Physical, non-mental morphine addiction, I WANT OFF

[Virginia Aslaksen]

Hi,

     My name is Virginia .  In 1994 I was diagnosed with hepatic cancer and I was given the following prescriptions:

                          M.S. Contin 120 mg 4 times a day
                          Demoral P.R.N.
                          Tylenol/Codein #3

Subsequently I found I was misdiagnosed and now have what is called end stage liver disease/autoimmune.  I have taken myself off of every pill mentioned with the exception of the M.S. Contin but, I have gotten myself down to 60mg T.I.D.  I have tried to take myself off of this medication but have found the withdrawl too much to bear.  I am trying very hard to only need the medication PRN.  But my mind says yes and my body says no.  If I try to not take the M.S. Contin for an extended period of time, I go through serious and life threatening withdrawl symptoms.  I do not enjoy taking this medication.  I want not to take these pills unless I have pain.  The withdrawl pain is worse than the liver pain.  I wouldn't have to take this medication T.I.D. if it wasn't for the withdrawl.  Are there ways to substitute this medication for others so I don't have to go through all the unpleasantries.  PLEASE HELP ME.  A prompt response would be most appreciated.  Thank you for your time
52 year old female
I have survived pretty well all this time and i only hace pain
once in awhile. I now only take 60 m.g.s tid  but it is all
physical. Mentally I am tired of being so dependent .  I want to
only use "Oramorph P>R>N.  I have tried stopping and cutting back
even more but the withdrawal is just awful. What can I do? I want to be normal as possible.  PLEASE HELP ME.  tHANK YOU.

[tom]

Virginia,
Have you see a physician that specilizes in addiction?
There are many medications you can take to make the withsdrawl process more tolerable.
There are even rapid detox centers that put you under and administer a drug which purifies the body of the opiates.
I will try and find the web site for these detox centers.

Go to this forum as there is a pain management doctor on this site in the room called spinal disorders. HIs name is Dr. ML Withworth. If you post him a message he is very likely to write you back.

http://neuro-mancer.mgh.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&number=2&SUBMIT=Go



Just highlight this site and right click your mouse and copy it...and paste it in your browser. I hope you know how to do that.

I know where you are coming from as I am dependant on Oxyconten. I have to take it for pain, but even if I do not, I experience withdrawls symptons right away.

Good luck...

[tom to Virginia]

Tom is right to tell you to consult an addiction specialist. However, I don't know how your body would tolerate the rapid detox ordeal. The only reason people can do it is because they are kept unconscious through the whole thing. But as far as I know, the body still experiences the full shock of opiate withdrawal. Also, I understand that doctors believe that even when a patient is unconscious during surgery, the body "remembers" and makes the brain go through it afterwards. I believe this is the theory behind anethesiologists "bathing" the spine in morphine so that the pain of surgery doesn't impact the patient after the procedure. Of course, I'm not  doctor and am just trying to recall something I read. Ask your doctor about this. But, frankly, because of what you've been through from liver disease, I would be afraid for you going through rapid detox. Make sure your current treating physician is fully involved in such a decision.
I also understand that a drug called Buprenorphin mitigates opiate withdrawal without "doping" the patient. There is also methadone. Whatever you do, be patient with yourself over this issue. Easy does it. You have nothing to be ashamed of being addicted to your pain relievers. It only means you're human. Take care. Please accept my best wishes for your total recovery.

[Marcus]

Hi all.  Approximately four years ago, I underwent Rapid Opiate Detox in Los Angeles. Anyone interested, please let me know.  In short: It works, but it is not a good choice because it is too easy a way out, and you do not come to understand your disease, which is essential in recovery.

Good luck.

[TR]

where are the MDs?

[Virginia Aslaksen]

Tom,

I really appreciate your prompt response and your willing to help.  You have given me some hope, I hate my condition and your suggestions I have taken into consideration and will probably follow through pending on what my doctor says.  To anyone else who have or will respond you don't know how much it means to me to know that I'm not alone and I'm not to blame.  I'm going to see if I can try the medicine you mentioned, Buprenorphin.  Because as I said, it's not my mind, it's my body that's dependent and I really hate it.  Any other advice or suggestions would be most helpful.  Thank you very much Tom. (and everyone else)

Virginia

[tom]

Virginia,
Did you check out that site I told you about?
It is nice to see people in here trying to help you. Every person that posted you gave you some very honest answers.
Good luck as I know what a terrifying feeling you might be experiencing in your life right now.
There are some wonderful doctors out there. You have to find one of them and you will be on the road to recovery.

