oxycodone withdrawal help!

[kingkong]

hi ev1 been on oxy for 4 yrs and committed to quit tomorrow
i was taking 90 mgs day for 2 herniated disks which healed by the grace of GOD a few months ago so now im takin pills to avoid those nasty wd's
so all you people that pray out there please say one for me. im sure this post will be my new friend through the experience so ill give you's (whoever you's are) updates whenever possible.thanks

[kingkong]

well my quit day is here saturday 2/7/09 i hope it goes well. i havent started withdrawls yet but im sure they will glady wake me up in the mornin (just like every other day for the past 4 years).
ill post my progress since it seemed to help me accept what im about to go through and let me know i wasnt alone. thanks!!!

[Lenina]

kingkong,

Welcome to SR! Please keep us posted on how you're doing. There's lots of support here and really good advice!

Love,

Lenina

[mellowchick]

Welcome to SR! You will find a ton of information and support here. Check in and let us know how things are going for you. Sending prayers your way!

[kingkong]

Day 5 and still alive.....its gettin better

[antsinmypants]

Originally Posted by rocketdriver

They told me the surgeries were not disqualifying, but medications are. I am certain they will test for everything. I just talked this over with my wife. It's too hard to go through the w/d in such a short time...

Rocketdiver, I don't want to stop you from quitting the drugs. If you can then all the best to you. However, if you don't have the willpower have you thought about changing to Hydromorphone? It is a Morphine/Narcotic blend made to make the withdrawls easier once you are ready to get off them, the withdrawl only lasts a couple days. Also, it doesn't break down into Morphine and so it is virtually undetectable, and undetectable for all the FAA tests.

Of course I do not condone flying on unapproved medications, just giving an idea.

[Nallabelle]

Hey if you have made it through Day 1 then congrats!
I have a few suggestions: (**I am not a doctor and I dont play one on TV so I am not giving you medical advice but merely making suggestions**)
First of all, I PERSONALLY dont see a problem with the valium/xanex but only if you are getting it through your doctor. However you have to be made aware of the withdrawals from those two medications if your body gets addicted to them. They are 10 fold the withdrawals of pain meds. Last longer too. So, if you can manage to take them only as needed and I mean REALLY only as needed during the withdrawals then you might be ok.
Heres some stuff that helps me with w/d as I seem to continuously relaps and continuously w/d: Gatorade, Melatonin (so you dont get dependent on the benzos), vitamins, bananas, lots of excersise (walk, run, ride a bike as much as you can force yourself to do), hot baths.
The main thing is trying to keep busy. You have to get through the first few days and then everything will get so much easier. Mentally though the best thing you can do for yourself is work on the mental part. You have to un-addict youself to the habit of taking the pills. Its incorporated into every aspect of your day. How are you going to unincorperate it? I recommend getting to NA meetings and changing anything in your life associated with drugs. Good luck and keep posting!

Lesley

[Angelic17]

Did you ever try suboxone? It helps for the first week of withdrawal. It stops the brain from feeling the affects of the withdrawal. Go to the doctor, Get off the valium, and the xanax, and inquire about suboxone. Make sure you tell your doctor what meds your on, cause suboxone cannot be taken with other meds. You will feel fine, and then once the oxys are out of your body, you can stop the suboxone with very little anxiety. Good Luck, I did it that way, and so can you.

[bvaljalo]

Angelic, just want to straighten out a few points of fact here, no offense

1) Suboxone will keep an addict out of withdrawals for as long as they take it, not just for one week.
2) Not only does it stop the brain from 'feeling the effects of withdrawal', when you take it (except perhaps in the very beginning), you will not even be IN withdrawals, because buprenorphine (the active ingredient) is, in fact, an opioid drug.
3) It's no more contraindicated (i.e. inadvisable) to take buprenorphine 'with other meds' than it is to take any other opioid with other meds, in fact, less so. Nobody should consider this 'advice', okay, but the reality is ... there are very few meds which cannot be taken safely along with buprenorphine. This being said, obviously a doctor should be involved and s/he should know what all their patient is taking, no doubt about it.
4) Just because you tapered down and off of suboxone in the space of a week doesn't mean that it's a good plan for everyone, nor does it mean that anyone who does it this way is going to have easy sailing after only a one-week taper.

