Percocet withdrawals, how long do they last?

[sprstar]

I was prescribed percocets (5/325) about 1 1/2 years ago for chronic back pain (scoliosis mainly). I took them as prescribed for a while and then started increasing the dosage until I was taking upwards of 14 a day (I could take 8 per my script).

I decided about a week ago to stop. I tapered down to 8 a day, I guess that's not great but I just can't have them around me without taking them.

I have been without for 36 hours and of course I feel like hell in a hand basket. The longest I've ever gone is about 30 hours.

My question is: How long until I start to feel better? I am off of work for a week (I planned this to coincide with my vacation).
I would have gone into a detox or something but I have no one to take care of my house, etc.

[jhollo1970]

I was on the exact same dosage 240 a month oxycodone 5/325. I am on day 5 without one and my energy is coming back fast. Checks some of the below post for the Thomas Recipe. A good vitamin regimen and lots of water. You in my opinion are past the hardest w/d period. Hang tough and don't take anymore.

[fentanylEater024]

jhollows right hang in there not long to go before you feel better and you will be proud that u did it u can do it at home i took a vac 1 week to get of this s**t and i did it Today is my 2 week mark and i feel great (Exepct sleepin wrong made my neck hurt but i know i can tough it out dont need no pills for sure) just keep counting the days take hot baths is the best thing ever remember not long to go

[sprstar]

Thanks guys. I should have found this board before I started so I could have been better prepared.

I've been an addict/alcoholic since I was about 16. I've been detoxed for alcohol but never drugs. This is kicking my ass but being able to see a light at the end of the tunnel helps tremendously. I am glad I found this site, it has given me hope and for that I am grateful.

I knew better when I was prescribed these meds that I should not go near them but the addict in me told me I could handle it...the mind games are unreal!

I don't drink at all anymore, the pills became my one true love. I am sick and tired of being all consumed as to how many I have, where I am going to find more when I run out, etc.

I had to cancel a trip to see my first grandchild and that is just pathetic..

[snappyjean]

im on day 7 and i still fill shaky and i cant sleep ive try sleept time tea tyelonol i just want to fell normal again i took about 12 to 14 pills a day for back pain and i under went 2 magor surgeries any ideas.

[extrmeski]

I couldn't sleep either but I found benadryl helpful, that and nyquil worked wonders.  That and some advil to help with some of the aches and pains that always seem to crop up.

[CleanUpTime]

Unfortunately, there is no magic to feeling "normal"...it is going to take time and the fact that you are on day 7 is GREAT!! you're through the toughest part and as anyone in here that's kicked the habit can tell you, each day, it gets better and better!!!! I'm on day 15 and felt the same way you did day 7... all i wanted was for everything to go back to normal and feel normal...well, i'm on day 15 and it feels like i am close to that light at the end of the tunnel...

You've made it to day 7; congrats! Hang in there, it WILL get better!!!!

[sarah1779]

i'm on 46 hours and feel awful.  i was taking about 35mg of percs a day.  it started 4 yrs ago, where i was taking it for a chronic back condition(herniated disc) and i took it as told.  then i started to increase the dose on my own.  2 days ago i decided to just quit.  now i have no energy, and lots of anxiety.  help!

[singlma]

When I went to the doctor to start my suboxone program he told me symptoms of w/d can usually last 6 weeks. They get better after day 4 or 5 but the malaise, horrible cravings, sleeplessness and anxiety can last for weeks. I'm going off what the doc said I never made it more than 7 days going cold turkey. I'm on day 18 of the suboxone program.

[JBLACK578]

Hi am a 30 year old mother and I've been addicted to percs, and methadone. I started taking percs when I was about 23 just for fun then got hurt at work and found out how easy it was to cop a scrip from a doctor. I was getting 240 a month from two doctors, and spending anyware from $150.00 to 200.00 a month in addition to my script. So when I was about 28 I decided to stop taking percs my doc put me on methadone it was the worse thing that ever happen to me. It was so hard, painful and just plain oh sick to kick NO ONE should ever take methadone that is not the answer It took me 21/2 months to kick. So i was clean for 1 yr and relapsed I started taking percs again for 4 month I just quiet 9 days ago I never kicked percs how long before you get back to normal?  

