I find myself stuck with Tramadol

[Happycamper23]

Hello, I'm a young mom of 2 and wife. Well for the past year I have started to see myself getting addicted to tramadols. First of all I wasn't even proscribed them, I got them from a family member because I was having pain in my stomach. Well after a while I started finding myself taking them just to do it. I only take them at nite, I have bad anxiety and depression and taking tramadols really help. When I take them I feel Soo good I feel happy and worry free, my anxiety goes away and I feel so peaceful and relaxed. I only take them about 3 to 4 times a week. Some times ill go 2 weeks without them and I tell myself no more but any little pain I get I use as am excuse to take them. My husband knows I like to take them but he doesn't know I take them just for the hell of it. Is there anything I can do? Are there anti depressants that will make me feel the same ? I'm starting to get sick from the tramadols but I still take them . I have head aches and I feel nausea and I feel like crap but its so hard not to take them because of the mental state they put me in. I love the person Iam when I take them.

[BluCrystal]

Thank you for correcting me.  Im not always right and I dont know everything... just trying to be of some help.  No hard feelings - Blu

[FourJays]

Welcome to the site!  Tramadol is a synthetic opiate that also has anti-depressant properties.  In my opinion based on taking this medication for 15 years, the problem is that tolerance and dependency on it grows very fast.  I started on it for back pain and took it as prescribed (at first).  I found it not so much to be a great pain reliever, but it made me feel happy and energetic; like I could do anything.  Over the years my tolerance grew and I needed more and more to get the same effect; while my back issues slowly got worse.  I was prescribed "heavier" opiates for the pain but would always need more to actually help with pain; I believe it was because of the tolerance built by the tramadol over time.  

Fast forward to 14 years later (after several unsuccessful attempts to quit the Tramadol and 4 seizures due to Tram overdoses); I finally had to have spinal fusion surgery.  During that last year I was prescribed just about every opiate I know of at one time or another.  The crazy thing here is that Motrin actually worked best to help with pain but they wanted me off that (it has it's own set of health risks when taken too long) well before and after the surgery.  By the time I had the surgery last summer, I was on a fentanyl patch and taking Dilaudid AND the trams (just could not stop those); and still pretty much in constant pain.  In the hospital (after the surgery) I had the patch with a Dilaudid PCA and Oxycodone pills by mouth every 8 hours (plus the trams that I snuck in w/me) and they STILL could not control my pain - I felt every single movement in my neck for days - it was a living Hell.  The surgery was successful and over the following month or so I slowly stopped all of the meds w/absolutely NO problems - except for the Tramadol.  At this point my dr, was still prescribing these in addition to percocet for "breakthrough" pain.  The 180 trams per month was not enough so I was also ordering them online (he ofcorse was not aware of this).  In late November an order I place online did not ship on time and I was left (unexpectedly) with no pills - and no way to get any for 5 days.  My cold turkey quit happened right then and there - went from 45 pills a day to ZERO in 48 hours.  The withdrawal was intense and very uncomfortable, but I got through fine using various w/d remedies I found on the internet (and knew of from previous attempts at quitting).  I didn't find MedHelp until a month later!

During the detox I came clean to my husband (who was not surprised - it "explained" a lot) and to my family.  I had a dr, appointment on that 5th day and just decided to "spill it".  Told him everything (well. less some of the uglier details).  He was VERY supportive - I was lucky.  I AM lucky to be alive after the amount of pills I have taken for SO long.

My story is long and it is ugly for sure.  These pills took over my life.  In my opinion this is NOT a medication to take "lightly" or just to take here and there to make you feel good - especially if they are not prescribed to you by your doctor.  Even people that take them and stay within prescribed doses for more than a few weeks can have extreme difficulty when deciding to stop them - in large part due to the fact that you are essentially dealing with 2 meds in one; an opiate and an AD.  Check out the Emily Post Tramadol and Ultram Recovery Rooms, right here on Med Help for hundreds of stories from people with experience with this medication.

PLEASE talk to your doctor to address any pain or depression issue you are having.  There are lots of different medications available to treat your specific needs.  If Tramadol is determined to be the one for you, then proceed as you choose - but please proceed with caution.

Good luck to you and keep posting here for support or additional questions - lots of great people here to offer their personal experiences.

Julie
  

[travel_melb]

Hello and Welcome,

I disagree somewhat BluCrystal, I think you can see there is a problem with taking these pills. I was addicted to trams and it was hell going through withdrawals. Not only does it have a weak pain killing effect but also an SNRI (anti-depression) properties. You should talk to your doctor about your depression and anxiety. As the trams were not prescribed to you I would suggest they are not recommended for what pain you have.

You can also taper them off slowly taking less and less each day / week and stay off them. If you have issues with depression go see you doctor Trams are not the best way to deal with it.

Keep us updated.

[BluCrystal]

You came to the right place.  YES there are meds you can get from a doctor that will ease your anxiety!  Please see your doc right away, and just tell him that you tried tramadol for a few days awhile ago (use the 'old prescription' excuse), and that it made you feel better.  BTW, i do NOT recommend lying to your doctor about anything, but in this case, you are telling him without saying you get it off the street).  Truth be known, I do not think you are addicted to tramadol because you dont take handfuls every day.  Part of my own med mix actually includes tramadol, which I am allowed 2 pills, 3x a day.  It eases soreness from anxiety, and it does have the side benefit of being comforting.  The thing that concerns me is this: would you take a script for tramadol as directed?  Be honest with yourself.  If the answer is no, then you need to just stop them, and do not ask doc for them.  Here are the names of some of the anxiety and depression meds I have taken: Zoloft is a seratonin uptake inhibitor (SSI) that heps with depression.  It takes up to around two weeks to actually begin to work, but it helps me.  Ativan, Lorazepam, and klonopin are all anti-anxiety meds that take about 20 min to work.  These are all benzodiazepines, and are potentially addictive, so make sure they are taken only as prescribed.  I have found that Klonopin works best for me.  Vistiril (SP?) is another anti-anxiety med that is more mild than the benzos and not addictive.  I have taken both ambien and sertraline (not at the same time) for sleep, and found that ambien will put me to sleep but not keep me asleep.  Sertraline is a very strong sleep aidthat works very quickly, and works all night.  Warning: sertraline can be dangerous if you do not go to bed right away: I have had hallucinations, dizzyness, lack of balance, and a sort of 'high' feeling from it, from not going to bed right away.  These are the ones I know about.  Others are xanax, wellbutrin, effexor, and some others i cant recall.  No med works for everyone, and no particular combo works for everyone.  I can be difficult and frustrating figuring out with your doctor what is right for you.  Every person with anxiety/depression goes through the same trial and error process.  Go ahead and google anxiey and depression medications, so you can learn more about them.  I pray you feel better soon, and keep me updated please! - Blu