Vicodin question

[holly1977]

I have been prescribed vicodin for the last 5 years. I started to get carried away with them. I have started tapering last week really quickly, from 7-1000 down to 3 500. I have been reading so many conflicting things about w/d. I plan to be off of these by thurs, I am a graduate student and they interfere with my concentration. Will I suffer from w/d once I get down to almost nothing? I feel like I am down to pretty much nothing now. I don't crave them mentally anymore. I did have to fight that for a few days. I honestly feel like gagging when I swallow one. I have been sweating a lot when I sleep ( taking Xanax only to sleep). I feel jittery and nervous which is uncomfortable. Will I still have bad w/d? I have never experienced them before and I am scared.

[holly1977]

I woke up feeling pretty good. The last vicodin was at 8pm. I took my dog for a walk down by the lake at about 130 pm. Out of no where i just started to get jittery and nervous again. I keeping to tapering. I dont want to feel these things ever again. I took a half of a 5mg. Usually i start to feel weird by 11-12 after i wake up. I see my doc on weds and i am going to see what he thinks, i guess. I just feel like he will think im crazy feeling w/d at this low of a dose but I guess I have been on a pretty high dose for over five years.  When i got home I felt so tired and short of breath, which in itself is awful for me because I had a regular exercise routine prior to starting this and I craved exercise. Is this all normal?  I read that regular exercise creates new pathways/receptors. I thank you all for your feedback and support. Absolutly no one knows how I am feeling. I have tried to explain it to my fiance but he just doesnt believe that it can be this bad at such a low dose. Maybe alot if it is mental. I dont know. I hope my Doc doesnt treat me weird...

[FourJays]

Oh - and you might want to try some magnesium tablets for the sweating (I had that real bad in w/d too), and extra potassium - in bananas or try Vitamin Water "Revive"; it has a lot of potassium, b and c vitamins and electrolytes.  Great stuff for w/d!

[FourJays]

You can definitely handle this . . . and like Yes said, you only have to do it once.  Withdrawal is different for everyone; you may get by with minimal discomfort given that you are tapering.  Just post here with any symptoms you are having trouble with - lots of people here who have been through it and happy to share suggestions & support to get you through.  Congrats on the decision to quit and get them out of your life - best decision you will ever make!  Good luck :)

[YesLife4Me]

Your withdraws compared to someone who just stops should be very minimal.  You will have some anxiety, tired, mood changes, maybe some digestive stuff, but they should be mild.  Just be prepared for that.  There is no soft and easy way out of opiate abuse.  We all have to walk through the fire...some get through with minimal damage and some pay the piper.  I do agree that if you can taper slow as possible, it minimizes the severity.  Just know that this isn't something you ever have to do again.  It gets worse each time and harder to kick the longer you use and older you get.  Not to mention the damage and wreckage addiction leaves in its wake.  

[VICourageous]

Hi I just wanted to give you some support here...Bkitty got right to the point..You just have to Hang on to your Surf Board and Ride the Wave..It might be big or it might be little..You will come up on the Beach real soon..I promise..A good Taper is the best..I do agree..The w/ds are sooooo Short term compared to the years we used..Try to Replenish the Body with Vit/Min & Electrolytes...Magnz is a great Detoxer too...
God Bless You
vickie

[Bkitty]

Yes you will still experience some mild withdrawals when you completely stop. Unfortunately tapering doesn't stop them. Everything you are feeling is normal esp the anxiety, jitters and sweating. This wont completely go away until you have taken your last pill. Stick to your taper-adjust as you need to. Sometimes slow and steady wins the race. The mental part will always be with you. Be prepared for that as well. Once the physical withdrawals are completely gone that's when the mental can really kick in. Just a friendly warning. It is something that you have to acknowledge and deal with daily -some days not so much. Some days you have to fight.
You are doing great!! Hang in there.
(((hugs)))