I'm Afraid of addiction..how do you know? Darvocet

[Danya]

I have had to take this painkiler on and off for various reasons (surgery, dental surgery, painful cramps, lower back pain).  I take about 2 a month normally and more when I have dental procedures done.  I never take it more than a few weeks at a time and I am careful to stop taking it when the pain stops but this is what bothers me.

I like taking it.  When I am in bad bad pain I don't get the euphia but sometimes I do and I like it!  This scares me.  I am afraid that I'll start or have started inventing pain just so I can have one.  When I'm not in pain I don't think about it but when I am its all I can think of.  I've read the stories in here and I have to admit it scares the hell out of me.  How do you know when or if you are addicted?  What are withdrawl symtoms for this?  

I have been having a toothache since last thursday and have been taking the darocet + motrin to ease the pain.  I may have to have another root canal and I want to know if I should flush the darvocet down the toilet or what?  

Help...

[rwbess]

The saddest thing is that many addiction centers don't know how to deal with a Darvocet addict because so few users seek treatment.  When I finally entered detox I was chewing 15 - 20 caplets at a time several times a day and driving a taxi 12 hours a day 6 days a week just to have the cash on hand to buy from my numerous suppliers.  And yet, other than being amazed that I had a perfectly healthy liver after all that Tylenol ingestion, none of the clinicians seemed to take my addiction seriously.  They treated me for diazepam addiction instead although I told them I only took the Valium when I was out of my drug of choice.  But that was an addiction they were comfortable with so that's what I was treated for.  Needless to say, detox was a bust.  I beat Darvocet a few years later at the methadone clinic, but even then I lied about my D of C (said I was an OxyContin user) just so I would be taken seriously.  Surely there must be others out there with similar stories.

[ruby007]

wow! i cant beleive the things  ive read about darvocet. over the last couple months i have been taking it. i not only noticed that it made me feel better and do my daily task with out pain... any pain. i had constant foot aches because im overweight and the darvocet would help me do my normal tasks, at work or anywhere. at my follow up visit he said myailment was better and i left without a prescription. then all of the sudden i began to feel bad leg and shoulder pains, and i felt drained constantly. so i called the drs office and told the nurse, she easily called my pharmacy and they sent me more. well to make a long story goes, for the past five months ive been taking at least 700mg a day, im i myself are trying to wean myself off it. im embarrased about realizing that i was becoming dependant on the way it made me feel. boy did it help me complete my tasks. i felt great until i realized that i was having withdrawal symptoms. when i told my doctor that i began having trouble sleeping, he prescribed xanax. what is the easiest way to ween yourself off, cuz i wouldnt dare tell my doctor or anyone that i have this problem. how do i deal with this?? any suggestions.  

[rbmaricopa]

I have being asking the my self if I'm addicted to darvocet lately I have being taking darvocet for pains that come along with the complications of having systemic lupus the darvocet not only took my headaches body aches away but gave me the will to do all the normal activties in my daily life raising my 2 sons and being a good wife I have being taking darvocet for 8 years I started taking 2- 4 a day and now sometimes i take 5 or on a very bad day i will take 6 but not more than that. I could go for about 2 weeks with out taking them but it seems like I can't completly get off them my docotor says that the inflamation in my joints is cause enough for me to take the darvocets. I I never take any other pain killers beside that I just fill guilty because of all the scary stories of addictions that i hear about am I in danger?

[JerBlair]

addicted.

[JerBlair]

Dear Danya, I am so glad that I saw your comment about the

[JerBlair]

