What to do know?

[TabularBro]

Hello all once again.  For those of you who do not know me I introduced me self a couple weeks ago as I have a problem with taking lortabs.  I have been taking anywhere from 4-5 lortab 5/500mg pills over the course of one year.  As of the past week I have tapered down my dose of 4-5 pills to 3 a day for 5 days and the last 2 days which ended today I have taken my last 2 pills.  As of tomorrow the cold turkey begins and so does the withdrawal.  I am hoping my withdrawals are not quite as unbearable as I have already experienced some of it with tapering down for the past week.  So know I guess the real test begins on my journey to a clean and honest sober lifestyle.  I believe I can get through the physical part of this but man I tell ya the mental part is kicking me in the ace.  Taking the few pills daily was the highlight of my day.  I looked forward to the feel good high every morning on the way to work and then when I got off of work.  I just don't know what I am going to do know to fill the void that these damn pills have provided in my life.  Life just seems so damn boring without them. I have been stuck in this cycle for quite some time but it has peaked over the past year because I had access to taking the pills on a daily basis.  The well has dried up as I am no longer able to supply my addiction.  But let's forget about that because I really want to quit and I guess it's a blessing in disguise because I have no other choice know but to become clean.  I need to find a way to start enjoying life again without pills being involved.  The thought of that right now is very vague and hard to see as I am a full blown addict and a prisoner of Lortabs.  I just want to be free of the cravings and start doing other things rather than getting high on pills and worrying about where I am going to get my next fix from.  Thanks in advance to any comments and I will try my best to update my recovery from here on out.

[TabularBro]

Day 3 is down I feel perfectly fine other than the cravings.  For the most part it really has not been that bad.  I watched a man die from a hard fought battle with cancer last month and to see that man's pain and agony and quality of life I try to comprehend spending a day in his shoes and thought to myself wow I have no problems next to this man.  God rest his soul.  I am free and have a clear cut path towards sobriety.  I'm not trying to sound conceided by any means but I have the ability to shift my mind away from my problems and that God givin gift has helped throughout this test I'm facing.  In other words, you must let nothing move you be it good or bad.  When the mental cannot be moved there no longer is good or bad, there just is.  Godbless

[TabularBro]

Thanks man I appreciate your insight.  I will check into the NA stuff and try and get my mind right. Tomorrow is another day and we will see how I am feeling then.  Thanks again!

[gnarly_1]

HEY Dude welll its good to see your still hanging in there I dont think your going to sleep tonight even with the ambien you usually dont wile detoxing  you have done all the damage control you can by tapering down but you still got around 4 days of flu like symptoms your absolutely right about the mental side of this being far more difficult the the physical side
I always say it 1/3 physical 2/3 mental...and aftercare is the way to go N/A offers a good program that will help you with a lot of the issues that plague addicts ....we need to change the very way we think to get well with a little work and honesty you can live a comfortable life in recovery keep posting and take time to read the other posts hang in there you will make it to the other side good luck and God bless.....Gnarly      

[TabularBro]

I have thought about seeking some sort of aftercare,  I would definatley be interested in attending some NA meetings I just haven't really looked around yet but I do consider that as an option.  I may try it out, can't do anything but help my situation at this point.  I will say that I do need to fill some of my free time up to help with the meantal side of these withdrawals, the cravings and the feeling of hoplessness with out the pills.

[TabularBro]

Thanks to each who has commented with their input.  I have gone a full 26 hours without any lortabs.  I feel the onset of the flu-like symptoms, kind of weak and fatigued, my eyes feel heavy and my body aches.  I have kept fairly busy as I have just know made time to update my status so far.  We will see what tomorrow brings I am kind of dreading work and nervous about how I am going to feel.  I plan on loading up on vitamin waters and staying busy though.  I do take ambien so I'm lucky in that regard to get a full nights rest.  I am inspired by all of you who continue fighting this addiction ailment.  The support on here keeps me strong and re-assured.  I will keep updating my condition. My best wishes to all that are in my same boat.

[Gpison]

Hey man,

Kinda slow last night on the boards, sorry it took so long to respond. You cannot die from withdrawl symptoms. It sure isnt plesant, but you already know that and your right, you will get through the physical part, you have no choice. Have you considered any type of aftercare at all? The meetings will fill that void. 90 meetings in 90 days. People preach it because it works.

For now, please keep posting and reading, it really does help while you go through the process of beating these damn pills.

[Dav125]

No, one very seldom hears of anyone  suffering any major complications from opiate withdrawal..Get yourself loaded up with fluids, soups , and immodium in the event you have stomach problems..You have 3 to 4 pretty uncomfortable days ahead of you. Try to not think about how louzy you feel and set the goal to get thru each day one day at a time. Before you know it, this first week will be gone and the second will be here...

[TabularBro]

Can you actually die from Lortab withdrawals?  Just curious as to if anyone has ever heard of such a thing.  It kind of freaks me out because when withdrawing from Lortabs cold turkey your body goes into shock from the abrubt stop of continual usage and your blood vessels shrink which means the bloodflow from your heart goes into overdrive trying to pump the blood through your arteries and people have been known to have heart attacks, strokes, because of this.  This is just something I heard I do not know if it necessarily applies to withdrawing from Lortabs.  If anyone know some facts about this I would gladly encourage your thoughts.  It is kind of scaring me because like most people I sure as hell don't want to die

[TabularBro]

Looking for some support here............any feedback is welcomed