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Long-term Effects
Deborah Levine, MD, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics and emergency medicine, NYU Langone Medical Center. Here’s what you need to know to prevent abuse and spot its warning signs, as well as some tips to help you talk with your child if you suspect they have a problem. If your use of DXM is affecting your health, family, relationships, work, school, financial or other life situations, or you’re concerned about someone else, you can find help and support.
It works as an antihistamine to help with allergies, rashes, and itching. Yes, DXM is a cough medicine that is intended to help reduce symptoms by calming the part of the brain the triggers the coughing reflex. Misusing DXM can lead to very dangerous side effects and can even be life-threatening. Although many people don’t realize this, this practice can also lead to addiction.
Dextromethorphan – Uses, Side Effects, And More
At the same time, DXM misuse among teens is also startling, and yet it is rarely highlighted. This drug is more popular than opioids among young people, and it is legal, inexpensive and easy to get. In some places, teens can purchase these medications from their local convenience stores. Furthermore, most stores have these medications out on the shelf where they are easy to steal.
What Are Dextromethorphan’s Side Effects?

Some people abuse DXM by taking very high doses to get high. Slang terms for this include “robo-tripping” or “skittling”. At extremely high doses, DXM acts as a hallucinogenic dissociative drug. In general, you should never mix any other drugs, alcohol, or prescription medications with DXM. Doing so can dramatically increase the chances of experiencing side effects or overdose.
Cold Water Extraction
The information below is from the instructions on the product labels. Taking a medication with certain vaccines, foods, and other things can affect how the medication works. If a person has concerns that someone they know is misusing DXM, they can look out for certain signs.
Double-check the potency of the DXM you’re using, and look for the addition of other compounds such as acetaminophen which can cause severe liver-toxic side-effects at this dose. There Are four levels of DXM intoxication — referred to as plateaus. Robotripping, skittling, dexing — whatever you want to call it — DXM (dextromethorphan) is becoming increasingly popular among young people as a cheap and legal high.
What Should I Tell My Healthcare Provider Before Using Dextromethorphan?
It was thought that susceptible teens would be influenced by their peers in the neighborhood and at school. He had always been a moody kid, but his moodiness turned to anger, mania and psychosis. Over a four-month period, his father and mother took him to the emergency room four times. It wasn’t until he attempted suicide that they really got him the help he needed and found out the full extent of his addiction. In the 4 months prior to her presentation, the patient reports she used DXM once a month at her “average dose” of 1080–1620 mg/day.
Final Thoughts: Is DXM Safe?
When used recreationally, DXM should be the only active ingredient in the formulation. This is because many of the cough and cold medicines contain other active ingredients. This includes guaifenesin, acetaminophen, and chlorpheniramine, all of which can be toxic or fatal when taken in large amounts. DXM is a semisynthetic antitussive medication found in hundreds of over-the-counter cold medications around the world. It is best known by its trade name, Robitussin, but is commonly found in other cough medicines such as Nyquil, Benylin DM, Coricidin Cough and Cold, and many more. Among other mechanisms of action, DXM and its major metabolite dextrorphan produce its dissociative effects by antagonizing the glutamatergic NMDA receptor.
Agent Lemon Extraction

High doses of DXM have been linked to dangerous behavior that stems from effects like hallucinations, psychosis, and agitation. It’s been linked to heat emergencies, including heatstroke. This is also sometimes called rave-related heatstroke because it’s more likely to happen with physical exertion, like dancing. Robotripping, also known as dexing or skittling, refers to using DXM to experience a range of psychological and physical effects. If your cough lasts more than 7 days, stop taking dextromethorphan and call your healthcare provider. If you are taking dextromethorphan oral liquid or extended-release oral suspension, use an accurate measuring device to measure your dose, such as a dosing cup provided with the medicine.
Plenty of closed eye visuals the higher plateau you go with a heightened sense of feeling out of body. Other websites and cybercommunities such as Dextroverse.org and the Vaults of Erowid provide teens outlets to post about their DXM highs and get advice from other users on how to use the drug. The site DexCalc.com allows users to enter their weights and get a recommended dose for the “plateau” of high they want to achieve.
The greatest (and most preventable) danger is consuming a formulation that contains DXM alongside other active ingredients that can be toxic or fatal when overdosed. DXM can also be dangerous to consume in combination with serotonergic drugs, including MAOIs and SSRIs. Given their similar mechanism of action in the brain, DXM’s effects are comparable to those of ketamine.

Dextromethorphan In Cough Syrup: The Poor Man’s Psychosis
A quick search of popular sites such as YouTube can lead teens to videos that either warn of the dangers of DXM or encourage users to experience the high from it. Unfortunately, many websites include dosing recommendations and “tripping” suggestions for having a better experience of getting high. It is worthy of public attention and government funding to address.
- If you have questions about how much alcohol is safe to drink while taking dextromethorphan, talk with your doctor or pharmacist.
- That being said, in my personal opinion just don’t take the risk.
- The antihistamine chlorpheniramine maleate, a common ingredient in Coricidin Cough and Cold, can result in seizures and loss of consciousness at high doses.
- According to the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, 50% of American teenagers have misused a drug, and drug overdose is the fourth-leading cause of death among teens.
- Unfortunately, many people misuse DXM for recreational purposes to try to get high.
The following information describes dosages that are commonly used or recommended. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved dextromethorphan to help with short-term relief of cough caused by minor throat or airway irritation, for example, due to a cold. Some makers of OTC medicines with DXM have put labels on their packaging warning about the potential for abuse.
However, if they become more severe or don’t go away, talk with your doctor or pharmacist. But if you do find evidence of abuse, it may be time for a talk with your child. Here’s some guidance on what to do before you confront your son or daughter about OTC cough medicine abuse.