Loperamide High

Loperamide is an over-the-counter drug that relieves diarrhea and prevents dehydration and nutrient loss.

However, loperamide is an opioid that is cheap and easily accessible, which contributes to a potential for abuse. People suffering from opioid addiction sometimes turn to loperamide to get high because the drug is easier to get than painkillers such as Oxycontin or Vicodin. The cost of 400 capsules of generic loperamide can be as low as $10.

According to an article in ACEP Now, an official publication of the American College of Emergency Physicians, between 2010 and 2011 web-forum postings about oral loperamide abuse increased by ten times. Seventy percent of the posts discussed using loperamide to self-treat the side effects of opioid withdrawal, and 25 percent talked about using loperamide to get high.

Researchers also found a 71 percent rise in calls related to loperamide misuse to poison control centers across the United States between 2011 and 2014.

Using loperamide to get high is dangerous because misusing the drug can lead to cardiac dysrhythmia or even death.

What Does an Imodium High Feel Like?

Imodium, the brand name of loperamide, slows the amount of time it takes stool to pass through the gastrointestinal system. The drug is an opioid agonists, however, and therefore has the capacity to induce a high by activating opioid receptors in the brain.

Because Imodium can’t cross the blood-brain barrier in lower doses, it won’t produce a high unless taken in excessive amounts or with other drugs.

Taking more than the recommended amount will give a high similar to that of other opioids, such as heroin and oxycodone.

What Are the Side Effects of Taking Too Much Imodium?

Commons side effects of Imodium include dizziness, drowsiness, tiredness or constipation.

When users take more than the recommended amount, they increase their risk of overdosing.

Overdosing on Imodium can lead to death if you do not seek medical attention for these side effects. Call 9-1-1 if you believe you may have taken more than your prescribed amount of Imodium.

Why This Page Does Not Give Loperamide Amounts

The amount of loperamide a person should take is set by the product label or by a prescription, and it belongs there rather than on a page about getting high. MedlinePlus instructs people to follow the directions on the package or the prescription label carefully, to ask a doctor or pharmacist to explain any part they do not understand, and to take loperamide exactly as directed [n].

The reason this matters more for loperamide than for most over-the-counter medicines is that taking amounts above the label does not simply produce a stronger version of the intended effect. At high doses loperamide crosses into the brain and behaves like other opioids, and it also interferes with the electrical signaling of the heart. That is the mechanism behind the abnormal heart rhythms, fainting and cardiac arrest described above, and it is why this page gives no quantity for a person seeking a high or trying to self-treat withdrawal.

Using loperamide to manage opioid withdrawal is treating one opioid problem with another, without supervision and without the monitoring that makes supervised withdrawal safe. Withdrawal also lowers opioid tolerance, so a return to a previous amount of any opioid afterward can cause an overdose at a much smaller dose than before [n]. If opioid withdrawal is the reason loperamide is in the picture, the treatments built for it are described under medication-assisted treatment.

How Long Does it Take for Imodium to Leave Your System?

The half-life of a drug is the time it takes the full amount in your body to be reduced by half. Imodium’s half-life is between 9.1 and 14.4 hours. The average time it takes for the body to eliminate the drug is 10.8 hours.

Blood concentration levels of Imodium are highest around five hours after someone takes it in capsule form and 2.5 hours after taking it in liquid form. You can excrete Imodium from your system through passing stool.

Factors that Affect How Long Imodium Stays in Your System

There are several factors that determine the length of time that Imodium will stay in your system. These include:

• Having a chronic illness
• Age
• Metabolism
• Regular use of loperamide

Younger people with a high metabolism are usually able to get rid of drugs from their systems faster. Additionally, continuous use of loperamide may cause it to build up in your system.

How Do I Stop Using Loperamide to Get High?

Using loperamide to get high or relieve opioid withdrawal symptoms is a sign of opioid use disorder.

If you have been using loperamide to treat your opioid dependence, reach out to a medical professional for opioid addiction treatment. Medical professionals can help you through the process of detoxification by closely monitoring your symptoms and providing medication-assisted treatment for withdrawal symptoms if necessary.

Additionally, an addiction specialist can help you identify the cause of your substance use and offer guidance for continued treatment, including inpatient or outpatient options and support groups for you and your family.

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View Sources

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• Daniulaityte, R. et al. (2012, November 30). “I Just Wanted to Tell You That Loperamide WILL WORK”: A Web-Based Study of Extra-Medical Use of Loperamide. Retrieved from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3633632/
• LoVeccio, F. (2016, July 15). Loperamide Abuse Associated with Cardiac Dysrhythmia and Death.
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• Food and Drug Administration. (2016, July 6). FDA Drug Safety Communication: FDA warns about serious heart problems with high doses of the antidiarrheal medicine loperamide (Imodium), including from abuse and misuse. Retrieved from https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability
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