Addicted to tramadol
 

I'm new here, and only because i do not have any other person to speak to this about, i am 20 and i have been misuing tramadol for almost a year now. and not because i have chronic pain or somethign like that, i just like it. before it though, i was a regular ganga man, drank too, would expiriment with other things, and over the few years i have come to senses and now only deal with alachol, pot and tramadol. for some reason i keep drinkin smoking and taking this stuff for no apparent reason really to pass time by cause most times there is nothing to do where i live, i like my weed, helps the mind to ease, i like my drink, helps to think, and i like my tramadol, cause there is no other drug that does it all. and my problem with them is i really dont want to do any of them, i work to have a healthier life, i really do, but i constantly slip into my woes again and again, and now i have realized this addiction and would like to see if anybody has been addicted to these and knows the minds' addiction part, no religion or philispohsy please, just the down home by yourself perspective of it. its killing me slowly and i would most not like this. there are ways i know, but i deal mostly by myself alot, so i'm open to perspectives. take it easy.

Welcome to SR!

..hi discoman
..may be cut back on the dope and booze..but..big but..

..see a doc about gettin' off Tramadol..thats powerful and very
addictive..nice you posted..thanx..Oz..

hey discoman,

as ozboy mentioned, i would encourage you to immediately see a dr. re: getting off tramadol. this stuff is real bad news. trust me, i know. last december, i had a full on grand mal seizure because of taking too much tramadol...convulsing on the floor for over fifteen minutes, vomiting, not knowing where i was, memory lapses, etc...i ended up in the hospital and now i'm footing massive bill that i can't afford all because i was chasing some illusory 'high'. simply put, it's just not worth it. this s*** will take everything from you. besides the dramatically elevated seizure risk, tramadol also manifests crippling withdrawal symptoms when discontinued so please seek medical help...not trying to be too blunt here, but this stuff is nothing to mess around with. there's much better ways to "pass the time" than dancing with this demon. originally, i started taking tramadol after quitting alcohol, but i ended up just trading addictions; however, now i'm glad to say that i am dependent on neither. and i'm definitely not here to preach to you, but i nearly lost my life messing with this crap and i'd hate to see it happen to someone else. please take care and make dealing with the tramadol issue your first priority.

Hi Discoman

I'm going to go with the flow here and recommend you seek medical supervision with the tramadol...while you're there it wouldn't hurt to raise the subject of the weed and booze too.

You'll find a lot of suggestions here - some involve religion and philosophy, but don't dismiss anything out of hand

I liked my booze and weed and other stuff too for a lot of years - but I did so much of it I realised I wasn't taking it...it had started to take me.

If you know what I mean, then I know you'll want to do whatever it takes to stop and stay stopped.

D

I agree with the others...though the alcohol and weed isn't good for you either, PLEASE get medical supervision with the tramadol.....many, many people here have had seizures with that stuff - absolutely nothing to fool around with.

Read around, there are quite a few people here who have/have had the same vices. Lot of support around here.

Hugs and prayers!

Amy

well i appreciate the words that have been sent my way. the tramadol, thing is really with the tramadol, it only intrests me when i know i will be busy, its a bit hard to explain, but i am really focused on the point, but seem to be in a haze when i am, and i can get a lot more done i never took it for any kind of pain, i just took it as a means of having lots more energy and endurance. and i would take it for weeks straight and then leave it alone for a month or so, and back in again when i thought i needed more, but now, i have started to crave it when i know i dont want it, odd. the thing though with the booze, its always around somehow, either my pops, brother, or friends. but it always seems to be around. that too comes and goes, drink for a week and clean for a while, and back in again. and the ganga, i play all sorts of music and produce alot of music for people, everyone i'm around smokes it, near me or with me, for alot of people i have met, its a bonding experience for them, helps ease the tensions and relaxes the mood for going hours on end in recording, but i have noticed my health is taking a beating and i cant help but fall for it over and over, i feel like its a part of life in some ways, but i know its a dangerous one, and i intend to live old. its psychological in lots of ways. i do appreciate the concerns.

