There seem to be only three symptoms that remain after over ten days. The most prominent is that I am sleeping more often and more deeply than ever. This has obviously trashed my usual daily activity patterns and that has been hard to accept. Since I am retired I can deal with it and for now I am just going with it.
Imagine a day when you wake up at, say, 0300 and are wide awake--so much so that you find that you can lay there until a "civilized" waking hour comes or just make that your wake up time for this particular day. So you make coffee and read, surf the Internet, etc. quietly so you don't disturb your spouse. Than at maybe 0800 you want a nap. These naps, by the way, are deep sleep and very satisfying. So at maybe 1030 you wake up refreshed. You go about your day. It's fine. Then maybe around 1500 you want to kick back. You wake up at maybe 1830 and enjoy the evening, finally retiring at maybe 2200. Strangely and ironically it may be hard to sleep but not too hard. So the hours of sleep for the 24 hours are 10.5 or so. Let me emphasize that these urges for naps are not minor. They are almost irresistible. If I had to work a regular job this would be unworkable.
The second symptom is a tendency to get muscle spasms in my calves. These are not frequent--maybe once per day--but they are painful.
The final one is sneezing. I sneeze maybe 15-20 times per day.
I have no idea how long these symptoms will last. I feel fortunate that the terribly unpleasant symptoms that I experienced in the first few days have abated and I am left with these. I have quit smoking. I have quit high dose morphine. Tramadol withdrawal, in total, has been more unpleasant than either of those.
Been there, done that. Gamapentin, if you can get if from your doc may help with the RLS. Hang in there. It's hell now, but it only gets better over time.
I have taken Tramadol for nearly 15 years, reaching an intake of some twenty 50 mg. capsules per day. This was in addition to about 150mg. MSContin (crushed and snorted or plugged of course) every day. I have degenerative disc disease and a nerve sheath condition.
I decided I'd had enough of the Pain Clinic and, though they cling to the fiction that you won't develop a tolerance if you stick to their program, any junkie knows otherwise. That's just a lie they tell to keep their insurance company and the DEA overseers happy these days. So the morphine was just keeping me fixed. No pain relief and no joy. So I got my last scrip, tapered off, endured the 72 hours of withdrawals and was left with the tramadol.
I knew tramadol was going to be harder. You have an opiate component and a serotonin boosting component and, frankly, some other brain chemistry that is not entirely documented. I spent a good long time tapering down to 50 mg. twice per day. Even at this level, if I went too long I got a warning shot--for me a feeling of vertigo and stomach ache.
It is Wednesday as I write this. I ended the Tramadol on Saturday. Withdrawals including chills/fever, burning facial skin, nausea, restless leg syndrome, extreme fatigue and excessive sleep alternating with insomnia, light/movement avoidance, bone and muscle aches, and the vertigo have all come to the fore and receded at various time like waves. However as of right now the only constant, continuous issue I have is an uncomfortable amount of vertigo. Yes, I am fatigued. But I believe I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel here.
Finally, I want to note that I take Celexa and I definitely doubled my dose a couple of days before I discontinued tramadol. I also have a small prescription of Atavin which I have used sparingly. Laugh if you will but I bought some 5 Hour Energy sauce and it does seem to help (I think it is just Red Bull without having to buy a whole can of fluid that tastes like sweet bull pee). Like I say I think I am near the end of this nightmare but promise to post if things begin to go awry. I will also return to answer any questions that may be directed at me.
