CAN I EVER TAKE LORTAB AGAIN

[flatsman]

Hi to everyone here. As I said in my first post, I have been off lortab for 12 days now. I took one and some time two but rarely two 10mg lortabs almost every day for two years. I have always had a bunch of them in my closet but have always been able to control not going overboard. But I have to be honest , it started as a relef for pain in my hips. Then it got to be a mood elevator. My question is this. I want to be able to use them for pain only. Two to three days in a row max. Then let it leave my system for three or four days. Is this something that sounds workable? They really relieve my pain and allow me to excersise daily. Cant always excersise otherwise, cause the pain is too much. I am very aware of addiction and think I fear it enough to maintain useing them for pain only. But not every day. Need your help here. What do you guys and gals think?  John

[DaBomb1]

Can you die from lortab withdraws? I want to stop but am so scared. I didn't have any one day and the withdraws were the worst thing I ever felt!!!

[flatsman]

Thanks you for your input,good luck to you in your detox effort. I had a very good friend die from oxycontin when he was 30 yrs old. Its a very dangerous drug when abused. Im not saying thats what you were doing. Im just telling a story in my life. I have never taken anything but lortab and never took more than one and sometime two per day. But I never want to get into a real bad situation. I live by myself and would have to go it alone. Good luck to you and your husband. John

[shannonhoon]

Hi, I'm in week 3 of quitting oxycontins cold turkey.  The withdrawals were hell and I'm still emotional.  I started to take them for chronic back and leg pain.  I started out using them correctly but I did eventually abuse them, something happened in my life that brought me to my knees and was not able to cope so yeah I started abusing.  Well now I'm in a fine mess because I'm in so much pain it makes me cry, Keeps me awake at night.  I have no quality of life.  My husband and I have come up with a plan because we now realize that I need medication stronger then Tylenol 3, it barely takes the edge off.  The plan is if my doc prescribes another drug, never oxycontins again, my husband will have and control the pills and I won't take it everyday.  I want no time release meds they are  way to addictive and dangerous.  It's decision making time and trust me it's hard.  I never want to withdraw from anything again.  So I feel your pain and anxiety about starting on something again.  Quality of life versus meds.  In any case that's our plan so far, I have a good husband who has been through it all with me.  If you have a someone who can control how much you take it is a bonus, also stay away from time release meds because who knows if you'll bite into it.........take care

[flatsman]

Thanks again for all the good commments. I did suffer some w/d . Took about five or six days to feel better. I dont have anything to compare my w/d to, but after reading the stories on this site I suspect it was very mild compared to what it could be. Maybe I am fooling myself but when I said I did also use lortab for a mood elevation, but I really do have chronic hip and lower back pain. The lortab made that manageable and I could be very physically active.  This is day 13 of no lortab and it makes me feel very good about myself. Here comes the rub.With each passing day I am sitting on the ice packs more and more. Moaning when I move and getting worn out by noon from the constant pain. This is pain that I would say is a 7. Its not enough to keep me in bed but its not enough to be as active as I have always been. I am 60 years old but have always enjoyed sports. The lortab took that away and it was a much better quality of life. My doctor told me I would not ever become addicted to lortab at the doses I was useing. He thinks if it improves my quality of life . then it is worth it. But when I read these forums it scares the hell out of me.Dont know what to do, feel like I can control it. I have always had over 100 lortabs in the house and never took more than two 10mg lortabs in a day in two years of takeing them. I apologize for rambling but its sooooo important.John

[worried878]

u stated u used them as a mood elevator..granted..u kept the dose fairly low...but using them as a mood elevator is abuse..and not a good sign....one day if some sorta crisis hits in ur life this could get out of control..did u suffer any wd?  if ur pain was at a level that could be controlled with 10-20 mgs of lortab..then chances are u can control it with a safer drug...and i would if i were u..but i am not u and we r all different..keep postig

[HelpinUtah]

Personally, if you know that your drug of choice (Lortab which was mine too) has caused you to become addicted in the past, then I would stay away from them.  Once we are addicts, I believe we are always addicts.  I took Lortab for chronic pain as well.  I took it as prescribed and then they stopped working and started taking more and more until then I realize it also helped me feel numb against emotional baggage and BANG there's where the addiction came in.  It sounds like you had a similar experience.  

Can you take Ibuprofen or other NSAIDS?  Or, talk to your doctor about it and see what he/she thinks.

My doctor prescribes me darvocet for when the pain is really bad, but darvocet doesn't really help that much and so honestly it's probably better to just stick with tylenol or ibuprofen.  

Good luck!  

Hugs,
Janet

[Ella789]

  It is rough when a person suffers from chronic pain and needs the help, I know this myself.  It is so very easy to get attached to this stuff.  You know I can not speak for you only myself.  They consumed me during the 5 years I took them.  I became tolerant to the few I took per day and needed more and more.  Please just be careful, it is easy to talk yourself into something and then realize it is more addiction relief than pain relief.  Just my thoughts, be careful :)

Ella