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Need Avice (addicton to Opiates)
Hey everyone...Im new to all of this and found the site after I googled
" how to get clean off of percocet" After reading some of these posts I think this may be a good start cause I surely need to vent and I am crying for help for the 1st time. Here it goes..My names Kristy and Im a serious opiate addict. It started about 2 years ago with a few dental procedures and soo forth. At first I had taken them as precribed and actually didnt even like them much. They had only made me feel wierd. To make a long story short, with time I began taking more and more and now I see no doctors at all but someone very close to me sees them and gets precribed an enormous amount of 10's, 30's and Oxy 80's. Im positive I left some out, I just dont keep track but even me as an addict knows its insane and the doctors are absolutely crooked to do so. Anyway my habit is now extreme. He gives me a total of about 5 80's a day when he has only them left, and Id say when he only has 30's I get approximately 20 a day and when he has 10's I am taking 3 or 4 at a time and with each pill I am taking them every 2 hours like clockwork. Depending on the pill or strength it varies the qauntity but still every 2 hours. My body is on like an internal clock, I dont even have to know the time and when it hits 2 hours after my last dose I start snapping, get moody, have crying fits, cant stop sniffling, get the chills etc. My life is controlled and consumed by these pills. Its at the point I know it has to stop, or I am gonna die. Its cause relationship problems and my marriage is about to fail. I also am a mother and so far I dont feel it has affected my ability to be a parent but I know thats coming. I literally cannot get out of bed if them pills arent close to my bedside with a drink. I have to swallow that first set of pills just to climb outta bed or I will stay there all day. I dont wanna stop, Im dreading it. I dont even like gettin high anymore, I just dont know any different and cant imagine life without it. Im a whole different person without them,IM Miserable without them and no1 wants to be around me but I cannot do this anymore. I need help, Im scared and I am killing myself. I need advice on how to get clean.Please any help or advice would be very much appreciated.Thankyou
I TAPERED, I STUCK W/ MY SCHEDULE. IT TOOK ME 1 1/2 WKS. AND I AM ON DAY 2. CLEAN!! ..YOU CAN DO IT.. dig deep and find the strength!!!
1.HOW MANY PILLS ARE YOU TAKING A DAY? # of pills by how many doses/day
2.WHAT IS YOUR DOC(DRUG OF CHOICE)?
It sound sounds like you are determined......keep posting....
1.HOW MANY PILLS ARE YOU TAKING A DAY? # of pills by how many doses/day
2.WHAT IS YOUR DOC(DRUG OF CHOICE)?
It sound sounds like you are determined......keep posting....
You have made the first step and good for you. You are doing the right thing and yes this place will help you. I know it will be hard but if you really really want this(wich it sounds like u do) it will happen. Only you can make it happen. Desire,discipline and determination. The killer d's will get you through. We are here for ya.
Wow, That was very amazing advice and reading some of that really touched me cause I know its that serious. I want to taper off. I wanna do it right so I can get clean. My husbands on his way home so I will be updating you on that but for now Im gonna leave saying this, I absolutely adore all of you who have posted. This is a great place and I feel safe here...I will be here every SINGLE day of tapering off and so forth. Im looking forward to going through this together with alot of you because yous are what is gonna keep me sane. (greatgreebo) I'm all for that. Im looking foraward to hearing from your friend and gettin started. Every bit of what you posted about the addict, was like you were talking firsthand bout me soo It just reassures me that Im doing the right thing. thanks...
My biggest advice for tapering is to plan the whole thing in advance on paper. Once I knew I was getting a couple of weeks away from the bottom of the pill bottle, I wrote out a journal with the day, the amount of pills I would take that day, and the amount of pills that would leave me with (like a spreadsheet with 3 columns, all of which were important and helpful) and that way you will know exactly when it will be over, it can ease some fear AND most importantly, you have something to stick to. Its just too easy in the moment to think: dang, let me just take one, I'll pay later, but that's OK. I would try to tell myself: if i don't take one now, its like a gift to my future self, but that didn't work. It took me writing it down and checking every day to make sure that the third column, the one with how many pills are left was correct every single day. Keeps you accurate and truthful with yourself.
Do NOT use the methadone!!! We can taper you are serious. You are already an addict, don't mess with an even worse drug to get off the oxys.......As for a taper schedule, we can get you one. avisg is a miracle worker when it comes to making schedules. I will have her PM you.
