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MedHelp Member's Question

slow tapering from percoset

by Joanne, Sep 16, 2000 12:00AM
Tags: Addiction
hi.  thank you brian for your advice.  i'm down to 1/2 a perc every 8 hrs. during the day and none at night.  waiting a few more days to taper to 1/2 in am., 1/4 afternoon, 1/2 in pm.  then after a few days i'll eliminate the middle of the day dose, etc.  going very slowly is the key.  i fessed up to my primary care and she was wonderful about the whole thing.  i'm wondering tho, when i finally am down to none, will i still have to endure the restlessness, loss of sleep, leg cramps, anxiety, etc?  please respond someone.  i'm so sick of this feeling.  i want my sober head back.  aa and na are helping a lot.
Member Comments (31)

by Brian to Joanne, Sep 16, 2000 12:00AM
Congratulations, you are almost there.  Since you are at a very low dosage already, presumably with none of the withdrawal symptoms you are concerned with, you may have just some mild discomfort.  Some insomnia is still likely and you may also have some mild anxiety.  It is hard to say for certain because each person is different.  If you do experience any withdrawal symptoms, ask your physician to call in some clonidine and trazodone.  These will help you to sleep and will minimize the other withdrawal symptoms.

by loanne, Sep 17, 2000 12:00AM
thanks brian.  i haven't had too much trouble sleeping,some.....but the anxiety is what you might call moderate.  back of my neck and shoulders very very tight.  tingling in the legs, but no leg restlessness like i've experienced before.  i detoxed from 8-10 bags of heroin a day 2 years ago and went 48 hrs. cold turkey before i checked into a detox.  i only pray that this will be easier than that!!!  that was hell. keep the feedback comin.  it helps soo much.

by loanne, Sep 17, 2000 12:00AM
thanks doc.  i know..i've been enduring but it's been mild to moderate.  i'm sort of hoping that the slow tapering will keep it so.  thanks again.

by Renee1060, Sep 17, 2000 12:00AM
Sounds like slow tapering is the way to go...for some of us anyway.  My mom took me to see her doctor...I told him everything that was going on with the Oxcontin use/abuse and all other meds.  He told me I was going was too fast.  He put me back on the Oxycontin and Soma and I'm going to cut back 1 pill per week.  It's going to take a very long time to get off all of it but it's more logical to do it this way.  He said that it may take up to a year for me to be completely off all of it and that if I feel I'm going too fast to just stay at that dose for a few more weeks before continuing to taper off.  The doctor stated that a person's body goes into total shock when withdrawing cold-turkey and that if you taper slowly, then your body can readjust itself slowly.  But PATIENCE IS THE KEY!!! Support is also extremely important.  I had to break down and tell my parents what exactly was happening with me which was extremely difficult but...I now have their total support and am even living with them until I find out how I'm going to feel while tapering off.  I don't know how anyone could do this by themselves...I know it was just a matter of being alive for a few more days in my case if I didn't ask for help.

It seems so difficult to believe our bodies will return to normal again..BUT THEY WILL!  And so will our minds (smile).  

How many people in here have quit cold-turkey verses tapering?  Who has tried both?

Take Care ALL!!!

by Brian to Sick and Scared § ALL you guys, Sep 18, 2000 12:00AM
Hi.  Hope you're doing well today.  Try hot baths for the anxiety/aches, they really do help.  Also, you may want to try Valerian which is an over the counter herb having similar properties to Valium.  It is not nearly as strong as Valium, but the plus side is you will not get addicted to Valerian.  Take care, Brian

by Gene to Joanne, Sep 18, 2000 12:00AM
Congratulations Joanne on your taper program & how you have been able to stick with it!  Loreen,  I stopped taking 160 - 320 mgs of Oxycontin but I didn't taper off or go cold turkey.  I went into a detox facility for 6 days.  They used methadone to detox me.  After 6 days I went home free from Oxy & methadone.  I should have gone into an inpatient rehab program but I just couldn't take the time off from work & family.  My rehab was going to AA/NA meetings every night, seeing an addiction counselor once a week & going to an addiction psychiatrist regularly.  I was pretty miserable for the 1st 4 weeks or so but I am feeling much better now after 8 weeks of sobriety.  The meetings have helped me tremendously & probably are the only thing that is keeping me from going back to Oxycontin.  I also have a sponsor.