[dbm143]

Guys and gals,
I am VERY proud of you all..reading these post have giving me inspiration.  I am  on day 5 and my dosage was low but it is a terrible feeling coming off and the pains, aches  and my mood is intensified severely. My emotions become up and down and out of control sometimes. I call this adventure the Welcome Back to Reality Trip! Today I am experiencing happiness and energy every so often but still feel like ****. It is a good feeling to have those emotions again...something I did not have since I was caught up in chasing the feeling of euphoria. I have lower back pains and I have found that a heating pad does wonders for the time being. I get off work and just sit on it then I bring it to bed and use it if needed.  I also take a 1000mg of advil in the morning and the same about 4pm in the evening.  The feeling isnt there like the perc's but the pain is cut back a little bit.  Hot showers also help change things up when needed.  I have also found a way to keep my mind focus thruout the day is to drink an energy drink when needed, I completely forget about the withdrawals for about 4 hours after drinking a motherload energy drink.  I think amp makes it well it is in the same cooler at the gas station as amp drinks.  If anyone has any tips on fighting the withdrawals and coping without using more drugs please post a comment.  

[juggleparrot]

i had surgery two weeks ago to remove a tumor from my head. only have been on percs for about two weeks i just ran out two day ago and i am feeling antsy i can sleep, still have pain. would you say i am addicted and need to stop pain meds?

[worried878]

the first few days were worst for me..day 5 i was back at work...then the runs kept up for another week or so but nuttin imodium wouldnt stop....exercise helps alot and staying busy...force urself to walk around the block or even down the drive way..read up in the health pages and hang tight...if i can help let me know..there is always someone here so keep posting

[juggleparrot]

Thanks. like i said i have only been taking them for two weeks. 4 per day....i have another script but am afraid to pick them up due to the high addiction. have been off for two days now just feel antsy that is all

[flmagi]

juggleparrot, Your withdrawals from the pain pills should/are minimal at this point and you should be feeling fine rapidly, except for maybe some general recouping from surgery. If you don't need the pain pills, do not take them. That is how so many of us addicts got started. Good luck to you and hope you feel better soon.

[chelsea85]

I too have been taking 3-4 percocet's a day and stopped taking them two days ago. I woke up feeling like the room was spinning, my head felt extremely heavy and all I wanted to do was lay there. I have decided I am done taking them. Any thing that leaves you feeling like that is not worth it! Plus if it does that to you body when you stop it can't be good to consume!

[rnstudent_79]

My husband and I have been on pills (percs and oxys) since around Thanksgiving last year. Everyday since! He takes more than I do usually 6-8 x 750mg a day, with me only consuming 4 a day, but we decided to quit a couple of days ago due to money. We have spent nearly $800 a month on pills or more and it is killing our relationship. He says that his withdrawals are limited to only mood swings, but I am having a hell of a time coping. I am on day 2 with no pills minus a xanax I took to help me sleep last night. I sweat and am very dizzy, my eyes seem to shake when I try to focus on something, and I've had a headache for 14 1/2 hours. I just took a hot bath and about 5 Advil for the headache, but this is horrible and I feel all of your pain! Good luck and hang in there. I am going to do my best to stay clean for myself, my husband and our children.

[boy728]

Ive been clean for 15 days and still sweat and have the runs will this go away i feal great other wise i was taking about 20 pills a day

[Marcus339]

I had open heart surgey 2 1/2 months ago and receieved a script for perc w/ orders for 2 / hrs, things were going good.  after 1 month I was down to 4 or so a day, after 7 weeks I was taking one at bedtime to sleep, that's about the time that I started to enjoy the high off the drug, and started taking them more frequently, got to the point where last weekend I took 8 on Saturday.  I said to myself "to hell with this" and now am on day 3 without any.  I find that I'm trying to make excuses to take one more....but I don't think so!
Anyway good luck to you all and to me too.

[tnj1007]

I had hernia surgery and was prescribed percocet 10mg.. It been 2 months and have stopped them but feeling really depressed and anxious. How long will this take to subside??? I usually half the 10mg and take half at a time. at most take 5 halfs a day..???

[NJFRESH1]

I was prescribed percocet 5/325 for a lower back problem, I found out that my back wasn't really hurting but the need and desire to take the pill was there. I was only taking 1 - 2 pills every day for about almost a year and found myself feeling very tired every day and not performing to my full potential at work, often times forgetting things. I caught a severe flu and decided to quit. I am now on day 4 and regardless of the terrible flu symptoms I feel good that I am off the pills. I wish the best of luck to all of you out there trying to kick this terrible highly addicting habit. I know it's hard but try to concentrate on other things, and realize how beautiful life really is.

