Pink Atc Sleeping Pill - Or Is It?

[CrankyCarrot]

Hi,

I have trouble getting my Zs sometimes and just went out to buy some sleeping pills. Normally generic Diazepam does the trick, but this time the pharmacy only had these little pink pills that say ATC on them in a triangle (with a big T), and nothing else. Slightly smaller than a 50 satang coin.

Has anyone seen/tried these? I just want a bit more clarity on what they are exactly. There's nothing relevant on Wikipedia and inconclusive stuff on Google - at least from what I could see.

The bottle the pharmacist had seemed to say Tipa 25mg on it, from memory. There's no unit of measurement on the the pills themselves. Just aTc in a triangle on one side and nothing on the back. They look kinda like tiny M&Ms. 4 baht a pop.

[CrankyCarrot]

PS If this is my last ever post, you can assume the little pink pills were fatal.

[CrankyCarrot]

Took 2 pills almost 3 hours ago. Wide awake. Pretty sure these are sugar pills.

Maybe I'll mix some in with my morning coffee, which I'll be having in the afternoon since I won't get to sleep until at least 5am.

[jimmym40]

At only 4 baht a pop, they're worthless, as you said, probably sugar. If it was real, or a decent real generic, it should cost at least 10-20 baht.

[CrankyCarrot]

Just thought I'd try my luck with these.

The generic Diazepams I've bought in the past usually go for 10-15 baht each, and they usually work well. Sometimes you have to visit 3 or 4 pharmacies to find one that has some in stock though. Not such an issue in Patong where there's 5-6 chemists on one street.

No more aTc's for this carrot. At least they didn't kill me.

[Sheryl]

Diazepam is a controlled substance in Thailand and can only legally be obtained from a hospital pharamcy on doctor's prescription.

Buying it over the counter can get you in serious legal trouble. It is also often likely to result in getting an ineffective counterfeit product.

AFAIK the only OTC sleeping product here is Atarax in the 25 mg strength Dose for sleep is 25 - 100 mg; try 25mg first then if not effective go to 50 etc. Cannot mix with alcohol or drive after taking. Will cause dry mouth and also residue drowsiness if you didn't sleep long enough. I find it needs to be taken 10 hours before i plan to be up and about.

[CrankyCarrot]

@Sheryl - Assuming you've also tried Diazepam at some point, how effective would you say Atarax is by comparison? Also, I thought there was some funny rule regarding Diazepam being legally allowed to be sold OTC to farang but not Thais... of course, that's just something I heard.

[Sheryl]

@Sheryl - Assuming you've also tried Diazepam at some point, how effective would you say Atarax is by comparison? Also, I thought there was some funny rule regarding Diazepam being legally allowed to be sold OTC to farang but not Thais... of course, that's just something I heard.

there is no such rule, and farangs can and have been arrested for this.

None of the laws/rules pertaining to drugs in Thailand differentiate by nationality.

Personally I find Atarax to work as well or better than diazepam for sleep and the effects to last longer. Effects are, like most drugs, very dose dependent. Safety of long term use is not known so I would not advise taking it every night, but once in a while should be OK.

[robblok]

@Sheryl - Assuming you've also tried Diazepam at some point, how effective would you say Atarax is by comparison? Also, I thought there was some funny rule regarding Diazepam being legally allowed to be sold OTC to farang but not Thais... of course, that's just something I heard.

I know where that myth comes from, the pharmacy i sometimes get my stuff wont let my gf buy the "illigal" stuff because she is Thai and could be an undercover cop. Chances of me being an undercover cop are much lower.

[CrankyCarrot]

@ExKaa - That makes sense to me, but don't the cops sometimes get farangs to go "undercover" for them, taking pictures of people selling alcohol on religious holidays or working without permits?

@Sheryl - When you say people have been arrested for this, can I assume the penalties for purchasing OTC Diazepam or similar are nowhere near as severe as those for people caught with marijuana, ecstasy etc? I know the Thai have a less-than-zero tolerance for drug use, but being busted for obtaining Diazepam without a prescription wouldn't result in more than a modest fine, surely?

[Sheryl]

One year in prison, a fine of 20,000 baht, or both.

[CrankyCarrot]

Seems reasonable.

Guess I'll have to cut back on the coffee and cans of Shark instead then.

[johng]

Tripta tab 25 mg (25 mg) [ Atlantic Lab ] - amitriptyline hydrochloride
Form: Tablet Thai FDA Category: D
Colour: Pink Size: 0.73 cm
Shape: Round Markings: ATC