Norco withdrawal

[Katya5555]

How long is the average detox before you begin to feel normal again?

[kyle505]

Sorry I missed this post. Sounds like you are on the right path. You know what you must do and why. Stay strong. Stay clean. We're here for you. And keep posting!

[Katya5555]

Hanging in! It's day four since my short relapse, and I'm beginning to feel human again. Less chills, reduced RLS, no cravings, some anxiety though. I am resolved, but still have the last hurdle to complete. The important one of dumping my stash and alerting docs and pharmacies of my problem. That's the scariest part, but I realize it's critical. Still don't know if my boyfriend and I are off or on. I've been putting off talking to him until I feel stable enough for a final rejection to not trigger a relapse. I've done fine on my own for years alone, but my Norco was my best friend.
I was told about a women's 12 step meeting on Friday afternoons here and plan to check it out. May try to get to the early riser mtg a couple times this week. This forum has been the most helpful to me for the immediate present.
Kyle, I want to thank you again for your straight talk and your responsiveness. I'm headed in the right direction!
Best K

[kyle505]

YOU are the reason to stop using - plain and simple. Boyfriends, jobs, cars, fights with friends, vacations, social events - just a few of the excuses to use. I've posted this before - life will deliver, right to your door, every day, hundreds of reasons to use. But remember - you are the one who puts the pills in your mouth. No one else.
As far as AA goes, don't let a couple of bad experiences put you off regarding after care. Some people cling to, as you called it, the AA lifestyle because that's the only way they'll stay sober. Some get caught up in the social aspect of the lifestyle, and don't know how to balance AA with everyday living.
I went to several NA meeting before I found a good fit.
I too fought with Norco...And to be honest, my detox was hell, however, it didn't last that long. IF you really want to get clean, the the first thing you must do is flush ALL of your pills. If you don't, the voice will start talking to you "just one won't hurt...Just one to help me sleep...just one so I can relax for a while". Sound familiar?  You have to cut all sources. If you don't the odds are very high that you will relapse. Looking at it another way - how can you relapse if you don't have pills, or an easy way to get them?
Next, you have to tell your secret. Tell your doc, dentist, pharmacy that you are an addict and want to be red flagged as such. If you have a dealer, well, they don't give a crap about you, so get rid of the number. And tell your close friends and family. They will be a part of your support system in the future. If you keep your secret you will relapse behind it. And then get after care. Try other meetings; keep trying until you find a good fit. And don't feel like you have to share right away. Just sit and listen.
Feeling broken at this point is very normal. I couldn't look at my face in the mirror when I hit the bottom. But seven months later, I'm happy and clean and enjoying every minute of life, without pills. You will too, that's a promise.
We are here for you.   Keep posting.

[waterLilly7]

You can do it friend.
You say you quit before right, so maybe you can go by how long WD took before? Or were you not doing as many then as now.

With what you are taking I would say the usual week of total ughhh, and then another 3 weeks of just blah, and you will have it licked.

The worst part as you have seen is the mental stuff. it is doable though, if I can do it anyone can as I am a major wuss.

It feels so good now to be 58 or 59 days clean today. I ahve to look at the calendar, it feels good to forget how many days clean I am too, as before I was counting the days, counting the hours sometimes, and now I don't really count because i feel so good. You will too.

hugs,
Lily

[Katya5555]

Hi again,
I'm not sure if my posts are making it onto the board?  Can anyone hear me? I'm having a hard time. I tried to describe my Hx with Norco 10/325 of up to 20-30 a day for most of the last decade. I did a steep taper last week and then was clean for 5 days. Then my new long distance boyfriend, who didn't know about it, dumped me. I relapsed that night and the next morning, but today I have taken only two with the intention of quitting again. I felt so awful even after day 5. Mostly my brain feels fogged up and I have no energy. I know the right things to do from reading this forum. I just need some encouraging words. I did go to a AA meeting the morning after I relapsed. Just not sure about if some of the philosophy is for me? The guy I was seeing is a Big Twlelve Step guy (sober 22years). I was trying to understand him and the AA lifestyle by going to a few meetings. I'm not sure where to. Find hope right now, or a reason to stop using. I feel physically, mentally and emotionally broken. Really want to believe there is another way to tolerate life. Any thoughts? When will my brain clear and when will I be able to get out of bed in the morning? Please reach me? I'm hanging on with my fingernails.

[Katya5555]

Thanks for your response. I've been 20-30 10/325 tabs of Hydrocodone daily for the majority of the last 12 years. I've taken some weeks off, or even months off at a time, but always seem to quickly get back to swallowing 6-10 at a time . Really dangerous amounts of Tylenol, but my blood work shows my liver isn't suffering as one would expect. I did a brief, rapid taper last weekend taking my last 10/325 Saturday pm or Sun am. Chills, cramps, RLS, muscle spasms ....all expected. I went to an AA meeting Sun, Mon, & Wed.
Not sure those are my peeps though.

[kyle505]

Ditto to ImDONENoMore's response...

[ImDONENoMore]

Hi Katya and welcome!

Your question is a little tough to answer - maybe if you provide a little more info (what you were taking, how much, how long, etc.) we could share our experiences with you that might help with what you're going through.

Again - welcome!  :)