- Kratom, sometimes referred to as “gas station heroin,” is an herb with opioid- and stimulant-like effects.
- It can be fatal in very high doses but is not subject to much federal regulation.
- So states and cities have been banning kratom sales or enacting rules and restrictions.
I’ve taken it for years with no issue except constipation from time to time. Kratom is about as impactful to me as an acetaminophen pill and a couple cups of coffee, which is good since I have to be careful about which substances I put into my body. I take one teaspoon infrequently. The key to taking it is to not take too much. Less=more, since higher dosages start having an inverse effect.
Articles like this one only seem to be creating hysteria where none should exist. We need more proper studies on the plant, but for now people should treat it like anything else: don’t overdo it. I mean, you wouldn’t take 15 acetaminophen tablets, and likewise you shouldn’t take dozens of grams of kratom at once.
Disclaimer: some people can’t keep their dosages low and they will develop a problem, so be careful with the stuff (or don’t even try it if you are worried about becoming addicted).
Thank you for that disclaimer. I had to babysit a friend while they went through an accelerated detox for kratom, it was ugly. I’ve babysat friends detoxing off heroin so I thought this would be ezpz, but it was honestly just as shitty a time as heroin detox. This was someone who had increased consumption to about 2-3 heaping teaspoons at least twice a day over 8 years or so.
I have conflicted feelings about the push to masher it illegal. After witnessing friends experiences with kratom, I definitely feel like something needs to change, but I don’t know whether that should be more stringent requirements for sale and notification to the consumer of risks and dosages, or a ban, or what.
It’s odd how some people experience withdrawals and others don’t. I’ve gone cold turkey several times and didn’t have a bad time at all. Maybe a runny nose and some sleepiness, and that’s it.
I agree it should not be sold to minors and that it should include harm-reduction info. We do it for alcohol and tobacco, after all.
Based on your original comment, I think a lot of it had to do with the volume of daily usage, not just daily usage in and of itself.
I should have mentioned my previous usage. At at one point I was using up to three level teapoons a day, which would amount to about 7 & 1/2 gpd. I didn’t do that for very long, as I wasn’t in extreme physical pain.