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Cold Turkey Day 13 Tramadol Update!
by EmilyPost, Jul 02, 2008 02:50PM
Hi all!
An update!
Day 13 cold turkey off Tramadol. 6 pills a day at the end, for chronic back injury that happened 2000. I have been on codeine, Vicodin, Percoset, morphine!!! And many others things like anxiety meds and sleep aids (hate them) and muscle relaxants which I can't recall the names of except Soma ... (Memory Loss Folks) Mainly at the end for 3-4 yearsI have been using Tramadol. Obviously at the end I wasn't even using the max dose, but there was Soma and some other stuff mixed in there. And some WINE at the end. So good for me that I am still breathing.
Yay me!
I pretty much would have taken ANYTHING that anyone handed me to take the pain away. My right leg is damaged. The S1 nerve root was damaged so I have constant sciatica since the accident. It's either numb, it burns or it will lose strength and I might fall. Luckily the strength thing doesn't happen often.
I had alternative medicine (Chiro, acupuncture, massage) and it was some time before I turned to Western Medicine for pain pills. At least 2 solid years of no pain meds. That is one reason I know so much about the aminos and the vitamins that you use for chronic pain (and withdrawal)
So. Last night. I came home after an 11 hour day. And promptly took the one thing I am still on which is Klonopin for anxiety. Thank goodness because pain turns to anxiety which turns to pain and so on. Circular. I have Excedrin PM and Excedrin Migraine also and I use them as needed.
Last night I was asleep for 4 hours, then awake until about 4:30am and then asleep until about 10 am. Awake in the middle of the night with the WORST pain in days ... Ice ice ice ice ... b-12 b-12 .... thrashing around. Irritation. Anger. You know the drill. Absolutely NO CRAVINGS for Tramadol which is in the house. DH has it somewhere and I'm not even curious.
I woke up with the typical, "My body has been run over by a truck" body aches. I got out of bed as quickly as possible. I find that helps. Wake up; get out of bed ASAP!
Coming off Tramadol is also a huge head trip. The thoughts I have are extremely dark and visual and terrifying. Like visions of cutting myself or visions of myself dead. Now; this is coming from the withdrawal.
Yesterday I not only worked, but then I was able to go shopping and have a bit of retail therapy (Not a long trip but there's NO WAY in days 1-4 ... I wasn't even moving ... or in even Day 10 when everything was shaking and it felt like a fake migraine all day and people were SCARING ME!!) I couldn't have done it and this felt NATURAL!
YAY!
And the pain? I can use ice packs and it handles the pain.
So my body has done alot of healing that I did not know it had done because I was drugged. And I frankly think Tramadol is the worst drug for chronic pain ever because I seriously believe it increases pain. The more I took, the more pain I was in. I let the pills run out (which I called a taper) and then 13 days ago No more Tramadol!
I'm feeling good, but I have learned to PACE myself. Today the challenge will be to get to the eye doctor. I needed to go two months ago and you know what? I couldn't go! I was developing a social anxiety which I also never had before Tramadol. *kicks Tramadol in head* So now I can go. I need to do a nice Thomas Detox bath.
The clothes I am wearing right now are all pajama like in nature, that helps. What I mean is that they are loose and not irritating cause I still feel at times as if I have the flu. My stomach is messed UP! I took the aminos (empty stomach) and the vitamins (after breakfast) and I have NOT thrown them back up ... as I was doing before.
So this is progress. Be encouraged!! Be hopeful! It's just going to take time for your body to repair itself. And I know how hard it is to figure all of this stuff OUT and know what to do when you are in cold turkey withdrawals. It just takes time. I'm wondering is el giant head-ache-O last night was my brain trying to reattach itself! LOL. Seriously, that is what it felt like. Like someone was doing brain surgery on me.
I'm really convinced the B-12 sublingual are helping me. I'm taking them ALOT. I feel the lethargy about to drag me down under and I slip a little B-12 under my tongue and I get better. Sometimes it takes 2. But thank GOD for those!
Thank you all! You guys were so great to me yesterday and well, every day!!
More later!
And lots of love;
Emily
An update!
Day 13 cold turkey off Tramadol. 6 pills a day at the end, for chronic back injury that happened 2000. I have been on codeine, Vicodin, Percoset, morphine!!! And many others things like anxiety meds and sleep aids (hate them) and muscle relaxants which I can't recall the names of except Soma ... (Memory Loss Folks) Mainly at the end for 3-4 yearsI have been using Tramadol. Obviously at the end I wasn't even using the max dose, but there was Soma and some other stuff mixed in there. And some WINE at the end. So good for me that I am still breathing.
Yay me!
I pretty much would have taken ANYTHING that anyone handed me to take the pain away. My right leg is damaged. The S1 nerve root was damaged so I have constant sciatica since the accident. It's either numb, it burns or it will lose strength and I might fall. Luckily the strength thing doesn't happen often.
