STOPPING

[STUPID1228]

I want to quit vicodin I've been taking for 3 years. Help!!!!! How do I do it without going into rehab?? Please help

Thanks

[wgmbg4141]

I am also addicted to Vicodin.  I had only been taking it for 3.5 months.  I was taking it every four to five hours around the clock in the beginning.  It was the strongest dosage that you could get.  Then I cut back to 2/day (one around 8am and another one around 2pm).  I can't remember when I cut back to 2/day.  It's think it's been about a month now.  I tried to go down to 1/day about two weeks ago.  It was awful.  I started to go thru the W/D symptoms really bad.  I felt like total **** and could barely stand it.  So, I decided to finish out my prescription, taking 2 pills/day, and then go cold turkey.  I will take my last pill tomorrow at 2pm.  Then that's it.  I will go thru w/d and there will be nothing I can do to stop it.  I can't get a refill on my prescription with out lying, playing games, switching Dr's, or something of the sort.  

I know that if I had tried to go cold turkey when I was taking 6 pills/day, I could never ever have done it.  If you can, try gradually cutting back to 2 or 3 a day.  If you can gradually cut back to 2 or 3/day, without having w/d symptoms, then you will be okay with taking just 2 or 3/day.  Once you are fine with taking 2 or 3/day, then go cold turkey.  I think that trying to cut back to 1/day and then quitting is harder.  You will start to go thru serious w/d with one pill a day.  Who wants to be taking pills and still have w/d symptoms????  In my personal opinion, one pill is not enough to keep a person from having w/d symptoms once they are addicted.  So, if you are going to start going thru w/d, you might as well not be taking any pills at all as opposed to just one a day.  Does that kind of make sense.  

But I am no expert.  This is just my experience so far.  It is different for everyone.  Someome else might totally disagree with me.  

But one thing is for sure, if you are going to go cold turkey at any point in time, DO NOT have any extra pills somewhere around and make sure that you don't have access, or can'tm get access, to any extra pills.  

If my prescription was not running out tomorrow, and if I didn't have anyway to get more, I don't think that I could or would go thru the "detox" starting on Friday.  I would go get more and enjoy them for awhile longer.  I had a little taste of the w/d symptoms and I am pretty scared about going thru this for real.  And I am not sure that I am strong enough to go thru it if I still had access to more pills.  But I know that I NEED to get off of them before I get in any deeper and any more over my head.  So, I am and will go thru this.  I know deep down that it will be worth it in the long run.  

You are smart to get off of your Vicodin, too!!!  I wish you all the best and will be praying for you!

[worried878]

Alot of it has to do with how much you take?  if it is a large amount sometimes tapering down a bit is good before u quit....the health pages has some good info to help...keep posting

[cathy5841]

you can either go cold turkey or try a taper/\.  with taper it is very hard cuz you have to stick to  a reduced number of pills.  the w/ds are dragged out over a longer period of time.  with c/t the w/ds last about 5-7 days and then you get better a little each day. how many pills do you take each day?  what mg are they?

[Firefaery1023]

You can do it as either cold turkey or taper.  Can I ask how many you have been taking a day and what strength, it will help us get organizec.

[kim715]

vicodin at one time was my drug of choice also.How much do you take a day?