Hollow feeling.

So I'm coming up on the end of my 5th day w/o painkillers.  The withdrawals are completely gone, but my brain feels drained.  I know this is from the lack of endorphins.  For those of you have quit for a long time, I'm just curious, because I know everybody's different, but how long did it take you to feel back to normal.  I still have no desire to take pills, and I'm thinking that multivitamins, good diet, and exercise will speed up this process tremendously.

[overopiates]

U know its normal+know the reason why u feel like this+thats great give it time2regulate.I was taking AD meds4a while.Was taking cymbalta about2-3months b4I quit the opiates.I honestly didnt think ANY AD meds worked cause I tried at least4-5 different types through the years.Until I stopped those awful opiates I had NO clue how much they help til10-14days after I was done w/the pills(i really believe AD meds have no chance of working when abusing opiates).So I would say I started feeling emotionally better n2weeks.I had my days of course but I continued2feel better a little more each day.It was a great day when I woke up I was laughing,just happy&didnt realize it for hours.Now I did have days especially n the begining where I had spurts of happiness I didnt realize.I would go back+fourth4a couple weeks then b4u know it ur normal again(normal emotions,happy just cause)

[LeaAnn807]

Hi!!  Yes, those things will speed physical and mental recovery.  You also need aftercare.  Sometimes that is the missing link that we need to get back to normal.  I think that everyone goes through a normal "hollow" feeling.  Like something is missing? That's because there is!!!  It takes time for your brain to repair (and body) from all that it has had done to abuse it.  I'd say that it's normal to feel that way for a month or more, as far as the hollow, depressed, "something's missing" feeling.  Some people even say six months or a year isn't uncommon.  

Definitely do the amino acid protocol and get out and get exercise of some kind every day.  You'll feel better before long! : )  

Congrats on your clean time!  I'm cheering for ya!

[overopiates]

U know its normal+know the reason why u feel like this+thats great give it time2regulate.I was taking AD meds4a while.Was taking cymbalta about2-3months b4I quit the opiates.I honestly didnt think ANY AD meds worked cause I tried at least4-5 different types through the years.Until I stopped those awful opiates I had NO clue how much they help til10-14days after I was done w/the pills(i really believe AD meds have no chance of working when abusing opiates).So I would say I started feeling emotionally better n2weeks.I had my days of course but I continued2feel better a little more each day.It was a great day when I woke up I was laughing,just happy&didnt realize it for hours.Now I did have days especially n the begining where I had spurts of happiness I didnt realize.I would go back+fourth4a couple weeks then b4u know it ur normal again(normal emotions,happy just cause)

[gnarly_1]

HI.......A  lot has to do with how heavy and hard your habit was....how many years of abuse and your age so it kinda hard to say the 20somethings pop up like nothing happened if your in your 40s lie I was it was tramatic recovery is a gradual process like addiction itself it dosent happen overnight but if you stay clean day by day your brain will repair itself in 2 weeks you will feel a lot better then you do now then again in another 2 weeks the same just hang in there look up the amino acid protacal on the lower part of this page and get the supplements I always recamend whey protein shakes there only 15 bucks at walmart and come in 3 flavors a 2lb can last a wile drick 2 a day there loaded with the amino acids as well as extra vitamins and raw protein all of witch the brain needs to heal this is not a quick fix but rather building blocks for recovery give it a try good luck and God bless......Gnarly  

[justneedtotalk]

You have some good advice here.....I would just like to reaffirm your statement about supplements, protein drinks, proper diet, and EXERCISE....According to numerous clinical studies, exercise has been proven to significantly speed up the endorphine building process.  Gnarly said it best that it all depends on how long and how much you have taken.  I have read studies where people are around 45% of normal after a month.  It rebuilds quicker but usually takes about 6 months to a year to completely heal.  Do not let this discourage you though.  After just a month I felt 110% better than I did while on pills.  I was taking 150-200 mg's a day, EVERY DAY for about 6-7 years and also had a bout with methadone and I noticed a huge difference after just a few weeks sober.  You truly get out of detox, what you put into it!  The thing about detox is that it takes time and time creeps by the first week or so but soon you will become active again and this will distract you from dwelling on how you are feeling or the time that goes by and sober days will start to stack up.  If you stick to your supplement regiment and get 35-50 minutes of good exercise a day, you will start to feel better quickly.

Well, congrats on the clean time.....I would also recommend some form of aftercare (AA or NA).  It helps tramendously!!!!  

[Hydroco_Done]

Thank you guys!  I'd believe it would take that long to fully repair and accept that.  As for the AD, I started them back in march and they didnt have much time to be fully active before I started using the hydrocodone.  To me all of your words are encouraging.  I'm 22, been taking painkillers on and off for 3 years, and only recently started taking them everyday, about 2 1/2 months of 20-40mg hydro a day and 2 weeks of 120-200mg per day, with a couple three day breaks between it all.  I'm feeling pretty anxious today so I took some Vitamin B hopefully that will help me feel better.  It's an empty feeling, but I think the fact that I understand why it's happening helps me a lot!

[overopiates]

Ur so young.im really happy u decided2stop now so u can enjoy ur20's.I pretty much missed mine(just turned30+hoping2enjoy them).Im hoping ur AD meds start doing there job soon.Im glad ur feeling better

[Free_ovitall]

what helps you feel better immediately is taking amino acid supplements, vitamins, and eating proper foods that supply the essential and non-essential amino acids. Exercise as you suspect, helps as well. Check out the amino acid protocol page ant the bottom of the page.

[Hydroco_Done]

Thank you overopiates I will enjoy them and the rest of my life after I fully recover!  

Free_ovitall, I've been reading over it and decided that I'm going to get everything I need for it sometime this week!

[Letitgonow]

I'm on day 8 now.

I'm finding that when I have a hollow/depressed low energy day that doing cardio (not weights) helps a lot more. Weights need to be done on a day you're already feeling alright -- I've never been a cardio person with exercise but doing 40 minutes last night has kept me in a good mood for 12+ hours after an entire day of being sluggish, hollow, and drained.

I'll also say this, hollow days seem to be followed by a good day - these are the ups and downs of the mental game.

Stay strong, stay focused, in moments of doubt do your best to exercise hard and fight through it... it's amazing how different you feel just 30-50 minutes later.

[Hydroco_Done]

Good job on staying clean for 8 days Letitgonow!  You're probably in roughly the same boat that I'm in at this point.  I've been exercising for the last 2 days biked 13 miles yesterday and about 8 miles today.  I feel good for about 2-4 hours afterwords then my mind just goes back to feeling completely devoid of pleasure.  I've been in sort of a weird haze today.  I got a mild headache that started about an hour after I finished working out, and I feel completely uninterested in my surroundings.  Not as much depressed as just devoid of emotion.  Saw the sun setting on the way home from school today, and that made me kind of happy, but nothing else really seems to phase me in either direction right now.  I did take some adderall (adderrall) today (Prescribed 20mg IR daily for ADD), but i always break them in half, take half in the morning, a quarter 5-6 hours later, and the last quarter 4 hours later if it's not too late.  Perhaps that could be it?  I'm not really sure..