hi there,

how's it going?

i hope you're getting a good night's rest.

do post back and let us know you're ok.

dhcdavid

many thanks for the recommendation, which i will try; did get a little sleep overnight; so sorry for your arthritis and at such a young age; i too have some conditions for which prescibed hydro has been there for years; got to the point where it felt like the hytro was just taking me in a downward spiral further and further, with less and less relief anyway, but more and more noticeable bad effects; i well know know the overwhelming fear of running short or stopping and the dark first few days of withdrawal and can only offer my hope and faith that since i have come through awhile i can do this at least one more day.  --jaxa

Dear Nfresh,

Hang on in there my friend; 48 hours clean is a worthy achievement and 48 hours opi-free must surely be celebrated!

Do indulge in lots of really hot baths (preferably with lovely smelling foam or bath salts to reward yourself) which will help no end with the aching joints and muscles no end.

On the odd occasion when I've made it to 48 hours and beyond it's always been tremedous cause for giving self-congrtatulations so make sure to give yourself a giant pat on the back.

This is my first post in this forum and having had a good look round I think I've found a very special place.

Hang on in there nfresh: plenty of fluids (fruit squash such as ribena here in the uk is excellent - high juice blackcurrant stuff), plenty of hearty winter soup( if you are in cold climes otherwise cold soup such as gazpacho or watercress flavours if you are blessed with warm weather) and tinned fruit in syrup are all food and drink items I've found most helpful when in wds.

Kind regards and best of luck,

dhcdavid
x

welcome; a uk participant will help those of us in distant time zones who can't sleep much while on detox; your experiences help others more than you might expect
--jaxa

thank you so much for some specific tips. I really appreciated also your encouraging words and to remind myself that I really am doing well. I have not taken tramadol now since sunday morning and here in france it is now wednesday morning. So I am really doing it.

I have found myself spending a lot of time in hot water and find it very soothing. Even under the shower at 3am. This morning my partner has been out to collect fruit juices. Keeping my weight on is a problem.

I wish you well whatever your own struggle, which sounds as though it has been longer and harder than mine. Thank you for your help.

dear jaxa,

My heart and soul go out to you if you're finding sleep impossible to achieve tonight - it's quite eye-opening how long nocturnal hours can seem when unable to sleep from wds!

It gives me a real kick to be part of a group like this one and really restores my shattered faith in humanity.

If you've got some milk and a stove or microwave in the house I can't recommend a hot milk drink such as hot chocolate or horlicks (a malty hot milk drink available here in the uk)to you highly enough. (Hot milk by itself or with honey in works just fine too).

Not only is it warm and soothing but I believe there's some chemical in milk (or definitely one which is released when milk is heated) which genuinely aids sleep.

Just so you know I'm 29 years old and my drug of choice (and habit) is dihydrocodeine. I suffer from ankylosing spondilitis (a form of rheumatoid arthritis)I've been on repeat prescription for about 4 years now and my average daily intake is around 500mg.

My prescription is for 14 days but I can't remember the last time I went beyond 7 days without getting it refilled.

I want to stop but am scared shitless of living without it.....the wds are absolutely awful. Anyways, more about me another time.

I hope you find rest tonight jaxa (and anyone else reading this in a similar situation) and wish you all the best.

dhcdavid
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dear cupoftea,

i'm happy my words have helped a little.

i'm most familiar with tramadol myself having been prescribed it on top of dihydrocodeine a number of times over the years for break-through pain.

it's really most addictive and i know what wds are like from it.

keeping the weight on is definitely a battle but don't fight too hard....you sound like you're blessed with a partner who can help you out so perhaps you don't even need to leave the house for a few days?

concentrate mainly on keeping yourself hydrated by drink LOTS of fluid....if you're sweating like crazy (as most folks do in wds) then drinking lots of fluids is essential if you want to avoid awful headaches and felling any sicker then you probably already do.

well, i must head off now so hang in there cupoftea (excellent name, by the way!) and stay strong.

peace.

dhddavid
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Thanks again david. The advise about fluids is good and I have now got pineapple juice and grape juice. You are right to point out that I have a supportive partner, he is simply fantastic and I am so lucky.

I spent last night sleeping fitfully between raging back pain and fiery sweating.

I am also pleased to have someone on the same time zone. Your medical history is also difficult. I have posted somewhere already that my lifetime of working with the pain of terminal illness has left me completely unprepared for the very different problems associated with the control of chronic pain.

