Serious Depression

[MarkG61]

Hello everyone,
I am very new to this forum and I'm not one for joining these. But I take some comfort in knowing that I'm not the only one going through horrific withdraws. I'm going on my forth week of no drugs. (Percocet/oxys). This is my second time trying to stay clean. I was clean for 6 months prior to relapsing. I've been using over the past 7 months roughly 8 to 10 5/325 Perc. a day. I have a prescription from my doctor for a 30 day supply of 90 pills. Every time I get a refill. I tell myself that I will just take the recommended dosage but I found myself going through the entire bottle within 7 days. This time I really want to get off them because I can't continue these highs and lows (and I do mean lows) any more. After more that three weeks, I'm still dealing with some physical effects ( no sleep, serious depression, lack of admission.)

This is not really a question but I just wanted to share my story and see if anyone has any encouraging suggestions on how to get past these awful symptoms.

Thanks for reading.
Mark

[Downey]

As I have read over many posts I always see people saying exercise helps and I believe with my whole heart it does. Try to get outside and take a walk.

I also understand how BAD depression can be ---I have been there myself.

Good luck,
Downey

[dominosarah]

That is pretty common to have a couple good days and then a bad day thrown in.  Just keep staying in the now and know that the bad days are just temporary.   Makes us appreciate the good days!!          sara

[MarkG61]

Thank you every one I appreciate you all. I'll let you all know how my progress is going.

I had it pretty rough last night. It felt like the fist week with the RLS and flailing. This morning wasn't so good either but today, as the day goes on, I'm feeling better. Has anyone else had this where the withdrawals get worse some days and better the next?

[Painkillernightmare]

Im going through the same thing my doc was giving me 320 a month and I was on them for three yrs.  Im on day five, the first two days were what I call sobering! w.d are aweful but I found taking a vit's help hot showers and baths and lots of walks it just takes time.  Im on day five I dont think about day four or day six I worry about the now!  Were taking our life back, what a great feeing it will be to kick it for good.  Good luck my friend my thoughts are with u!

[dominosarah]

You have been given good advice from the above posters.  You arent alone here so am glad you found us and keep posting......sara

[atthebeach]

my husband just went ct 56 days ago from a 14 year methadone habit. my husband turned the corner physically after about 3 weeks by the grace of GOD he started to eat again and didnt feel like he had gotten hit by a mack truck. sleep not so much some days he sleeps for 3 hrs some days 6 hrs. he started some physical active about a week or two ago just started out by raking in the yard. def. made him tired. if you cant go to na/aa meeting try support from the higher power. maybe church will help.try to pray dont know about your spirtual aspect but it couldnt hurt and maybe will help. keep posting there is lots of support here also.
debbie

[MarkG61]

Thanks for kind words and encouragement. The first time I quite I did go to NA meetings. I did the 90/90 thing and it did help. My only dilemma nos is time and money.I can't afford the gas to go back and forth to the meetings. right now I am using what I have learned from the meetings and strong willpower. This is a problem that I am trying to keep to myself. Know one close to me knows. I'm currently living with my girlfriend which is another story in itself. She is suffering from some degenerative neurological disorder that is inhibiting her ability to lead a normal life. Because she has no insurance, she can get the help she needs. I don't want to burden hew with my problem because what I am going through is nothing compared to she is going through. I need to stay strong so that I can help her and I don't want to appear vulnerable to her at this point.

I think this forum will help. I'm taking it day by day and minute by minute.

Thanks for all the kind words.
Mark

[LongerDays]

Depression is a common problem after stopping opiates. One thing to look up on the Web is P.A.W.S. (post-acute withdrawal syndrome) which is the physical and emotional process that occurs after the the first few weeks of withdrawal, and after the physical symptoms of withdrawal have ended (disrupted sleep is often the longest lasting of the short-term withdrawal problems and can take many weeks to return to normal).  Some people benefit from anti-depressants during PAWS. I think it's also important to get some kind of "people" support, be that friends, family, therapist, groups such as AA or NA, rational recovery organizations, etc. Being in regular contact with people who understand what you're going through can be tremendously beneficial; trying to do it all on your own often results in relapse, and then you have to go through all this again.  You said you're not a joiner, and I understand that because I'm like that too. But I go to AA and NA meetings just the same, and though I rarely participate by sharing, just listening to people talk about their experiences has been very helpful. I was also surprised by how much humor and good cheer there are in these meetings. I'd expected burping, scratching, glassy eyed addicts, but it is totally the opposite. And if you have issues with "the God thing" (I do, and it initially made me very skeptical of AA and NA. I settled that issue when someone handed me a list of the 12 steps for atheists & agnostics, and that was good enough for me) you can still here a lot of wisdom from the people. (some groups are more liberal than others, but you can hunt around; also, AA groups often have no problem if alcohol isn't your drug of choice, and for the most part the issues are all the same: an addict is an addict).  I'm not trying to push AA/NA. But I am trying to push the need to do this with the help of others. Getting clean can be an incredibly difficult row to hoe even with the help of others, but doing it alone is a Herculean task.

Good Luck

LD

[vicki595]

Mark~   Welcome!
I'm sorry you're feeling so bad...
A couple of thoughts...Have you had a check up recently?  It's good to do that after detoxing. You may need to be treated for the depression with an antidepressant. Many of us get depressed after quitting.
Also, any aftercare?  AA/NA? Therapist?   We need recovery care to avoid relapse. It's just not a willpower thing...very important to get to a meeting.
Keep posting~  Also,read the health pages upper right. We need vitamins and amino acids. B vits really help our brains heal. Read The Thomas Recipe.
Feel better~
Vicki