Dear Danya, I am so glad that I saw your comment about the Darvocet and your fear of possibly getting addicted, Boy do I have a story to tell you and YES you should be very concerned about your possible addiction, it will ruin your life.  Let me start by saying I have severe headaches, my doctor, years ago, started prescribing Darvocet for the pain, at first it made the pain go away which really attracted me to the medicine because I get headaches on a daily basis, however, after years of taking it, I noticed that two pills a day no longer worked, so I up'd it to four pills a day, after months and months of four pills a day, I increased it to six, this not only became expensive, I was calling my doctor every couple of weeks for refills, I got to the point where I was taking close to 20 tablets a day, whether I got a headache or not, because the feeling it gave me was really good, not a high feeling, I never took it to feel high.  It was more of a contented feeling and I would take the pills before I got the headache just to prevent the headache.  When My doctor started getting concerned that I was calling to often for refills he decided to cut me down, and his plan was to eventually ween me completely off the Darvocet.  His decision to do this to me scared the living hell out of me.  I thought to my self, what am I going to do to get this medicine legally.  I started going to two and three different doctors at one time and never told each of the doctors that I was seeing other physcians who I asked to prescribe the same medicine.  This was legal but was morally wrong and I was totally destroying my body, my liver enzymes began to elevate, which meant my liver was not filtering out the Darvocet, it was being stored in my body.  My weight ballooned up to over 200 pounds from 150 and I was spending every waking moment of my life wondering how I would get the Darvocet, I knew that I couldn't go on seeing several different doctors at one time.  For one thing, It was becoming extremely expensive, I used a credit card every time I bought the Darvocet and every time I went to the doctor.  I ran the credit card bill up to 18,000.00 dollars just on Darvocet and Doctors.  This went on for over ten years until I was stopped completely.  The doctor's I had been seeing somehow found out about each other and when that happened all of the doctors stopped prescribing the Darvocet, so I was completely without it and of course I still had the headaches.  Now, I was totally out of luck because I couldn't get it anywhere.  I wondered how I could get in and tryed every thing in the world to aquire it but had no more means of getting it.  To make a very long story just a bit shorter, I am begging you to stay miles away from the Darvocet, it is the most addictive medicine you will ever take and you WILL become addicted to it sooner or later and if you do, it will destroy your life.   Take it from me, if you absolutely have to take it for pain, just take two pills at the very most and then when the pain goes away don't think about it until it comes back, if you do, just look back on this personal story I have just shared with you and take every word I say as a personal message.  Pain killers can be very helpful but take no more than you absolutely have to, or you may be like me and end up regretting it for the rest of your life.  Once you have the addiction and know how the pills make you feel it is best to stay away from the Darvocet and for God's sake, don't find excuses to take it as you stated earlier in your comment.  I felt exactly the same way you did and I can see that you are headed for trouble, I also found every excuse possible to take it and once again, it is a long hard lesson to learn.  If you don't stop while you can you won't be able to stop later on down the road.  BELIEVE ME.

[JerBlair]

Dear Danya, I am so glad that I saw your comment about the Darvocet and your fear of possibly getting addicted, Boy do I have a story to tell you and YES you should be very concerned about your possible addiction, it will ruin your life.  Let me start by saying I have severe headaches, my doctor, years ago, started prescribing Darvocet for the pain, at first it made the pain go away which really attracted me to the medicine because I get headaches on a daily basis, however, after years of taking it, I noticed that two pills a day no longer worked, so I up'd it to four pills a day, after months and months of four pills a day, I increased it to six, this not only became expensive, I was calling my doctor every couple of weeks for refills, I got to the point where I was taking close to 20 tablets a day, whether I got a headache or not, because the feeling it gave me was really good, not a high feeling, I never took it to feel high.  It was more of a contented feeling and I would take the pills before I got the headache just to prevent the headache.  When My doctor started getting concerned that I was calling to often for refills he decided to cut me down, and his plan was to eventually ween me completely off the Darvocet.  His decision to do this to me scared the living hell out of me.  I thought to my self, what am I going to do to get this medicine legally.  I started going to two and three different doctors at one time and never told each of the doctors that I was seeing other physcians who I asked to prescribe the same medicine.  This was legal but was morally wrong and I was totally destroying my body, my liver enzymes began to elevate, which meant my liver was not filtering out the Darvocet, it was being stored in my body.  My weight ballooned up to over 200 pounds from 150 and I was spending every waking moment of my life wondering how I would get the Darvocet, I knew that I couldn't go on seeing several different doctors at one time.  For one thing, It was becoming extremely expensive, I used a credit card every time I bought the Darvocet and every time I went to the doctor.  I ran the credit card bill up to 18,000.00 dollars just on Darvocet and Doctors.  This went on for over ten years until I was stopped completely.  The doctor's I had been seeing somehow found out about each other and when that happened all of the doctors stopped prescribing the Darvocet, so I was completely without it and of course I still had the headaches.  Now, I was totally out of luck because I couldn't get it anywhere.  I wondered how I could get in and tryed every thing in the world to aquire it but had no more means of getting it.  To make a very long story just a bit shorter, I am begging you to stay miles away from the Darvocet, it is the most addictive medicine you will ever take and you WILL become addicted to it sooner or later and if you do, it will destroy your life.   Take it from me, if you absolutely have to take it for pain, just take two pills at the very most and then when the pain goes away don't think about it until it comes back, if you do, just look back on this personal story I have just shared with you and take every word I say as a personal message.  Pain killers can be very helpful but take no more than you absolutely have to, or you may be like me and end up regretting it for the rest of your life.  Once you have the addiction and know how the pills make you feel it is best to stay away from the Darvocet and for God's sake, don't find excuses to take it as you stated earlier in your comment.  I felt exactly the same way you did and I can see that you are headed for trouble, I also found every excuse possible to take it and once again, it is a long hard lesson to learn.  If you don't stop while you can you won't be able to stop later on down the road.  BELIEVE ME.