Not trying to pick on you Angelic, I think you're a sweetie, kay? But ... I've held my tongue with regards to things you've said about subs on quite a few occasions, and I'm taking this opportunity to just kinda clear the air on few things.

[bvaljalo]

Originally Posted by antsinmypants

Rocketdiver, I don't want to stop you from quitting the drugs. If you can then all the best to you. However, if you don't have the willpower have you thought about changing to Hydromorphone? It is a Morphine/Narcotic blend made to make the withdrawls easier once you are ready to get off them, the withdrawl only lasts a couple days. Also, it doesn't break down into Morphine and so it is virtually undetectable, and undetectable for all the FAA tests.

Of course I do not condone flying on unapproved medications, just giving an idea.

Ummmm ... WTF are you talking about, man?

Hydromorphone? That's called Dilaudid my friend. Which is easily as addictive as heroin, in fact, it's the friggin PINNACLE of opioid drugs, at least, one's that a person can get in the USA, and probably most of the rest of the world. Put it this way, if you put a bag of dilaudids and a bag of heroin in front of the average heroin addict, the majority of them will choose the bag of dilaudids and be slamming them, in a heartbeat.

And it isn't a 'morphine/narcotic' blend, it's a narcotic, derived from morphine, just like heroin and many other narcotics.

And it DAMN SURE wasn't ever 'made for making withdrawals easier'. In fact, dilaudid has absolutely some of THE WORST, most brutal and longest lasting withdrawals of any opioid out there, This is literally worse advice than telling someone they should switch to Heroin cause it'll make their w/d's easier.

Sheesh ...

[mp91163]

Greetings all. Just putting my $.02 worth in on coming off oxycontin. Here's my story.

I've had severe rheumatoid arthritis for over 20 years, but it's under control/stopped in its tracks by Enbrel for the past 6 years. However, plenty of joint damage in my hands, wrists, lower back, knees, ankles, and feet has occured. As the inflammation went away, it became very painful. My rheumatologist did the following:

2003--Percocet 5mg 4x/day; in 6 months, to 10mg 4x/day
2005--Tried Fentanyl patches, 25mcg and then 50mcg; good pain relief, but nasty nausea
2006--Opana ER 20mg 2x/day
2007--Sent to pain management doctor; increased Opana to 40mg 2x/day, then to 80mg 2x/day
2008--Opana's effectiveness declining, very little experience with it rx'd for 3x/day, so converted to Oxycontin 40mg 3x/day; later to 60mg 3x/day

As 2008 rolled on, my wife of 17 years insisted that I was becoming a different person, and she felt it was due to the pain meds. While I felt this was not the case, and believed that it was more due to work-related stress, I had a choice to make: The wife who's stood by me for 20+ years, or the meds? I chose the wife, as should be.

BUT, the biggest difference is HOW I came off oxy. We consulted with my pain doctor, and here's how we did it.

Start with reducing dosage to 40mg 3x/day for 2 weeks; also, VERY IMPORTANT, clonidine 0.3mg (Catapres patch). This drop was tough! Having run out of percs before, and suffered c/t w/d, it wasn't far from it, but still not as bad. The worst of the symptoms lasted the expected 4 days, then it got MUCH better.

Next, down to 30mg 3x/day for 2 weeks. NO, repeat, NO w/d symptoms to speak of. Definitely started noticing painful joints, though; had to restart taking naproxen again (Aleve) to try and keep joints quiet.

Next step, 20mg 3x/day, 2 weeks. Same as 30mg.

Next, 10mg 3x/day, 2 weeks. Again, no real w/d symptoms, just painful joints.

Then, we went 10mg 2x/day for 1 week, clonidine 0.2mg, then 10 mg once a day for a week, clonidine 0.1mg and done. At the end, I had VERY MILD w/d symptoms, but NOTHING like I expected.

All in all, it took 2 1/2 months to come off oxy nice 'n' easy, and it was not that hard at all to do. One thing I would STRONGLY recommend is to sleep in a bed by yourself; the night sweats and the RLS will drive your spouse/partner crazy! Also, do NOT be alarmed by the vivid dreams you'll experience; even though I'm clean since 2/5/2009, I still have these dreams almost EVERY night.

Now, the supplements that will help.

