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Image by Will Truettner

Treatment of Methamphetamine / Stimulant Crisis

​​1. Sleep. No sleep = No recovery. They have to sleep.

  • Treat any agitation with benzodiazepine​ +/- antipsychotic

  • Let them rest. Assist to find shelter.

  • ​Example: Trazodone 50-100mg nightly x 1 week​

 

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​2. Antipsychotic. Any hint of psychosis â€‹

  • Example: Olanzapine 5-10mg twice a day X 1 week

  • Explain it is OK to take as needed to: "slow down your thoughts and help you sleep."​

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3. Mirtazapine May help reduce withdrawal symptoms.

  • 30mg at night

Imagine describing the cycle of methamphetamine abuse. The image leads to a bad cycle of meth binges, psychosis, abstinence and withdrawal to affective diatheses, all in a loop. From Jean Lud Cadet's "Methamphetamine-induced psychosis: who says all drug use is reversible." Current Psychiatry 16, 2018, 15-20.
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