help for withdrawl

[debnmeg]

this is my first time on this site. I began seeing a pain mgmt. doctor about 4 months ago and i started taking 12 mic fentanyl  patch.I am now up to a 25 mic patch and a 12 mic patch every 2 days the problem is I feel I am in even more pain now. I had no clue how strong this med is. I lost my insurance last week and i knew that i could not afford the doctor and for sure could not afford the meds. So without talking to anyone i stopped the patches and it has been only 26 hours. I can not sleep and I feel shakey and cant seem to sit still. can some one help? Is there something over the counter that can help?

[Patricia70]

I'm about an hour new to this website.
Call out to Jesus for help. He's the only one I know who can heal us all.  Medicine sure doesn't seem to, since there's so many side effects, some worse than what your taking the medicine for.  I'll pray for you, and ask God to give you wisdom also.

[Jaybay]

Any amount of fentanyl is a stout dose and you will experience withdrawal if you suddenly discontinue using it.  Everything you're feeling right now is normal - for withdrawal.  The restlessness, anxiety, muscle cramps, bone aches, nausea/vomiting, diarrhea, hot and cold flashes, tremendous sweats - all normal.  It's also normal to have big increases in pain from your original problem for a few weeks.  It will gradually go away.

It's not unheard of at all for some patients to experience increased pain while on the fentanyl or other narcotics.  They aren't really "pain killers."  They only change the way the brain perceives pain.  Since they work on the brain and everyone's brain chemistry is slightly different, there isn't a one-size-fits-all dose or medication for a given problem.  My mom was the same way with narcotics.  The few times she had them in her life she said they only made her pain worse.  Some people react that way immediately and others take years on narcotics for it to happen.

You're far enough into the process that I'd hate to see you go back on fentanyl unless you absolutely can't stand it.  Please do see your doctor and perhaps he'll taper you off it with something less potent and less expensive.  I personally can't recommend the Suboxone/ Subutex after watching my husband endure a horrible detox from it.  Took him three attempts and from what I've read on the addiction forum here, it's not uncommon and about 98% of patients who successfully detoxed from it said the experience was many times worse than the original narcotic - prescribed or not.  It's also not cheap and not many insurance plans cover it.

Meanwhile, hot baths, or better yet a spa, can help quite a bit of the symptoms.  It's only temporary, but any relief is better than no relief.  It's extremely important that you stay hydrated since you're going to be sweating out fluids like crazy - and probably losing them in other ways as well.  I know you probably don't want to think about eating, but try to sip on something like Ensure for the next few days until the worst is over.  Energey levels seem to the last thing to return, so don't beat yourself up if you can't do some things for a while.  If you can drag yourself out for a short walk every day, it actually helps.  There's no point in trying to sleep through withdrawal.  It's just not going to happen so don't get your hopes up.  The more you can move around the better it is for both your physical and mental state.

If you want to completely stay off any narcotics, there are meds your doctor can prescribe to help with some, but not all, of the withdrawal symptoms.  Definitely talk to the good folks over on the addiction forum here at Med Help.  You're not an addict, but you're going through the same withdrawal symptoms as an opiate addict and they can help.  You won't be the first pain management patient to check in over there and certainly won't be the last, so don't be embarrassed or discouraged.  They're good folks.  :-)

[Tuckamore]

You are always welcome here but you may also want to post in our Substance Abuse Forum. PLEASE don't think for a minute that I believe you have an abuse issue... no so. It's just that they have better information and more experience regarding withdrawal symptoms and hard best to deal with them.

Going cold turkey is never a good idea. You should be followed and manged by a physician during this time. I am sorry that your pain levels are so higher. Could it be that your condition is deteriorating... or that it will just take time, trial and error to find the right combination of pain medications to best control your chronic pain? I know that is true for many of us.

I wish you well and hope you will keep in touch. How are you doing today?