Immodium (loperamide)--VERY IMPORTANT!!! Go to BJ's or Sam's and get the generic stuff; BJ's sells it in a 2-bottle pack with 192 2mg pills. Trust me, you'll need it. I was taking 3 pills in the a.m., 2 at lunchtime, 2 at bedtime. Loperamide is derived from peperidine, and acts upon opiate receptors in the intestines. Even though it has NO analgesic effects, apparently it DOES trick your brain enough to ease w/d symptoms.

B-Complex vitamins-very helpful
Magnesium, Calcium, Zinc, Potassium--ALL necessary
L-Tyrosine, or just Tyrosine--The LIFESAVER. This stuff is an amino acid, and will combat the lethargy we all go through (Yeah, tell me you didn't love the energy boost oxy gave you!). I take 6 capsules a day, split in 3 doses.
Caffeine--if you're gonna be addicted to something, let it be this stuff. I found that if I didn't have my coffee or Coke (the SODA !), I felt worse...then again, I've been a coffee/soda drinker for years.

So, there you have it. I would like to further say that for those who might question these supplements, just google "Thomas recipe".

Also, for those of you who have successfully come off oxy, how long was it before you got rid of the RLS and the dreams? Also, how long before you actually felt 100% clean, with no withdrawal symptoms, real or imagined? I still have some iffy days, even 5 weeks clean now. I'm determined to stay off these meds, and just want an idea from y'all when the PHYSICAL symptoms will be gone for good. I can handle the mental stuff; I've had ZERO cravings that I've thought about...it's just my body sometimes betraying me!

Thank you all in advance!!!

[Nallabelle]

I dont have any advice except I believe the RLS will go away slowly, along with the dreams. I think there is an OTC medication for RLS though. Not sure what its called. Some one else can probably better answer that as I am still battling my addiction. I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your story and all the advice on the vitamins and meds. Do you really think they helped ease the withdrawal?

[mp91163]

Originally Posted by Nallabelle

I dont have any advice except I believe the RLS will go away slowly, along with the dreams. I think there is an OTC medication for RLS though. Not sure what its called. Some one else can probably better answer that as I am still battling my addiction. I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your story and all the advice on the vitamins and meds. Do you really think they helped ease the withdrawal?

As far as the loperamide, B vitamins, and the Tyrosine, absolutely! Plus, I figured that the other minerals were needed anyway, so what the heck, can't hurt. But the three I mentioned, oh yeah!

[Angelic17]

O.K. People, so I am no doctor, nor am I a person who wants to mislead anyone. And by the way, I don't take offense to any constructive criticism. I'm a big girl, and always still learning. When I read a post, that says someone is suffering from withdrawal from opiates, and trying to get clean, I just try to tell them what has worked for me. That's all. I ask if they ever heard of this drug that helps with withdrawal. I know, that what is right for me, is not right for everyone. When I hear people saying that they are using other drugs like xanax and tranquilizers, to help symptoms of withdrawal, I know they cannot mix suboxone. I also know that suboxone is a form of an opiate. But it doesn't get you high, and it does help with withdrawal. It is made for that. I also know that it is a dangerous drug that's not right for everyone. I always tell who ever I make a suggestion to, to go to the doctor and find out, and to listen to a professional. I hope you don't take offense, because things aren't always what they seem. Not trying to pi$$ anyone off. Or act like I know it all, Just sharing what has helped me very well. That's all. I'm clean almost 4 yrs, and managed that with very little suffering with the help of suboxone. I wish Inner Peace and comfort to all who are suffering with any type of addiction. It's not a joke. Sorry if I offended anyone. It was unintentional. Thanks for the response. I continue to learn and grow from all of your feedback. Angelic17

[mp91163]

Angelic, I think you're right...basically, we're all not doctors, and although we've researched and done our homework, we still don't have that M.D. after our names.

That said, I agree with you 100% regarding suboxone and methadone treatments. IMHO, all you're doing is substituting one addictive drug for another, albeit with less effects. BUT, as many others have said, it's a PITA coming off of suboxone, worse than oxy, so why put yourself through that?

I have to say, the 10-week tapering program my pain mgmt. doctor put me on was a breeze compared to cold turkey. AND, I find it intriguing that clonidine, a blood pressure medication, helps immensely with w/d symptoms...of course, the best part is that it's NOT an opiate! My doctor's only concern about clonidine was if I had LOW blood pressure, which I didn't, and be realistic, there's probably very few of us that have LOW BP.

