Gettin worse after one month clean

[shelliAS]

Hello, I fear that something is going seriously wrong.  I stopped hydrocodone and tramadol 31 days ago.  The first week off was typical, from what everyone reported - body aches, debilitating fatigue, digestive distress, RLS, poor sleep, just pure misery.  Week two was a tad better, aches off and on, a bit more energy but not much, RLS abating along with stomach issues, etc.  Week three was a sort of plateau - most symptoms gone, except for sleep problems and debilitating fatigue.  I thought surely week 4 would show some improvement, even if small.  In fact, the opposite has been happening!  The most prevalent issue is the fatigue, which worsens daily.  It is almost at the point where I can' get out of bed for long.  I had an important meeting the other day with a contractor at my house.  I awoke that morning feeling worse than ever.  I caved and took a hydrocodone just to get through that meeting gracefully (needless to say I was angry with myself).  Is this normal, or should I see my doctor to see if there is something else going on.  Everyone else seems to be great after a week or two.  I have not seen a post from anyone who continues to worsen by day after a month off this stuff.  Help......

Shelli        

[AZKathy]

Hi there Shelli,

Wow, this just isn't my day; I wrote to you twice, and the messages didn't get posted so I sure hope that this one goes through.  I don't know what happened the first time, but the secone time it said I wasn't logged in, and when I logged in the message wasn't there, lol.  I wanted to tell you that your dad did an incredible job... I really need to stop smoking or at least cut down myself, as I find I'm smoking a lot now, and can hardly afford it anymore.  I told my doctor that I could only handle w/d's from one thing at a time, meaning all opiates, and she agreed with me.

I'm hoping the 90 day mark will be the end of withdrawals for me - that's what I'm really aiming and hoping for.  I'm getting better day by cay, slowly but surely.  It's barely noticable day by day, but when I look back to a month or two ago... WOW what a difference!  I really hope you feel the same.  I know the mind plays a lot in this, and I've started a new online gambling forum to keep me occupied, and boy is it, lol.  I've got so much to do and so many emails to answer that I barely have time to think of pills anymore.

How many days has it been for you now?  I hope you get more energy soon, and good for you getting out and going places - I hope when you're doing that you feel a little better.

Let me know how you're doing, ok?  It's so good to hear from you.

Hang in there and take care,
Kathy
(and if this one doesn't post, I'm going to have a temper tantrum, lol)

[shelliAS]

Hi Kathy, Wow - if you have tolerated the WD symptoms for 75 days, that is incredible, and awesome!  Again, thanks for the hope - that is what I am clinging to at this stage.  Yesterday, I got up feeling that the usual 500-pound weights were attached to every limb, but I only took 1 hydrocodone.  Somehow, I got through the entire day, which included taking my daughter shopping for school clothes (I let her drive).  Someone in this string used the term "rocket-shot out the door;"  I had to laugh out loud at the expression, but it is so true!  I think at this stage, I am going to have to taper off that last hydro, and cross my fingers that my body will adjust.  I need to get back into working; just hanging around the house is making me insane, not to mention my checkbook isn't too happy these days :(    I think you have done an amazing job with getting off the painkillers.  Everyone here has - I don't think anyone can appreciate what it is like to weather WDs unless one has done it.  It is hell.   I keep thinking of my dad; many years ago, he quit smoking CT.  He was very quiet about it, but I recall he would go out on the patio and pace every evening after work.  He eventually stopped pacing...but not until now did I realize what he went through.  (And he never touched another cigarette again).  

Take care, and thanks for all the incredible strength out there,
Shelli      

[AZKathy]

I know this is a tough situation, but you WILL start getting your energy back.  I have days when, well mostly from the pain, I have to spend all day laying down, and am still going thru withdrawals after 75+ days from taking pain meds from so many years.  I know you won't have to suffer as long, because I was using them in excess of 25 years, so there's hope for you, a lot of hope.  I've been able to clean out my apartment now of about 10 years worth of accumulated "stuff", unpacked boxes, old working clothes, etc., that I didn't even notice or care to deal with before starting this process.  As far as food, there's been days when I hardly even have energy to put a frozen meal in the oven, but my kids are grown, so I don't have the problem of fixing meals like you do.  On those bad days, you might want to consider something simple that you can just take from your freezer and stick in the oven.  You're doing everything that you possibly can, and I think you're a hero for that.  Just never give up!

