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Begin your detox with regular doses of Valium (or alternate benzo). Start with a dose high enough to produce sleep. Before you use any benzo, make sure you're aware of how often it can be safely taken. Different benzos have different dosing schedules. Taper your Valium dosage down after each day. The goal is to get through day 4, after which the worst WD symptoms will subside. You shouldn't need the Valium after day 4 or 5.
During detox, hit the hot bath or Jacuzzi as often as you need to for muscle aches. Don't underestimate the effectiveness of hot soaks. Spend the entire time, if necessary, in a hot bath. This simple method will alleviate what is for many the worst opiate WD symptom.
Use the Imodium (immodium) aggressively to stop the runs. Take as much as you need, as often as you need it. Don't take it, however, if you don't need it.
At the end of the fourth day, you should be waking up from the Valium and experiencing the beginnings of the opiate WD malaise. Upon rising (empty stomach), take the L-Tyrosine. Try 2000 mgs, and scale up or down, depending on how you feel. You can take up to 4,000 mgs. Take the L-Tyrosine with B6 to help absorption. Wait about one hour before eating breakfast. The L-Tyrosine will give you a surge of physical and mental energy that will help counteract the malaise. You may continue to take it each morning for as long as it helps. If you find it gives you the "coffee jitters," consider lowering the dosage or discontinuing it altogether. Occasionally, L-Tyrosine can cause the runs. Unlike the runs from opiate WD, however, this effect of L-Tyrosine is mild and normally does not return after the first hour. Lowering the dosage may help.
With breakfast, take the mineral supplement.
As soon as you can force yourself to, get some mild exercise such as walking, cycling, swimming, etc. This will be hard at first, but will make you feel considerably better.
PLEASE NOTE: If you have any medical complications, first check with your doctor before detoxing to verify that this regimen is safe for you.
A powerful mulit-vitamin; hylands restful legs; hylands sleep aid; hylands daytime nerve aid; xanax; otc sleeping pills (to alternate with hylands depending on what works); nyquil for cold symptoms; tylenol/ibuprofin for pain
Of course, always be careful with mixing drugs and pills, etc!!!
I also am using a lavendar/chamomile bath soak and have extra pillows and blankets as well as plenty of warm clean clothes.
It helps to keep a change of clothes at hand for nighttime due to the massive amounts of sweat!
I also got re-started on an anti-depressant about 3 weeks ago and that is gonna help a ton!
Melatonin is good stuff for night time, as is valerian root. Most of this is stuff the local GNC will tell you. I walked in, told the guy I was going through opiate withdrawal, and amazingly, he'd done it too. I explained my symptoms and he did his best to locate things that will help. My budget kept me from experimenting too much, as this stuff can get expensive.