My family, both immediate & extended has been extremely supportive of my efforts & that has helped too.

Good luck in your quest to get & stay clean!

by loanne, Sep 18, 2000 12:00AM
hey loreen.  good going.  i have tried cold turkey with heroin a coupla years ago.  i lasted 48 hrs. before checking into detox.  you'd think i might've learned something from that experiment.  but here i am tapering off percs.  i don't know what the comparison is betwee heroin and percs, but i know that i don't want to ever feel even remotely like that again.  that's why i'm tapering so slowly.  i get no euphoria or any buzz at all from 1/2 perc three times a day.  still kinda anxious tho.  my dr. tells me also to wait until my body adjusts before taking it down to 1/2 morning, 1/4 afternoon, 1/2 evening.  then eliminate afternoon, etc.  i am VERY sincer about my sobriety and will overco9me this and learn something from it with the help of aa and God.  keep posting.  it helps me a lot.

by Leigh, Sep 20, 2000 12:00AM
Hi Loreen,

I tried tapering quite a few times (Vicodin). Never successfully, though. As long as I have a pill left, somewhere, I will justify violating my tapering schedule and taking the pill. One thing leads to another, and then I'm back to my usual daily dosage. The only thing that worked for me was cold turkey. Uncomfortable and unpleasant, but at least it worked. Also, I found that tapering meant prolonging the pain. I lived in fear of reaching my last dose, and I always felt kind of lousy (probably a lot of psychological elements there--reverse placebo effect). I found it a lot more effective to just quit. It means a few days of utter misery, but I'd rather cope with a few days instead of many weeks of a watered-down withdrawal.

Just my personal opinion.

Either way, nothing works without a few meetings. And an anti-anxiety or muscle relaxer. Just be wary of substituting one addiction for another.

Good luck!

by Lynn to Neena, Sep 21, 2000 12:00AM
I'm not going to make it. I really tried to taper but guess what happened to me today? I bought 40 percs this morning and I ate more than I even want to count. The vial was brimming over this morning, what a pretty sight that WAS, now I can see the bottom, what a sickening sight that IS. I can't believe how I can't stop, I feel really ugly and awful right now. You know something, I would probably be able to handle the withdrawal, its the mental cravings and knowing I will not feel that buzz again that I won't  be able to handle. Tomorrow is another day, I hope I do better than today.

by Renee1060, Sep 21, 2000 12:00AM
Watering down the withdrawl...yeppers...that's exactly how I felt.  I was just prolonging the inevitable.  Yet I tried it cold-turkey, made it through what I was told was the hardest part, yet was still so weak and depressed that I couldn't see a light at the end of the tunnel.  Therefore, I got another script.  I don't have any choice but to follow the doctors orders and try to taper off.  But, last night the withdrawls started to hit about 6 hours after I tapered down to 80 mgs from 120 mgs on just the afternoon dose!  I couldn't believe it.  So is this the way I'm going to feel for the next few months while tapering?  Then when I'm completely off of it, will the withdrawls hit full force?  

The doctor made it sound like I shouldn't notice the slow taper yet if I did...that he will just maintain me on that level for a month or so before starting to taper again.  This is going to take YEARS!!

Joanne...when did you start to taper off the meds and how quickly?  You're doing great...keep up the great work.

I have alot of respect for all of you that have made it off of this stuff and stay off...and for everyone else that is giving it one hell of a try even though relapses seem to be a part of the recovery process.

Thank you for the info on trading one addiction for another.  It seems like it would be extremely easy to do.

by Renee1060, Sep 21, 2000 12:00AM
You'll make it Lynn!  Could you please fill me in on why you started taking the drugs in the first place?  Did you take it only to get that "euphoric" feeling, for pain,  or to get energy, etc etc?  Do you get your meds from a doc or the street?   Have you gone into rehab or tried to get help from outside sources?  I don't know how anyone could do this alone, and you sound very alone right now.