its never too late guys, ive been using trams for almost 20 years since college days on and off, went through WDs a hundred times and still trying to stop .. my usual dose was upto 1500 mg a day - where i live we have a 225mg in a pill red color - now im down to 450 mg a day and yes you cant do it alone u need someone to be with u each step of the way for a year at least .. i have my wife she is really patient ... the worst period of WD is not only the 1st month its actually the 1st year,, u need to have a hobby or something to keep you busy fill your time with anything ,, remember you've been doing it for so long that its a way of life for you its not just a physical problem its more than that,, the physical part is the easiest it takes only a month or 2 to go through it but your head is the real monster it will keep looking for excuses to take trams again dont listen to it ,, you'll convince your self that you can take it only on weekends for the fun of it ,, hehe thats how i always got back to it ... and you need to stop seeing old friends who has problems with trams or any other narcotics i know its not easy to do but you have to and thats what im doing .. and btw we've been doing it for so long that being sober is the new high .... its not easy to stop it but its not impossible .. but if you're not ready or convinced to stop it dont even try ,, u need to be psychologically ready for it
good luck pinkgreenblack and to all
btw english is not my native tongue
I am a success story so i am going to respond...I have been off tramadol - and i mean 100% CLEAN! LOL - from all meds for 2.5 years. It was a hell of a road back, but i did it. I never even think about it any more and i look back at photos of myself during those 4-5 years of addiction/dependency and i don't even know who that gal is. I am in SUCH a better place now and i will never go back. It is such a pitiful existence to be in. Is it easy -NO!. Is it worth it - YES! But it takes a while. You have to be patient with yourself. You did not get in this situation over night and it is not going to go away over night. Thru the grace of God and a supportive spouse and a physician who was willing to help me get off them, I lived to tell it can be done. You are going to have severe depression even after the withdrawals are gone. You are going to feel like crap for a week/months. You are going to be tired and fatigued. Your energy WILL return but it will be a gradual thing. Your brain has to return to normal and that takes time. Do you need to take it for depression only? Ummm - no! Find a physician you trust who will help you thru this. you cannot do it alone. I tried several times and i gave in several times and returned to it out of desperation time after time. You need support, mentally and physically thru this because it. is. TOUGH! But you can do it and you are worth it! One thing that helped me was i also cleaned up my lifestyle at the same time - 100% clean eating - sugar free energy drink called SPARK to help w/my energy and mental focus. I got healthy when i ditched tramadol all the way around - it will help you so much. I started WALKING, then jogging then running and lost 30 lbs since i quit tramadol. All because i made up my mind that i was doing it! Were there days i stayed in bed all day and cried?? You betcha! But you will reach the end eventually and you will look back and be so glad you did it. You can Do This!! :) Good luck
Hi, I've been addicted to Tramadol for 19 years. I was taking about 15-20 50mg per day. I've suffered through hundreds of withdrawals from this white pill. The wd are literally what I would consider Hell to be and never ending. I went to rehab last year to get off of them because I couldn't do it alone. I was clean from them for 3 months but the lack of energy, depression and anxiety was overwhelming and I thought I could control the amount I would take this time...nope, now I'm back to ordering online!! I truly believe I messed up my brain chemistry because when I'm not on them I'm absolutely worthless, no desire for anything and don't care about life. My question is, has anyone gone through that and do you think I might need to take it forever because of the antidepresent value in it?
hey jati i have a knee problem and have been taking tramadol i noticed you said you didnt get your shipment are you ordering them online if so can you tell me what site that would be appreciated i would like to order them you can email me at ***@**** thanks
This is an old post that is getting new responses. I'm currently tapering from Tramadol and the taper is well as well. Tried the C/T but went nuts and started up again. May God have mercy on us all! Go to the upper right corner and type Tramadol and recovery room. There will be active posts just about this particular evil pill. So glad you made it through!