[NJFRESH1]

I had a very strong urge today to take a perc., I controlled myself and didn't do it but been in a real bad mood because of it. When will these cravings stop? I am now at the end of day 5 and starting to miss them. Help!!

[Lostpunkdc]

I had a terrible Knee injury that wound up giving me 9 surgeries in the past 2 1/2 years, and a Shoulder Surgery directly caused from the knee, which totals 10 surgeries....

I not goin to lie, being on percocets were like a walk in the park, quitting them was never a issue, also speaking from prior drug habits and issues, the worse i got was a headache runny nose and fatigued, which i found not bad whatsoever...

The past 2 surgeries i endured with this new doc turned out to be opn knee surgeries, not the arthroscopic ones i was previously used to... He gave e a scrip for Oxycontin 20mgs 1-2 every 12 hours, and percocet 10's 1-2 every 4-6 as need for breakout pain....

I found myself already at a high tolerance due to having soo many surgeries previously .....

When i decided to stop taking the combination which was roughly around 210mgs a day of oxycodone in my system, it was terrible...

The Oxycontin were very easy to abuse, and i did not know i was goin to be dealing with such hell....

Before i knew what to expect, this time i had shivers, and insomnia,  and i was throwing up......

bright side is it only really lasts about 3 days for me.... Which was good....

Some things to help out

B-vitamins 3 times a day
Gaba - 3 times a day
L-theanine as needed for aniexty

I took these and drastically lowered my withdrawal symptoms the 2nd time around....

Sleep and drink plenty of water to help flush the toxins out...

Youll feel better in no time

[liver57]

how long do these withdrawals last if I'm on day 14 and was throwing up today and still feel all those symptons they say happens to you? i stopped cold turkey and i just want to know when all the pain will go away.

[DEANMACHINE12]

Hello all! I'm new on here, however just wanted to get few things off my chest, to all who have been using for awhile, and to all who thought they could never do it on their own; feel like need it for breakfast till sleep. I started with percocet 5mg, then went to 10mg, then perc 15's and 30's and if couldn't find those, I tried to find oxy 10s-40s. My girlfriend and I have been pretty bad using for about a year now, and been consistently every day for 10 months now. We both each use daily betweens anywhere from 60-120 mg, depending on how high we wanted to get or how much money we had. Recently we both have been having a real hard time, feeling like what used to get us high for 8 hours feels like about an hour or two if that. And all the money we earn or work for goes straight to perc 15s-30s or oxys. It feels like ive been working the past year for percs and was wearing on me. There have been several times that I said I wanted to try to stop and went a day or so then just felt like i had to go get my high. However this is my story the past few days which made me commit to ending this drought. I got paid from my job Friday, and was over $400, it came Saturday, and I had $25 left of that paycheck and no bank value. I broke down, that last $25 I had, I bought a percocet with, and although I do have a source of income, and have money right now, I had to stop, my girl too! we set a committment and promised we had to. And I knew a friend that got me a suboxone and only gave me half and told me to only do a little bit in the morning and then if needed. Monday, my girl and I did some in the morning and we would wake up each morning and do a perc, and that lasted several hours, not being high, but withdrawal was not there which was great, we went until the evening and did a little more, and actually slept decent, although woke a few times sweating, then came Tuesday and did a little suboxone at 1pm, and went all day and evening, took some tylenol pm to help sleep, i still sweated. And NOW AM ON DAY 3! and went until about 4pm and did a little suboxone, and I just feel amazing that I did this on my own and have gotten this far, because the past year I have never went even 1 and half days, and I am on day 3! I am very proud of myself and my girl. I KNOW from reading that my detox is not over, however making it this far i am soo determined and committed! I drink an energy drink a day or two, and pray every morning! " dear lord, please give me the strength and power to make it through the day without relapsing, and make it through this very tough journey, and also at night! " lord thank you soo much for guiding me through the day and giving me the power to stay clean, please help me through this until the end.  Thank You all! and I know rehab is always there, but I believe i have the power and strength from god to do this on my own. Its hard, ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!!!!!!!! GOD BLESS ALL!!!