As I mentioned above, you HAVE to have a partner for this journey. Trying to do it alone, and covering it with "I have the flu" just opens the door further for excuses and relapses. If your significant other, or family, loves you and cares about you, they're NOT going to condemn you; rather, I believe that they'll be extremely supportive of your efforts, and will do ANYTHING to help you achieve your goal.

It's also very important to talk to someone non-judgmental. I would have NEVER thought that going to counseling would do me any good: SURPRISE! I was amazed at the things I told my therapist (NOT a psychiatrist-they just want to give you happy pills...). I'm a guy, in my mid-40s, and I told her (yes, a woman-I think it's easier to open up to someone of the opposite sex) things that I haven't even told my wife! Being able to open up to someone who doesn't know you, per se, is extremely liberating, and that person can give you a sense of perspective that you'd never dream of. Go see someone before, during, and after; it helps!

Again, before you commit to suboxone, ask your doctor about clonidine, it works!

[Stagebear]

Yowza...this thread has gone all over the place from the original poster. There's a lot of mixed messages, etc. I hope anyone lurking fully understands no-one know what works for each individual but a qualified professional.
Suboxone, in particular, is as touchy an area as methadone lately. I think it best if people post specifically what they did with the aid of a doctor or detox....not post it as "this is what works" or "stay away from..." (except for the misguided person who suggested dilaudid...). Everyone is different, gang.
Bottom line: it's what the pros suggest and what has worked for us.

Hoping I made myself clear...not sure I did...I remain

[mp91163]

Bear, you're 100% right, in that we SHOULD stick to what worked or didn't for our particular situation. However, as I indicated in another post, our doctors may be quite smart, but they DO allow personal biases to blur their medical judgment at times. I've seen everything from "suck it up-tough love" to "we'll taper your 10mg/day habit down over 6 months".

Yes, each of our situations is unique; yet, for example, look at the suboxone debate. To borrow from the song "Alice's Restaurant", if one person says sub is bad news, we'll think they're crazy; if two people say it, well, you know the line. But if 50 people a day say subox w/d is horrible, well, that sounds to me like subox is bad news! If the cure is worse than the disease, why bother?

Forgetting the meds for a moment, what we really should focus on is the "mind over matter" portion of recovery. I'm clean since 2/5/09 from a 160mg/day oxy dose (for legit reasons-rheumatoid arthritis), and I have bad days even now. But, instead of getting down, which is PERFECTLY NORMAL IMHO, I choose to get busy and occupied with different things to keep my mind elsewhere. For example: Bear, I'm from Central NJ, so you know what a great weekend it was, weather-wise. Yesterday morning was crappy, and I wasn't real thrilled. BUT, I knew that the sun was coming out later, so I focused on that, and when it got nice, I went outside, and got some things done around the house. You'd be surprised how those negative thoughts vanish when you're in the midst of doing things, and that sense of accomplishment shoves that negativity far away!

We all need to remember that our brain is a very powerful machine, and our opiate use has damaged some parts of it. BUT, and this is the best part, it CAN and WILL repair itself. The more time that passes that we're opiate free, those opiate receptors settle down; and the brain starts producing its own dopamine properly again. This is known; but the tougher part is re-wiring the emotional parts of our brain to say "no mas"! It can be done with positive reinforcement, but it ain't easy, and it takes more time than the physical repairs.

[antsinmypants]

BVALJALO and Rocketdiver, I'm sorry for giving the bad advise. Honestly I didn't do much research on the subject, I'm only speaking from personal experience for the withdraws. I was hooked on hydromorphone (yes, the generic form of Dilauded) for over a year, and it only took me 5 days to get over the withdraws without anything else. Then a year later I started on oxycodone 30s (bad idea I know) and I have spent 5 weeks and I still haven't been able to kick it. The pain is bad. The tiredness is relentless. I am really sorry. I never meant to give the bad advise and I would delete it if I could. The truth is that I'm here to get help myself. I thought I could help and I don't doubt you that I was completely mistaken. Perhaps it was just because I was at a better place in my life at that time and it may be due to the mental aspect of it all. Again, I'm sorry. Don't take hydromorphone. I also need help.

[bvaljalo]

But IMAGINE ... 50 people ... 50 people a day, walking in, singin' a bar of 'Alices Restaurant' and walkin' out!

I remember that song from when I was a little kid in the early 70's ... used to know the whole 20 minute song by heart when I was like 10 years old...

