Does long term use of sched.2 pain meds cause depression my husband has been on opiate pain med for years and he has become more and more depressed.i am told by my own doctor that long term opiate use has caused depression in some of her patients and that

Excellent : Excellent points by dr. Kardener. One other issue is that chronic pain and chronic are often intertwined. When one gets worse the other often does as well. He might also wish to consider use of medical acupuncture to assist with his chronic pain. Take care.

Of : Of course the crucial question is why might he be continued on such meds for as long as he has and if it is due to pain, can there be another way to deal with the pain (either medication change etc.) depending on its cause. Your doctor is quite right in indicating that opiates can contribute to depression. Part of that cycle is due to opiates interfering with good sleep which also adds to depression. Cymbalta and Lyrica (pregabalin) are two agents that are useful for certain pain syndromes. The former is a good antidepressant/antianxiety agent and the latter is an anticonvulsant also of use in treating anxiety. So i think it is a good idea for you, your husband, and your doctor to have a discussion about alternatives that may make a big difference in his quality of life.