I take tramadol for disc problems in my back and it never did a thing for me except constipate me, I'm surprised of it's addictive nature I'd never heard that, guess i'm lucky it has such a negative side effect for me

i was taking tramadol for knee and elbow pain. it's pretty easy to talk your doctor into because it's not a 'narcotic'.....right.

i was on it for a few years. i was somewhat moderated by the prescription for it. when i'd get a new bottle i'd eat 6-8 for the first few days....near the end of the prescription i'd have to cut down to 2 or 3....those days sucked.

i quit it cold turkey. crazy withdrawal symptoms. after i had quit i did some reading on it and that was stupid to do. from what i can remember it called for tapered withdrawal.

i should have, and you should speak to your doctor about getting off of it. i've been off of alcohol for over 160 days now and i thank goodness that i am not on the tramadol in its place.

see a doc but get off of it as soon as possible. it might not be crack or meth but it's not good for you by any means.

Mrs
 

Is that the same as ultram? That stuff is very addictive. Cut back little at a time.

I hope that you will talk to your dr and be honest about what you've been doing.

I'm glad you found us and decided to post.

yes, its just called tramadol, generic or so, but yes its ultram

Mrs
 

I had taken it for a few yrs once. Before I started drinking. My dr. said it was non-narcartic. Well, when I tried to stop it eas hell on earth. I remember being so tired. And my arms couldn't be still. Restlest legs. I had to cut back about a fraction of a pill. took a while to get off. This has been years ago.
Now I am going thru the same thing with morphine. I guess and addict never learns.

I'm shocked by all the posts I've seen here and on other websites about the "horrors" of tramadol. I take it regularly and find that it works fairly well for pain, has an antidepressant effect, makes me feel lively and energized, and has no side effects other than mild to moderate constipation. I've taken it and then stopped before - tried other opioids and opiates - came back to tramadol again. Some that I've taken: morphine, vicodin, dilaudid, subutex/suboxone, methadone, Demerol. I've never gone through any withdrawal more severe than general fatigue and a headache. I think that is because I take short breaks from using the pills (half a day to 2-3 days) a couple of times a month, plus I rotate painkillers every couple of months ( like using morphine, then tramadol, then Demerol, then dilaudid, buprenorphine, back to tramadol, and so on), vary dosage from day to day, more one day, then less, then more, etc...it works for me and it is currently working for another friend of mine - he has not experiences any real withdrawals, either. So, consider using tramadol the way we do...you should be more comfortable...and quitting should be easier if you really want to. Personally, I see no reason to quit using this helpful, pleasant drug! Also, I'd like to pass on a tip for easing/preventing constipation: try Breyer's CarbSmart ice cream. I've been told that Trader Joe's brand of sugarless chocolate helps, too, and Alli, a dieting med/supplement sold in drugstores/major chain stores, no prescription. Sugar "alcohols" (not the kind that get you drunk - it's a dietetic sweetener... and fat substitutes...or diet supplements which block your body from absorbing some of the fat in your food: these seem to lubricate the system somehow and are a godsend for the terminally constipated. Don't forget drinking tons of water, getting extra high fiber foods in the diet, and use prune juice or plum juice, and spinach, especially cooked or even canned. Nausea: Try cola syrup, ginger tea or ginger ale, vitamin B-6 in large doses, sublingual B-12 or injected B-12 and B-vitamins in general, a small amount of crackers or French/sourdough white bread rather than an empty stomach. Or a little banana, maybe a bit of white rice. I like alternating hot and cold showers when I feel sluggish or achy, along with the scent of lavander, eucalyptus, peppermint or cinnamon. Hope this helps someone out there!

Welcome to SR Bettie

Thanks for your post.

Please make sure tho that you read up on our medical advice rule so we're all on the same page.

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...al-advice.html

I'm glad that tramadol holds no issues for you or your friend.
I've never taken tramadol but in my time here, it's obviously a problem for many.

I figure it's not unusual. Lots of people can drink alcohol. I can't. Lots of people can smoke weed. I can't.

Yet every other drug I've ever taken was always a once off 'meh...I can take or leave that'

I tried many different ways to 'take' my 'medicine' but I think once you cross a line, you have to accept that substance will always be a problem for you.

D

I have dispensed Tramadol to patients for years, and I have seen some people take it for a fortnight, four times a day, and then stop, no problem. I have also seen people see little green men after taking just one (not joking).

I was stupid enough to borrow a packet from my brother once, and I loved the feel of it - I was good tempered all day and had tons of energy. Then surprise surprise I needed more to get the same feeling. I felt really achy and fluey if I didn't take them - so I quit cold turkey and it was hellish - legs and arms twitching, flu symptoms - never again!!!

