Big Pharma is Murdering America Through Prescription Addiction and the DEA is Screwing Us All

As a Kratom user who has been following the attempted DEA ban very closely, I wanted to chime in and provide a bit of additional information. First off, as many have pointed out, classifying Kratom as a schedule I drug is ridiculous and likely done for the reasons many have mentioned - more control, more arrests, 'protection' for the Pharma industry, etc. In fact, Big Pharma has several patents pending for some of the alkaloids in Kratom - no medical benefit, eh?

For people that suffer from chronic pain, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and a host of other issues, Kratom is a god-send. It's not a street drug and Kratom users are largely productive members of society - veterans, teachers, mothers, and others from all walks of life.

It sounds like there are quite a few who use Kratom on ATS, but for those of you who don't or who aren't familiar with it, I wanted to provide a few links where you can learn more.

The American Kratom Association is the group that tries to protect our rights to treat ourselves as we see fit, and have been instrumental in fighting (and defeating) proposed legislation to ban Kratom in several states. They are also leading the fight against the DEA ban, and have hired a law firm and lobbyists to assist - and we are making progress:

www.americankratom.org...

The petition to stop the ban is over 130,000 signatures - I'm told that over 200k lawmakers start to pay more attention so hopefully we get there. If any of you want to sign, that would be great:

petitions.whitehouse.gov...

There is also a 'Dear Colleague' letter that is being sponsored by Representatives Pocan (D-Wis) and Salmon (R-Ari) and making the rounds in the House asking the DEA to postpone or cancel the proposed ban. If this gains traction in the House it will at least open discussion amongst our lawmakers and hopefully force the DEA to look at the facts rather than the blatant lies and BS they are citing as reasons for the ban. Currently 6 other Representatives have signed the letter, so that's a good sign.

Finally, if any of you really want to hear about how Kratom has helped people there are 100's of videos up on Twitter with the hashtag #iamkratom. These are regular people telling their stories about how Kratom has helped them - not drug addicts, but regular people who are clearly not criminals.

Hopefully they won't become criminals due to this ban - funny how that works, isn't it? TPTB can pass a law and overnight thousands if not millions of law-abiding citizens become criminals through no action of their own.

Anyway, sorry for the long post (hopefully some of you read it) but this is something I'm passionate about for many reasons.

a reply to: boncho

Its time we all admit that there are no shortages of these substances on our streets. Almost every bad element in our country is funded by the illicit trade. If a person has an appetite for crack they will have crack. Legal or not our streets are flooded. I live in small town USA and heroin is here in mass. Its a product of the Mexican cartels a multi billion dollar enterprise.

Its not politically correct, but legalization of all would end many problems. Its sounds crazy, but the drugs are here all the same. All major gangs are funded by the stuff etc.. There has to be a better way. The billions we spend trying to enforce a failed prohibition cold be better spent at the user level. Prohibition is a failure! Switzerland's drug laws are not perfect, but have ended many underground criminal institutions. Give addicts clean dope, and provide a way out for any who seek it. We can save many more in this way, and it will bring the criminal empires to their knees. We will know who the addicts are and hopeless addicts can be guaranteed a living standard that does not require street walking or criminal activity etc.. These are our sons and daughters!

Step #1. Acknowledge that there is no shortage of these substances.

I am so glad to see this topic among the top threads. This is such a huge story, but is largely still flying under the radar for many.
I discovered kratom around August of last year. I researched the supposed benefits, the risks, and decided to give it a shot. Kratom reduced the chronic lower back pakn I suffer from an accident back in college, it helps with the insomnia I've had all my life, it helped stabilize my mood as I've long suffered with depression and anxiety. Perhaps most importantly, it greatly reduced my desire to drink alcohol. I've been fighting falling into alcoholism for years after stupidly abusing it for so long to try to help my pain, depression, and insomnia.
Kratom improved so many aspects of my life, it felt like a miracle herb. Then my home state of Alabama made it schedule I in May of this year. I had to choose between going back to the way I was before, or risk becoming a convicted felon. So I stopped my kratom use. I have a 6 year old son that means more to me than anything in the world, and the last thing I wanted to do was risk not having him in my life.
So now here I am, fighting the old fights all over again, struggling not to drink myself to sleep every night. All because the govt wanted to ban a substance that never caused any negative reactions in me other than constipation and a slight decrease in libido.
And yes, there have been reports of people dying in Alabama after going back to pills and heroin when kratom was taken away. Alabama is just a microcosm of what we're about to see nation-wide.
One other thing I want to address is the withdrawals I experienced when I stopped kratom cold turkey. I had a runny nose for about 3 days, but no actual craving. The worst was restless legs that messed with my sleep for a couple of weeks. My libido went into overdrive for a while; without doing into detail let's just say I was REALLY horny for a while.
I'm disgusted with the DEA and this entire situation. I hope this gets overturned, but honestly I'm very skeptical that it will, despite the outcry being much more than they probably expected.

a reply to: JimNasium

Nothing at all, that is very interesting! I will have to look into that.

a reply to: Willtell

Oh, I don't trust me

I am not trying to scare people off. But since the DEA announced their plans to make it schedule I which I am against. People have been preaching how awesome it is, but nobody pays attention to the downsides (there are few, but there are some). Also, they are talking about how it's non-addictive etc..

