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oxycontin and oxycodone withdrawal

My boyfriend and I have been taking both oxycontin and oxycodone for about 3 months on and off.  Mostly on the last 6 weeks.  I am now doing them in the morning before I leave the house.  We are snorting them.  We were taking about 80 to 120 mg a day. I stopped taking them last week for a few days and found my weakness unbearable.  I could not even leave the house - no amount of caffeine would help.  I stopped taking them on Friday night - snorted my last 40mg oxycodone and I am soooo weak and tired.  How long can I expect the withdrawl symptoms to last?  Will they ever go away.  All I want to do is go and get more to make the weakness go away but I know I shouldn't.  Any suggestions for the tiredness and weakness?  I cant function.

thanks
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Avatar universal
I am withdrawing under the supervision of a pain management specialist.  I was at 30mg ER Oxycontin 3 x per day (every 8 hours as opposed to 12) about two years ago, along with 15mg x 2 (30mg total) IR every 4-6 hours.  I had intractable pain due to failed shoulder replacements (two of them).  Last December, the third shoulder replacement finally succeeded and my pain dissipated rapidly.  My pain doc slowly decremented the meds to where I am down to 15 mg ER (one every 12 hours).  I recently started the elimination of one of the 15mg ER on my own, and I started to experience the extreme tiredness and weakness at about the 19th hour, but I hold out until the 24th hour.  To me it helps to stay up and active, since if you attempt to lay down toward the 19th hour, you become too weak and tired to even try to get up.  Hot flashes happen but are not as severe.  I have not had any vomiting or diarhea.  

Slow tapering is the answer folks.  Cold turkey WILL GET YOU SICK, but my pain doc says there is nothing life threatening going on, contrary to what you may have heard.  You just need to face the discomfort.  The real danger is taking the medicine at the higher doses once you have withdrawn, as this is when you could OD because your body is no longer tolerant to the drug.

GO FOR IT!
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214607 tn?1287677559
I did not see that this was an old post.
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214607 tn?1287677559
Ok, I am so not going to try to preach to you as you don't need it, I am simply going to tell you my story and hopefully it hits a nerve. And also some advice. Anyway, my name is Lisa. I have been an Oxy Contin addict for almost 4 years now. It started out with a percocet for a tooth ache that my then Fiance went and got me. He decided to take one for fun himself. And before I knew it we were both taking almost 30-40 5mgs Percs a day. He told me he knew he was addicted but I never would listen. Telling myself that I was not addicted. But if we couldn't get any, and I had to go to work as a bartender, my legs would feel like they had weights around them. And I noticed I felt really cold all the time and couldn't sleep. These were early stages of W.d. Then, when the percs weren't cutting it anymore and were getting too pricey, we were introduced to Oxy Contin. Again, it started out slow then we were both eating about 10-15 80's a day, EACH. I swear to god. We spent countless days in bed from W.D. Either cause our dealer was out or because we didn't have the $800.00 a day to get us both high. My husband was in Real Estate, so we had some money. But not the kind of money we spent on Oxy's. Well, one morning I woke up to find my husband cold, blue and not breathing. He had taken out usual dose but od'd. I found him that way. And I lost him that morning. I will never forget what his skin felt like. And I don't mean to be graphic, nor do I mean to make you think I am telling you this because I think this will happen to you. I am just telling you my own personal experience with these pills. I will have to live with this for the rest of my life. I miss him so much. And I will never get the chance to tell him that. Please, please don't end up like me. Please. I also lost my parents to them. And I can't blame these pills. So please, for you and your b.f sake. It is so hard to w.d with someone else, especially a b.f. Because one is always feeling worse when the other is stable. And then one always wants to run and get more. And the other will always cave in. I knew, even before my husband died, that we would both never successfully get off the pills unless one went to a rehab to do it. It was so bad. We lost all our money, our cars, jobs and friendships.

Please just be careful. You can both get off these pills and be happy together. I hope this sinks in. Good luck......I mean it....

Lisa
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Avatar universal
General consensus I think is Day 5 is the turning point, everyone is different is always the caveat.
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352796 tn?1200607746
This post is about a month old.  You should post your question so it is new.  But since you weren't abusing and you tapered, I would think after a couple weeks you will be as good as new.

Since you have been clean for 4 days, the worst is about over, maybe one more day.  As long as you haven't had the runs or vomitting, you should be in good shape.

How is your sleeping?  Rest is helpful to rejuvenating your body.
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Avatar universal
I am looking for any advice....I am going through withdrawls from oxycontin....I am on my fourth day....I am doing pretty well considering except that I feel like I have a really bad cold and hot flashes......but no vomitting or having to go to the bathroom......I had recently tapered down to 10mg 3x a day......and for the last few days was only taking two a day.......my question is how long before I can feel semi normal again.....I have never abused the drug...always took it exactly as prescribed .....for four years.......I'm a graduate student about to start on my last semester and I am so tired of this drug controlling my life......I would rather live with my back pain than ever go through this again......I would appreciate any help you could give me.....thanks......Anna
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Avatar universal
Stay strong.  I am in a similar predicament.  You can do it.  You need to do it.

-golgi-
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