Furious Seasons

April 07, 2009

Seroquel, Wellbutrin Used For Highs In Prison

As I've reported before, Seroquel is often used by prisoners--and some civilians in the outside world--to get stoned in prison and apparently so too is Wellbutrin, the well-known anti-depressant. The Wellbutrin bit is news to me.

Things have gotten so out of hand in Santa Clara County, California that prison officials there have almost completely halted giving them to inmates and the state prison system in the state has followed suit.

Seriously, two of the top-selling psych meds in the world can be crushed and snorted to produce a high, or more of a low in Seroquel's case.

"Corrections officials throughout the country have long suspected that some inmates were either using the pills to get loaded, or "cheeking" them in order to later sell them to other prisoners to chop up and snort. Seroquel is an anti-psychotic that produces a hypnotic effect, and Wellbutrin is an antidepressant some liken to speed...."
"'It definitely goes on,' said John Madsen, secretary of the California Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors. 'Say someone is addicted to cocaine but can't get it. They'll try the next best thing. When it comes to drugs, addicts will find themselves doing just about anything.'"

Keep in mind that Seroquel is on the verge of gaining FDA approval for depression and anxiety, indications that would make the drug even more widely available than it already is and would inevitably lead to even more abuse in America.

Posted by Philip Dawdy at April 7, 2009 09:27 AM

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Comments

The hypnotic effect of Seroquel causes some people taking the drug to believe they are in a "dream". Seroquel disrupts REM sleep.

Yes, Wellbutrin makes some people "high".

Like any amphetamine type drug, especially meth, the possibility of violence while on the drug is always present.

Here is a case of an 82 year old man who was found not guilty of stabbing his wife in the neck [she survived] due to an adverse reaction to Wellbutrin. It happened in Olympia, Washington.

http://www.ssristories.com/show.php?item=1337

Paragraph 4 reads: "Eric Attwood, 83, stabbed his wife of 60 years in the neck last October, but his lawyers argued he was legally insane at the time because of a reaction to the antidepressant Wellbutrin.

http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_091206WABwellbutrinJK.2365ee0.html

83-year-old found not guilty, freed in Wellbutrin case

05:18 PM PDT on Tuesday, September 12, 2006
KING5.com

OLYMPIA - Last year a Thurston County woman awoke suddenly as her husband plunged a knife into her neck.

The 83-year old husband was accused of domestic violence and charged with attempted murder.

But his family -- including his wife -- begged the courts to se him free. It wasn't domestic violence, they argued, but prescription medication to blame.

Posted by: Rosie at April 7, 2009 10:17 AM

FTA:

Seriously, two of the top-selling psych meds in the world can be crushed and snorted to produce a high, or more of a low in Seroquel's case.

High or low, it's still a buzz. I'm so glad I'm off drugs. I thought things like Thorazine, navane and haldol were party pills. Have pity for us poor addicts.

Posted by: Tony at April 7, 2009 11:48 AM

I believe it's clear that these homicides and suicides should be investigated.
It seems that Law only cares about forcing ECT and other types of therapy.

Posted by: Ana at April 7, 2009 12:36 PM

Seroquel in polypharmacy - killer drug for VETS who die in their SLEEP

Posted by: Anon. at April 7, 2009 07:52 PM