Tom

[steve to diane]

Stay away from Methadone. It takes forever to get out of your system.

[Virginia Aslaksen]

Thank you for your suggestion Dr. Steve.  i will definitely check it out.  Thanks!!!!

Virginia

[andrew to J.B hang in there brother.....]

dearest virginia. hi how you feelingtoday hon? well i am not quite sure where your at, at this moment with your trying to withdrawalfrom the ms contin but ican totally relate toyou hon.

   i myself was puton the mscontin last year 1999 for pain management. i began on about 4omg's and ended up on a dose near you. little did i know i had become physically addicted over a one year period. i went overseas and it was in ny that i experienced the true evil of morphine withdrawal. the thing was i had nothing to pep me up and i tell you it was the worst week in my whole entire life. i did not sleep i cried alot was very very emotional and nervous constantly. as well i had the sweats fever the chills achesand pains etc.


but what i can say is that each day the detox got better and better and by after10 days i was becoming physically human again hon.


listen if i went back i would not do it this way. there are things which can be used to withdrawal you so that you do not experience immense phsysical and physiological pain.


one way to go is to see a specialist and try benzodiazapines. the best one i can suggest to counterract the effects of morphine withdrawal is ativan which is lorazepam. if you take tomilligrams 5 times a day i believe you will be able to tolerate the pain associated with the whole withdrawal process.



if you are to far addicted to tolerate a benzo withdrawal process another drug and method used here in aistralia to de tox heroin and morphine users is a thing called naltrexone. it is a form of rapid detox and basically stops the brain craving for the morphine, can be very effective with some people but also has down sides like it makes your body extra extra sensitive to any opiod you may take after thetreatment and this can be very dangerous as a dose which you could once tolerate you will no longer be able to tolerate and thus there is the danger of even death.



another drug used is buprenorphine which is an agonist and atagonist opiod which should help you to withdrawal slowly but safely and without pain and the withdrawal symptoms involved with the buprenorphine are minimal compared to other opiods.



personally i would either try the benzodiazapine method or the buprenorphine one virginia, but speak only to a specialist who deals primarily in withdrawal syndrome okay hon.


if you have any questions please reply to me i am thinking of you and feel for you and send you all my heart and spirit that you get through this painful period and come out of it happy and together.



love always andrew korman. please reply anytime virginia i will always make and have time for a good person such as yourself.

[Kat]

Hi,
Have u read To killa  mockingbird??
well there this lady name Mrs dubose..she got rid of it. Now i know the character is unreal but i believe or even hope that being busy might help(maybe just a little) to not think of it. I know that sound easy and is probably be very hard. But it won't hurt to try. Go for a swim, ride bike, hang out with family,go for a walk,go on a vacation,or doing or eat something when u're craving for it. It;s really good that vigirina is cutting step by step. Try to keep busy as possible, i know that's way to much to ask for but i really hope that MS. Aslaken will be off it for good.

[Kat]

Hi,
Have u read To killa  mockingbird??
well there this lady name Mrs dubose..she got rid of it. Now i know the character is unreal but i believe or even hope that being busy might help(maybe just a little) to not think of it. I know that sound easy and is probably be very hard. But it won't hurt to try. Go for a swim, ride bike, hang out with family,go for a walk,go on a vacation,or doing or eat something when u're craving for it. It;s really good that vigirina is cutting step by step. Try to keep busy as possible, i know that's way to much to ask for but i really hope that MS. Aslaken will be off it for good.

[wally]

a friend of mine is bipolar, but seems to be in the depressed
state about90% of the time. a neuropsychiatrist told him that
80% of bipolars respond only to controlled substances and put
on oxyconten...it wworked very well and still does, but shortly
after he started taking it his neurodoc told him that it was no
longer available in the u.s. so he went to mexico where he could get it and still lives there..but, his pharmacist is apparently
running into difficulties getting it...my friend becomes very
depressed if he can't get it. he's thinking of going to england,
but doesn't know if it is available there either. any suggestions?

