IBOGAINE for opiate addiction??? WHAT DO YOU THINK?

I have come across information about using IBOGAINE for drug addiction. Here is some of the info I have found.

Ibogaine is a psychoactive indole alkaloid derived from the rootbark of an African plant - Tabernanthe iboga. In recent years it has been increasingly noted for its ability to treat both drug and alcohol addiction. Both scientific studies and widespread anecdotal reports appear to suggest that a single administration of ibogaine has the ability to both remove the symptoms of drug withdrawal and reduce drug-craving for a period of time after administration.

In addition, the drug's psychoactive properties (in large doses it can induce a dreamlike state for a period of hours) have been widely credited with helping users understand and reverse their drug-using behaviour.

Studies suggest that ibogaine has considerable potential in the treatment of addiction to heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, methadone, and alcohol. There is also indication that it may be useful in treating tobacco dependence. It has also been suggested that the drug may have considerable potential in the field of psychotherapy, particularly as a treatment for the effects of trauma or conditioning.

A single administration of ibogaine typically has three effects useful in the treatment of drug dependence. Firstly, it causes a massive reduction in the symptoms of drug withdrawal, allowing relatively painless detoxification. Secondly, there is a marked lowering in the desire to use drugs for a period of time after taking ibogaine, typically between one week and several months. This has been confirmed by scientific studies. Finally, the drug's psychoactive nature is reported to help many users understand and resolve the issues behind their addictive behaviour.

Ibogaine can be easily administered, in capsule form, and has no addictive effects itself. It is essentially a "one-shot" medication and, used in a fully clinical setting with proper advance medical screening, the drug thus far appears to be safe to use. Whilst it certainly happens that some individuals stop using drugs permanently from a single dose of ibogaine, for many the treatment should best be regarded as simply the initial component in an overall rehabilitation programme.

I am curious to see what any of you guys have heard about IBOGAINE treatment. If there is someone out there who has actually tried it, I would really like to hear from you.

If it is such a miracle cure, why haven't they pushed it out there like they have suboxone? It is a legal treatment in some countries (Canada, around the Caribbean, Central & South America) and they actually have private clinics you can go to.

I will keep doing online research and share anything interesting I findm but again, I would love to hear any input you guys may have.

I was on the net the other day and found a guy who was talking about ibogaine. He stated that this plant would take away acute withdrawals from methadone. He said he went he quit at 80 mgs, took ibogaine and never felt the need to take another dose of methadone. The studies claim that this drug resets your brain thinking. It also is claims that iboga will send you on a "journey" that sends your life on a different path. It is all over the net. I am not sure what I think about it, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

If you check out my post from Dec 31, 2009, I posted an article about ibogaine, so I went ahead and merged your posting with that one so we can keep them together.

I would love to talk to someone who really has tried it and I would be able to trust their opinion about the experience. You never know what to believe about what you read from other ppl on the net so I wouldn't want to consider it or take it at face value unless I knew someone who actually tried it and that was a person whose opinion I could trust!

I know... I would love to talk to some one that has tried Ibogaine.
Just to hear how it worked for them personally, in their life. I had
never heard of it before Friday. So, I am pretty excited about hearing that there is a chance to eventually get off this methadone, and reset my line of thinking. Interesting... Out of this world interesting!

Ive been reading some of the experiences on this drug, it sounds like mushrooms, LSD its like you go on a trip in your mind.
I dont know, I dont think I would use it.
PEACE....Debbie

here are a few other articles on LSD type meds treating heroin addiction

http://www.psypost.org/2010/06/ketamine-assisted-psychotherapy-treatment-heroin-922

Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy An Effective Treatment for Heroin Addiction

Combining the psychedelic anesthetic ketamine with existentially oriented psychotherapy appears to be an effective treatment for heroin addiction, according to a study published in The Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment.

The study was conducted by Evgeny Krupitsky and his colleagues from the St. Petersburg Research Center of Addictions and Psychopharmacology in Russia. The results were published in 2002.

Ketamine is typically used as an anesthetic, but sub-anesthetic doses of ketamine produce psychedelic experiences. As Krupitsky and his colleagues explain, they choose to use ketamine because, “as an adjunct to the psychotherapeutic treatment of addiction, ketamine has several advantages over other psychedelics: it is safe and short acting; it is already an approved prescription medicine, and it has been shown to be an effective treatment for alcoholism.”