Read...this will give you a starting point:
Time for some technical talk... One of the things which increases "dependence" is a spike in drug blood plasma levels. Addicts do this on purpose to get a "high". They do it by Snorting (Very fast delivery), IV Injections, Chewing up meds and taking on an empty stomach.
The above all produce the most amount of drug in the blood in an attempt to get a buzz. These spikes are one of the reasons we addicts get hooked faster than a COMPLIANT Chronic Pain Patient.
Being compliant means they take only as directed. The goal of compliance is to maintain an even blood plasma at the minimum amount to treat PAIN and NOT to produce euphoria (a high).
Since the blood plasma levels are lower, the levels of dopamine at the synaptic cleft do not spike so the receptor sites do not downregulate or decrease in number in response to the initially MUCH higher level of dopamine released as a result of spiking.
Addictive dosing behaviors, the large doses associated to Spike the blood plasma level, vs the lower low dosing and more often which is the KEY factor to the physical changes the brain makes which cause dependency.
Dependency is the actual physical changes to your body which cause withdrawal. Addiction is the BEHAVIOR of taking the drugs to get high, not as prescribed, and when not needed for clinical reasons. It is the un-manageable behaviors associated with lack of control.
Which comes first... Dependence or addiction? Usually it's addiction, but it can be the other way, but the key issue which causes the progression of addiction are the behaviors.
Addiction is what makes you take more and more, spiking doses, etc. This in turn increases dependence. The higher your dependence the higher the tollerance... Round and round you go. The addiction merry-go-round.
How to break the cycle? The only way is to change the behavior. That is a very difficult thing. Pain is usually a very good motivator. So is Euphoria. When the pain out weighs the euphoria one starts to consider breaking the cycle. Unfortunately the pain being eliminated by the drug is a driving force. Then the addict associated the RELIEF of th pain to the drug instead of the drug being the CAUSE of the pain.
SOoooooooo what to do? Break the cycle.
Many have to hit bottom to do that. That's the point where the pain of using overwhelms the relief of using. It's an emotional point which is different for different people. Not every one has to hit a bottom to quit. The sooner you quit the less pain and suffering you have to experience.
For folks who are on smaller doses and their disease has not progressed very far, they have not felt the extent of pain addiction can cause. Only conceptualizing how bad it can get may not be good enough to motivate a person early in addiction to quit.
Intellectually we know what lays ahead. We hear the truth from others, but yet we continue to use. It is not until we get a glimpse of the pain that lays ahead do we become to believe we need to quit. One HAS to believe that in fact addiction does lead to the loss of everything and eventually Jails Institutions and Death.
Addiction is a lot easier to nip in the bud physically but maybe not emotionally because one has not experienced the pain first hand. Some need more pain than others to quit. Some don't make it and end up end stage and their addiction wins.
If you want to get off of the pills you have to change your behavior.
1) STOP SNORTING your pills!
2) Stop spiking your dose!
3) stop taking enough to get high
You will never quit until you do that. Weather you can or not is up to you.
You have to come to a point where you make the decision you want to quit. The en you have to make a plan then you have to execute that plan. SIMPLE .... but not easy.
The solution from a clinical point of view for you at your point of addiction is so easy. A simple taper, and change the behavior. In short break the cycle.
How to do a taper is easy. Changing the behavior is the HARD part, but you have to want to change.
If you are taking 6 pills a day... then start taking them in even doses and don't take like 3-4 at a time. 24 hrs divided by 6 = 4 hrs. So only take one pill every 4 hrs. Then take 5 pills in 24 hrs. That's 4.8 hrs. Then 4 pills a day... break pills into 1/2's so you have 8 1/2 pills. and take 1/2 a pill every 3 hrs. Etc.
If you can't stick to a taper give the pills to a friend to dispense.
Mean while .. you have to start changing the way you think and the things you do... You should educate yourself... Good place to do all of that is NA or AA. It's FREE and takes up time. It forces you to be doing something other than sitting around with nothing to do and just thinking about using.
It's not the only way, but it's a good place to start. Take what you need from it, and leave the rest.
If you take the same amount or less every day and don't spike your dose you will eventually quit.
30 mg of Hydro can be tapered to 0 in 2-4 weeks painlessly. The PAWS will be minimal too.
The ball is in your court. We can not make you do anything. Only YOU can.
When you are ready is up to you. If you need to stay "out there" using and see for yourself how bad it will get that's up to you.
My recommendation.. Start to QUIT now! It will be a whole lot easier.