I can't explain to all of you how bad Tramadol is, it helps with pain but it marketed as non-habit forming. What a load of BS. I was prescribed Tramadol for a car accident with numerous injuries. Although the jolly feeling some have talked about is temporary it eventually leas to numbness, irritability and brain fog. Now trying to get off these things without poper sedatives is nearly impossible. I've tried. You must have a plan, but when you go through the long arduous process of getting this pesticide out of your system it's like you're seeing the world for the first time again. The fog lifts and everything is more beautiful. As for the woman who was dealing with her father on the floor, it's been a while now so I'm sure it's been resolved. But NEVER go off this stuff cold turkey because that's exactly what happens. Her father should have been forced to ween himself off the Tramadol and then go onto the codeine. What in the world is the matter with these doctors??? You never take a patient in his condition off a drug like Tramadol that quickly. What another person said about this drug is exactly right, the reason withdrawals are so bad is because it acts like a pain killer and an anti-depressant so you are really withdrawing off of two drugs at the same time. "Good little pill"- whatever Doctor said that should be dragged out in the street and force fed this stuff and then cut off abruptly so he goes through withdrawals. I'm sure his attitude would change.
I've been on opiates for about 9 years. God, has it been that long? It started in 2005 when I injured my back and was prescribed Percocet. After getting as many refills as I could from the local doctor, I realized I had to go online to get meds. It was easy back then to get strong opiates with a phone consultation from a doctor. I was able to get Norco for almost two years from an online pharmacy, but the DEA started cracking down on physicians, and I was no longer able to get Norco. After some research, I read that Tramadol was weaker than other opiates, and will help with withdrawal. Funny, right? Well, six years later I was still taking Tramadol to feel normal. It did seem to help me with anxiety and depression. Now, with the August deadline where Tramadol was made a controlled substance, I was no longer able to get Tramadol. The last of my Tramadol stash ran out a couple weeks ago. I quit CT. It's funny because the first couple days didn't seem to bad at first, so I thought it would be fine. Then starting about 4 days after CT, I started getting bad withdrawals, like head sensations, cold and hot spells, sensitive skin, indigestion, sleeplessness due to my leg anxiety. I'm on my second week of CT, and it's very hard to concentrate at work. My anxiety is up to the sky, and my emotions are all over the place. I feel very sad all the time. I'm an emotional mess, and I cry for no reason constantly. I hate it. I wish I knew how much longer this would last. I'm starting to lose hope. I'm extremely depressed. The only thing keeping me going is the love of my family. I hope this will end, or it will end me. I'm not a religious person, but I've prayed for help.
I am 18 days free of Tramadol! I was on Tramadol for 5 years, 2-3or4 50 mg tabs a day. My doctor all of the sudden decided that I wouldn't be getting another refill.....surprise, surprise!! In the beginning my doc told me that Tramadol was a "non addictive", "non narcotic" pain med. Oh my gosh, was she wrong!! 2 days with no Trams had me in physical and emotional hell! My symptoms were headache, sleeplessness, pinpricks head to toe, RLS, brain zaps, full blown panic attacks for no reason at all, tearfulness, fatigue out the a$$, nausea and diarrhea . I found several things that work. Benadryl for sleep (sometimes this works, other times not), Iron supplement (for RLS.restless legs) & bananas (RLS) and the BEST thing I found that helps me is 5-HTP supplements (Precursor to Serotonin). I take my Iron 2 hours before I take the 5-HTP, the 5-HTP comes 2 hours before I go to bed. If 2 hours after that I still can't sleep, 2 benadryl.I tried Melatonin & it did nothing for me..a multivitamin/energy pill first thing in the morning. THe 5-HTP helps with sleep and mostly with the fatigue...you wouldn't believe the difference it has made!!! I can tell you one thing for certain.....I will NEVER take Tramadol again! I never got a high feeling from it, it was like a tylenol.....I really had no idea that I was "addicted" to it....I took it in the am as a preventative for my pain and when in pain I would take 1 or 2 more.....never again! I hope my experience will help someone else with getting off of this awful drug!
