I first discovered Dihydrocodeine (DHC) when I were 16. My mother had a trapped nerve and was prescribed them, being curious I took one 120mg extended release pill. Pure bliss. I forgot about them until I were 18, and found them being prescribed by an online pharmacy.
Dihydrocodeine
Encyclopedic
Encyclopedic
Typical encyclopedia coverage. Cross-reference for important decisions.
- 1 source
- 1 ROA with full dose ladder
- duration data present
- 19 combo interactions documented
- PubChem toxicity data
Encyclopedic
Typical encyclopedia coverage. Cross-reference for important decisions.
- 1 source
- 1 ROA with full dose ladder
- duration data present
- 19 combo interactions documented
- PubChem toxicity data
Aliases: dhc
Summary
Dihydrocodeine is a semi-synthetic morphinan opioid analgesic prescribed for pain, or as an antitussive (either alone or compounded with paracetamol or aspirin). It was developed in Germany in 1908 and first marketed in 1911.
Dose Information
| ROA | Light | Common | Strong | Heavy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oral | 50-100mg | 100-150mg | 150-200mg | 200mg+ |
Light
Common
Strong
Heavy
Onset, Duration & After-effects
| ROA | Onset | Peak | Offset | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oral | 30-45 min | 3-4 hrs | 60-90 min | 3-4 hrs |
Opioid MME Calculator
⚠ Citation & Disclaimer:
Conversion factors sourced from the
NIH HEAL Initiative MME Calculator (Adams et al., PAIN 2025),
the CDC 2022 Clinical Practice Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Pain,
and the MDCalc MME Calculator.
These are approximate equianalgesic ratios for educational reference only.
Individual responses vary significantly based on genetics, tolerance, cross-tolerance, and route of administration.
This is not medical advice. Do not use these conversions to adjust opioid dosing without professional medical guidance.
mg
40
mg
Dihydrocodeine
≈
—
mg
Morphine
| Substance | Equivalent Dose | MME Factor |
|---|
⚠ Equianalgesic dose ratios are approximations and do not account for genetic factors, tolerance, incomplete cross-tolerance, or pharmacokinetic variations. Methadone conversion is especially variable at higher doses. Always consult a healthcare provider before making any changes to opioid therapy.
Effect Profile
15 reportsScores (1–10) curated from multiple sources:
- Effect keyword matching from PsychonautWiki catalog
- Weighted by importance: core (×3), major (×2), minor (×1)
Opioid
6.4
Strong
6/10
Strong euphoria with moderate itching/nausea, mild pain relief and sedation
Euphoria / Warmth
×3
10
physical euphoria
euphoria
cognitive euphoria
mood lift
Analgesia
×2
4
analgesia
Sedation / Relaxation
×1
4
sedation
dream potentiation
Itching / Nausea
×1
7
nausea
constipation
dry mouth
Based on reports from:
Tolerance
Build-up
develops within days of regular use; analgesic tolerance faster than respiratory depression tolerance
Reset
7–14 days for partial reset; full reset may take weeks — tolerance loss greatly increases overdose risk
Tolerance Decay
Full tolerance
7d
Half tolerance
7d
Baseline
~10d
Acute tolerance: develops within a single session — the reset numbers above apply after sustained heavy use, not after one binge. Within-session tachyphylaxis usually resets largely overnight.
Tolerance develops rapidly with near‑daily use and decays over days to weeks after cessation. After a break, prior doses can overshoot—restart with markedly lower doses to reduce overdose risk. Cross‑tolerance exists across mu‑agonist opioids but is incomplete.
Cross-Tolerances
Effects
Aggregated from 15 Erowid experience reports
Positive Effects 5
Euphoria
60.0%
70%
Sedation
46.7%
70%
Anxiety Suppression
40.0%
70%
Stimulation
33.3%
70%
Pain Relief
33.3%
70%
Adverse Effects 1
Headache
33.3%
70%
Combinations
Cross-Check Dihydrocodeine with another substanceCommunity Trip Reports
Anecdotal first-person accounts from Reddit, Erowid, and Bluelight. Click a source to expand. Reports are harm-reduction context, not medical guidance.
Erowid 8 reports 1 positive 6 neutral 1 cautionary visit
Recently Ive been stressed out with work and fancied trying a different approach to winding down rather than drinking myself into oblivion or smoking herb until I became a paranoid wreck. I also didnt have access to my usual drug contacts so decided to find an alternative way of getting high for the weekend.
Other medications I am currently taking: Claratyne Ventolin Symbicort 200/6 Luvox (fluvoxamine) 100mg - Note that this stuff somewhat inhibits euphoric and hallucinatory substances, so if any of these effects are normally present with this stuff I'm not gonna be able to tell you about them.
Background: I am sixteen, British and live in Southern England. I have frequently smoked cannabis since I was fourteen and have also occasionally done coke. I had come into contact with DHC a few months ago, due to my Dad taking it for back pains.
Despite previous use of codeine I had not acquired any great tolerance of opioids. Codeine is usually combined with other medications here, so the amount I could take was limited. A friend gave me a strip of dihydrocodeine 30mg so I was pleased to be able to experiment with it a bit more. My first dose was 90mg.
I know I would get better results if I had a near empty stomach but I had to eat beforehand as had been at work. My plan was to have seriously relaxed evening as my girlfriend was away. I took four 30mg tablets that I purchased abroad at around 20:30 while watching Arsenal beat Barcelona (!).
[Erowid Note: The dose described in this report is very high, potentially beyond Erowid's 'heavy' range, and could pose serious health risks or result in unwanted, extreme effects.
700-1300 mg I am a 23 year old Australian guy and I frequently use Rikodeine (dihydrocodeine tartrate) in a liquid suspension. It doesn't have any paracetamol or anything like that in it, just the good stuff. Which you buy from a pharmacy very easily over here. I have become very dependent on it and use it every day.
Bluelight 4 threads 1 positive 3 neutral visit
So, while alcohol for better or worse has always been my buzz of choice, sometimes its fun to have a bit of variety. So with a bad cough today I figured it was time to tick dihydrocodeine off the list. I got a packet of paracetamol (acetaminophen) 500mg with dihydrocodeine 7.46mg.
Hello (my first post on the forum!) Over the past year I've gathered a rather elementary understanding of drugs and have used Cannabis, Ambien(recreationally), Mephedrone, Salvia and Valium.
ok one of bluelights roles is so that people can benefit from others experiences. well i thought i'd relate an experience that was successful but unpleasant which i dont recommend here goes (thank god this kind of anonymous), well i heard about rikodeine, a dhc syrup with sorbitol and no other active ingredients.
I took DHCs for my second time recently, using a much lower dose than my first time, this time, I took 4x30mg pills. I stayed up talking on MSN for a while, until nausea came on and I had to lie down.
Dihydrocodeine's nerd page
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