Hacker News Reader

Comment by mabbo | Hacker News Reader

Has there been any increase in illegal use of ketamine since research on its use as a depression treatment first started being published?

Having dealt with those issues for many years, and recovered, I can see a real danger in those who suffer from depression saying "K will fix this? I'll try anything". I would have.

I'm a firm believer in drug law reform and decriminalization of drug use but from what I've seen of it Ketamine isn't something you want people taking out of desperation, with little knowledge of how crazy it just might get. Or worse, developing a dependency on. It's pretty serious stuff.

View on HN

I've used ketamine to self-medicate depression. I decided to out of desperation. It was extremely effective for me.

Several provisos for potential users:

- Read the papers. If you can't read the papers on K as a depression treatment and come up with your own dosing protocol, you probably shouldn't try K.

- Probably don't try it if you have an addictive personality.

- Make sure you're aware of potential side effects such as memory and urinary issues. That said, doses used in treatment protocols shouldn't come anywhere near that.

I waited forever to just get some goddamn K and treat myself, because everybody on the internet is like "don't do it, you'll fuck yourself up". I'm smart and do my homework, and I regret not trusting myself and suffering for longer than needed.

I wouldn't even know where to get it, and I don't want to get caught and go to jail, due to our stupid drug laws. :(

it's a schedule 3 drug, so a misdemeanor. i don't think you'd get any jail time if you got caught (assuming you're a first time offender in CA). if you're that desperate and you've read up on it and consider it a viable escape from that hell i know too well, give it a shot. (i have not used it).

shame i had to make a new account to speak freely about this.

No..in fact hell no.

Ketamine is schedule 1 or 2 I believe everywhere in the US, so that is definitely a felony.

It's Schedule III: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketamine#Legal_status

"Ketamine is a "core" medicine in the World Health Organization's Essential Drugs List, a list of minimum medical needs for a basic healthcare system."

"...flunitrazepam, ketamine, or any other Schedule I or Schedule II CDS is a Class 6 felony."

http://www.criminaldefenselawyer.com/resources/criminal-defe...

Well, that's wrong.

"Schedule III drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence. Schedule III drugs abuse potential is less than Schedule I and Schedule II drugs but more than Schedule IV. Some examples of Schedule III drugs are:

Products containing less than 90 milligrams of codeine per dosage unit (Tylenol with codeine), ketamine, anabolic steroids, testosterone"

http://www.dea.gov/druginfo/ds.shtml

https://www.erowid.org/ask/ask.php?ID=2972

Ok fair enough and a great link...but here is the twist to this.

That page describes Xanax as a schedule 4, and yet I have been charged not once but twice with felony possession of Alprazolam and was adjudicated guilty both times, so perhaps we are both correct in this case, and that yes its a schedule 3 but its also a felony.

The GP link is specific to Colorado.

The darknet is very straightforward to use and almost riskless for a small time buyer

Talk about a relevant piece of news: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11652751

You probably already saw it on the front page, but I just thought that was an interesting coincidence.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com