As with all medications, the cost of dextromethorphan oral forms can vary. The actual price you’ll pay depends on your insurance plan, your location, and the pharmacy you use. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves over-the-counter (OTC) drugs such as dextromethorphan to treat certain conditions.
- A person who develops psychosis following DXM misuse may require psychiatric help.
- This medication is sometimes prescribed for other uses; ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.
- A generic is considered to be as safe and effective as the original drug.
- Addiction Resource is not a healthcare provider, nor does it claim to offer sound medical advice to anyone.
There are a lot of medications DXM may interact negatively with as well that can increase the chances of experiencing side effects or overdose on the drug. Powerful dissociative states take over, which can make it difficult to tell the difference between what’s real and what’s a hallucination. The experience is frequently described as “terrifying.” Some people report lasting negative effects after taking doses this high — which is also common with PCP. The second plateau of DXM is most comparable in terms of effects to alcohol.
DXM Abuse: The Risks of Addiction, Interactions, & Dextromethorphan Treatment
Below is a list of medications, supplements, and foods that can interact with dextromethorphan. This list does not contain all drugs that may interact with dextromethorphan. If you have questions about drug interactions that may affect you, ask your doctor or pharmacist. In the earliest stages of drug use, becoming dependent or addicted to substances like drugs or alcohol is an afterthought.
DXM (Dextromethorphan): Effects, Dosage, & Safety
It’s important to use cough and cold medications containing DXM only as directed and to be aware of the potential risks of misuse. Before taking dextromethorphan with other OTC cough, cold, or flu medications, be sure to check the ingredients of these products. You should not take dextromethorphan with combination products that also contain dextromethorphan. To learn more, see “Overdose” in the “Dextromethorphan dosage” section above.
Brand names of combination products
Dextromethorphan does not cure a cough or speed up the healing process but merely gives temporary relief. Although this drug is safe and effective if used properly, it is essential to know that its inappropriate use or DXM side effects may cause dangers to health. Each of our Renaissance Recovery treatment programs provides you with access to personalized addiction treatment, incorporating a comprehensive range of holistic and evidence-based interventions. Moving to the second plateau, achieved with a dose of 200mg to 400mg of DXM, the experience is comparable to alcohol intoxication, but with more noticeable impairment of motor and cognitive functions. Euphoria and hallucinations are also common at this dosage level. In high doses, it can have serious and lasting effects, including dependence.
What other drugs will affect dextromethorphan and promethazine?
Serotonin syndrome is a medical emergency requiring immediate treatment. Avoid DXM if you’re on antidepressants, especially monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). This combo’s been shown to cause a serious condition called serotonin syndrome.
This plateau is very intense — producing extreme states of dissociation or delirium similar to PCP. The effects last a very long time too — often exceeding several hours, with persistent effects lasting up to two weeks. Double-check the potency of the DXM you’re using, and look for the addition of other compounds such as acetaminophen which can cause severe liver-toxic side-effects at this dose. AddictionResource aims to present the most accurate, trustworthy, and up-to-date medical content to our readers. Our team does their best for our readers to help them stay informed about vital healthcare decisions. For instance, Dextromethorphan and Adderall interaction are not safe, even when Dextromethorphan is used to offset Adderall tolerance, as a clinically significant interaction may appear.
While symptoms grow more gradually as compared to other drugs, conducted surveys indicate that it can last up to at least a few weeks. Taking too much Dextromethorphan can significantly damage the health. However, the mechanisms with which DXM is thought to cause cough suppression are related to a specific region in the drug overdose: definition treatment prevention and more brain, known as the Nucleus tractus solitarius. This is the site where peripheral information from the lungs is integrated/conveyed with/to medullary respiratory centers and where the signals for a cough reflex are initiated. This means that it’s considered to be a safe medication that doesn’t need regulatory control.
Tell them about all prescription, over-the-counter, and other drugs you take. Also tell them about any vitamins, herbs, and supplements you use. Sharing this information can help you avoid potential interactions. Doctors sometimes prescribe a brand-name medication called Auvelity to treat depression. Auvelity contains dextromethorphan with another drug called bupropion. The dose of dextromethorphan in Auvelity is different than the recommended dose of OTC dextromethorphan.
This list is not complete and there are numerous other drugs that can interact with dextromethorphan. Tell your doctor about all the prescription and over-the-counter medications you use. This includes vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other doctors. Avoid taking diet pills, caffeine pills, or other stimulants (such as ADHD medications) without your doctor’s advice. Taking a stimulant together with cough medicine can increase your risk of unpleasant side effects. Always ask a doctor before giving a cough or cold medicine to a child.
Anecdotal reports suggest that non-medical use of DXM can induce dangerous experiences similar to those caused by PCP or ketamine, and require medical detox and intervention. For anyone suffering from DXM addiction, there is much that can be done for blood alcohol level chart the recovery of the patient. As much as there is no pharmaceutical treatment for DXM addiction, there are alternative therapies that work effectively. Dextromethorphan addiction treatment focuses on dealing with the immediate effects of addiction.
Death can occur from the misuse of cough and cold medicines in very young children. Even if you do not have extreme physical, mental, social, or financial difficulties from abusing substances, you may struggle with drug addiction, and this addiction will likely deepen over time. If you progress with your drug and alcohol use and continue using despite the first warning sign, you’re at risk of becoming dependent on these substances. For example, if you don’t feel buzzed anymore after two beers, leading you to drink three or four to feel how you did when you first started and need more to function, you’re becoming dependent. People often use the terms addiction and dependence interchangeably, but dependence is not the same as addiction.