I had alternative medicine (Chiro, acupuncture, massage) and it was some time before I turned to Western Medicine for pain pills. At least 2 solid years of no pain meds. That is one reason I know so much about the aminos and the vitamins that you use for chronic pain (and withdrawal)
So. Last night. I came home after an 11 hour day. And promptly took the one thing I am still on which is Klonopin for anxiety. Thank goodness because pain turns to anxiety which turns to pain and so on. Circular. I have Excedrin PM and Excedrin Migraine also and I use them as needed.
Last night I was asleep for 4 hours, then awake until about 4:30am and then asleep until about 10 am. Awake in the middle of the night with the WORST pain in days ... Ice ice ice ice ... b-12 b-12 .... thrashing around. Irritation. Anger. You know the drill. Absolutely NO CRAVINGS for Tramadol which is in the house. DH has it somewhere and I'm not even curious.
I woke up with the typical, "My body has been run over by a truck" body aches. I got out of bed as quickly as possible. I find that helps. Wake up; get out of bed ASAP!
Coming off Tramadol is also a huge head trip. The thoughts I have are extremely dark and visual and terrifying. Like visions of cutting myself or visions of myself dead. Now; this is coming from the withdrawal.
Yesterday I not only worked, but then I was able to go shopping and have a bit of retail therapy (Not a long trip but there's NO WAY in days 1-4 ... I wasn't even moving ... or in even Day 10 when everything was shaking and it felt like a fake migraine all day and people were SCARING ME!!) I couldn't have done it and this felt NATURAL!
YAY!
And the pain? I can use ice packs and it handles the pain.
So my body has done alot of healing that I did not know it had done because I was drugged. And I frankly think Tramadol is the worst drug for chronic pain ever because I seriously believe it increases pain. The more I took, the more pain I was in. I let the pills run out (which I called a taper) and then 13 days ago No more Tramadol!
I'm feeling good, but I have learned to PACE myself. Today the challenge will be to get to the eye doctor. I needed to go two months ago and you know what? I couldn't go! I was developing a social anxiety which I also never had before Tramadol. *kicks Tramadol in head* So now I can go. I need to do a nice Thomas Detox bath.
The clothes I am wearing right now are all pajama like in nature, that helps. What I mean is that they are loose and not irritating cause I still feel at times as if I have the flu. My stomach is messed UP! I took the aminos (empty stomach) and the vitamins (after breakfast) and I have NOT thrown them back up ... as I was doing before.
So this is progress. Be encouraged!! Be hopeful! It's just going to take time for your body to repair itself. And I know how hard it is to figure all of this stuff OUT and know what to do when you are in cold turkey withdrawals. It just takes time. I'm wondering is el giant head-ache-O last night was my brain trying to reattach itself! LOL. Seriously, that is what it felt like. Like someone was doing brain surgery on me.
I'm really convinced the B-12 sublingual are helping me. I'm taking them ALOT. I feel the lethargy about to drag me down under and I slip a little B-12 under my tongue and I get better. Sometimes it takes 2. But thank GOD for those!
Thank you all! You guys were so great to me yesterday and well, every day!!
More later!
And lots of love;
Emily
Post Comment
It has helped me so much! So glad you are prepared! Be aware that you ust let it melt slowly under your tingue. Don't chew it. That way it slowly get absorbed by the mouth and bypasses your probably really jacked up stomach.
I am so so so proud of you for shopping and getting what you need! Good work Missy Miss!
Love and good health!
Emily
I'm really happy to hear things are starting to turn around for you. You've got such a willful attitude about quitting. That's the right kind to have. I don't have a doubt that you are going to get better every day. Great work!!!
cj
Emily- I am glad you are feeling better.glad you stuck to it.I know it's a hard ride..W/d is not fun and it really doesn't matter what your drug is..We all go through it..some people struggle more than others with certain things. I was lucky with the pills this time..I didn't have rls..which could drive a person mad.But when I went cold off methadone..I could never adequatey describe the hell of that. You have mentioned a few times that you have taken all kinds of different things..did you go through w/d off them all..Do you have any plans of aftercare outside this forum? just curious..I just looked into where meetings are..i think i'm going to try an n/a or a/a ..The mental battle is the hard part long after the physical is gone.
I know WD is tricky. I was feeling good enough to go to my appointment, got that taken care of but PAIN was involved. They do that whole numb yer eyeballs thing I had forgotten about. So that's a huge trigger when you are already in withdrawal. So tonight early to bed. I am as you say, staying on my toes! What a weird expression. Now I'll have to find out wherethat came from!
Thanks cj!
You surely did help me in the beginnning when I basically could barely see the screen or even type. Thank you so much. It is a willful attitude and it does serve me well. I do have after all, A Warrior's Heart. Which now I can actually feel again. It had been numbed out by Tramadol for so long. You're the best. I know you're in a good place and thank you for helping all of us with your message about the correct way to approach the pain, not with fear.
Lots of health and healing for all;
Emily
You sound so much better. I hear such encouragement and hope in your post. I'm really happy that you are doing well. It's hard but you're doing it.
Melissa