[Angelica]

dear Mrs. Aslaksen,
please excuse my bad english.
I am going through a similar thing: I try to withdraw from methadone after 6 years. The withdrawal is horror and lasts at least 5 months, depending on dosage and durance.
LAAM is a special kind of methadone and much, much harder to withdraw. People must get back on methadone to withdraw from LAAM.
Benzodiazepine are helpful, but dangerous. After 4 weeks you are "hooked", the withdrawal is terrible.
I am going to change from methadone to buprenorphine in about 4 weeks. It takes a long time to reduce the methadone to 30mg per day, because otherwise the opiat-antagonist in the b. will provoke a sudden and heavy withdrawal.
Same thing with Naltrexone/ Nemexin. You must be "Clean" to take it or be narcoticised. That is the most dangerous way!!! Don´t do it!!!
I suggest: reduce your opioids step by step, 1/10 every week.
Clonidin will help you!!! It does not effect the psyche, but it  blocks the alpha-receptors (sorry, I´m no Doc) and , by this, it reduces the activity of the symphaticus. That means, you won´t sweat, no cold, less nervosity, less diarrhea.
Against the hurting legs you can try Magnesium, against the cold sweat running down your arms you can try "Salbei"-tea.I cannot find the english expression for this plant.
Once again: don´t take LAAM, Methadone, Nemexin, Naltrexon!!!!!
I hope, your problem has been solved, as your e-mail is from August. Otherwise,if it has been solved, how did you do it?
Angelica

[laweetz]

i've been taking oxyconten 40mg twice day as needed for pain, how do you know if you have a habit? i also have hep c i take it for injuries from a fall at work and a bulging disk in my back and ciotic nerve pain i was taking up to eight norco a day vicidan-lotab 10 norco has less tylenol. i didn't like having to take so many pills now i only have to take one or two. any ways i'm not sure if i have a tolerence i only have taken oxy for one week now. it works alot better any knowledge would be great.

[Ross Lakes]

Hi, Hope you are winning!

I could use your prayer myself.  Short version, I'm on 100mg MS Contin TID and have been for four years.  I am going to see a doctor about what I need to do.  Please pray for me.  Have have been and shall continue to for you.

In Christ,

Ross

[Diane]

Ross-I am praying for you and all of you who are dealing with addiction and withdrawal.  I was on Vicodin for 6 years for migranes and decided 2 weeks ago that enough was enough.  It was the hardest thing I had ever done.  I went through intense chemo 14 years ago-a treatment that I was told later that I was the only patient he ever had that continued it until the end.  While I was going through chemo I also quit smoking which I had been doing for 14 years.  My strength came from constant prayer.  I had every praying friend I knew lift me in prayer during all my battles.  During my withdrawal from Vicodin which was intense, I prayed constantly and made a list of all the positive reasons I wanted off and read them continually to remind myself why I was putting myself through this hell.  Hang in there all of you and God Bless!!!!

[Nora , Texas]

Hi, my husband is currently withdrawing from mscontin.  He brought himself down to 30mg qday.  This seemed to work for a while.  Then he ran out before the prescription could be refilled.  And quit frankly I am scared.  He's been restless, very emotional, tearfull, dizzy, weak, and of course many sweats.  I had some left over Haldol.  Gave him some of that and some phenergan.  Thought maybe if he were asleep, he'd be better.  Please respond, he refuses to go to the er, or to call his doctor.  Guess he feels ashamed.  Incedently the medication was given because of secondary pain to about 15 surgeries, due to small and large intestinal obstruction secondary to soft tissue sarcoma.  He does have daily pain, but man this drug sure does make me feel, maybe he should learn to live with it.  Please respond soon

[to Vicodin Gurll]

Hi.  What your husband is going through is not life threatening, just very uncomfortable.  If he calls his doctor he can get some medications like clonidine and Xanax (or valium or Klonopin, etc.) to help him through the withdrawal.  Withdrawal is bad for 3-4 days and on day 4-7 it gets progressively better.  IF he is willing to get some additional help, he can go to an addiction medicine specialist or an outpatient detox where they can give him a drug called buprenorphine.  This drug detoxes the body with very little discomfort.  It would make him immediately feel better!  His regular doc can even prescribe it IF he does so for pain relief (he's not allowed to prescribe it for detox, because it requires DEA approval to be used that way).  If your husband refuses to call a doc or seek help, do the following: 1.  keep lots of fluids in him (very important because he will dehydrate if you don't, plus it helps flush the body of opiates); 2.  have him take Immodium (helps with the runs); 3.  Hot baths (helps the chills and achiness); 4.  Aspirin or some other pain reliever (helps achiness); 5. Haldol is ok to help him with anxiety and rest.  He WILL have insomnia, sweats, hot/cold, aches, runs, cramps, etc.  These WILL get better as time goes on.  By day 4-7 everything is getting much better, BUT, often there is some depression and emotional instability that comes.  VERY IMPORTANT:  he needs to deal with what happens AFTER withdrawal is over.  He may need a program to help him stay off drugs.  He may need non-narcotic pain relief.  You may need help yourself (group like NARANON) to understand addiction and have support.  Good luck!  Please post with any questions.  Phil

