Finding it incredibly difficult to come off tramadol

[keeleypayne]

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by & having a read, lets start....

i am a F 27 & and have been addicted to "Tramadol" & "Codiene" for 10 years i was given it by the family doctor for back pain at age 17 just after having my son. since then all its done is destroy me and then i destroyed myself, my life & everyone around me,
i went to a local detox team on thursday & they have prescribed me with a drug called "Buprenorphine" 6mg at the moment & 20 minutes after i take it "at the chemist watched" at 09.00am i feel fine no withdrawals i feel good, then gets to around 04.00pm & horrific withdrawals start, this today is day 3 & relapsed & taken "Tramadol 250mg" i feel awful i feel ashamed, i no i can do this but its so much harder than what i ever thought it would be even with a no withdrawal script because i am going in too withdrawals only hours after taking it,
i don't want to go in to to much detail about my personal life but i did lose my family, my partner, my son, my job, my house, my car, because of this drug, i was then homeless on the streets for 12 months until my new partner another F got in touch to take me in & under her wing & yeah we fell in love, i no shes supporting me in her own way going to my appointments when she can with me, but i feel alone i think with loseing all my family around me because of this stupid opiate addiction it cost me my family, so now im left kinda on my own with no where to go but be with my partner, i went to counciling but i walked out got upset, just left im not good talker in person better and prefer this way to be honest, i just want to be clean get my own place & try and get my son back but even now that feels a million miles away because even on day two of detox and i relapsed i just feel a complete failure to myself more than anything but i just want these cravings and withdrawals to go away, it reuined my life once i dont want it to destroy it twice....!!!! please can anyone give me any tips who have been on tramadol thats got clean please anything..
regards keeley...x

[VICourageous]

Hi & Welcome to our Community!

I am going to see if you are still with us. You put this in over 12 hrs ago. I sure hope you keep checking in. Not to be rude..but you got some serious issues here. We sure can help you with our own Experiences but the DR is a must. Working hard inside yourself with other Support is a big one!!

There is NO Magic stick and puff it is all over. (I wish)..Ha!

Bless

[clean_in_ks]

Great post, pillguy!

[pillguy]

BTW, I took Suboxone for 2 years

[pillguy]

Walking out of counseling was a bad idea.  You said that " but i just want these cravings and withdrawals to go away".  They aren't just going to go away.  It takes hard work.  If it didn't none of us would be here.  You can do this but you have to choose to.  

As for the "Buprenorphine" , it's more commonly known as Suboxone.  It has an extremely long half-life.  I'm going to be frank here!  It's unlikely that you get "horrific" WDs by 4:00pm.  Not feeling as good as 10:00am, sure but tolerable.  Some here have suggested that Suboxone is the wrong choice here.  They have some compelling arguments.  

1. You can't just stop taking it.  You must taper!  It takes a super-human effort to just quit and the success rate is very low.

2. You are still on an opiate.  You'll need to go to doctor's appointments, be able to pay for them as well as pay for the drug.

3.  If you continue to use illicit drugs you will get booted and that's going to get very ugly.  If you think Tramadol and Codiene is tough give 6mg of Suboxone a try.

With all that said, I think you need to get stable on Suboxone.  You could use some time to get yourself together.  Go back to the therapist.  Mak a complete plan of what you need to do to achieve your goals, like getting your child back.

This isn't going to just "happen". You need to decide what you're willing to fight for because if you're not willing to do that, it ain't happening.

[NeverAgain127]

I second what Krissy said.   A couple of hard realities:

1. Withdrawals are going to be awful, but they won't kill you.  You just have to grit your teeth and get through it.    If you go the buprenorphine route, you'll end up having to eventually get off THAT drug too.  Why not just do it once?

You will feel like absolute cr.ap. for 7 to 10 days.  But if you got a bad tummy ug, you'd be able to get thru it, right?  Same deal here.    We can give you a laundry list of things to do in order to make yourself feel a BIT more comfortable, but make no bones about it, withdrawing is difficult.    You take it one day, one hour, one MINUTE at a time.  

2. Cut off all sources of your drugs.  Delete phone numbers from your cell, tell your friends NOT to give you any pills.

3. I know therapy felt awful and that is why you walked out, but therapy is supposed to be messy and ugly before it gets better.   I also think a 12 step group might be a good idea.  We get sober the same way we get high; through our mouths.  You need to get clean, and at the same time, start talking about your feelings...as addicts, we have a "hole in our soul" that the drugs were filling.   You can't just take away the drugs and expect everything to be fine and dandy.   The reasons you took them (usually to dull emotional pain) are still there.  

You've got the best reason in the world to go thru the pain and out the other side, and that is your child.  Do it for him...I'm sure that as a loving mother, you'd walk through fire for your kid...well, here is that moment.

You can do this, honey.   We all know what you are going through.  It is up to you to take that first step.  

Hugs,
-Robin

[spider6]

Advising to replace one drug with another that is equally if not MORE DIFFUCULT to get off of, is not a responsible choice.  I vote  big NO for the subs...

Tramadol is a b*tch I hear as per the anti depressant factor.   It's gonna take time.

Talk with your doctor about other options before making a decision to drug yourself again.  You will regret it.

Keep yourself moving as much as possible.  Dont give your brain a chance to trick you into thinking you need drugs to function ...what you NEED is time to heal your brain and body.

You need something proactive to do every time you feel weak.  What's that for you?  Hobbies? Music? Movies? Art? Sports? Food?  Games? Writing?

I pray for your success along with the other angels here..   You CAN do this.  Much peace and strength your way dear friend. ((((8))))

[gettingmylifeback1964]

I agree with Krissy as far as getting into a program and sticking with it.  If you find the withdrawals impossible ask you doctor about suboxone.  It's will help you with the withdrawals and get rid of any cravings, but you must get off it quickly.  A couple of weeks on then start tapering down.  It comes in sheets you put under you tongue and you can cut these sheet in 1/2, 1/4, 1/8.  If you don't get off the suboxone quickly you will be in more trouble than you are now.  

[Krissy_123]

You have to be honest with everyone trying to help you,walking out of your counslers office because you don't want to hear what they have to say is just going backwards. I Know you said you don't like talking,but out secrets just make us sicker. I'd recommend getting into AA or NA meetings. You don't want to talk right away then don't. Know one will make you or judge you. Tramadol is a hard one because of the anti depressant in it,so it's like you're w/ding off two drugs. Also if the bupenorphine is suppose to tell help with w/d (I know little about it?) then you need to tell them your going into bad w/d's hours after you take it. Not just go and take more tramadol. You're going to end up O.D'ing on a mixture of drugs. Some will say getting into a new relationship isn't the best thing when you start recovrey. As addicts we are very selfish ppl,and it doesn't stop the day you quit. You need to work on yourself,and getting yourself healthy. This is just what I've learned in my recovery programs. And it does make sense,I also understand not wanting to be alone as well....

[Heavenawaits817tx]

You can quit!! I swolled a lot of opiates as well, defiantly let your lover know what's going on and expect to basically have the flu for a a week or more. Well seems like your on the right track, obviously found a new lover and not on the streets as well as wanting to actually quit opiates. So already you've come along way and you'r almost there..