TAPERING OXYCODONE

[JED1974]

I HAVE BEEN ON OXYCODONE FOR ABOUT A YEAR AND STARTED WITH 40 TO 50 MG A DAY AND WENT UP TO 90 MG A DAY FOR THE LAST THREE MONTHS> SUDDENLY 3 DAYS AGO I DROPPED TO 7.5 MG 3 TIMES A DAY , AND HAVE HARDLY NO SYMPTOMS. IS THIS GOOD. SHOULD I BE FEELING SOME WITHDRAWAL SYMPTOMS FROM DROPPING THAT FAR OF A DOSE FOR THE LAST THREE DAYS. I'VE SLEPT ALL NIGHT. THE VERY FIRST NIGHT A WOKE UP WITH STOMACH CRAMPS AND THE RUNS BUT THATS IT. I GUESS I FEEL A LITTLE DEPRESSED ,BUT NOTHING BAD. DOES ANYBODY THINK I'LL HAVE BAD WITHDRAWLS WEENING DOWN THE REST OF THE WAY?

[vicki595]

If you can stick to a taper,it may be easier in the long run. It sounds like you've had what you're going to have so far...As you decrease your dose,you'll have symptoms but it sounds like they're tolerable. Now that the weekend is here,why don't you just jump off?

[Dav125]

Hey Jed, not to sound critical but the caps are a little overbearing..And I'm confused now. I thought you were only dealing with hydrocodones back when you first started posting for help in May..

[JED1974]

Good idea. Do you think they will be unbearable? only taking 7.5 3 times a day. i thought i would be feeling really terrible but I don't

[JED1974]

Sorry, I had to have and operation. yhats why i've been off the grid

[Dav125]

Jed, like before back in May, you seems to be focusing on wd's too much or should I say the lack thereof....Relax. Put that out of your mind and keep your focus on dropping the pills..Your right on the fence of about to being hammered with the real deals of extended use..

As was said back then,,count your blessing that your not being hit hard with wd's as you really have taken enough, long enough, that most people would be having some serious wd's..Get away from them..You appear to be dodging a bullet for the second time..Third time around might not be so kind to you. They "will" nail you when you least expect it...

[JED1974]

So you would think I would definitely be feeling withdrawals dropping 70 mgs a day , not working down with no wd's. is that the typical case. if it is I am lucky. What do you think about Just jumping off. will it be bad or just take my time and stick with it?

[Dav125]

Just go ahead and jump. If your comfortable that your not having any severe blowback from taking what you have for the past couple of months, just quit. No reason to to continue to take them. You may have a lingering headache that may bug you some for a week or so, but thats child's play to what you seem to have dodged. If you still have meds and have situations where you get hit with periodical spells of pain, then have a family member hold them for you.So, if you run into a bad day from over exerting which causes pain for a day or two that really causes you problems, then you can ask your family member for a few to get thru that couple of days. That way, you don't run the chance of overtaking them just because there available in fromt of your face. Honestly Jed, during the first year my re-ruture had been spotted back 4 years ago, I would need a script maybe 2 or three times a year to take until the pain subsided. Each time I ran out after a months usage, I had no problem with wd's as you describe..But the forst of the year the wakeup call came in on me. I had been on a 2 month usage period and whala! wd's nailed me when I went to stop that round..It will happen to you to. And once that line is crossed, there's no getting away from it from that point forward....You really are tettering on the fence right now. My bet is that if you get into another rumn like this past one, the line "will" have been crossed and you "will" begin to suffer that which 99.9% of everyone in here is experiencing with their desire to rid themselves of the pills ..Do it for you. Save yourself the torture because you just don't understand how close these things are in giving you a real taste of wd's...

[JED1974]

Well I'm at 22.5 miiligrams a day right now , i still have some runs , but no fatigue, or headache, or anxiety. I'm kind of afraid to just quit, but i will keep going down every three days, until I'm down to literally nothing. then again I mght try to not take nothing at all and see what happens and if I get too uncomfortable then take a half , but only when I can't take it anymore . If it even gets to that.

[Dav125]

Nothing to be afraid of. By listening to you, let me tell you what I see happening that you haven't really looked at yourself. The 2/3rd's mental aspect that Gnarly speaks of when describing the wd process from opiates is already alive and well with you. Your afraid to stop..Thats the key right there. That mental hold that these pills have on a person is already crawling into your life ever so elusively..Taking a half here or a half there is not going to make much of a difference in the wd process once a person goes cold turkey..Back to my point though. They have already started the process in your thinking. The physical wd part has not reached critical mass with you but the mental part of the pain med addiction is..Its right in your words. That other voice in your head saying "you can't live without me". Right now your saying your feeling what your feeling because your scared of the wd's. Thats not the real answer if you dig down into your mind. I see a person in conflict that likes the pills from time to time..The scared of the wd's is just a good justification to take the position you are..The mental attachment is growing Jed..Get away from them..It is growing..

[IBKleen]

AMEN Dav.....

Jed, if you just stopped torturing yourself this could be over with in a few short days. You are dragging this out and causing unnecessary discomfort and stress. The pills are a crutch for you now and I hope you come to a point where you realize you can walk without them....

[JED1974]

You're right half a pill is nothing and i'm afraid of withdrawal. I just want to be done with them so from now on i"m stopping coming off of 20 mg can;'t be as bad as the first time. All I'm having right now is the runs and I feel fine otherwise. I really think I can be done with these with minimal side effects. I really think I've been through the worst. I am tortiuring my self. I'm fixed now, so I just want them out of my life, to lead a productive live. i"m very optimistic, don't get me wrong. I've never wanted them gone so bad in my life. I'm done.