[Bruce]

to any and all who need to know:
taking over the counter immodium (2 mg) capsules which you can get from any drug or grocery store will alleviate withdrawal
symptoms with 50 to 80 percent effectiveness.  I have been on
80 mg of oxycontin for lupus and peripheral neuropathy for
almost a year.  On occassion I have run out when the doc was
out of town or before eligible for a refill.  Immodium was a
life saver. To save money buy the store brand generic (loperamide
hcl).  In order to alleviate withdrawal, you must take from 12
to 24 mg (six to 12 capsules). This is much higher than the
recommended dose and could be dangerous if you are not narcotic\
dependent already, however if you have taken strong opiates you
will be able to tolerate this amount. It is non-sedating and
greatly alleviates withdrawal symptoms. It is long acting so
do not redose until severe withdrawal symptoms recur (usually
12 to 18 hours.  Also you should take a stool softener such
as colace to help prevent constipation.  If constipation occurs
peri-colace (it has an added stimulant) will help. Good Luck!
P.S.  Please keep in mind that there is nothing wrong with being
physically dependent of narcotic pain relievers when you are truly in severe pain and being managed and monitored by a competent physician.  God put these compounds on our earth and they should be used when necessary to alleviatte human suffering
as you would take advantage of any other helpful medicines.

[From Aunt Lindy to Mariah]

Hi Bruce,
I was wondering what you said about it alleviates the symptoms.  Tell me what symptoms did you notice that it helped you with.  I mean did it just help with the Diarrhea (sp) I dont mean to be gross. I was wondering if in your opinion it helped you in other areas too. Very Interesting!
Shelly.

[derrick]

I,m sitting here three days into a methadone withdrawal and can seriously say i have contemplated suicide on several occasions. I have a wonderful doctor who is very understanding but i have to do the hard yards myself.If anyone is considering methadone i would advise them to really find out about the withdrawal symptoms first and then balance that against the value of going on menthadone.I was a nursing sister who fell into abusing morphine and went onto methadine to stop the intravenous use.
For anyone who reads this please understand that you are not alone and others have gone through this before.Clonodine has helped for the aches and pains but not sleeping while feeling like this is one of the worst aspects i have not slept at all for all the time i,ve been off and hope that i soon will.

[James Earl]

Four years ago I suffered from severe depression. It started when I was nine and lead to self-mutalation. By the time I was nineteen I had tried pot, LSD, and alcohol. All seemed to help at first but not for long. Then I tried morphine and was instantly hooked mentally. A couple of years later it became physical and shortly after that I was properly diagnosed and treated for my depression. Now I am no longer mentally hooked and am struggling with the physical addiction. If anyone has any useful advice PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE HELP!!!  I WANT OFF!

[Timothie]

I am on 240mg of ms contin 3 times a day plus others like statax 50 mg of morphine sf PRN I ran out last week and could not get to the doctors I thought I was going to die.  After only 3 days without the meds I went through withdral so bad I wonted to kill myself I have learned my leason but it conserns me that if my cronic pain gets better I have withdral to look forward to!!!
I am only 25 years old and hate having to take this medication but my nero Doc said that there is no other choice for me.  I feel like I am alone in the world my friend dont understand that I have to take these med to live some sort of life{without my pain is undeleavadle} I was hoping that there were some peolpe out there my age or who ever who under stand what it is like to have to take these pills. I HATE HAVING TO TAKE NARCOTICS!!!


                   please pray for me
                        in friendship Timothie

ps tell me more about the imodium (immodium) helping with withdral I wish I new that last weak!