I know I felt so disgusted with myself when I got the other script.  Couldn't believe how I could do this to my family and friends and myself.  This doesn't mean we are BAD people Lynn.  It's not going to be an easy road to learn how to do everything in life all over again without something to numb our feelings or make us so high that the world seems like a hunky dorey place to live in all the time.  But life will become easier to deal with. If one can keep in mind how much misery these dang pills cause in the long-run...it seems to help from reaching for them when the cravings and withdrawls seem unbearable.

Please keep us posted as to how you're doing.

by loanne, Sep 21, 2000 12:00AM
hey.  when you asked when i started tapering i had to think about it.  it was 9/5/00  fot down to 3 1/2 pretty quick, then started going slower.  the lower the dosage, the slower the taper.  that's what i've learned around here.  i can understand wanting to get it over with and just suffer through withdrawls, but for me, because of what it felt like to kick 8-10 bags of heroin cold turkey, (for the first 48 hours), i needed to take the slow route.  it hasn't been that bad.  if the dosage cut you took is bringing on bad withdrawl, i'd call your doc, and he'll probably just go slower.  aside from some moderate anxiety, and no energy, it hasn't been bad.  i was surprised at how easy it's been so far.  i don't know what will happen when i'm finally done, but i won't be withdrawing from much more than 1/4 perc a day.  i think it's gonna be ok.  deep posting.  it helps me.

by barbara to pain and lortab, Sep 21, 2000 12:00AM


I am not looking forward to the day that my Doc finally says, okay enough of the Klonopin! Let's start the tapering! She has ignored that subject so far, but I am sure it will come up. I am on 8 mg a day and feel like **** by the morning when it has worn off. It is so much better than when I was on the booze though. I can no longer stand the thought of booze!



If the Klonopin withdrawal is anything like the alcohol withdrawal I am going to tell my Doc NO-WAY, I'll take the easy way out in the next typhoon. I have partial status epilepsy and chronic pain to deal with anyway. You have to come to that decision sometime in your life if it is really worth it. I have everything I need except human support, no family, no friends, but luckily a good A.A. sponsor which has helped tremendously. Well enough babbling for now I have to get back to work. I am probably in a bad mood because the big K is past due!



Good luck with your taperings and hope your withdrawals are not too bad!

by Sandee, Sep 22, 2000 12:00AM
I'm on my second week clean of Vicodin. I feel pretty good but know i have a long way to go. As Sharon said, tapering is not effective. Cold turkey is the only way to go. Any words of advice out there?

by barbara to pain and lortab, Sep 22, 2000 12:00AM


You seem to have beaten the physical withdrawals well, but the psychological ones will stay with you a while. I suggest meetings and lots of them for personal support, either N.A or A.A.



Good job, stay with it. You are doing alot better than me, even though I have been alcohol free for over three months, I simply replaced it with Klonopin to get off of it and help stop seizures. That will have to be dealt with one of these days.



Good luck to you, stay busy and it will keep your mind off of the negative things for the most part and help you stay clean.



I try hard but get real negative and even suicidal/homicidal after a seizure. I learned it is the typical response to the post ictal brain activity so at least now I can deal with it better than before since I understand it.



I have been having a harder time working however, because they raised the dosage of my meds to control the seizures and I am half sleeping through work and even driving I find myslef closing my eyes for a few seconds. It is getting dangerous to drive at times. I am alone so I have no choice. We don't have the choice of a transit system out here, it's either a taxi or your own car. I cannot afford a taxi or to lose my job. I have to discuss this problem further with my Doc I guess. Sorry for babbling on but I have the early morning psychobabble syndrome today!



Again, good luck and congradulations on your two weeks!

by loanne, Sep 22, 2000 12:00AM
hi sandee and sharon.  i know that tapering isn't for everyone, but it is effective for many, especially when a dr. is involved.  so, please, remember that it's an individual choice.  we're all different.  nothing negative meant by this post.  just want to make sure that people are aware that tapering does help a lot of people to minimize withdrawl.