That just isn't true. It acts on your opiate receptors. If you do that long enough, your brain will stop making dopamine which binds to those receptors. When you quit, you will be severely lacking, and it will take a few weeks for your brain to reuptake in that dept. So it's most definitely addictive, and you will most definitely have withdrawal (mild, but still there).

Kratom WDs are much more subtle than opiates. I didn't have the really bad physical stuff, but it really messed with my emotions. Couple that with the apparent hypothyroidism that it's has been a catalyst for, and it put me in a dark place.

Anyhow, I really don't want anyone to think I am demonizing it. I am all for the fight to keep it legal and used responsibly by non-addicts it can work wonders and help people really turn their life around.

originally posted by: smarterthanyou

originally posted by: JimNasium
a reply to: VoxVirtus


All the info I've read about Kratom™ is that it should be taken ALONG w/some Nascent Iodine, which helps w/the thyroid. Do You remember reading/hearing anything about using Nascent Iodine in concert w/Kratom?

Funny i just started taking Nascent Iodine yesterday lol.. interesting synchronicity.
Too bad I wont have the option of trying Kratom and stopping Suboxone as its going to be illegal apparently.

That is how You KNOW it works.. Of course, KNOW trumps 'think' "felt" 'believed'.. Maybe it is like the "Gun Control" issue and the ones pushing the law actually are the ones profiting on Kratom™ If it works for guns to Mexico and Heroin just about everywhere, why wouldn't it work for this? I even went out and bought some yesterday, making sure I paid cash..

They sell a 50 count bag, I know I'll have to take these 50 by the 30th...

a reply to: DJDigitalGem

Working in juvenile corrections, xanny bars are the worst gateway drug on the market imo. Most of the kids ive worked with the past year or so used xanax as the precursor to the cheap 5 dollar hits of heroine. Been a real problem here in the midwest. Its to the point few smoke weed anymore because its so muchmore expensive.

As with the adverse effects of vaccines, this just can't be true!! The for-profit pharmaceutical companies and the regulatory agencies that are monitoring them have your best interest and health as their #1 priority!! This is all just a lie!!

Cue 'Pardon?' telling the OP that your story is bogus and that you are a liar...

originally posted by: JimNasium

originally posted by: smarterthanyou

originally posted by: JimNasium
a reply to: VoxVirtus


All the info I've read about Kratom™ is that it should be taken ALONG w/some Nascent Iodine, which helps w/the thyroid. Do You remember reading/hearing anything about using Nascent Iodine in concert w/Kratom?

Funny i just started taking Nascent Iodine yesterday lol.. interesting synchronicity.
Too bad I wont have the option of trying Kratom and stopping Suboxone as its going to be illegal apparently.

That is how You KNOW it works.. Of course, KNOW trumps 'think' "felt" 'believed'.. Maybe it is like the "Gun Control" issue and the ones pushing the law actually are the ones profiting on Kratom™ If it works for guns to Mexico and Heroin just about everywhere, why wouldn't it work for this? I even went out and bought some yesterday, making sure I paid cash..

They sell a 50 count bag, I know I'll have to take these 50 by the 30th...

Do you happen to have any sources on the Nascent Iodine thing? I searched but have been unable to find anything.

Because of the tinnitus that I think it has brought up, because it has caused some bad chemistry in my body, I am really curious. I would still be using if I knew of a way to stave off these side-effects that I am suffering.

a reply to: VoxVirtus

Here is one recipe but I'll attempt to get You more info:


75mg of DHEA
50-100mg pheynlpiractam
niacin and a good b-12 sublingual tablet/s (I've had the best luck with methylcobalamin)
Kratom - I've had the best success with the red vein varieties, though of course be careful of this becoming addictive.
D-3 - actually a hormone not really so much a vitamin, responsible for a ton of different functions in the body(D-2 is hardly good for you at all, best of all is D-3 from actual sunlight via the whole chemical reaction in the skin, this kind lasts 2-3 times longer then a D-3 swallowed)
Nascent Iodine - helps your body detox fluoride and bromine/bromide along with stimulating your bodies adrenals.( each cell in your body has a receptor capable of connecting with both iodine and D-3, pretty amazing)
ashwaghanda and maca root are but 2 things that are called adaptogens. Google the full list if your interested.