My Best,
~Tuck

[mebroken]

fentanyl is indeed a super strong med, luckily you were not on a very high dose though and not for a long time either. but you are going to have some withdrawal symptoms, sorry, and yeah they just s*ck. if you can visit the dr that was Rx'ing them for you one last time and ask for help to detox that would probably be your best course of action. he can maybe give you some scripts for 2 weeks worth of benzo's and sleeping pills,etc. or if you can go to a sub doctor for those (look up on-line for one in your area), subs could make your detox very easy- just do NOT stay on them. they are a great tool for detox but they ARE addictive and kicking them is horrible too. if it is not possible to go to a doctor at all and you want to continue to cold turkey it at home there are some OTC meds you can buy that will give a little help (we call them 'comfort meds') the most useful of which is Imodium. i know sounds weird but Imodium is actually a weak opioid, that just works on body, not brain. plus it will help with the diarrhea that should be happening soon. the generic form- Loperamide works just as well (i prefer the pills far far over the nasty liquid), get few bottles of that asap. an OTC sleep aide can help- can't promise that you will sleep the first few days of your detox, but ya never know, everyone is different, some have easier time w/ that than others. some Benadyl can help too at night. and of course don't forget your plain old NSAID's like Motrin and such, they DO help with the body aches. you have any B vits and Mag/Calcium in house? take them if ya do. will help. i have real hard time eating while detoxing- noodles or a banana (plus banana help leg cramps) is about all i can manage. but very very important to keep hydrated! drink as much water as you possibly can! it will help flush the drugs out of your system and if you get dehydrated all your symptoms will feel 100 times worse. i also like herbal teas at night- Bedtime, Sleepytime, whatever will help me get a few minutes sleep.
there are tons of threads here to read that have more suggestions, plus you'll see what others go through so you won't be surprised by any symptom. 'they' say detox is like having a bad flu, but it is not really. there is this whole anxiety thing that puts it into a whole 'nother category. but the main thing to remember is that it IS only a temporary state, it WILL get better. try to occupy your mind as much as possible. don't expect to accomplish anything for next couple of weeks other than the most important thing- getting the drugs out of your body.having zero energy is normal.
you do not sound like the typical addict that was using drugs to get high but rather just a pain patient that quickly realized the meds were not working for you hence relapse shouldn't be an issue with your after this detox is over (like your brain hasn't gotten messed up yet- that is great news, you have no idea how lucky you are! like my mind instantly was wondering when you said you threw out the rest of your patches if you lived close and if garage pick up had already happened. lol. just an automatic thought for my addict brain. sigh) and you shouldn't have any problem getting your life back on track. then explore more natural ways to manage your pain. just have to get through this next 7-14 days of sickness. hang in there! ((hugs))

[HarperOC]

Hi, I can't offer too much advice, i am just coming off oyxcontn 400mgs and on 4th day clean, and dont have much experience with sobriety to be giving advice out... I can just offer support, so your not alone in this. I think sometimes late night posts dont get as many responses as most members are sleeping, and sometimes early in the morning is slow. But you will get responses from members that have lots of sobriety/experience, and genuinely care. You are in the right place.

If i read correctly you jsut stopped fentanyl? I know that is extremely strong, so you will most likely be going into wd's which is quite a battle to fight. Im on day 4 and i feel like ive been to he ll and back but this site and peoples support have been very helpful. Are you trying to stop for good? If so there are a lot of vitamins I think that help, other people will be more helpful with that. I was too sick to get to store so i didnt have much except for 5htp which is a natural anti-depressant and some otc meds for sleep which did nothing honestly. But today i can finally see a little hope, i think things may be getting a litter better, some sypmtoms feel like they have peaked now and thats a huge relief. Sorry i am not that helpful, just another person going thru similiar thing as you and wanted you to no ur not alone. I think many more people will come on here and give u help.

[debnmeg]

I posted a very serious need late last night and received 0 replies. if i am in the wrong place please tell me. i am very tired and very scared. I have been up for two days and cant sleep and when i try to lay down my body feels like i am not in control. i lost my insurance so I have zero support. I am in cold turkey with drawl an since I stupidly threw away the last few fentanyl patches, thinking I was doing the right thing and not truly understanding how powerful this medication was. can any one tell me what i can do?