[oscar]

Hello,my name is Michael and I have been taking up to 240 mg of M.S.contin per day for about 14 months.Before my wife and I decided which drug therapy would best help my situation,I attended the St.Paul's Hospital Pain Clinic in Vancouver,B.C.One of the attendees was a paramedic from the east end of the city where drug addiction is out of control.When I informed him that the Doctor wanted to put me on methadone for my pain control,he proceeded to inform me that after working with junkies for over 15 years that many opiode users found it much more difficult to come of the methadone than the abused drug itself.I was put off as soon as I heard the word.For me,there was a stigma attached to the word methadone and even though I thouroughly researched it's indications(to treat severe pain was what my drug handbook read)I was put off by what my paramedic friend had conveyed to me.
     I know now firsthand that opiates taken for legitamate severe pain control does not lead to psychological addiction.I do however believe that the slightest misuse WILL lead to grim consequences.Having said that,I prefer to put up with physical addiction withdrawal symptoms rather than take morphine when little or no pain is present.I experience most of the things that other contributers have expressed but have never felt as desperate as others and I can't figure out why.I have a suggestion for those of you that experience such terrible discomfort.Maybe the reason I've been lucky enough to not be plagued is that I drink a ridiculously large amount of water every day from the  moment I get up until mid evening.I know that it's difficult to do but I really believe that as well as helping chronic constipation associated with consumption of opiate derivatives,that by consuming up to 8 sixteen oz glasses of water each day I am flushing my system.It can't hurt to give this a try.The only real bother is all those trips to the washroom.
      As well as the M.S. contin I take 20 to 30 mgs of oxycodone,50 mgs of the muscle relaxant Baclofen, and require 10 to 20 mgs of Zoplicone(rhovane)to get any sleep due to extensive Fibromylgia (fibromyalgia).Even with all of this medication,when I'm in flare-up mode nothing works to ease the pain.I was wondering if anyone else out there finds that even morphine doesn't work?Or if you feel as if you have built a major tolerance to your particular pain medication?
     The person who suggested as much activity as possible to keep your mind from dwelling on things has definately got something there.For 2 years I dwelt upon my illness which led to anxiety,depression and inactivity.If at all possible,keep moving and walking.The old expression about walking yourself back to health can still ring true if your particular situation will allow.

                   Prayer works well

                    Michael

[Rider Down]

I have just found this forum while surfing at 5:30 to 6:00 AM
( I'm up with insomnia since I took more morphine sulfate than I should have ) but I find the comments here so soothing somehow. I had a terrible motorcycle accident 6-23-99, where my right arm was severed and reattached, my right leg was shattered and almost cut off from the knee down, crused both my right elbow and my left ankle...plus I nearly lost my left foot...broken sterum & many ribs..collapsed lung....the injury list goes on and on. I'm 4-5 days away from my 15th or 16th operation this Friday, which I do not look forward to, and may have to change since I'm aware I'm so addicted to the pain killers. Since I've had to keep having surgery after surgery, I've never been able to get off the morphine since this accident happened.

Not long back, the Doctor was allowing me to take 120mg of MS Contin daily, with another 90mg daily of MSIR, the MS Contin prescribed as a baseline medication, the MSIR used as a "break-thru" pain medicine. Since I'm an abuser, I upped my usage higher then even this amount to where I was taking around 300mg daily of both medicines. I ran out early and called the pain clinic, where my doctor said she was concerned about this, but not overly concerned, and allowed me to up the MS Contin baseline medicine to 240mg daily (60mg x 4 daily), but to stop taking the MSIR and save it for post-surgery pain. But with my mentality, even this wasn't enough, and well, here I am discussing my addiction.

If there are any doctors reading this, is taking 240mg of morphine sulfate "pre-surgery" dangerous, since I will have more pain "post-surgery," and more pain medicine ? If I wanted to wean myself down to a reasonable level (what is that?) prior to this last surgery, how long would that take. My doctor at Emory doesn't seem concerned I'm at this level, but I wonder should I be concerned. It seems this much of the morphine in my system makes me feel bad...I have bad muscle cramps...I don't sleep well, I stay constipated, ect...Thanks so much for any comments and please forgive my typing such a long message...Steve

[Rider Down]

