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Looking for advice

I have been taking norco for about 4- 5 years off and on, and am definitely addicted. Although I only take 3-4 per day, I have a serious problem and want to get off of them asap. I started taking them for back pain, and have been on them ever since. I am worried about withdrawals, as I have tried to quit before and had very bad stomach cramps, panic attacks, etc. I am really worried. I am also really worried about my liver/kidneys after using  them for so long. I am 36, in grad school, have a 12 year old and am married. No one in my family or circle of friends knows I have this problem. I feel very much alone.

Elie209
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1831920 tn?1320857757
Let us know when you start.  Keep us updated.
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Avatar universal
I cannot tell all of you how much it means to have support. I have never been able to talk to anyone about this, and now I feel free. I don't feel so alone anymore. The crazy thing is, I actually started taking these after my daughter had brain and leg surgery around 2005. She is 12 now, and was about 6 at the time. Her doctors would give her all of these pills for pain, like oxycodon and lortab. I took one at one point for pain resulting from a toothache, and noticed what they did for my ANXIETY that I was going through at the time, managing my daughter who was so sick, graduate school, my job, a pending divorce. It's funny, the more you think back on the history of how your addiction started you now come to see things about the origins you hadn't considered before. Sometime after, I went to my own doctor for back pain, and was given norco. So, over time, I would switch around between oxycodon, norco, lortab, or sometimes vicodin. I would decide which "feeling" I wanted for the day, and that would be the pill of choice. The bottom line is, they all helped smooth out the edges of an otherwise very scary life that held a million uncertainties, and I slowly became an addict. And here I am.

I am going to implement all of the suggestions from above. Am hoping to begin the "kicking" process in about a week. Scared as I don't know what.


Elie
Helpful - 0
1831920 tn?1320857757
You are not alone.  There are alot of people on this forum that will help you and be here for you during your withdrawal off of this medication and after.  You have come to the right place.  You said you have been on and off these meds so you have experienced some WD symptoms.  Do you want to do a slow taper down to 1/2 a pill a day or just go cold turkey?  Some people do not have the willpower to taper.  Regardless this is what I think you should know/should do:

Do not be worried.  This will only make things worse for you.  This is manageable.  I am not trying to scare you.  I just want to be realistic.

- Look up the Thomas recipe - bottom right hand corner of this page under Most Viewed Health Pages.- buy items in advance

- Most people do not feel well for the first 3 - 5 days without any drugs in their system.  Plan your work/school schedule around these days in case you do not feel well enough to leave the house.

- Go to the grocery store in advance of day one and buy your favorite healthy foods including bananas and gatorade.  If you usually do shopping for the family do this in advance as you probably will not feel like going to the store once WDs begin.

- If you have been using 3 - 4 per day your liver and kidneys are probably ok.  What mg. norcos were you taking?  Ask your dr to do a liver enzyme test.  I am not certain the name of the test that would be done to test for any damage to your kidneys but I am sure your doctor would know.

- Ask your doctor for Clonidine to help with opiate withdrawal.  It is a blood pressure med that is well known for it's help with opiate WD side effects.

- If you have issues with energy, exercise is helpful along with protein shakes.

-  Melatonin and Alteril help with any problems you may have with sleep along with sleepytime tea.

- Post often.  Everyone on this forum knows what you are going thru and will help you step by step.  Do you have any other questions?  I hope this helps.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
You are not alone. I'm also on 9 days sober. There are so many here willing to help, that helped me and many others through the wd process. You can do it, just keep posting!
Helpful - 0
1873696 tn?1405377410
Hi Elie, welcome to the forum. You have come to the right place. We are here to support and help you. Withdrawal symptoms are what we fear the most, I am on day 9 in my recovery. Have you checked on The Thomas Recipe? A lot of people in this forum find it very helpful. Keep posting, I will be here for you and so will many others, you are not alone, God bless you....
Helpful - 0
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