[Thomas02]

danya,

I've been addicted to darvon for 30 years, with only a few vacations from the drug, here and there. The main withdrawal symptoms from propoxyphene (darvon) are:

1. agonizing arm and leg cramps
2. a complete lack of energy
3. sweating
4. insomnia

The first two are the most prominent. As a long-time Darvon addict (no longer a practicing one, thank god) I have a suggestion for you:

Why not ask your doctor to substitute Tylenol#3 (30 mg codeine) for the darvocet? For people susceptible to the charms of darvon, Tylenol with codeine is much less attractive as a euphoric. Another, just as important reason to switch to Tylenol#3: It's a far, far more effective pain killer than Darvocet. Chances are, you'll get the relief you need with fewer doses.
Good Luck!

[Danya]

That was very helpful advice.  I tend to worry about everything and this might be something that just need to be mindful of.  I am very much a control freak so the idea of being addicted scares me.  

It was hell to quit cigs I don't think I want to go for another chemical addiction.

[cindi]

Can you e-mail me at cin91860 @aol.com?  I would like to tell you about this website but I do want you to read this post and I'm afraid it may be deleted.....thanks  cindi

[Danya]

I'm afraid I didn't make it through today.  I have a terrible toothache and had to take 1 darvocet.  I have an appointment tomorrow with my dentist and I am not going to worry about it until then.  

I want to ask him about addiction to these kinds of drugs and what i can do to insure that it doesn't happen to me.  With 2 possible root canals i don't know if I can get past them without something to help.  I also am scheduled for foot surgery next week.  This sucks!!!!!  Can anyone think of something I could ask for that is NOT addicting??

Thanks

[pelle1985]

To Dayna -- your fear of becoming addicted is very reasonable and healthy.  The fact that it should occur to you at all is a sign that you should pay attention to.  I can't tell you if you are or are not an addict -- this is something each person must decide for him or herself -- but as your concern has come from within yourself it is something to be especially mindful of.

To Shiny -- there are now several websites that offer this "service" (i.e., consultations with physicians either over the phone or by email, even, in order to obtain medication).  I have used at least two of them to obtain narcotics.  Now that I am in recovery, needless to say I no longer use these services.  As with everything else, the Internet has made the procurement of drugs easy and fast. . .but as you've already heard, it is not cheap.

Peace to all,
Pelle

[Francoise]

How do you know? Well, you know you're addicted when, if you don't take your drug on some regular schedule, you descend into the blackest pit of depression, dispair, anxiety, and agony of spirit, mind and body you have ever known. A pit from which you can only emerge if you take more of the drug. Once that happens, you're already addicted.

If you are worried that you may be on your way to addiction, do as you have already been advised: flush the damned things down the toilet and don't ever replace them. If someone wants to prescribe pain meds for you, refuse. You'll know if and when you really need pain medication. Then do something about it. But don't let yourself keep addictive meds in the house.

[pinky to rebecca]

it's not good to get your mind set on taking drugs. And temptation is too easy when you've got them in your bathroom just waiting to be taken. Why don't you flush them down the toilet and take some aspirin if your tooth hurts. The fact that you came on this site with a concern tells me that there might be a problem developing.
Be careful with what you take. The more you take it, the more you're going to want it. So take charge now -- good luck!  : )

[Shiny]

Sorry to change the subject.  But what is the deal with getting drugs over the internet?  I know people that do this all the time.  There's some kind of consultation with a real doctor over the phone, he asks you a few questions and send your meds by UPS in 3 days, and you also get 2 refills. It's not cheap though.  Anyway I have a wonderful doctor right now but if I didn't I would seriously think about this. And they say it is legal and I'm not talking about that Meican stuff, this is here in the U.S.