HERE IS THE BEST ADVICE ANYONE WILL JUST GIVE YOU. i HAD DECIDED TO TAPER, WHICH IF YOU DON'T, YOU ARE LEFT WITH ONLY 2 BAD CHOICES. EITHER COLD TURKEY (VERY BAD), OR GO TO ONE OF THE SUBOXONE QUACKS (VERY, VERY, BAD. THEY HOOK YOU ONE ANOTHER OPIATE, BUT I GUESS ANYTHING IS BETTER THAN (COLD). ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO I BULL CRAPPED (ANOTHER LOST OR STOLEN PILL LIE) MY DOCTOR INTO GIVING ME ANOTHER PRESCRIPTION. THIS WAS BEFORE HE FOUND OUT IT WAS CONTROLLED. TO MY PLEASANT SURPRISE WHEN I GOT HOME AND COUNTED THEM, THE PHARMACY MADE A MISTAKE AND GAVE ME 280, NOT THE 240 IT SHOULD HAVE.NOW I AM HAPPY, AS AN IDIOT DRUGGIE, IT WAS BECAUSE I HAD MORE TO ENJOY (THAT DRUG REALLY ***** ANYWAY). NOT BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO BE SMART AND HAVE THAT MANY MORE FOR THE TAPER, IDIOT. SO STUPID, I FORGOT TO TAPER WITH THEM AT ALL. OK, NOW I HAVE TO LIE TO MY DOC WHO IS A GREAT GUY, AND HE GOES FOR IT BECAUSE HE STILL DOESN'T KNOW IT IS CONTROLLED.ONLY NOW, I ONLY HAVE 200, BUT YOU CAN DO A GOOD TAPER WITH THAT MANY, BUT NO, EVERYDAY I CHEATED A LITTLE, WHICH LEFT ME TO GO COLD AT 14 A DAY. TRUST ME KELSEY, YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW WHAT THAT FEELS LIKE. SO IN CONCLUSION FROM AN OLD DOPER WHO SHOULD KNOW BETTER, BE SCARED, BE VERY, VERY SCARED, AND DO THE RIGHT THING WITH YOUR NEXT SCRIP OR YOU WILL BE VERY, VERY SORRY. DO THE RIGHT THING TALK TO YOUR PHARMACIST, THEY ARE USUALLY GOOD PEOPLE. WORK OUT A TAPER WITH THE PHARMACIST SO THAT YOU CAN GO THERE EVERY DAY, AND GET THE RIGHT AMOUNT. YOU DON'T WANT TO GET INVOLVED WITH DR. SUBOXONE THE WASHOUT SHRINK WHO IS ONLY IN IT FOR THE BUCKS. HE ABOUT TO HOOK YOU ON SOMETHING JUST AS BAD FOR $300 FOR 30. PLEASE THIS OLD FART IS TRYING TO HELP YOU HELP YOURSELF. WHEN I WOKE UP YESTERDAY, I THOUGHT I WAS DEAD (I SORTA WANTED TO BE). LUCKILY I HAVE HAD THE SAME DOC FOR 40 YEARS, SO I WAS ABLE TO ******** HIM INTO GIVING ME RITALIN, NOT GOOD, BUT IT DOES MASK THE DETOX. I AM DONE WITH THIS CRAP, IT IS NO WAY TO LIVE. YOU CAN THANK ME LATER WHEN YOU HAVE DONE WHAT I AM TELLING. PROMISE ME YOU WILL. I AM OLD ENOUGH TO BE YOUR GRANDFATHER, SHOW SOME RESPECT.
ROBERT (DEFINITELY NOT MY REAL NAME) SO WHAT? The DOC here is an *******
I hope you're past this. But your obviously not alone. It took me seeing how a family members addiction was causing enormous an devastating pain in everyone around them, for me to finally after years of abuse, to stop. We all lie to ourselves and say it doesn't effect them and that they don't know. But we never fool anyone but ourselves. And we scourge our families with our selfish abuse.
I don't want you to feel shame. Shame is counterproductive and won't help them or you. Just think what you'd do, the lengths you'd go to, if someone was hurting your family. Then this isn't such the monster we create in our heads. Fight. Because it's your enemy and because you're it's slave. Fight for those people you love that you're causing pain in. Fight because if you don't you'll fade away from everyone, including yourself. God bless you with His strength, in Jesus's name.