Read...this will give you a starting point:
Time for some technical talk... One of the things which increases "dependence" is a spike in drug blood plasma levels. Addicts do this on purpose to get a "high". They do it by Snorting (Very fast delivery), IV Injections, Chewing up meds and taking on an empty stomach.
The above all produce the most amount of drug in the blood in an attempt to get a buzz. These spikes are one of the reasons we addicts get hooked faster than a COMPLIANT Chronic Pain Patient.
Being compliant means they take only as directed. The goal of compliance is to maintain an even blood plasma at the minimum amount to treat PAIN and NOT to produce euphoria (a high).
Since the blood plasma levels are lower, the levels of dopamine at the synaptic cleft do not spike so the receptor sites do not downregulate or decrease in number in response to the initially MUCH higher level of dopamine released as a result of spiking.
Addictive dosing behaviors, the large doses associated to Spike the blood plasma level, vs the lower low dosing and more often which is the KEY factor to the physical changes the brain makes which cause dependency.
Dependency is the actual physical changes to your body which cause withdrawal. Addiction is the BEHAVIOR of taking the drugs to get high, not as prescribed, and when not needed for clinical reasons. It is the un-manageable behaviors associated with lack of control.
Which comes first... Dependence or addiction? Usually it's addiction, but it can be the other way, but the key issue which causes the progression of addiction are the behaviors.
Addiction is what makes you take more and more, spiking doses, etc. This in turn increases dependence. The higher your dependence the higher the tollerance... Round and round you go. The addiction merry-go-round.
How to break the cycle? The only way is to change the behavior. That is a very difficult thing. Pain is usually a very good motivator. So is Euphoria. When the pain out weighs the euphoria one starts to consider breaking the cycle. Unfortunately the pain being eliminated by the drug is a driving force. Then the addict associated the RELIEF of th pain to the drug instead of the drug being the CAUSE of the pain.
SOoooooooo what to do? Break the cycle.
Many have to hit bottom to do that. That's the point where the pain of using overwhelms the relief of using. It's an emotional point which is different for different people. Not every one has to hit a bottom to quit. The sooner you quit the less pain and suffering you have to experience.
For folks who are on smaller doses and their disease has not progressed very far, they have not felt the extent of pain addiction can cause. Only conceptualizing how bad it can get may not be good enough to motivate a person early in addiction to quit.
Intellectually we know what lays ahead. We hear the truth from others, but yet we continue to use. It is not until we get a glimpse of the pain that lays ahead do we become to believe we need to quit. One HAS to believe that in fact addiction does lead to the loss of everything and eventually Jails Institutions and Death.
Addiction is a lot easier to nip in the bud physically but maybe not emotionally because one has not experienced the pain first hand. Some need more pain than others to quit. Some don't make it and end up end stage and their addiction wins.
If you want to get off of the pills you have to change your behavior.
1) STOP SNORTING your pills!
2) Stop spiking your dose!
3) stop taking enough to get high
You will never quit until you do that. Weather you can or not is up to you.
You have to come to a point where you make the decision you want to quit. The en you have to make a plan then you have to execute that plan. SIMPLE .... but not easy.
The solution from a clinical point of view for you at your point of addiction is so easy. A simple taper, and change the behavior. In short break the cycle.
How to do a taper is easy. Changing the behavior is the HARD part, but you have to want to change.
If you are taking 6 pills a day... then start taking them in even doses and don't take like 3-4 at a time. 24 hrs divided by 6 = 4 hrs. So only take one pill every 4 hrs. Then take 5 pills in 24 hrs. That's 4.8 hrs. Then 4 pills a day... break pills into 1/2's so you have 8 1/2 pills. and take 1/2 a pill every 3 hrs. Etc.
If you can't stick to a taper give the pills to a friend to dispense.
Mean while .. you have to start changing the way you think and the things you do... You should educate yourself... Good place to do all of that is NA or AA. It's FREE and takes up time. It forces you to be doing something other than sitting around with nothing to do and just thinking about using.
It's not the only way, but it's a good place to start. Take what you need from it, and leave the rest.
If you take the same amount or less every day and don't spike your dose you will eventually quit.
30 mg of Hydro can be tapered to 0 in 2-4 weeks painlessly. The PAWS will be minimal too.
The ball is in your court. We can not make you do anything. Only YOU can.
When you are ready is up to you. If you need to stay "out there" using and see for yourself how bad it will get that's up to you.
My recommendation.. Start to QUIT now! It will be a whole lot easier.
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