Pethidine is also known as meperidine a.k.a Demerol, an opiate agonist used for moderate to severe pain, with an equivalency of 7.5 mg of pethidine to 1 mg of morphine in parenteral administration. Pethidine/meperidine has a duration of 2 hours so it’s a pretty short acting opioid. I was out doctor shopping the whole of last night and didn’t get a hit out of the five medical establishments I went to. I guess six is my lucky number coz I managed to get a pethidine IM injection from it. =D
This is Injection Pethidine Hydrochloride 50 mg/ml made by DuoPharma (Malaysia). I have never tried pethidine IM injection so imagine my glee as I made this happen. 😉
Doctor: You were here for DF-118 last time right? The medical record says you have a bad back.
Me: I actually had a slipped disc (actually, I don’t ;)) and it slipped again for the second time.
(makes “ouch face”, grimaces and made as if my spinal cord was killing me)
Doctor: Do we have DF-118 here? (talking to nurse)
Nurse: (after rummaging through the restricted access
medication cabinet, they don’t have it, I know that coz I’ve been here
before) No we don’t, but we have Voltaren.
Doctor: Do you want something else? I can give you another pain-killer.
Me: (Hell no! It’s opiates or nothing) Doctor, I hope
you can help coz I’m in a lot of pain right now. Can you write a script
or something?
Doctor: Okay, do you have a medical history of your slipped disc?
Me: Yeah, I had an MRI and X-Ray done in KL, where it
happened (which didn’t happen, of course ;)) and the prognosis was a
slipped disc, which I slipped again just now (*grimace of pain*)
Doctor: Do you have it with you?
Me: No, I’m sorry doctor, I left the medical documents in KL…
Doctor: Okay, well since you have a prior here, I’ll script you. Is there anything else?
Me: (pushing my luck, deciding to go for gold) Hey, I
know this is a strange question, but I’m in a lot of pain right now, do
you have anything to help me get through tonight? Can you give me a
morphine shot? (Prays to God he doesn’t go amok)
Doctor: Morphine…hmm…well, we do have morphine but
we don’t give it to outpatients. I think we have pethidine though, do
you want that?
Me: Is pethidine an opiate? (Knowing full well it is, but no harm in playing the dumb patient)
Doctor: Yes it is.
(Writes Pethidine 50 mg IM stat on my medical record)
Me: (looks) (tries not to grin) (tries not to grin again, perhaps somewhat unsuccessfully) Thank you very much doctor.
Doctor: Alright, just lie there and I’ll prep the shot.
Me: (puts on a show of painful lying down and bolts
straight up, apparently with a good back again) Hey, I’m sorry doctor,
another unusual request, can I take a photo of the pethidine vial?
Doctor: Why?
Me: It’s just an interest of mine. (starts photoshoot of the IM pethidine 50 mg snap off ampoule) Thanks doctor.
Doctor: Okay, I’m going to inject you now. Turn over.
Me: Er…can I take the IM injection in my arm? (I
don’t want the doctor to see my thigh, which is the best place to bang
shit if you’re holding down a professional job – full of scar marks and
bruises from injections – he would have known for sure I’m an IDU –
Injecting Drug User).
Doctor: (Grips my arm) Seems to be okay here.
Me: (starts filming the procedure)
Script from pethidine injection video:
Me: Is it in? Pethidine 50 mg?
Doctor: Mmm…
Me: Okay, IM, sixthseal.com (Jesus Christ, I should not have said that in the video but it just slipped out).
(sounds of pethidine injection process)
Me: Yeah, that’s the place.
Doctor: Hmm…why do you have some bruises here?
(OMG those are my IM injection spots when I was injecting ketamine)
Me: Er…uh…they’re some just bruises, ya know. I probably hit something.
(Quickly changes subject)
Me: So, is that pethidine 50 mg?
Doctor: Yeah.
Me: Thanks.
Download: Pethidine IM injection video [sixthseal.com]
(24 MB .MOV file zipped. Requires QuickTime)
Doctor: Are you driving?
Me: Er…no. (actually I am)
Doctor: This will cause the usual opiate side effects, drowsiness etc. so be careful.
Me: I will, my friend is just outside (actually no one
is outside, I don’t take friends on doctor shopping expedition after a
disastrous incident where I lost a good doctor coz me and my friend was
stoned and high on meth and she had a laughing fit).
Doctor: Okay, here is your script. You’re not a drug addict are you?
Me: (*coughs and nearly chokes*) Of course I’m not. I hate drugs. 😉 (I didn’t wink, I’m just winking on the blog)
Doctor: Good.
Price of 50 mg pethidine vial: RM 10
Price of surgical consumable items (that means the syringe and swabs): RM 0.40
Price of boosting a pethidine shot: PRICELESS! =D
Pethidine Experience Report:
(10 minutes after the shot)
Me: I’m not feeling it yet, doctor? How long does it take to kick in?
Doctor: It’s not going to be so fast.
Me: So we can’t IV pethidine huh?
Doctor: (gives me a strange look) No, it’s for IM.
Me: Okay, thank you very, very much doctor.
(Shakes doctor’s hand very vigorously, perhaps too enthusiastic to be unsuspicious)
T+ 0:30: A general feeling of elation and well being. Don’t know if
it’s the pethidine or the euphoria of getting away with a shot of
pethidine just like that.
T+ 0:45: Cigarettes smokes well, like on opiates but it’s nowhere near
as strong as dihydrocodeine. It does give a rather pleasant high though
– kinda chill, but still motivated, I’m typing this as we speak, which
I usually don’t.
T+ 1:00: I think this is the peak – it’s nothing special – I could
compare it to a cross between tramadol and codeine if that makes sense.
It feels like tramadol + codeine…and er, it seems a wee bit
hallucinatory, I don’t know how to explain it, it’s like the feeling
when you get a hit of LSD and is about to come up and trip, but it
never happens. I just mentioned it coz I saw the cigarette smoke
drifting off. Perhaps a more apt description would be a very mild case
of Ambien induced hallucinations.
T+ 1:30: Hey, I’m feeling a little of that opiate warmth now. It’s nice but too mild for my tolerance.
50 mg of phethedine wasn’t enough to get me off, but I did feel good – which part of it is the phethedine and which part is the elation of pulling this shit off is subjective. I’m full of glee though. 🙂
Pethidine IM feels a lot like a combination of tramadol and codeine at doses of 100 mg and 300 mg respectively. There is a general feeling of well being and slight stimulation but with some of the jitteriness of tramadol (very mild). It’s more like a cross between tramadol and codeine. The opiate warmth is present but mild. At my tolerance level, 50 mg of pethidine isn’t much, but at least I can feel it…and I’m STILL feeling st0ked about pulling this off! =D
Hail to the King, baby! =D
]]>