Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Addiction: Substance Abuse Community
This community is a place to share information and support with others who are trying to stop using drugs, prescription drugs, alcohol, tobacco or other addictive substances. Discuss with others, the symptoms of addiction, addiction recovery, ways to quit like tapering and cold turkey, and withdrawal symptoms. If you are interested in general "chat", please visit our Addiction Social Community.
Oxycontin withdrawal
by Oxyclean, Jan 03, 2003 12:00AM
I have been tapering my amount of Oxycontin for about a month now. I am down to 10mg in the AM and 10mg in the PM. My doctor had me taking them three times a day before. I really feel the difference with the twice a day dose. He is having me cut down 10mg every week. I was fine until this week. Does anyone have any advice for me? I can not stand the weekness in my legs already and I am not finished tapering. I am really afraid of cutting down to once a day on Tuesday.....help!
My first thought would be that your doctor may be detoxing you too fast. I would explain to him your symptoms and ask if he could do it slower. I know for me (different drug) the slower the better!! It may prolong the detox awhile longer but at least the withdrawals will be a lot milder.
Sharon
You are currently at a level where you now need to switch to a short acting med, like percocet, lortab, or norco. Preferrable the hydrocodone, not the oxycodone which is in percocet. That will ease you through these last couple weeks of taper.
That is just my opinion. As well as personal experience. I have went through both. I founnd it easier to switch to hydrocodone when I was at a low enough dose of the oxcontin to ease the withdrawal systems.
Good luck, you are down to a fairly low level of opiates. These last few weeks will be easier if you switch to the shorter acting meds prior to getting off completely.
Good luck, you have come a long way.
The end of the road is near,
Chezz
Sharon
I lost my mom to cancer about 4 months ago. After she passed away I came across some of her pain medication that had not been disposed of. It was MS Contin and MSIR. Both morphine substances, one being slow release and one being quick. I should have thrown them away at the time but I kept them because I thought that they would help me "feel better" in dealing with the loss of my mom. When I took it for the first time it gave me that euphoric feeling that everything would be OK. At first I only took it three or four times a week and never thought about addiction. Eventually I had to increase the dosage to get the same feeling. What it has come down to is that over the last 6 weeks I have taken it almost daily in doses ranging from 50 to 100 mg. I have tried to skip days but I hated the withdrawal symptoms so I would use just enough to get me through the day. I do not need to take it around the clock. It is now 10:15 am and I feel fine. Yesterday I did not take any until 3:00 in the afternoon. I think I can make it through a day without it but I am sure it will be difficult. I am now down to my last few pills. I have several questions that maybe you could help me with. Are the withdrawal symptoms the worst in the first 2 or 3 days or does the worse come later? What can I expect? I do have Klonopin that I can take at night to help me sleep. Should I go see my doctor and "fess up" to what happened or will he not be able to help me because I took someone else's medication? If I stop cold turkey do I face severe health issues or just severe withdrawal symptoms? I guess my question is: could I die from withdrawal? I guess I need to know if I can do this on my own. I am ready to stop. That I am sure of. I am just scared of the W/D symptoms. I have a wife (and 2 small kids)but I do not want her to know what has happened. I guess it boils down to one question: Should I see my doctor or can I get through this on my own? I just want to do what is best for my health.
I am sorry for taking up your time but if you have any advice I would love to hear it. God Bless all of you! You provide a great service!
Sharon
6 days,runnu nose, cold sweats, the shits, body pain,
reatless leg at night, unable to sleep at night.
depression which can be severe, totlo lack of energy.
basicaly flu like symptoms week one, you are in no real danger
with the withdrawls, tho you may feel like death.
there is a receipe of vitamins here at this fourm known as thomas receipe, im sure you have seen it if you have been reading
the last few months.
the shits in week one will deplete you of all nutreints in your body ,this will make the withdrawls more painful, so
it is advised to take imodium in the 1st week.
having something to take to help you sleep in week one is
also advised , like valume or xanax, , klonipin.
L-trrosine 500 mg 8 a day week one ,4 aday weeks after.
you may want to ajust the l-tyrosine.
b-6 100mg 2 a day ,take them in the morning with the l-tyrosinr.
a strong multy vitamine 1 a day
vitamine s A.-- C and E
calsium -magnisum
zinc
there are 3 or four other ingredents you wil have to look them up or somone will post them
you can start taking the ones i mentioned right away.
peace!!!!!!!
day and night.
Good thing it's not your toe - then we would have to call a Toe Truck! (Compliments of my 7 year old!)
Rex
i have been resting for 2 days so , the knees feel
okay, but i can't rest forever.
back to the daily grind on monday at 5 am.
i have an appointment with the philadelphia eagles
ortho ,doctor to look at the right knee and see if there is a solution.
it is ice and rain here , that does not help.
peace ,
got to go out , be back in a few hours.
got to take my dad for his radation treatment.
To answer your question--No, you will not die from opiate withdrawal. Unlike withdrawals from alchohol or benzos, opiate withdrawal is not dangerous. You may, however, feel like you'd like to die. But you can do it. I was scared to death about detoxing. My fear kept me using for several months after I had decided I wanted to quit. Use the Thomas recipe given above. Many will swear by it.
You are amongst friends. There are many hear that have experienced exactly what you are about to go through. Lean on this forum for support. Your use, while high, was of a relatively short duration. This cuts in your favor. Best regards.
Glad you are feeling better.
Rex
Its funny. Now that I am off the opiates, my mind has been craving about everything else--alchohol, pot, etc. I never was really into any of these substances before. I think I trying to trick myself into another addiction. Have you experienced any of this? Honestly, I don't feel a strong desire to use opiates anymore. Probably, because they kicked my ass so bad that I have a genuine fear of them. I know 12 step programs teach total sobriety. So far so good for me, but I am bewildered by my cravings.
I been on every narcotic a doctor can prescribe..I'm not about war stories....my last run...was ummmm hummm....320 mgs - 380 mgs
a day...eating Ultram 4-8 @ a time...Prococets 10 mgs and Oxy IR 5mgs like candy..Put it this way...I would chew 2-3 80 mgs of oxycotin @ a time then flush them down with hot tea...I would take anywhere between 50 mgs - 80 mgs between my on oxycotin..yumm..yumm fun...and this is with the Ultram...Before I decided instead of feeling mentally, spritually dead..I would live with my chronic pain...I'm on day 8th of my detox...and I haven't slept in almost 5 days now..but know I can see what I was..and forgot the person I used to be!
It's going to hurt *wrong word* theres no magic cure....our body and brain chimistry is dilvering us a bill...and its time to PAY UP!
Like in the Movie Training DAY...when Denzel say's "KING KONG don't have **** on me"! *Man UP*
Step up to the plate...cause its either us or the drugs...period. If you can get through the first 5 days then your almost over the hump.
I did this all out-patient with an addictionologist...There cheap and if you can get your pain meds you can pay for a consult there cheap.
All he gave me was all the basic stuff you read about...I'm not going to post the dosages and times...I'm not a doctor.
The main med was CLONODINE or are used primarily to drop the blood