@ssavanna 721 wrote:

What I would like to pursue at this point while I am slowly tapering down this medication, is an amino acid therapy type plan. However I am not quite sure about how to go about it. I eat a pretty good diet and exercise often however I am aware that opiates tend to drastically increase dopamine release. From what I understand when dopamine levels are far too high, serotonin tends to drop off. I believe that one of the reasons for dopamine release to be so high from the opiate is due to lower levels of Gaba.

Supplementing with 5HTP seems like a good idea for someone in my position, however I really would like toe hear the opinions of many of you knowledgable about these type of situations. To be honest, finding a doctor who is actually familiar with the neurotransmitter and hormonal imbalances that are caused by opiate medications is very rare.

Suggestions on how to go about amino acid therapy and dosages for someone in my situation is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

You have not identified a problem.

For example, for what reason do you want amino acid therapy?
Do you want a treatment for withdrawal symptoms from tapering off an opiate medication?
Is there even an imbalance?
Is there some dysfunction, for example, that results from the imbalance?

Another question I would ask is: Are you sure you have a “pretty good diet” when it does not supply the amino acids your body may need? Otherwise, if a good diet already exists, the amino acids are being used medicinally, rather than physiologically, to alter function.

Hypogonadism may occur from opiate treatment. Suppressed adrenal cortex signaling (which may include Pregnenolone, Cortisol, DHEA, Progesterone, Androstenedione, Testosterone, Estrogens, and/or Aldosterone ) may occur from opiate treatment.

GABA interneurons continuously reduce dopamine signaling by releasing GABA signals to dopamine neurons. This allows dopamine signaling to be pulsatile, rather than continuous. The GABA interneurons have mu-opiate receptors. When opiate signals stimulate those receptors, the GABA interneuron activity is reduced, reducing GABA signaling to dopamine neurons. This allows the dopamine neurons to become more active in releasing dopamine. Dopamine signaling increases. This accounts for the pleasure or high felt from opiates.

GABA is a general inhibitory signal in the brain. GABA signaling can be increased by increasing receptor sensitivity to GABA by using sedatives such as the benzodiazepines. GABA, itself, can be taken orally to increase GABA concentrations in the nervous system. GABA is produced from Glutamate, by L-glutamic acid decarboxylase with Vitamin B6 as a cofactor. Glutamate is formed from the amino acid, Glutamine by Glutaminase.

When dopamine signaling is increased, serotonin signaling is decreased. Serotonin is a signal created from the amino acid, Tryptophan. Tryptophan is converted to 5-HTP, which is then converted to Serotonin. In the pineal gland, Serotonin is further converted to Melatonin.

When used medicinally (e.g. in supraphysiologic doses), GABA and 5-HTP are given in customized doses for each person, depending on the condition being treated, to try and optimize the associated signaling actions.

@ssavanna 762 wrote:

Thank you for the reply. Yes, at this point I am tapering off the medication slowly. I am interested in using amino acid therapy throughout the tapering process as well as through the withdrawal and recovering phase.

Some questions I have about considering amino acid therapy, What type and doses should I consider of amino acids during the taper period?

– I plan on getting my saliva cortisol levels measured in the near future, would hydrocortisone treatment be useful for someone in my situation?

– My diet has really come along way. I dont eat much if any sugar, except whats in fruit. I do quite a bit of weight training so I follow a high protein diet , eating a lot of lean meats, whey protein and casein protein. I eat a lot of vegetables daily as well.

From my basic understanding, it would seem as though the delicate balance between dopamine and serotonin levels in someone using opiates long term would be comletely disrupted. I am trying to determine if 1.) Is amino acid therapy something to consider and 2.) What types and doses would be helpful for me?

Any more advice on this is very appreciated.

I don’t give advice in this forum. This forum is primarily an educational forum.

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One way to determine what amino acids one is lacking is to do an amino acid analysis using blood serum or urine. This can be done in major labs such as Quest diagnostics. This way, what deficits exist can be clearly seen then addressed in treatment.

Dosing for amino acids is variable and has to be customized to the patient. Generally, there are already a lot of amino acids in whey protein supplements. Often, this is more than what is actually used in treatment. For example, a patient was taking Arginine to help reduce the risk of an illness he had. But the dose was much less than in a single scoop of whey protein supplement.

Of the amino acids, tryptophan is hardest to absorb with other amino acids. Having a low carbohydrate diet impairs tryptophan absorption. A low cab diet is unbalanced, leads to tryptophan deficiency and possibly deficiencies in other amino acids.

Lean meats are not healthy. There are going to be fat-soluble vitamin deficiencies and possible amino acids deficiencies. Proteins are best absorbed with the fats that accompany them. Saturated fats and cholesterol are necessary in the diet to help form cell membranes and other structures.

Casein protein impair the recycling of thyroid hormone and tryptophan absorption.

@ssavanna 773 wrote:

I was not aware of the casein protein problems. I typically use it at night before I go to bed because of its slow digesting nature. I have heard for someone like myself who does heavy weight lifting 3-4 days per week, its a good protein source at night. My diet definitely is in no way low carb. I eat plenty of carbs per day, usually in the form organic steel cut oats and I also use waxy maize starch as my complex carbohydrate source after my workouts.

You mention that Tryptophan is hard to digest in comparison with other aminos, would 5HTP be a better option?

Also, I have heard that amino acid testing is very difficult and can be inaccurate, is it worth getting the testing?

Since Amino Acid testing is done by large national labs such as Quest Diagnostics, there must be some validity and acceptability to the test.

How else would one know there is an amino acid imbalance if one doesn’t test for it to find out – particularly if there is a recognized, available test for it? Without further information, one is working in the dark.

@ssavanna 783 wrote:

Good point. I will look into getting the test done asap. Besides the lab requirements before taking an amino acid test, is there anything one should be aware of? Should diet and supplement regimens be kept as normal as possible before testing?

I would make little sense to change the diet prior to lab testing since the point of the test is to monitor the adequacy of one’s diet.