Tramadol withdrawal nightmare!

Hello. I was prescribed tramadol for rheumatoid arthritis around 1 year ago. Recently i decided that i was feeling pretty good and would like to try stopping this medication. I was concerned about the long term effects of this medication on my system and all the rest of it. I had noticed that if i ever missed a dose of tramadol that i would begin to feel terrible and this concerned me and is also part of the reason for me wanting to stop it. I would take anywhere from 100mg - 400mg on a bad pain day. It worked, it made me feel great and helped me to overcome the fatigue involved with RA. I was given this drug and told that it was not addictive. So i was ill prepared for the all consuming hell that began about 30 hours after my last tablet. It was so bad sweats, chills, pain, breathing difficulty, anxiety and cold and flu like symptoms, that i took another tablet and decided to taper down instead. This has also been dreadful. I'm now on 50mg once daily and plan to go to 25 and then stop altogether. I have never in all my life felt so sick. I feel like i'm coming off heroine (not that i have experienced this) but i'm pretty sure that it couldn't be much worse than what i'm going through. Anyone else out there had this experience with tramadol? Did you ever feel normal again. I'm beginning to think that i've messed up my body chemistry so badly that it's beyond repair. I'm so angry at having been given this drug. Part of me just wants to take it again to get rid of the symptoms, but i don't ever wish to go through this again.

[Luckytwice]

You are doing it right. You have to taper off this stuff.

Taking a good multivitamin with all the b vitamins (b6 especially) Vitamin c 1000mg,  Calcium and magnesium,  and some  amino acids like L-Tyrosine will really help with the wd's while tapering , and when you stop completely.

You will feel normal again when your endorphins start being produced again and return to normal, which takes a while. They return to 45-50% of normal in about a month.
The amino acids and vitamins  with help until then

[Luckytwice]

Here's some links to info on amino acid and a 'recipe" called the thomas recipe that many use to help with those wd's.

http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Addiction/Amino-Acid-Protocol/show/15?cid=66

http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Addiction/Thomas-Recipe-Re-Posted/show/16?cid=66

That should help explain things better.

[tigerlillies]

Thanks. I am taking vitamins. No amino acids though so i will look into this. Have you experienced tramadol withdrawal yourself? A month of waiting to feel sub normal seems like an eternity........ Oh well, doesn't look like i have a choice in the matter. Cheers

[ash21aus]

Hi... I was on trammadol for over a year minimum 400 mgs a day and mostly more... I was told it wasnt addictive too but how wrong they are, trammadol is a silent devil... I actually had a seizure caused by trammadol which gave me a big scare and alot of motivation to get off it... I went cold turkey I didnt suffer any physical affects I just couldnt sleep and was more moody and depressed, I found after 5 to 7 days I was almost back to myself physically but the mental habit takes a while.. Maybe try having some codeine to help you along just dont get addicted to that... This prescription drug world gets many innocent people :( I have a severe back condition and have so far battled oxycontin, trammadol, valium and panadeine forte... all the best of luck stay strong keep remembering why you are giving it up and take care...If you have trouble sleeping try some restavit which is over the counter... take care x

[Luckytwice]

Tramadol is a synthetic analog of codeine. It wouldn't be a good thing to take when your trying to get off a variant of it, LoL!

tigerlillies- The time it takes for endorphins to return to normal isn't specific to just tramadol,  it's opiates in general.  It may not be as bad for tramadol in fact, because it works on different receptors than most other opiates.

[snakejones]

Hi sweetie--at 50 milligrams, you are now just on a single pill---congratulations! Yes, you can half that and take it awhile, too. Ultram withdrawal is super nasty, mentally worse than physically. The depression alone is a nightmare---very, very black. You'll be okay, though. Just keep on the single pill for awhile (you have to decide that--we aren't supposed to give you taper instructions, but as you are now on one pill it's pretty obvious what to do! Duhhh.), and then go from there. It can take up to several months before you feel 100% healthy again. Be kind to yourself--do things that made you happy in the past, get a massage to start endorphins flowing again, eat good food and take vitamins. Give yourself all the pleasant things you can to pull you back to the REAL pleasures of living in this world. There is more than hope that you will feel better soon. I am so impressed that you tapered yourself so nicely, even if it was uncomfortable. You hang in there a little while longer, and stay strong and focused. You'll make it!

[ash21aus]

yes but taking codeine will help you reduce down it works... I was on oxycontin then reduced down to trammadol then codeine now off everything and I havent suffered any withdrawal symptoms.

trust me it works you arent denying your body what its used too.. I speak from experience :)

[ash21aus]

and codeine is alot more mild than trammadol.. trammadol is nasty.. trammadol is a synthetic herion..

[jenny691]

Hi I'm a 33yr. old woman going through the worst mental and physical pain I have ever been through!! Very recently I had a tramadol overdose!! I really thought I was going to die.!! I had been taking the drug for close to a year. After my overdose I quite cold turkey.  I now feel chilled, sweaty, sick to my stomach, depressed, lots of anxiety, and I can not sleep at night for nothing in the world!!!! What do I do?