morphine! Fortunately, there’s only traces of these opioids found in kratom leaves.

It’s often said on internet message boards, kratom is a plant closely related to coffee and not as addictive as a strong opiate such as morphine. Fair enough, but coffee is not an opioid and kratom is. This is important to understand when making sense of kratom addiction. While kratom may be a closer relative to coffee than poppies, the way our brain responds to kratom is much closer to morphine than to a double shot americano . For this reason, quitting regular kratom use can produce withdrawal symptoms much like quitting stronger opiates such as morphine. Anyone who doubts the reality of kratom addiction, is either uninformed or inexperienced. An opioid is an opioid–morphine is addictive; kratom is addictive. If done long enough on a regular basis, the withdrawals from even kratom can be extremely agitating and deeply depressing. I can attest to the severity of withdrawal symptoms felt while quitting kratom use, and so can many others. Don’t believe me? Check this out: https://www.reddit.com/r/quittingkratom

When we ingest kratom, we induce a chemical reaction within our brains (much like if we were to ingest a low dose of morphine). With kratom, we use the alkaloids Mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragine to activate opioid receptors. The result of these chemical compounds binding to our opioid recptors is immediate perceptions of pain relief, euphoria, and relaxation. Under normal circumstances, our opioid receptors are only activated from internally produced neurotransmitters known as endorphins. Our bodies naturally produce endorphins to to provide us with mild sensations of well-being (psychological rewards) and for pain relief. Feelings of well-being and pain reduction (or numbness) are associated with both naturally occurring endorphins and with opioid use (such as kratom).

When we continuously use kratom (or drugs like morphine), we keep our brains in an unnatural state of confusion and imbalance. Essentially we use kratom to mimic our natural, internally produced endorphins–and we do it to the extreme. Our brains can’t tell the difference between opioids (such as kratom) and the endorphins our brains produce from things like going for a run or having sex. What’s more, taking kratom regularly overloads our brains with these fake endorphins and our body makes every attempt to correct what it sees as an imbalance and oversupply of endorphins. Or body is always fighting to maintain homeostasis and this leads to what is called ‘down-regulation’ or ‘desensitization.’ Or what we may call, ‘tolerance.’

When this down-regulation takes place, our brains restructure themselves–building additional opioid receptors. With these additional receptors, it will take more kratom (or naturally occurring endorphins) to provide us an equally rewarding feeling of happiness or pain relief. Unfortunately, our bodies do not begin to produce additional endorphins to meet this increased demand. Our brains actually begin to depend on an external source endorphin-like chemicals (opioids); and as a result, less endorphins are produced within the brain. This is the body’s attempt to find balance. This process is how tolerance is built and withdrawals begin. The brain has restructured itself to become dependent on a drug to do what it once could do on its own.

Once these changes to the brain have taken place, it may feel like there’s no need to work out. Why look at the beauty of a sunset? We don’t need to breath through our pain. We don’t need to heal our emotional wounds with counseling. Addiction to kratom is an obsession with the pleasure induced by drinking a disgusting plant-poweder, mixed in a cup of water! We eventually don’t feel pleasure from normal things; and who needs our own endorphins when we have kratom, right?

After all, getting our brains to produce their own endorphins takes work. And work is just so much easier when you take kratom!

Written by TewPoint0 - Owner of www.QuitKratom.com