Take care, and keep up the great work,
Kathy

[shelliAS]

Pattifan (no, you weren't being patronizing), Kathy, Gnarly - Thanks for the moral support.  You guys seem to be really pushing through this in such a positive manner.  Logically, I know I won't be stuck in this same place forever, but right now it sure seems that way!  I spent some time on the Emily Post "subsite" for tramadol, and it seems that tramadol, more than hydro, may be the fatigue culprit.  I wish I had researched it more before I took it, but I believed the doc when he said it was not as strong as hydro, but could help with the back pain.  I was getting awful backpain, but here is the rub:  I realize now that it was rebound pain, from not getting my hydro "fix."  Now that I have chucked the tramadol, and most of the hydro, I don't experience pain often, aside from the initial WDs.  It is the lethargy that is kicking my booty.  I feel like a failure as a mother, wife, friend just sitting around, but I can hardly manage anything else.  My daughter knew that I took pain meds, but she didn't really have an appreciation for their addictive nature, nor the fix I had gotten myself in.  I finally told her that I was cutting them down due to side effects (true), and that cutting them down had implications as well.  I had to tell her something.  My "flu" story wore out its welcome.  How is everyone handling their respective family situations?  If there is no energy to put a meal on the table, how are the kids getting fed?  For those of you who work and are dealing with this, you must be superheros.  I wish I was working, as the isolation at home is horrible, but I couldn't be going through this and working, so it's a catch 22. As usual, I appreciate everyone's support.  I wish I could be more supportive, but I am afraid of telling the newbies on site my story for fear of scaring them off!  Please know all of you have my deep admiration and moral support.  I CAN offer that!

Shelli    

[pattifan]

Hi

I'm sure you know this so I really hope you don't think I'm being patronising, but you do need to stop taking 'just one' to get you through an important event or a really bad day.

It's a bit like an smoker saying ' I'll just have one cigarette. Each one one you take sets you back so far, and will make the withdrawals last so much longer.

I hate being preachy to people but I think you need to chuck the tramadol and the hydros out the house. Then chuck that secret stash that's kept just for emergencies, and the extreme emergency stash too! (Maybe you don't have those but I certainly would!).

The problem with keeping just one or two for emergencies is that you can always find an emergency if you look for one. Sadly we addicts are always addicts, meaning not one hydro and not one tramadol EVER!

I would also be very wary about using even mild tranquilisers. (Threre's no such thing as a mild tranquiliser if you take a bucketful!).  Stick to the natural and herbal aids. They won't get us into any trouble.

I must tell you though that I really admire you and think you're doing wonderfully well. I can even imagine what it must be like to get off Tramadol and hydros at the same time. Tramadol is quite bad enough on its own.

Hang on in there and you will win through.

My thoughts are with you.

[AZKathy]

Shelli, you mentionded being afraid to go out - I'm just wondering if maybe some kind of mild tranquilizer would help - I'm not a dr by any means, but I do take diazepam when I start feeling a panic attack coming on... and yep, I still have days with a total lack of energy, and just lay down, unable to do anything.

Gnarly - it's been over 75 days for me now - how long did the withdrawals last for you?

Good luck to the both of you, and thanks for letting us know how it's going.

Take care,
Kathy

[gnarly_1]

HI ShellAS  try not to get to discouraged it took a wile for me to get rid of the energy crash
I was like you I couldn't get off the couch....my wife forced me out and about to run around
shopping and then we also went for daily walks at first just around the block but slowly built up to around the subdivision it does help to move around....hang in there better days are ahead  and theres no reason to be ashamed your not failing anything we all come around at our own pace...when I was in the middle of it I always use to say...''I just wish I could move up the hands of time you will get there this good luck and God bless....Gnarly    

[shelliAS]

