Day 57 Clean-No Energy, Among Other Things.

[Robin6298]

Hi again everyone. I'm hoping that some of you knowlegeable folks here have some ideas/suggestions for me. I'm now 57 days clean, and still have no energy, motivation, etc.  I have to force myself to take care of the house, kids, pets.  I haven't had the energy or ambition to vacuum my carpets since I detoxed in Dec.  They look horrible, and that makes me feel worse, but I just can't do it. Some days are better than others, but the last three have been awful.  All I want to do is sleep, and getting a straight 8 or more hours is a challenge in my house.  I have a woodstove to stuff round the clock this time of year to keep everyone warm.  I can get away with letting it go out overnight, once the temps hit the 30's, but it's been cold & snowy the last few days.  UGH.  I do feel a little better on the rare occasion that I get 9-10 hours straight, but that's rare.  I take a nap during the day, and that dosen't seem to help.  I'm eating healthy, drinking plenty of fluids (only tea and water) and I'm taking a broad spectrum multi-vitamin.

I also have a sweating problem that I thought that I'd throw out there.  As soon as I eat breakfast in the morning, my armpits just drip sweat.  It runs down off my elbows if I wear sleeveless shirts.  Gross, I know!  Antiperspirant/deodorant dosn't do a thing and it drives me nuts!!  I carry a papertowel in my back pocket to mop them off with...yuck.  This lasts most of the day, really picks up after I eat a meal,  then stops a few hours before bedtime, thankfully.  I had this while I was using to, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it is now.  My heart rate goes up to the 110-120 range when I force myself to do things.  I'm even more tired, miserable after I finish.  I went to the Dr's a few days ago, and told him how lousy I feel since I stopped the meds.  He didn't really know what to think of it after almost 60 days.  He ordered some bloodwork, checking my blood counts, pituitary and thyroid glands, hematocrit (iron), gluclose (blood sugar) and prolactin.  I'm can't wait for the results.  I hope to God that he does find something in the results, so I can get treated and feel better. I'm hoping that it's not all the long term-effects of w/d.  I can't imagine feeling this bad for much longer.   My boyfriend & kids don't understand why I just want to sit on my butt and not be bothered.  Everyone is getting downright disgusted with me (including myself!)  I screamed at my daughter the other day over something trivial too.  I apologized after, but still.  That isn't me.  It isn't fair to them, and I feel like such a heel!  Anyhow, has anyone else experienced anything similiar, in addition to their lack of energy?  Thanks everyone for listening to me ramble..I just don't know where else to turn.

[GoingToMakeIt]

It was good to get a checkup. Many are helped by taking amino acids.(Check out my journals). Are you also depressed?

[bmc1976]

One thing that really helped me get my energy back was exercise. I know how difficult it can be to do so, but it works wonders. Even if it's just a little walk, it helps. I know it's tough but force yourself. It helped me the most going on one in the evening around 7:00. Like Going said, it was a good idea to get checked out. There may be other things going on. Best of luck to you!

[shelly405]

Please try to take some vitamins and supplements. We DRAINED our bodies when we were using so we have to build them up again. Also, have you tried to exercise? It really does help. And, how old are you? I stopped using about 46 days ago. This past week I have started menopause YUCK!!! I will be 48 in March and Mom tells me I am right on schedule. I know it may seem like withdrawal symptoms, but it may be menopause. And one more thing - You might be clinically depressed. Maybe you should talk to someone (If you have Med Insurance)?
SHelly

[GoingToMakeIt]

Vitamins twice per day.

[BigWill79]

Congrats on the 57 days.  That is great.  You may want to do some research on PAWS.  Some folks here have it in their journal.  I agree with the other posts that you may be clinically depressed.  I would say you should visit a therapist and be open and honest with them about your situation.  I love visiting my therapist and would recommend it to everyone, not just us recovering addicts.  You are stronger than you realize making it this far.  Keep on posting and good luck.  

[feohmoon]

Check out vitaminsthatwork.com, there is a drink called NaturalCalm, a doctor advised me to drink 4 glasses a day during detox.  Also, vitamins are very important, you might want to make sure your vitamins are softgel, chewable or liquid because if you have been on pills, your gut may not function properly to break tablets down.
Good luck - Hang in there

[Robin6298]

Thanks so much for your words of encouragement.  I deeply appreciate it.  Here's some more info, for those who asked.  I thought about depression too.  I already see a threapist, but it's only once a month.  He's the only one in our small town & he's constantly swamped with patients.  We discussed depression.  He put it to me this way; He said 'Do you WANT to do A, B, C (ex-things I enjoy) and just feel too drained, tired, etc?  Or do you think about A, B, C, and say to myself, 'Nah, why did I even ever do those activities?'  He was getting to whether my interest was still there to do the things that I enjoy.  My answer was/is 'Yes' to his first question.  I still very much want to do things, the desire is still there, but when I think about getting up & exerting myself, I just say to heck with it.  It's just to darn much effort.  He said that's one way to help diagnose true clinical depression.  So, I 'don't fit' there. Plus, I've been on 4 different anti-depressants in the past.  None helped, all made me feel worse, and messed my stomach up quite bad.  I had to stop them all within two-weeks of trying them.  So, that's not an option.

Yes, I'm on multi-vitamins, and have been for several months.  I wanted to try some of the amino-acids in the Thomas recipe, but you can't get the stuff in my area.  I live in a small town, which I call 'NoPlaceVille'.  We have a Wal-Mart and a paper mill.  A few convienience stores, a bank, that's about it.  You have to travel 60 miles away just to get to a mall, or to see a movie.  UGH!

Yes, I have tried excercise.  My daily household chores are somewhat physical as well.  I heft 25-35 lb peices of wood into the stove many times a day.  I haul a big wheel barrow of it in each day too, and my 14 yr old son helps there.  I haul laundry both up and down two flights of stairs daily to the basement and back.  We are a family of 5, so the basket probably weighs 30 lbs.  Never a shortage of laundry here...Lol.  Don't forget shoveling snow...lol!  I won't bore everyone with the rest of my daily 'to do' list, but all of it is moderately physical.  I have tried walking, when weather permits too.  I do feel better, WHILE I'm doing it sometimes.  But, when I sit down when I'm finished, I crash, and crash hard.  I won't move again unless I have to.  That's means there's no energy left for anything else, which really bites!  I used to be able to swing this without much difficulty, plus go to work!  I'm not employed at the time, which is probably good in a way.  I don't know how I could ever do it right now.

Just as a reminder, my med was Tyl #4, and I used 6-8 a day, for about 7 years.  I had Tyl #3 before that for several years.  For a back injury.  I've been clean for 57 days.  I'm 36 yrs old, (female) and have three beautiful kids.  I've always been underweight, but my current weight is 103 and I'm 5'6".  I was 95lbs while I was on the meds, went down to a dangerous 82 lbs during detox. The most I've ever weighed not pregnant is 115lbs (way back in high-school!)  No one could ever find out why.  So, that may be a part of what's going on with me.  Just thought that I'd throw this info out there too, in case some is similiar to me.  Again, sorry for rambling, and thanks again so much for your responses!!