What is soma?

[Shoreline]

I Think docs have a reservation to prescribe it because it is abusable. It's a muscle ralaxer and has a street value. MY brother who passed a way also had back problems but didn't have the ability to comply with any prescribing orders. I went home for Thanksgiving the year he died and he had taken 5 or 6 if he hadn't lost count and apeared drunker than than anyone I have ever seen. He would fall asleep with food in his mouth and I was shocked my folks would permit this kind of behavior in their house.

Soma was first prescribd to me shortly after his death in 2001 and my folks were upset and worried about me taking this med. I have taken Soma as prescribed, 1 pill at a time for over 4 years and it still works, I haven't ever taken more than 1 at a time or experienced the sights I saw that weekend. Due to various changes in meds none of my med are filled on the same day and due to a scheduling problem I ran out of Soma 10 days prior to my apt and this was after my clinics policy of not calling in any meds over the phone went into effect.

I experienced no withdrawal although one of the NP's said it did cause physical dependence and this is mentioned in the precibing info for long term high dose patients. I have never had an adverse reaction, taken more than prescribed or experienced any drunken like state from soma. It still works after 5 years and the Idea that one drug has a greater potential for abuse or being dirtyier than another just depends on the person you prescribe it too. I would bet my pump that if you took 5 ambien or 5 flexeril you would likely experience the same type of incoherance or "high" that abusers seek.

Just about any drug can be absued if someone wanted too and didn't care about safety or running out early. If your not accomadated to taing 5 times the amount of any drug prescribed you would have similar reactions.

I've tried everyting from oral baclofin, skelaxin Valium, flexerill and zanaflex. Soma has been the next best thing for spasm next to valum withu the loss of memry and physical dependnece that can cause asiezure if stopped abruptly. If I was in severe spasm and needed imediate relief, valium is the best muscle ralaxer there is but like all benzo it has an amnesia quality and can cause deresssion along with a miriad of ther unwanted side effects.

Soma has been a god send to me, although my parents had a discomfort that probably spread to my wife after my brothers abuse of the drug, they have all seen that when taken as prescribed it's no different than any ther med that you accomadate tothe side effects like drwsiness and still recieve the theraputic qualities of this med.

It's never crossed my mind to ask to increase the dosage to 2 pills at a time nor do I have the need. The original dose still works better than any of the other muscle relaxants I have tried. Soma is not a sleeping med, It's a muscular skelatal relaxant that has sedative propeties but no toxic build up of metabolites.

Other meds like Baclofin and zanaflex that are used for spasm when they are actually anti spacticity drugs designed for people that have conditions like MS or spinal cord injuries and have contious spascticity or body jerking and uncontrolld rigor of specific limbs and muscles.

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PATIENT INFORMATION

Carisoprodol "Soma" is a muscle relaxant used to relieve the pain and stiffness of muscle spasms and discomfort due to strain and sprain. Inform your physician if you are pregnant or nursing. Do not take this medication with a monoamine oxidase inhibitor. This medication may cause dizziness, drowsiness, or blurred vision; use caution while driving or operating hazardous machinery. Do not take any other sedating drugs or drink alcohol while taking carisoprodol. If dizziness occurs, avoid sudden changes in posture. Take this medication with food to avoid stomach upset. Notify your physician if you develop trouble breathing, unexplained fever, severe weakness, vision changes, swelling, or skin rash. Withdrawal symptoms may occur if therapy is suddenly stopped in a patient on long-term or high-dose therapy.
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I would say 3-4 years is long term but my dose isn't considered a high dose and perhaps that's why I didn't experience withdrawal. The potential for abuse and dependnece is there just like the potential for dependnece and abuse is there for any alternative sedative/hypnoyic/opiate or muscle relaxer in which people abuse. I'm not sure why a doc would be more concerned about the potential for abuse of Soma any greater than the potential for abuse of any opiate or tranquilizers. If everything that had potential for abuse or dependnece was removed from the market, there would be nothig on the market for any of the conditions these meds are used to treat,or any drug with a higher abuse potential than those clasified as a C-V with the least potential. JMO.
Soma is clasified as a skelatal muscle relaxer, not a tranquilizer, sedative or hypnotic agent used for sleep.
Take care, Dave

[davetheplantman]

I have used soma on and off for the past 2 years as needed for back spasms and have never had any problems whatsoever. It works extremelly well for me in controlling the spasms much better than any other muscle relaxer than I have found, period. Hope you are well Chad

[Chaddyfriend]

wow, thats alot of good info. Sure are some good people on here, thats for sure.

[expat64]

I have been taking somas for 2 years now and don't know what I'd do without them. they are a muscle relaxor, yes, they are a narcotic according to my pharmacist but not an opiate. My pain doctor prescribes them to me, because of the tolerance i get to opiates, when i take a soma with only one oxycodone now instead of 3 oxycodone, it works so much bettercombined. I always take them combined, it has cut my oxycodone use down by 50% at least. They do give you a loopy feeling, i only take them at night or when i'm not haveing to go anywhere, but the pain releif is termendous. i stopped taking them for about 2 weeks last month because i was so busy with work i couldn't be loopy and had no w/d whatsoever. i've tried all the muscle relaxors and he finally gave me soma as a last resort and they work great. if anyone on here drinks never drink on them, ever. NOt even one glass of wine at a wedding or something; I don't drink, i don't like drinking anyway, but i hear it's a bad thing to do, more so than with opiates. there is somethign about combining them with opiates that work terrific, when i take them my tolerance levels with oxycodones never increases, it's what keeps me able to take oxycodone family of medications for so long without increasing dosages all the time. It's wierd, i truly do not get that euphoric feeling like most do as a side effect to opiates, if anything i get dysphoric, except with the somas..that's why i always have over half a bottle left over each month, cuz Idon't like that feeling....but they work.

[friendly_one]

I've never heard of Soma being classified as a narcotic, except Soma w/codeine. It's not even a scheduled drug. Now, Soma w/codeine is a Scheduled Class 111 narcotic, but plain Soma is not. How many times has a Rph told a patient something that is totally untrue?? Remember the one about Fentanyl being "cooked" different in the Sandoz brand of the patches?? I know Dave (Shoreline) remembers that one! LOL