Disoman it does sound like you prefer the world in a non-sober light! I personally couldn't face being sober until the alternative was me in the gutter, and so I nearly got to that point - do you think you can be sober and face the world (by sober I mean not under the influence of any drug at all)? xxx

I switched from Percocet to Tramadol a year or two ago, before my addictions reached their present point. At the time, it was presented to me by my doctor (treated for sciatic nerve issues from 3 herniated discs in lower back) as non-narcotic with no physical dependency risk. I took 200 mg right off and, long story short, I liked the high better than oxycodone, plus lots of extra energy. Before long I was taking more than 1,200 mg/day, for months. I never suffered any seizures like some experience, though I would get bad, short twitches when I would begin to doze off, but for the most part no other symptoms, except for awful withdrawal when I ran out. Don't believe anyone who says it isn't physically addicting. The Internet propped up my addiction since it is a lower (or higher, can't recall how it goes) schedule drug and easily available. Also, I'm not sure, but I think my massive Tramadol intake caused me to develope large kidney stones, which hospitalized me for a while. I cut it out after that, switching back to my opiate problem, which has ruined my life. If you are anything like me you brook no counsel but your own when it comes to drugs, so I'll spare it, offering only my own personal experience. I'm late 30's and had a wonderful, beautiful wife, a great start to my career, close relationship with friends and family, etc. I have none of those now.

This is my first post actually on anyone else threads other than my own so here goes..

I've been taking abusing tramadol along with my 18 year old brother for roughly 5 years, so I've learned a fair few things about in my time. I will admit, its my favorite drug, above weed, xtc, booze, anything, it trumps them all. If i havent taken any for a while nothing beats that sudden buzz where all my depression goes, the surge of energy and that peace it brings.

But im sure anyone whos abused it knows how short lived these effects are and the 2 tablets that worked wonders, is now 8 and you kinda just feel 'ok'.

We both stopped sleeping properley, because it felt so good to be up, we would both have the 'nod' where our eyes would drop with tiredness but the tablets kept our minds awake. We'd sleep and then wake up with a head ripping headache, MASSIVE lack of energy, strength, like youd been to the gym for 12 hours with a pro bodybuilder.

Life was crap, in the end I would start the session of with taking 4 of them on an empty stomach to increase their effectiveness, sometimes drinking coffee to increase their uptake into my system, and then not eat anything all day because I didnt want to destroy my 'high'. In the end there wasnt any high, just taking them for fear of NOT taking them, its a VERY horrible state of affairs when you literally cannot operate without gurning of teeth through pain killers.

Let me warn you, that anything over 400mg (i believe most tablets are 50mg), that it increase the rise of seizures greatly, so please take care if you do continue to take them. Just listen to me when I tell you when your taking 8 a day to feel normal and no longer to feel high, your previous life seems a hell of alot easier.

On the UPSIDE though, is that withdrawal is short lived and you can return to normal within 5 days, but they are going to be hellish and not something you should undertake lightly or without preparation (ie, time of work, people to help you... a plan.).

if you need any more info drop me a line.

good to see you again Artifical - how's your recovery going?

D

Bette for Real are you for REAL? WOw... Human beings never cease to amaze me. To the original poster... I did the tramadol thing for about 8 to 10 years. I hear you about 2 turning into eight then suddenly your taking upwards of 35 each time. I too found these things uncannily difficult to stop taking. I only quit after I had lost my business, my house, every belonging, girlfriend, and almost lost my life in the process. I played this VERY close to the line. The good news is.. quitting can be completley manageable if you decide to throw yourself into doing it. I saw a doctor when I quit and followed his instructions. Tramadol was a beast for me. Best drug ever.. Gave me energy and an instant personality. It was the fuel for my life for a long time. I loved it dearly. I descended to my lowest depths with this crap, and I can say today that I feel just as good today sober as I did on my best day high.
I dont mean to step on anyones toes or maybe I do but you cant ask for help then immediately start putting restrictions and requirements on what your gonna accept. I did this and what it produces is a whole rash of quitting then starting again as you desperatley try to quit and prove that for some reason you are not subject to the natural laws that we all find ourselves obliged to follow. Srry the real world does not work that way all the time. I wish you luck and I empathize, really I do.. it was not so long ago that I was in full blown addiction looking for a little hope. I found a little here on this page
Chris