After taking a relatively small dose (50mg) of tramadol 3 times daily for approx 3 1/2 yrs I had relocated to another state and changed healthcare providers. Being new to the area I chose pretty much at random from the limited providers in the area and, unfortunately, wound up with an inept moron as a primary care provider.
Now I'm 64 yrs old and not in the best of health and I've run into some pretty low quality doctors in my time but this guy beat anything I've ever seen. Anyhow, long story short, after a couple of months of struggling just to stay current on my meds (I take several regularly) he pushed me beyond the limits of my patience and I wound up with no provider and no way to get my meds.
Side Note: If you're in the area of Athens, Tennessee his name is Kevin Dansby. Do yourself a favor and steer clear of this guy.
Naturally when I fired him he immediately cancelled all my Rx. At that time, I had zero tramadol in my possession and every new provider I've spoken to refused to provide tramadol as treatment for arthritis so the decision was pretty much made for me to stop, cold turkey. At that time, I had no clue how hard it would be.
Step one: The psychological effect of knowing that I was addicted to this med and unable to obtain it was pretty much overwhelming. Although I consider myself a strong minded man, the anticipation of withdrawal was foremost in my mind and seemed to be inescapable. Anxiety would be a mild description. Even after researching and becoming more aware of what I was in for, I was still unsure what to expect as there are so many symptoms which vary individually, thus adding to the anticipation.
Step two: Flu like symptoms. Starting at day two, sinus and chest congestion, headache, nausea, overall body-ache that lasted about 5 to 6 days.
Step three: Insomnia. For lack of a better term, absolutely unable to even lay still, much less sleep. Coupled with the lack of sleep comes lethargy and mild confusion along with many other aspects associated with sleep deprivation alone. This for me was the worst part of the entire experience. My entire body was like a wound up spring just waiting to be released. I cannot say how long this will last as it is still with me today, on day ten.
Step four: Diminished motor skills. Seemingly unable to coordinate simple movements that required the use of both hands at once or similar tasks, I would find myself staring at my hand almost willing it to move. This lasted about a week.
Step five: Nausea/diarrhea. Although I was nauseated to the point of not wanting to eat, I seemed to crave sweets, any sweets no matter what the form and I have never been a fan sweets or snacking. Stay close to a restroom.
Step six: Temper, temper! I have never been a very aggressive person without provocation but I seemed to be hovering on the edge of explosion with even the slightest irritation. I managed to subdue this with the help and understanding of a very loving wife, but it lasted for a week or so.
Step seven: This is my day ten and although I am writing this at 2:30 am due to the ongoing lack of ability to sleep, for the most part things are smoothing out and I consider myself lucky with the understanding that it could have been much worse. So what is next?...Now I have to face the fact that I still have arthritis and that it must be treated and that any med that is effective enough to relieve the pain is addicting. So where do I go from here?
Like you said just do a real slow taper, you may even have to get some more tram to complete the taper, but do it very slow or your body will quickly realize that its not getting its daily fix , I am just starting to taper off a 800 mg a day habit , so ill let you know how its going if you like?
I went through all these withdrawals as well. These are the things that helped me. For depression: NIACIN non flush (take double dose), For Diarrhea: Immodium Liquid not tablets, For anxiety: Try to find some Clonzapem or Xanax but be careful they are addictive, To Sleep: Sleeping pills. Watch a lot of comedy TV, Walk no matter how you feel do some walking. EAT!!! I know you will not feel like eating but it is very important. No matter how little the food but EAT. Also, take a hot shower 2-3 times a day. I hope this helps, it's what helped me. Good Luck Everyone!
Thank you.. I needed to hear this!. I helped me tremendously.
Thank you! I needed to hear this.
Your not alone here,,,,,,,I've been taking 700 to 800 mg a day for years...its easy for me to get because I live close to Mexico where its legal. I REALLY want to quit,,,,,,have tried a few times but the withdrawls were too much for me to handle.....I feel stuck in a very dark place,,,,,,,,I know how you feel......where can we find help?