Adaptogens are a unique group of herbal ingredients used to improve the health of your adrenal system, the system that's in charge of managing your body's hormonal response to stress.

Is the tinnitus the most irritating? How is Your diet?

If You feel more comfortable, feel free to route Me a PM/U2U (personal mail) and let it rip... The last Nascent Iodine I had I mixed w/marine kelp in an eye-dropper. A couple drops in a water bottle; each water bottle.

Heavy or prolonged use of Hydrocodone™ (Vicodin; Norco) will also screw up Your hearing. 'Luckily' I have "Siren Ear" (prolonged exposure to sirens) before My hearing deteriorated to the "what' stage, I had some real bad ringing..

* IMPORTANT QUESTION- Does either of Your ears bring about a debilitating pain that seems to be localized in the 'anvil area' of the ear? The pain is excruciating to the point of having to lie down?

*** Your Mileage May Vary ***

a reply to: DJDigitalGem

America is an all for profits economy run by big money interest profiteers, so the law actually protect the poison makers when they kill people, because profits are priority.

The more victims they can get in their bread and butter long term poison the better as this ensure a steady market for them, children are no exempt the earlier the better.

This what we as citizens have allowed to happen in our nation, we are nothing but milking cows.

I've read about people getting hyper-thyroidism from Ashwagandha (which is weird because it should help you to balance neurotransmitters) so it could be a good combo to Kratom's hypo-thyroidism.
Hyper-thyroidism can be treated with drugs lowering dopamine like Dandelion and Burdock.

The only method of administration of Kelp I can imagine is an enema/douché. It stinks like an old aquarium water.
I'd like all of you to consider rectal administration of whatever precious/banned medicine you need to get into bloodstream. You'll be able to cut the doses and spare a limited stock and your liver too.

a reply to: spirit_horse

Yes you are absolutely correct in to many areas there. I was speaking more of the broader problem and mis practice. Cases like yours exist and is one of the reason people manipulating the system makes it sad at times for old ladies, and people, dying, and people with real chronic pain. If you are in a situation where its more beneficial to sacrifice some of your natural healing processes to get the results needed is understandable as well. Some will return to normal function after opioids and some will not. The nerve damage it does scares me the most over time. The problem with the big pharma and this epidemic and the legal drug industry is not understandable to me.

originally posted by: DJDigitalGem
As an EMT, working in a substance abuse facility, the opiate addiction issue is at the forefront of the majority of what I see. People that started on opiate medications as young as 15 that are now addicted...... Average everyday people that have been seeing "pain management" doctors for 10+ years now hooked on prescription opiates..... When the pills dry up (insurance or doctor reasons) most are already so far in to their addiction that many of them switch to the cheaper alternative which is heroin. I have personally witnessed people detoxing from opiates and while alcohol and benzodiazepines are much more dangerous to withdraw from, the effects of opiate withdrawal are often very painful.

The DEA is proposing a ban on Kratom which would take affect on Sept 30, 2016. Kratom is currently used as an alternative pain, anxiety and opiate detox medication; it is not addictive or habit forming like conventional benzo's and opiates. It is much SAFER than the garbage the big phara's throw at us and hence the DEA crack down. Big pharma doesn't want us to have a choice in the matter. If you're in pain then you either suffer or you MUST become an addict!

This ban is being put in to place with little to no research by the FDA and with the rising opiate addiction levels in this country BECAUSE of prescription pain meds they have no business making Kratom a "schedule 1 drug". It's used for SAFE opiate detox, unlike methadone, suboxone and/or subutex; all of which are just as addictive as heroin.

The DEA reports "15 deaths" possibly attributed to Kratom use from 2014-2016; that's 15 total in two years. In 2014 there were 47,055 lethal opiate overdoses; in one year! If the FDA is going to regulate anything it should be what the big pharma is FORCING us to take, not natural alternatives.

S&F So true. I'm glad someone started a thread on this. More people need to wake up to the fact they're being poisoned by their doctors who are pressured by Big Pharma to push unnecessary prescription "medicines" on their patients.

Some months ago there was a quick soundbite on an afternoon Fox News program that I could hardly believe was allowed to air. The female commentator was quoting a medical doctor (I did not get the exact quote) something like "people need to know that they're being poisoned with prescription medicines from their doctors."

I could have cheered that some brave doctor had the guts to say this in public. It was just a quick blip -- I didn't get the doctor's name.

I have known this for years. So many people (especially older people) trust their doctors without question. Just scary -- they're destroying the kids.