[Dav125]

Good thoughts to have..Get rid of whatever is left and get back to living without them being "any " paqrt of "any" thoughts you have during the day..Ridding yourself will give you your freedom and mental sanity back:)

[IBKleen]

Good for you JED...I know you can do this and we will be here to help with any questions you have or just coach you and support you  along the way!!! Hang in there!!

And the good news is you will be clean for the holidays!! Now that is cool!!

[JED1974]

Glad you guys are here. I'm very able to do this. i figured i stopped some of the really bad withdrawals by steeping down 70 mg a day for the last three days. Something tells me it won't be as bad as I think. Thanks Guys

[JED1974]

still feel ok. Am I past the worst you think?

[JED1974]

The good thing about all this is I have no friends or relatives that have any medical problems that require pain meds, also I'm in a good church with people who love me and pray for me. I think this is good because if I'm not around it I think the temptation won't be there.

[JED1974]

just wanted to post that i"m getting a little anxiety right now. I think my mind is playing tricks on me. my nerves are getting the best of me right now, just hoping that I won't feel that bad. any thoughts?

[Dav125]

Keep counting the days Jed, your clear other than the thoughts of the pills popping up in your mind being they are so recent in your lifestyle for the past couple of months..Got to drill that thought in your head that your done. Within a couple of weeks, those thoughts will get farther and farther apart until they are a thought that exists in the archives of your mind of life past...Hey, if you get a thought,,go take a vitamin..Thats a pill too,,and a good one for you :)..You'll be ok..You've got to get away this time for good though. They really are ingraining themselve's in your mind...I'd bet 90% of the people in here could back up to the days when they weren't totally overwelmed with the thoughts of them. You have an advantage right now. Most of us had surpassed the moment your in now before we woke up and realized what the true nature of those beasts are..You really have a super strong chance at ending this in a short time frame verses all the rest of us in here that have to fight this battle at every waking moment..Just do it. Find a girlfriend or something :). That would have to feel better than anything the pills can do for you in the stimulation dept! (big smile)..Thats a buzz I believe would be worthwhile :):)  David

[Dav125]

I meant to say that 90% of the people in here "wish" they could back up to the position you find yourself in right now. My bad...Mind moving faster than fingers ;)

[JED1974]

I must confess I didn't jump cold at 20 mgs. I had 10 mgs total yesterday, and they were broken into three little pieces. So I've come from 90 on the 8th to 10 on the 12th, and none today. So today is my first clean day. I haven't had anything but 3.5 mgs at 6:00 last night, so I'm 23 hours into it and don't feel any worse than I did yesterday. Still got the runs, but if I can just make it past the 72 hour mark with nothing major, I'll be the happiest person on earth. Does anybody think I'll have any w/d's other than whats happening right now. I've got a very good doctor too. I'm the one who told her I didn't want them anymore, and she was proud. She also scripted me some Clonidine. I haven't picked it up yet, but she said it works great. Just wanted to share.

Jed

[eyeofhorus2010]

Jed, when I quit oxy's (80mg)  I went cold turkey and for me it was about 36 to 48 hours after my last that the withdrawals started in. Leading up to that it was uncomfortable but managable. I was just waiting for the real deal to start. And it did.

Just because you don't feel too bad now doesn't mean you won't. But when and if it does get worse don't panic and don't take more pills to make it go away. Get it done now. Make your mind up now that you are stronger than these pills. It's hard, but the more you talk and share about what's going on the easier it will be. You just have to take you mind to a better place while it's happening.

Good look Jed, you can do this!

[JED1974]

Got up this morning, slept all night. I'm at the 36 hr point with a little Clonidine just in case, but I tapered down to 10 mg a day total. I didn't jump off at 80 like eye said, I still don't have any withdrawals. I think I 've beat it. No runs anymore,headaches,chills, or aches,pains etc. What do you guys think this morning. End of workday today will 2 days with nothing.

Jed

[tired_of_oxy]

I think you can be proud that you put a stop to your addiction before it got right out of control. I also think you should thank your lucky stars that you didn't end up experiencing the kind of indescribable pain of withdrawal lots of us here deal with when we stop pills.

I'm really glad to hear you have a strong support system. Make sure you are open and honest so if for whatever reason you are tempted to pick up you have someone to talk through it. Plus there's always this board.

Jed I envy you, kinda jealous really. ;) you see I'm one of those ppl who didn't listen when warned. I didn't walk away when I could have and now I endure MaSSIVE wds when I try to quit. I'm up to about 160-200 mgs when I do oxy.  I "supplement" with sub. I'm a mess and come the first week of January I'm jumping. I will be paying the piper for the year long relapse and hopefully it will be my last.

You have avoided the worst pain imaginable. You can go and never look back. There's just destruction and the means to a bitter end in these pills Jed. You don't want or deserve that. No one does but some of us end up badly hooked. The mental part is creeping in. Dave nailed it when he wrote about that little voice saying you can't live without me" that voice is real. It's the voice of addiction. And it's a voice that hasn't YET gotten to loud in your mind. But still it's THERE so by doing this you've essentially cut the head off your addiction and can move on and please Jed, never go back. You have the chance to avoid hell on earth-take it and run with it!

All the best and God bless you!!

[JED1974]

Thanks for the comments and good luck at the first of the year. I really do think I dodged one here , because I think I would surely be feeling rotten by now, after 36 hours now. What do think? I weaned myself down to 20 mgs a day for four days, then only 10 for 1 day , then jumped off Sunday night at 6:00 and that was it. had some irritabilility while the few days I tapered, but nothing I couldn't stand. You think I'm done?????? W/D's in the past I hope.

Thanks again
Jed