JTS
Hi all,
I am a breast cance survivor and was prescribed tramadol to help ease joint pain from cancer meds. I only took 100mgs at night for sleep. I never abused them at all. I he been on them for 2years. I decided to get off when I read that "dry mouth" was a side effect of any pain med, including tramadol. I have been dealing with that too. I tapered and then went cold turkey. I am on day 5 and it is better. The worst is insomnia and restless leg. I will try the sleep aids from the health food store and melatonin. I pray every day that this will be the last day of misery. To me, it was almost as bad as dealing with all the chemo I was given.
Thank you all,for your inspirational words.
I too have suffered like you. I was able to detox without bad side effects by using strong marijuana butter and some kava each day. Also you need to eat LOTS of many different fruits and vegetables... all colors...EVERY day munch out... pig out on fruit and raw vegies. Drink LOTS of water too... at least a half gallon (even better a gallon) per day. Talk to a nutritionist! Also, get your 215 so you are not breaking the law.
If you take too big of a dose of butter you may hallucinate, experience scary disorientation. Just lay down, relax and go to sleep if you can... in a few hours it will pass and you can adjust your butter dose down a bit. I was eating English muffins dipped in butter, at first 3 to 5 a day. After while, because of the taste, I preferred to swallow butter in its hard state, right out of the fridge, cutting small pieces the same size and swallowing like a big pill. This allowed me to gain a sense of marijuana butter-dosage.
After a few weeks you should carefully taper off the marijuana butter! Side effects of eating too much or eating a daily dose over time, even small, can cause confusion and forgetfulness (marijuana psychosis). Eat a little less each day--easy to tapper off when ingested. By the way, smoking marijuana rather than ingesting it is different and will not help your detox! I believe smoking pot is more addictive and will damage your lungs. It is also much more expensive to smoke. You don't need expensive pot to make butter. Second rate or bud-trim makes very strong butter and costs much less!
By the way, when every you tapper off something, you should talk small steps, every one or two weeks... however, the diet I sugest allowed me to quit a oxycodone, vicodine 7.5, and Tylenol 4 addiction cold turkey... I was clumsy at first, but as long as I ate more butter, and healthy fruits and vegies when I felt withdraw just a little, I got off pills in a very comfortable fashion.
I was on methadone for 7 and a 1/2 years,80 mg a day, took 3 months of hydrocodone tapering to beat it,was injured at work a year ago thought I was safe with tramadol, 100mg every 4 hours for a year, theres no difference in the withdraws that I can tell , except it wont take three months to get out of your system before you begin to get better.
Methadone should be illegal. And Tramadol should be prescribed with a WARNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
I'm so glad I found this page. I have only been on 2 50mg tablets a day for 3 weeks. Yesterday I decided not to take my pills because I am going on vacation and I wanted to be sure I didn't run out while I was away. Last night I couldn't figure out the uncomfortable spasms and insomnia, Really not usual for me. This was my first prescription drug. I thought about possible withdrawals systems from one day of abstaining. Could it be possible? I googled this page. I'm done with them except in case of emergency.. 4-5 hours of withdrawal was crazy for me.
Laura,
My name is John and I have been taking Tramadol for about 3 years. I had back surgery about a year ago to replace a bad disc. Prior to and after the surgery I was prescribed Percocet and Valium; I took these for about 1 month before and one month after the surgery; I had no problem stopping either one during my recovery. My doctor informed me a few days ago that he would no longer fill my prescription, and now I feel like hell ( a sudden stopping of Tramadol). I figure since I am not going to be give a script for it I might as well try to get off of it, and it *****!!! I never expected to feel the way I do after only taking 2 50mg tabs a day, as you said before. The sad thing is I feel helpless and would not wish this on anyone. In fact I said earlier today I would rather have my back pain back then be going through this....any thoughts?? Thank you for sharing and reading.