I want to add that I need to hear from everyone here, not just doctors, because I really need some help from people who think like and struggle with the same kind of issues I do. I feel so alone most times with my "addiction" problems. Sometimes I feel like dying would be better, because my problems cause so much heartache to my wife & children....and because I just get tired  of knowing that I'm a drug addict. This sounds so bad to admit, doesn't it ? My mother was an "addictive" personality, in and out of mental institutions all her adult life. I wish I could have been born to parents who didn't have such major problems, but it seems everybody in this old world had their "cross to bear," doesn't it. I do find great comfort in knowing that Jesus loves me unconditionally, in believing that he died for me, and can help me if I will just live in truth, not denial & deceit ? Thanks again for this place to post my thoughts & emotions....Stephen

[Wizard]

First and foremost let me assure you that you are NOT alone.Your story is a common one to us here at the forum. I am not a medical professional just a recovering addict. You show some faith In Jesus Christ and I would urge you to keep it. Do not dispair! If you have an upcoming surgery I also urge  you to LEVEL with your surgeon and anestisiologist (spelling?)It could be life or death that they know what you are REALLY taking. When the surgery is over and the rehab is done in my opinion that would be the time to look at your addiction. You can get all the support in the world here from people just like you now and later. We can't choose our parents but we CAN choose how we live our life. What has happened to you has taken a terrible toll on your body and mind for sure. Please hang in there not only for yourself but for your wife and children. The time to detox will come. For now use what pinkillers God has given us. You have nothing to be ashamed of. God Bless you and I'll keep you in my prayers.
Power & Magick 2 U,
Wizard

[Pillpoppa]

Hi Everyone,

I tried to post this to Niccee (Methadone withdrawl) but strangely I cannot open any of the pages about that (If anyone is talking to Niccee could they please tell her take a look at this. Anyway this applies to everyone so please pass this information on to everyone you can who is suffering needlessly. To stop using drugs of any kind painlessly all you need is zinc/magnesium as zinc/mag depletion is what you are really suffering from.

A typical tablet contains somthing like this:

Zinca amino acid chelate       75mg
Magnesium amino acis chelate 37.5mg
Vitamin B6                     10mg
Manganese amino acid chelate   10mg
Viatmin A (1000I.U.)         300mcg

Grading your habit on a scale of 1-10 (1 being occasional use and 10 being long term methadone at 100 plus mg's a day) you should take the following amount for a period of one month then slowly reduce to a daily amount of 2-3 per day.

Habit scale/size           Number of tablets per day for a month

10                         10
9                          9
8                          8
7                          7
6                          6
5                          5
4                          4
3                          3
2                          3
1                          2
0                          2

You will notice that I recommend you never go below 2 per day. This is because zinc/mag depletion was your original problem so you should give yourself an ongoing supplement to make sure it does not happen again. I have had no failures with this treatment (everyone OK after less than a month) and have treated addictions (including my own) as varied as methadone and cigarettes. The cigarrete smoker reduced from 2 packs per day to just 5 cigarettes per day in a week without any discomfort. If you suffer any kind of 'hang out' just increase the zinc/mag dosage and give it a liitle longer to take effect (a week or so). Don't beleive all the bullshit about drug addiction you have heard -it's all **** - this is the real deal.

[Rider Down]

Wizard....Thanks for the encouragement...man, it means a lot to hear back from somebody who has been there. I know for sure the Lord spared my life for a reason, although I know too I've grieved Him during times I've wanted my life to end. Suicide is the ultimate form of selfishness, since you leave all the hurting people behind while you sail on into eternity. But folks who choose to die aren't thinking clearly, anyway, are they ? My real desire is to get strong & healthy again, so I can try to help others to see the great destiny that God has for us all. Even though this accident has been the hardest thing I or my family has ever endured, the miracles Jesus did to save my life over and over again during the 5 weeks I was in ICU at Atlanta's famous trama (spelling) center, Grady Hospital, restored a testimony to me that I had let slip away over the years, and blessed hundred's if not thousand's of people who fervently prayed for God to do what He did for me. Thanks again for the encouragement, dude, and let me know if I can do anything for you or anybody else on this forum.....Stephen

[Wizard]

God bless you and your family dude! I'll tell you what you can do for me..Pray for me as I do you and all here. Not a day goes by that I don't think of everyone on this forum. Recovery for me is an ongoing voyage. I know that with the right support and the grace of God I will stay strong and resist the "Dragon" whispering in my ear. It's been over a month now and each day is a miracle in itself. I look forward to every morning and to every sunset. Where as before I only looked forward to the next dose. I have been given another chance at life and I intend to live it with the magic that was intended! You hang in there man!
I know in my heart by reading your post that you WILL succeed in reaching for what has been offered......Peace, Light and Love to you my man.
Power & Magick 2 U always,
Wizard