I wish you well.

so true; i figure I can't have beat myself with this chemical sledgehammer for so many years without a whole lot of damage; must need a lot of healing (and before i thought what i neeeded was more pills, but those were robbing me of clarity/energy to work on healing via nutrition, exercise, etc.--on the pills i found my self so darn lethargic); completed a full week clean monday a.m. and noticed how tired i have felt afternoons and evenings, but the days have longer and better bright spots, with the anxiety and cravings way down; still on track.

--jaxa

Yes it is really great to know that there are others from Europe writing on this forum (I live in Denmark), even thought I haven't had to wait long for an answer. Still I'm never quite sure whether everyone else is asleep, when I join the forum.
And also nice to know that others have similar experience with tramadol/ultram which I now wish I never had been described (I now take 12 tramadol a day). I commend Cupofteaand anyone else for staring pain straight in the eye and stopping or tapering anyway. I am still trying to gather enough courage to start tapering, I'm still at the point where I think tomorrow ;-) although I must say that I have a job that keeps me extremely busy.

I am so grateful that I found this forum on the internet, the supoprt is excellent and much of the information is also very enlightening. Take care.

Don't be hard on yourself for being cautious about starting this. I was naive at the beginning of the week and may not have been so rash if I had read more before I started. Also, if you are working then things are very different and need more  planning. I was working until the end of last year but was made redundant. So I have the luxury of no external expectations. I admire your braveness in thinking about doing a detox whilst working and I wish you all the best.

seems the forum has spread its wings to Europe as well! Wonderful!  I dunno what's happening with me right now... 51 hours and counting; everyone reports the drenching sweats - I've been drenching myself in sweats for the past 10 or 15 years of my addiction, now I'm cool/dry as a cucumber (are cukes cool?)- maybe because I've been doing so little physical activity... went for a walk this morning feeling weak and old and dizzy, came back, took a valium and passed out... time for a shower I guess... I'm all achy but not so terrible, I've been living with pain for decades and the opiates never really helped so much anyways, just boosted my mood, and now my mood is going south... I'm starting to feel so down ("I need a fix cuz I'm going down..." -- beatles, from "happiness is a warm gun") and I'm DEFINITELY not considering taking anything now... it's just that I'm feeling so lowly, at least these first few days are Exciting!  Going off the junk after all these years!  Torture, maybe, but torture also has its dramatic side... and people care, they're cheering me on, praying for me (I NEED it, believe in it!)and then these few blessed tortuous days will end and it'll just be me, back in my life (great life, no complaints) except for one eensy-teensy detail... I WON'T BE THERE NOMORE!!  I'll be creeping and crawling around avoiding pressure excitement challenge scaling spiritual vistas, tackling new creative ventures, or how about just plain inspiring and helping people????!!!  Naw, I've gotta be careful, it's past 7 and if I don't go to bed I'm bound to relapse y'know... WAAA- WAAA - WAAA!!!  I've had a deathwish since age 11 battling my do-good wish that I've had since about the same time... I was on network news at age 12 as pres. of the student council raising money selling used comic books for the widow of MLK Jr. after the assassination... next year I was barfing  psylocybin mushrooms on the way to the jr. high school spring fair...  Sorry about all this silly bio ****... just trying to work things out... sorry all...Nefesh

Dear Nefesh,

I do hope you stick with your plan: even though you've been using for quite a few years you sound really determined to quite and that's an excellent sign.

As you commented on, it's simultaneously exhilerating and terrifying to say goodbye to our drug of choice, which has not only been a bad thing in our life but also a crutch, a (seemingly) best friend and something which has always been there for us.

But I fervently believe you're doing the right thing and I will remember you in my thoughts and will try to send some positive vibes across the atlantic!

Stick with it.

All the best,

dhcdavid

I don't get it....

where have all the 13 posts in this subject gone to?

OK!

They're all back now.

Guess my computer (and me) were just having a mental blip today!

OK, it's bedtime for me UK time so good luck to you Nefesh and the other posters here.

Dhcdavid
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I wish you well and think i recognise the feelings. I am dragging myself round some housework to try and see if by acting normal I might become more  normal. But it's so hard with the aching everywhere and the banging in my chest. Hope you can get some sleep. Surely that must help. I wish I could, but my back pain gets in the way of that. All roads seem to go nowhere at the moment. Keep strong and keep going, what else can we do?