Hydrocodone

[Jennifer Lynnette]

I had been prescribed hydrocodone for back pain.  Because of the sleepiness and other effects that it had on me while taking it... I quit.  I felt like a zombie.  Since then however, I've had stomache cramping, sweating, shaking and even irritability.  I've tried calling my doctor and all I get is, "He'll call you back."  I know that what I'm taking is a narcotic, and can be dangerous if I become addicted.  At this point I'm just terrified of whats happening since I stopped.  Needless to say, I started taking it again just until I get some type of response that tells me what I should really do.  I'm 21 and I know this sounds stupid... but I'm scared.  

[Marce4]

Hi and welcome. It sounds like you may be going through w/d.  How long have you been taking them and how much?  It is a scary feeling but very normal! There are several remedies to help somewhat alleviate these feelings. For the aches 800mg =Ibuporfen, do your legs get restless?  For that Hylands Restful legs. If you get diarrhea, Immodium or bananas. For sleep, Valerian root and for lack of energy Vitamin B-12.  Is there someone that you can talk to about this? Say a family member? It's hard to deal with this alone and may help allveiate your fears somewhat! Keep posting and ask if you have any questions. There are lots of people that are here to help you!

[Jennifer Lynnette]

thank you for getting back so quickly... Its only been a few weeks at most and I'm trying hard not to worry.  I've just never felt this way before.  I was also prescribed 800mg ibuprofen and Temazepam.  I took my ibuprofen but not the temazepam.  I'm thankful that I have my boyfriend I live with to help out.  He's been so great with everything.  I'm just maybe concerned that he might see this as being over worried.  I just wish I could fully explain this feeling to him.

[Schatzie92675]

Hi Jennifer

If anyone tells you a few weeks is not long enough to become dependent on the medication they are wrong.  I have gone through withdrawals after taking meds for as short as 2 weeks.  some people just have a predisposition.  Keep calling your doc...remember the squeaky wheel gets the oil  good luck!

[Marce4]

Schatzie and Nomas are absolutely right....get a hold of your doctor!

[DutchessGolden]

You did the best possible thing you could! And the best thing for your body. Addiction CAN be dangerous, Withdrawal IS dangerous. And withdrawal from an opiate is one of the worst. I saw that your doctor also gave you tamezepam which is a benzodiazapine(xanax, valium, ativan etc.) These are extremely addictive and the withdrawal from some benzodiazapines are more dangerous than even heroin withdrawal. The best way to get your doctors attention is to remind whoever you speak with that your doctor is legally liable for anything that happens to you while on the medication he prescribed. Especially if he did not inform you, in detail, of what can happen when you suddenly stop taking an opiate or a benzodiazepine. I wrote something similar this morning but: addiction is thought of as very negative because most people don't understand what it actually is. When addicted to a substance that can kill you (mailny illicit drugs) Obviously Rx's too if theyre taken improperly, that is dangerous. HOWEVER, Even when addicted to an illicit drug it is almost always more dangerous to stop taking it suddenly than to continue on until you can get help. Even pregnant women who are highly addicted to xanax have been told by their doctors to continue taking the drug during the pregnancy. Of course it has major risks but the risks to the mother and child are far greater if she stopped taking xanax. Like I said earlier, no drug is introducing a foreign sunstance to your body, it is simply increasing something already there( cocaine increases dopamine, meth increases serotonin, herion increases endorphins) in a nutshell. Usually this causes those receptor sites to increase in order to receive the extra chemical your body is getting. When you stop, your body cannot produce enough of that chemical to keep all of the receptors "fed" so to speak. This is why headache is often one of the first symptoms, your head really does hurt! Your brain has too many opiate receptors and not enough opiate to bind to them all, this causes withdrawal. Taking your vicodin (5mg hydrocodone/500mg tylenol) as prescribed does not pose a threat to your health before you can talk to your doctor, Stoppind suddenly does pose a threat to your health. I hope this helps some. I skimmed over and I can see that a lot of great people already posted and had some great stuff to say. I probably just repeated a lot of what they did. Which lets you know how good of a place this is, you'll find great support here!