Hey everyone, Shelli here - This has been great feedback.  If tramadol has an effexor-like impact, then I am cooked.  My child takes effexor for depression, and when we tapered her dose from 300 mg (which the doc had her on) down to 225, I had to break open those capsules and literally count those little granules.  Anything more than about a 5% reduction made her physically ill and emotionally distraught.  And I am getting in a bad place emotionally.  I haven't touched the tramadol.  I have cheated and taken some hydrocodone just to get the energy to get through a trying day.  I can hardly drive a car, the lethargy is so bad.  Taking hydro does not give me a mental high at this point, thank God.  I know I should hit the gym as so many of you said; I am so frightened of doing it.  What if I wreck the car on the way, or get there and can't do anything!   I have driven the car in this shape, but I was frightened to do it.  In retrospect, maybe it was mental of me to stop two meds at the same time, as now I can't tease apart which WD symptoms were due to which.  I think I am going to try scheduling days where I have no commitments at all this week and take nothing and see what happens.  My spouse will be on travel and the kids head back to school this week.  I don't want anyone to see me as a complete wreck.  Maybe I can conjure Kathy's energy and clean out my cluttered messy house.  (And yes, I have become a couch potato....) grrrrrr.....this is so frustrating!!!  Oh well, I am whining again.  Thanks for listening to me and please know that you all do give me hope, which I guess is what I need.  Congrats to all of you who seem to be handling this much better than I!  I am so ashamed for failing this grueling test...

[downout45]

hi  my sex drive went to zero cause of the oxycotin i was doing 4 80s/day im hoping it comes back to normal has anybody been thru this and how long did it take.tx
no sex drive

[AZKathy]

I couldn't agree with you more Dav - I turned my pacing around the house into cleaning things out, and I've gotten so much done, and it took my mind off the awful feelings too.

[Dav125]

I have come to realize that as difficult as it feels at times, getting up and moving around is key to getting thru all this in whatever stage a person might be in the process....If you act like a couch potato, it enhances all aspects of the physical drain that being felt..And yes Kristen,depression can really bring on physical symptoms as well..So attitude is all important..Man what a fight it is, but doing so has truly helped me get thru this,,this time..Big,big,difference from my other spell with wd's in April..

[worried878]

The same thing happened when I quit...3-4 weeks later, the fatigue hit me like a ton of bricks..and my physical wd was way easier than I thot//or imagined it would be.
They call it PAWS I think...it is the mental portion of quitting and what does most in///causes way more relapse than physical wds do///many can handle the few days or a week of flu-like symptoms//no biggie for me really...but this is the part that kicked my bu11
I am a nurse//worked out after work everyday...I was a go-er...and I came to a screeching halt..had to do a rocket shot to get out door to go to work
It was the time for me to crack down
Support is crucial..some sort of aftercare///working out whether I felt like I would hit the gym///it releases endorphins and helps alot

[vicki595]

Kathy~  LMAO...You've got your humor!!

Shelli~ Hope ou get to feeling better...

xo

[Cantdothisanymore]

50+ days for me and still lethargic and not much energy, Outrageous cravings, My DOC was hydros and i took them 20+ a day for 10 years.  i am going to see a counselor wed and hoping for some help there.  good lucj to you

[AZKathy]

just a comment - it's been over 70 days for me now, but was using for years, and am still feeling a lack of energy.. hope it's not 30 days for every year of use - don't know if I'll even live that long, lol

take care & good luck,
Kathy

[Jebs317]

I have had a little of a similar problem.  Not with the Tramadol, but with just feeling horrible for at least 60 days.  I posted here and got great support.  There were many days when I could have given up and started taking pills again in hopes of feeling better.  But, that would have only been a temporary fix.  I had to go back to my doctor several times and let her know that something wasn't right.  I was feeling absolutely NO energy and depressed.  She started me on Prozac for amonth.....it didn't help.  She changed it to Zoloft and it has really made a difference.  I know these thing take time to begin working and it has been almost 3 weeks....and I am starting to see a difference.  Because I was so depressed my whole body hurt.  The bottoms of my feet hurt, every joint hurt, and I just laid on the couch.  It was like I was in WD's again.  She explained that this could very well be depression.  I was amazed that depression could be so physically draining.  
I still don't get up and jump around with all kinds of energy but compared to 30 days ago, I feel fantastic!!  You will get there too.....it just takes a lot of time.
Hang in there
Kristen

[avisg]

Yeah no opiates hydro is an opiates that stronger then tram you don't want to switch out one problem for another .This anti depressant may not be a got choice for you some people need to try a few before they find the right fit.As Vicki said Effexor seems to work will  for people coming off tram.However I would not change anything without giving your body time to adjust to what you are already on and that going to take a few weeks.