[Rider Down]

I just prayed for you and the other folks here that are fighting the good fight to stay clean & healthy, and will try and be faithful to do it daily. Prayer is so powerful, but I've almost always misunderstood what prayer is...looking at it as some sort of drudgery, when in fact, its just speaking your thoughts heart to heart with the greatest personality that can be communicated with. Sometimes I can't wait to meet the Lord Jesus and see his eyes, smiling at me with that deep love I know he feels toward me. Wiz, consider this, man, the Book says somewhere that "eye hath not see, nor ear heard, nor hath it entered into the imagination of man, the things that God has reserved for those who love Him." Thats something to really look forward to.....Later, my friend.....Stephen

[Angelica]

......Thank you for that dose of inspiration.  We all need this in times of trouble.  Your words of faith are truly a tesitmony to who you are, and what abides within.  Wishing you many blessings.
Your friend in christ,
Angelica

[mario f]

i think their is a drug called suboxone for withdrawal

[hope6405]

i have been reading all of these postings and i can tell you that i understand almost all of them.  i have been addicted to morphine, dilaudid, and kind of pain med i can get my hands on. and i have been thru withdrawls more than i can count.  i have been reading about all these different types of remidies everyone is suggesting.  i have tried them all.  then, i was introduced to SUBOXONE.  it works in similar ways to methadone, but far less dangerous and is for opiate addictions only.  LOOK IT UP ONLINE and get some infromation.  seriously it takes your withdrawl symptoms away.  you feel it working in about 20 minutes of taking it.  basically what it does is block half of your opiate recepters and feeds half,. so the withdrawls are barely there.  it saved my life, and i have now been clean for 11 months.  after you get thru the first week of withdrawling, you can keep taking the suboxone to maintain releif from cravings.  it doesnt give you a "high" but it just makes you feel normal.  and it has helped me begin to live a normal life.  if anyone reads this and is giong thru hell with battling withdrawls....talk to your doctoer about this medication and they can find you a docter that can prescribe it to you.  and i wish you all the best of luck and your in my thoughts and prayers.....ive been there.  

hope
***@****

[Beth733]

I need help!  My boyfriend just told me yesterday that he is a morphine addict and has been for 10 years.  He believes that I'm his angel, and that ultimately I will save him from himself.  I want to help him, but I don't know how or what to do.  He has a tumor in his lung and will need surgery within the next month, and then he wants to check himself into a rehab.  I'm concerned that he needs to tell his physician of his addiction as to not be jeopardized during the surgery.  Any suggestions on what I can do.  His pain is mine.  Thanks, Beth

[toxictome]

Welcome to the forum...this is an old thread and will probably get overlooked.
repost yours as a new question so people will respond.

YES..if he is having surgery...he needs to come clean w/ the Dr. and the Anesthesiologist. The drugs they will give him during surgery may not be enough because  he has probably built up a tolerance..and they base that on height and weight...so have him be HONEST about the amount he's taking...this is very important....becuz usually drug abusers need higher amounts than the normal joe!!!
Good luck!

[addictedmom]

I can tell you from experience that not telling the doctors before surgery what you are EXACTLY taking for meds. can be very scary.  I was to have a minor surgery a few years ago, but prior to the surgery I was taking vicodin and about 10 500mgs a day.  I was suppose to be taking 4 of them a day, so that is a bit of a difference, I was too ashamed to tell the docs, and afraid I might be found out, so I went through with the surgery.  I was placed on the table, all the normal things took place until they tried to put me out.. this will scare you all into the truth.  The began injecting my arm and gave me the mask while telling me to close my eyes and breathe deeply.  So I did so, as I did my eyes got heavy but I didn't go out.. .I heard the doctor say "okay she is out, let's start", then I was panicking OH NO I am not out, help help, I couldn't open my eyes but I was awake.  A little bit later I heard someone say "she isn't out give her something else".. well that "something else" ended up being a drug I had a reaction too because of what was already in my system... I stopped breathing.  The last thing I remember is NOT breathing and them putting tubes in my mouth.. I woke up... rough to say the least.
So my advice would be to NO matter what fess up, you have to.  Nothing is worth your life or going through something like that.