It's not just the profits, there's a very sinister agenda behind this. The Globalists want people debilitated by drugs and the old to die faster.

originally posted by: boncho


Reading this thread, I have to quote this and reply to it, as it's so far my favorite response, because it addresses how very long this has been an issue, as well as maybe some of the root causes it became such. I tried to quote Bonchco's whole post, but couldn't keep writing and do that.

So, refer back, if you wish, to what I'm ranting on about.

I went to rehab with a friend of mind who was arrested in an alcohol induced situation, and if he didn't go to rehab he would have done jail time and lost his engineer's license. So. There we are, and we start talking about root causes of addiction, and when we get to the emotional things that feed into addiction, SHAME, in all caps is at the top of the list, and all the reasons and applications and indications of SHAME: family patterns, dysfunctions, carried over into our adult relationships, which tend to mirror each other, if the pattern isn't solved, resolved, dealt with somehow....and all the SHAME of how we dull our emotional pain, and pain and pain and pain.....

Having said that, I am a diagnosed chronic pain patient for at least twenty years, at the age of 55 now, and have had three back surgeries, plus shingles, and many other painful maladies, not even addressing emotional pain that has left me with a good case of post traumatic stress disorder, as well.

Chronic physical pain does a chemical number on your brain, after a while, whether you're taking painkillers or not. Clinical depression follows, and it's a chemical consequence and side effect, secondarily to chronic physical pain.
Some of us have worked quite hard to solve these issues, with psychologists/psychiatrists, with physical therapy, with constant (four days a week/45 min. on a stairmaster at level 4 and an hour following with weights) exercise, and biofeedback study, visualization techniques and yoga, etc. all to address our pain, and be healthier and more productive. Forget friggin happy. Just some relief, coping mechanisms.

I used to smoke marajuana. That was one way of coping. I've been on my back in a hospital bed after bone fusion surgery with a bone graft from my hip for fifteen days, without an ability to move, with a PCS pump full of morphine in my arm, and couldn't even figure out how to get my thumb over the button to push it on my own, without a nurse showing me where that button was, and telling me what to do, the effects of that surgery were so profoundly painful to endure after waking up.......

And then, I've gotten better. A surgeon said it to me this way before surgery: "My job is this much, and parted his hands about a foot. You're job will be THIS MUCH, and parted his hands 3 feet." In other words, what you do after I give you the ability to fix yourself, will be entirely up to your hard work and commitment, rehabilitation wise, and it's gonna hurt every minute of every day.

When I came out of that surgery and left the hospital, slowly being withdrawn from the morphine and brought down to pills, to being able to leave the hospital as I has a 7 yr. old daughter at home who needed me, after 17 days, in a brace and on a walker at 32.......the withdrawal I experienced at home in the next 32 hrs. was intense and profound, as well.

Some drugs are physiologically addictive. Some are not, but EVERYTHING is psychologically addictive, including and not limited to television, exercise, dieting, etc..... My point is this is all more complicated than we think it is. Emotions, SHAME, and prohibition as the poster I replied to play a huge part, as well.

But pain is overwhelming, as well, and it will kill the sufferers' desire to survive or live, eventually, kill their humanity and willingness to deal with anything, as it becomes all encompassing and changes everything about the one suffering and their personality. Frankly, I don't know what I would do without the option of pain management, and I'm dealing with that now, after a significant car wreck, and being an SSI poverty based disability recipient, with quite an overwhelming medical history. I've tried to keep myself as healthy as I could.....

Have I become an addict? Of what? Painkillers, pot, alcohol? At different times, and different things, certainly....dependent upon the pain's cause and my response to it, and what was going on in my environment without my control at the time. This is nothing simple, as I state again.

But I can take Percocet for months, daily, and experience virtually no withdrawal. Go figure. One thing I haven't become in all that, is a heroin addict. And yet, I've had vast experience with hospital morphine intravenously, which seems to usually predispose someone in pain to addiction, but yet, out of a hospital environ, I've never shot morphine, or heroin, which is virtually the same, really.

Take what you wish from my post. I'm just really being honest and being really honest about what my pain, emotional and physical has driven me to do and what my "line" of what I would and would not do, has held me back from, and I cannot really say why or why not. But I can tell you, definitively, that when your emotional pain causes you physical pain, eventually, and then you seek relief and feel constantly guilty for needing that relief, without resolving any underlying issues, emotional and/or then physical, you'll prob/likely only continuing seeking more relief....which to me, then, is what addiction constitutes.

And frankly, it's pain, simply that causes it. If we can't solve the causes of pain, people will continue to self medicate, get high, seek consciousness altering substances, bc they are left without any other choices, to dim that fire flare of what pain is and means......
regards and much love to all who suffer,
tetra