To examine the effectiveness of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy for the treatment of heroin addiction, Krupitsky and his colleagues recruited 70 heroin-addicted patients from a local drug abuse treatment center. The patients were randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group received a high-dose of ketamine in conjunction with psychotherapy while the other received a sub-psychedelic dose in conjunction with psychotherapy. Neither the patients or their psychiatrist knew whether they were in the high-dose group or the low-dose group.

Before receiving their session of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, the patients received ten hours of psychotherapy to prepare them for the psychedelic experience. As Krupitsky and his colleagues note, “during the ketamine sessions, subjects often experience an altered state that has been described as the separation of consciousness from the body and the dissolving of the ego. Therefore, it is very important to prepare subjects carefully for such an unusual experience”

During the session, which lasted from one and a half to two hours, the patient laid on a couch while wearing eyeshades. Calming music was also played in the background. The psychotherapy during this time was oriented towards the “resolution of [the patient's] personality problems and the formation of a stable orientation to a future without drugs.”

After the session of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, the patients received another five hours of psychotherapy to help them interpret their psychedelic experience and integrate it into their lives.

According to Krupitsky and his colleagues, after a two year follow-up the rate of abstinence from heroin was significantly higher for the group of patients that received the high-dose of ketamine compared to those who received the sub-psychedelic dose. As they explain, “This double-blind, active-placebo controlled study demonstrates that ketamine-assisted psychotherapy of heroin addicts is more effective when a high, psychedelic, dose of ketamine is administered than when a low, sub-psychedelic, dose is administered.”

Krupitsky and his colleagues also claim that the rate of abstinence for those in the high-dose group were greater than the typical rate of abstinence in more traditional drug treatments.

Noting that drug treatment programs like Alcoholics Anonymous have a religious or spiritual orientation, Krupitsky and his colleagues suggest that the spiritual nature of the psychedelic experience may contribute to its effectiveness.

“Many reports suggest that religious or spiritual conversion is an important factor in ‘spontaneous’ recovery from drug abuse. [...] A therapy that enhances the likelihood of a conversion or spiritual experience therefore might have utility in the treatment of substance abuse. Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy may represent one method of eliciting spiritual experiences in subjects with chemical dependence and thus help promote abstinence.”

Reference:

Krupitsky, E., Burakov, A., Romanova, T., Dunaevsky, I., Strassman, R. & Grinenko, A. (2002). Ketamine psychotherapy for heroin addiction: immediate effects and two-year follow-up. The Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, Vol 23: 273-283.

This Ketamine seems like it is in the same class as ibogaine but not so intense. I haven't heard of ketamine either. It's very intriguing! Thanks for posting that!

ketamine is intended to be a anesthesia used in a vet's office on animals that need surgery. It's not normally given to humans but ppl do abuse it just like anything else if they can get their hands on it. It is VERY potent. I have to wonder how well a psycho active drug like ketamine and ibogaine work to produce positive outcomes in addiction medication though. It does make for interesting reading.

I have also read some articles before about using opiates like methadone to treat severe depression. I will have to seek them out again so I can share them with you all. I was diagnosed as bipolar depressive type and originally the doc said my opiate addiction was triggered from me self medicating my depression. I know that opiates make most ppl sleepy and tired but they always gave me a little burst of energy and I felt good. I guess my body reacts the opposite because even when I took amphetamines, those always made me feel sluggish and tired instead of giving me energy so maybe it just depends on how each person reacts to meds.

hi guys
john in toronto here
so they have clinics here in canada where you can go and take ibogane - i actually called one recently and the guy was super nice and talked to me about it (he went through it himself). He really really really believes in it and thinks it is a crime the gov't isnt studying it more and using it to treat addiction.
I havent tried it though - for one thing, its $5000 for heroin/methadone treatment and our gov't doesnt pay for it (we have free health care in canada as you may know, but not for this - maybe one day).
They sound like totally lovely nice people, and they do it out of their house - but i dont know... again, i would like to meet some people who have done it.
If you visit the website below, there are some testimonials, and you can phone Matt anytime you want - he is so nice.
Part of me wants to invest in myself and try this - i just might... but i am scared. I dont like hallucinating OR being sick...

http://torontoibogainecentre.ca/

I don't understand why they won't allow more studies to be done on this drug if it works this well! Of course makers of methdone and suboxone won't be too thrilled about it because then there will be no need for those medications any longer. I would love to give this a try, however the $5000 plus my plane fare to Canada is an unattainable sum.

I would LOVE to hear from someone that I know who has tried it.