[MidnightStar183]

Hello, I am new to this forum and I don't have any addictions myself, but my father is addicted to morphine.  He's refused to go to work for months now because of the pain he has in his back from the result of his car accident.  Doctors prescribed him morphine for the pain which I feel was the worst thing they could have possibly done.  My father is always complaining about constipation, abdominal pains, is severely irritable with everything, never wants to eat and has dropped down to an extremely scary 120 lbs and he's a 5ft 10 man.  I feel like he's a completely different person.  He doesn't believe that he is addicted to the drug which he obviously is.  You could almost call him crazy now, which my mom and I know he really isn't.  We know it's just the drug that's making him like this.  My mom and I just don't know what to do when you know someone is addicted to something and they refuse to seek help.  I would really really appreciate it if someone could help us out.  Thanks.

[Demandie]

Zink/Mag DOES NOT WORK FOR ME!!!
Let me tell you, it was like drining a glass of water--it did nothing for me.  I hope though it you try it that it will work for you.  It's worth a shot, but Philpoppa said this


"To stop using drugs of any kind painlessly all you need is zinc/magnesium as zinc/mag depletion is what you are really suffering from."

This is not an accurate statement.  I don't know anyone that is an addict that quit taking their doc (drug of choice) and stopped drugs of any kind painlessly.  It's just not true.
Folks, there is NOT A MIRACLE DRUG.  Some kind of pain will be felt, it's just a matter of what degree of pain it is.

I just don't want anyone to go into this with their eyes closed, it's not fair.

Good luck everyone.  We need it.  We are MIRACLES.  We were CHOSEN.  So many people out there have no desire to get sober, yet somehow, we were CHOSEN.
We are SO VERY BLESSED>

[Tank345]

I found this forum recently while looking for help for my son who has become addicted to morphine while being treated for cancer pain.

I make this post today because it greatly disturbed me to see how many people are suffering with addiction problems as a result of pain treatemets.

In my search for an antidote to my son's morhpine addiction I came across a treatment that apparently has been used in Britain for about a century to wind people down from morphine addiction. The substance is called Avena Sativa, or oats. I can't recall and didn't save the original site that gave this information but in searching for more information I came across this site:

http://www.homeoint.org/seror/patho1900/avenasat.htm

This site gives information regarding the use of "tincture of oats" in overcoming the bad effects of morphine withdrawal.

While avena sativa is called wild oats as far as I was able to discover it is just ordinary oatmeal. So, I made my son some oatmeal and bought some oat straw tea from the local health food store because they didn't have the avena sative tinctrue.

My son is usually asking when his next shot of dilaudin would be an hour before it was due on a six hour cycle and figiting and in real disomfort a half an hour before the time for his next shot. And all efforts to reduce the dose were countered by greater discomfort and earlier demands for the next shot.

The affect has been amazing. The two nights ago I gave him a bowl of oatmeal before his regular late night injection. Amazingly, instead of him waking me an hour before to ask for his next shot was due in six hours, instead he slept a peaceful nine and a half hours. The next day I gave him oatmeal again in the morning and a couple of cups of oat straw tea through the day. I was able to reduce is daytime injection by 25% with no problem. Last night I even reduced his late night shot by 1/2 ml and he still slept nine and a half hours. Today I've been able to reduce his daily injection by 40% and he still went an hour longer before needing his next injection. The difference in him is amazing. Not agitated or figity but rather rested and calm looking.

This is a total change in what I was up against before in trying to reduce his intake of the dilauded. I hope I am not getting my hope up too much, but after reading the number of people here having trouble with this, I wanted to share this with you in the hope it may be able to help others here.

Good luck with this. I hope it works for you.

[Tank345]

Check out this report on THE ORTHOMOLECULAR TREATMENT OF DRUG ADDICTION

Paste this URL into your browser:

D:\My Documents\Medical\Cancer\Morphine\THE ORTHOMOLECULAR TREATMENT OF DRUG ADDICTION by Archie Kalokerinos A_M_M_, M_B_B_S_, Ph_D_, F_A_P_M_, Glen Dettman A_M_M_, BA, Ph_D_, F_A_P_M.htm

or do a goole search for the topic.

I pray for you all.

Tank