And like I implied earlier, it's basically impossible to make a blanket statement like opioid A is easier/tougher to get off of than opioid B ... without discussing dosages, and the relative strength of the two drugs with relation to those dosages. I'm sorry, but you just can't do it.

[NeedRelief]

I've been on Oxycodone for about 10 months for foot pain. I've had 2 reconstructive foot surgeries and there is a bone separation in one of my feet (and I'll be finding out soon if the same happened in my most recently operated foot) which causes me chronic pain. I gradually increased from 20mg a day (close to the prescribed amount) to about 65mg just this last week when I felt like I wasn't getting relief from it since my body was building a high tolerance, and my doctor wasn't very attentive when my refills began increasing. Today my doctor finally asked what was up and then switched me over to Tylenol 3 and 600 mg Motrin.

Last night I immediately felt the onset of withdrawal symptoms because I cut my dosage from about 10 to 4 the last two days. Feverish, cold sweats, in and out of sleep, and tossing and turning all night. Then my doc gave me the new stuff today. As I'm typing this now, I've taken a huge turn for the worse. I've vomited 5 times in the last 2 hours, have a bit of a fever and cold sweats. At least I feel a little better after vomiting though. I cried alllll day today, still am. Earlier tonight I took a warm bath with Epsom salts, drank chamomile tea, took 1,000mg of vitamin C in powder form, tons of water, and also a tylenol 3. Almost immediately after taking the codeine I felt much worse-- migraine headache, severe nausea, and that's what lead to my first bout of vomiting. I feel like my body is rejecting the codeine, and anything else that is not percocet. Should I just stay away from the codeine as well since I'm going through hell anyway? Or should I keep taking it as prescribed? This is worse than after coming home from the hospital and getting off the Dilaudid machine they had me on. I was taking percocet at the time too, though, but still vomiting a little.

Thanks for your help!

[NeedRelief]

More than 24 hrs off of Percocet! Today was way more tolerable than yesterday. Woke up early after 5 hrs of sleep, not too tired. drank probably 64 oz of water within 3 hours, took more vitamin C (1000mg), and a multi pill that has B12 in it and other good stuff. I think doing all that homeopathic stuff helped. Warm baths help too. I had some oatmeal with blueberries (only a little bit, after getting up to puke 6 times last night I was trying to be cautious) and kept it down. I had diarrhea a lot today (don't want to take Immodium because the stuff needs to get our right?), cold sweats, felt feverish a little bit, and still feel cold. Haha, sorry if this is too detailed. I'm feeling 10 times better today, no more crying...actually laughing. I'm still having foot pain, but trying to take Excedrin (advil doesn't work for me) for it and today I had one tylenol 3. So far, so good! But...we'll see how tonight goes.

This forum was super comforting after the hell I went through last night. In between vomit sessions, I'd come on here and comfort myself. So nice to know that others are in the same boat. It kind of makes me upset that doctors prescribe this knowing full well how fast your body gets addicted. Makes it hard to believe that marijuana is illegal yet morphine and opiates are dished out to patients with pain.

[Timebuster]

Need,

Welcome to Sober Recovery.

May I suggest you start your own thread? You will get more response that way.

Good luck
Ivan

[MRPHREEZ]

SUBOXONE!~

[oxyscared]

Hello To All,

I am scared to death to start my oxy withdrawls. I have been weening myself for some time, as soon as I feel the least bit of withdrawl I panic and go back to it. I want more than anything to beat this addiction. Will I ever feel normal again? Will I ever regain my energy and be able to get off the couch? Will my crying episodes cease?

I was wondering if any has had any success using Naltrexone to help with oxycontin withdrawals? I have FMS however my doctor has not prescribed oxy, I have had to obtain it off the streets and it was the worst mistake I ever made. I read that is being used for the treatment of FMS and I thought maybe this is my ticket to beating the withdrawl symptons plus finding a pain relief. I am too embarrased to discuss my addiction with my doctor but thought of asking for Naltrexone since is has been approved for FMS and I thought "hey, I can beat the withdrawls at the same time"

Any advice would be appreciated.

[GSP527]

1st time poster... 24m coming off a 1 year roxicodone 30mg addiction.... i was up to 4-6 pills a day until i quit cold turkey 4 days ago... Not taking any meds other than advil for the aches and i noticed the hot baths do help short term for the restless legs... Took yesterday and today off from work... couldent handle it... trying to make it through this on my own and losing my mind