My Final Opinion of Kratom

I have written before of how effective kratom has been for me for pain relief, but I must also write of the complete list of negative effects I have experienced. Constipation became a significant issue as well as a general feeling of unwellness. This set in when I took it daily for several weeks straight at dosages of 3/4 gram in two to three hour intervals. I began to feel horrid in other parts of my body, so I would suggest never doing this! I noticed a feeling of general weakness, definitely bloating, and dehydration with decreased urine production. Now that is alarming! While my pee never turned brown, it did darken and this led me to fear for the function of my kidneys. Although my blood levels from a metabolic panel test were within the normal range, my blood pressure was a point off, and never have I had a reading like this before. I have usually had a perfect or point low reading, but this one was toward the high end. While I can't firmly establish the cause of this, I can eliminate one variable and due to the other feelings happening in my bod, I discontinued the kratom. The real clincher was the migraine that hit me Monday morning. I haven't had one of those in years! I might be blaming the herb unjustly, or I might not. Without further study with stricter variable control, I can't affirm or deny.. But, better to err on the side of caution, and I hate going blind and then having a day long head ache. Oh yeah, I might miss it! I'm not looking forward to enduring my prior to kratom pain levels at all. As for withdrawals-oh heck no! I'm feeling better in my over all body, if not the back and legs! This is day 3 of zero kratom and I am having no cravings or urges. I have been rehydrating the bod with more water and everything seems to be returning to normal. I'll know more at the end of the month when I go back for another blood letting, etc as part of a regular physical. Hopefully I will have shrunk back down to my prior kratom experiment size! I gained 10 pounds in the several months of this experiment. Once again, kratom is not the only variable in play, so I can't assert with complete accuracy that the herb is to blame. Reduced activity level due to avoidance of flaming misery and a love of bagels could be equal contributors! So, along with the kratom, I let go of the bagels. Now, I might be battling a semi serious bagel addiction! I'm replacing them with cashews. Too many easy carbs and being mostly stuck in the bed outside of brief forays for a tiny job makes for plumping up to rival a well stuffed turkey. I'll keep kratom on standby, but it is something that should not be taken regularly any more than an NSAID or any other medicinal substance should be taken regularly. Is kratom a less toxic alternative long term for pain relief? My conclusion based on my one subjective experimental trial is no. This substance is no less and possibly no more toxic than any other, and it is not for everyone. It will be something I use only when desperate and for no longer than a day or two in duration. I would also suggest that rather than attempt to gain more relief with an increased dosage, or prolong relief by ingesting for greater duration, it would be best to abandon it altogether to keep ones important organs as healthy as possible. After all, the goal is to minimise pain and optimise health, not die to feel better!