[vicki595]

Dave, that's another thing. Tramadol has an Effexor like AD and with Cymbalta ????

Who the hell knows.  I get so sick of seeing this drug prescribed without looking at the pharmacology...I could scream!!!!

Shelli~ Call the doctor so he/she knows that YOU know this drug is giving you a tough time. Did the same doctor prescribe the Cymbalta?  Please say no...

[Dav125]

I have to really wonder about the cymbalta in this equation..I had a bad experience with it and now this is the second post to show up where things didn't seem to be where they should be.....I just have to wonder......

[vicki595]

Shelli~  It's a concern to me that the hydro made you feel better. Only because it's an opiate,you're detoxing from tram,it takes a while,it has a drug in it similar to effexor,that sort of thing.  
Chat with the doctor about this.  Avisg didn't think it was tram withdrawal and that was her DOC so I defer to her.

Let us know,okay?

Vicki

[shelliAS]

Thank you so much for the feedback.  Vicki, the hydrocodone did help.  I was able to get through the meeting with the contractor without keeling over off the chair.  Standing was hard, but I was able to sit upright and paste a fake smile on my face.  Gnarly, I am no spring chicken :), and I wonder about that tramadol.  I keep focusing on the hydrocodone, but maybe the tram is the culprit at this point?  Maybe I should try taking one as an experiment and see what happens.  I am on Cymbalta for depression and body pain (didn't work for the latter, unfortunately).  I wish I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.  MMarty, did you also experience the lethargy?  It is killer.  At first I compared it to my last month of pregnancy, but now it is way worse than that (and no I am not preggers... :)  )  I am wondering if something hormonal could be happening as well, and the meds were just masking it.  I am a woman of a "certain age" ...lol...

Think I need to see the doc...

Shelli  

[MMarty]

I am having the same problem with the Tramadol. I have tapered down to 3 a day but the 3 times I have tried to CT the sytmptoms were debilitating for weeks. I couldn't function at all and I am the sole caretaker for my 5 year old and my business. I had to go back on the lowest dose I could function on. My plan is to get my daughter started in school and go see my doctor to get a plan to finish this devil drug off. I recommend you seek your doctors help because I went to almost week 4 and felt as bad as I did on day one. If you do have more time I would stay off at this point and get some help getting through the symptoms. You are almost there, congrats and good luck! marty

[gnarly_1]

HI ....recovery is different for everyone...a lot has to do with the duration of use and your age when you detox....there are a lot of younger members here if your in your 20s you seem to get well a lot quicker then if your in your 40s like me....my last withdrawal was methadone
it is notorious for long hard withdrawals and it was a good 90 days for me to even start to feel better...someone on her posted..."expect 1 mo of recovery time for each year of use"
now I cam off a 16 1/2 yr run on narcotic pain meds with the last 6 1/2 being on methadone
today I have 293 days clean and life once again is a beautiful place...it dident take me 1mo for each year of use...but I am also pro active in my recovery witch if your not you need to be.....if you look on the right hand side of the screen in the health pages you will find the amino acid protacal it  iwll give your brain what it needs to heal more importantly get involved with aftercare N/A or A/A or a conslor or therapist to help you with the mental challenges and will help greatly in your over all recovery...im all for going to a doctor and getting a physical after detoxing....the pills can do damage to your liver and kidneys witch can make you feel like cra#....I have never detoxed of tramadol b/4 but have read a lot of horror storys about it...you very well may need an antidepressant to help you threw this...just know that everyone doesnt always come bouncing back 30 days later it can take a wile....some of us just have to grind it out after all the damage we done to our bodies...keep posting for support and let us know how the dr visit goes good luck and God bless.....Gnarly      

[avisg]

Do see a doctor. 4 weeks is along time especially when you say you are getting worse not be that does not seem right to me at all.. Are you taking an antidepressants ..there are some supplements that if you are not on AD you had take to help with fatigue and depression .
I know you are really sleepy but I would also suggest trying to take short walks exercise helps alot just don't over do until you see a doctor