tramadol withdrawal

[Birdie23]

I am in the process of getting off of tramadol. It was prescribed for me for ocassional use for mild to moderate pain like headache, muscle soreness, etc. I used it only ocassionally for several months. About 4 months ago, I became involved in a fairly intense project and was experiencing more discomfort. Without really thinking much about it, I started using tramadol every day and then increased this to 2-3 times each day. The dosage was 100mg, so I was taking 100-300mg daily (or 2-6, 50mg pills) for 3 months. After I finished the project in mid-may, I decided that I needed to stop using a drug to get through the day, so I tried to just stop taking it. WOW! Serious withdrawal symptoms including joint and muscle pain, stomch issues, fatigue, depression and a strange hollowness in my nerves ensued. I didn't feel I could just stop functioning for a week or two or whatever it would take, so I used some hydrocodone that I had to help me get my tramadol use down to 100mg per day over the course of a week. I would just take the hydro when I started feeling really bad in the afternoon to get me through the rest of the day. Then, I decided to just quit the tramadol altogether. The withdrawal was really difficult. I was worried about getting addicted to the hydro, so I got some concentrated kratom powder and was alternating use with the hydro every day or two so that neither of them was in my system daily. This got me through week 2 which was a reduced amount of muscle pain, but more fatigue, lethargy, depression. Now I am beginning my third week. I am out of hydro and I am still experiencing some muscle and joint stuff, but the big problem is the lethargy and depression. It's just kicking my butt. The kratom is very helpful in this and lifts the dark cloud that I seem to wake up with, but I'm worried about an addition to this as well. I am now taking about 1.5-2 grams in the early afternoon to get through the rest of the day. I am not using any other drugs or substances. I have never been addicted to anything before and wasn't abusing the tramadol. It didn't make me high or anything, but it did get rid of ALL of my aches and pains and let me do everything I needed to in the day. I don't have any major pain and I know I shouldn't have been so lazy about my health. Now, I am trying to be really careful without losing myself to laying on the couch all day. My questions are: How long will the tramadol withdrawal take to be completely over? and How long can I use a small amount of Kratom on a daily basis without just creating another addiction that I have to get over? Or can I just slowly reduce the kratom to avoid the withdrawal since it is a powder and very easy to measure out? Any thoughts on this would be helpful. I am reluctant to engage my physician in this too much. he knows I am having withdrawal fromt he tramadol, but I don't want to ask for any other drugs if I don't have to. I just feel like I've done something really studpid and I want to get through it without his help, if possible. Thanks!

[wiggles01]

I just found this forum. Will write more later.

[penniek]

Hi
Of all the posts Ive read on here this afternoon yours was the one that gave me strength to continue
thank you
coming off tramadol nearly made me kill myself today and i couldnt undersand why until i googled tramadol and depression and found this forum
why doctors give this drug out is beyond me, and to give it to someone who already suffers depression is astounding
Ive binned the lot and just hope day 4 off tramadol tomorrow will be better than today but if its not I know why and now i know i can do this, thank you

[LeaAnn807]

Hi.......everybody, this is a super long and old post.  If you wanna get a lot of good help and support, go to "post a question" and post your story/question there.  Makes it much easier to give you help!

[lovey22]

I just came across this, all I have to say is tramadol can and will KILL you!!! I almost died last summer. and did that stop me from taking them? NO. you think it would. I am trying to taper myself off. last year I was taking up to 20 50mg a day. one night i came home from work late and went to bed around 2am. well my fiance had found me on our bed naked and cigarette burning in bed!! and I was laying there unconsious with face drooping staring at tv. I dont remember any of this!! he ran and got my lil sis which kills me that she had to see me like this:(  anyhow I was completly out of it. I was running all over the house slurring words..still naked. which is crazy cause I let noone see my body! I dont remember any of this. I made my fiance and sis tell me this story over and over to try to remember..I still cant. so my fiance called 911, I was in the bathroom vomiting like crazy. I was sooooo scared. I do remember that. this is when I started to remember bits and peices of what happend. I was sweating like crazy!! the paremedics asked me why I was sweating so bad, I choosed to go into the ambulance where I couldnt stop vomiting and then fell unconsious again, they were struggling to keep me alive at this point, i was not stable. my heart rate ran up sooo high to point of cardio arrest, and had oxygen mask on because now had no oxygen, turns out I also had very lethal amounts of carbon monoxide in my body? they were checking my house to see if it was in there, but wasnt. they were sooo confused, i was dying right before them, I woke up at the hospital and was sooo confused and depressed, all I did was sleep. this was all from the tramadols. I stopped taking them for a week but started back up. started taking less and less at this point. I want off of these no good things! I know I can do it. I am prescribed them for chronic migraines and also immitrex. Lets all help each other off of this nasty drug. I have been taking tramadol for almost 3yrs now...I need the will to do it. good luck to all of you out there going through this. this drug should have never been invented. IT WILL KILL YOU!

[wransomejr]

I did much the same as you. The insomnia was what really got to me, so Netflix and my laptop became good buddies. I also learned to take walks late at night. If you are in an area that you can do that safely it helps. Get to the forum and start a "new question" so people can respond. I spent a lot of time on here, too. Great people with tons of helpful advice. This is a very old thread from 2007 and won't get much attention!

[KrishnaSchild]

I just dropped in here, never been before and saw your post. I like you, am a very driven person, I wound up getting addicted to tramadol, worst of all it literally took only 3 days for me to become addicted, I cold turkeyed it and am in my second day the thing that has worked for me, isn't another drug, it is lots of hot decaf tea or coffee , reading , and Netflix, they have stand up comedians on there, Kevin hart is my fave,and I have to say for me ...prayer, I am Hindu but all religions to me Offer the same thing, inner peace, I know my god listens and will help me through, if you don't believe in god it's ok too, then believe in yourself, remember human beings in our very nature are strong and resilient creatures, you WILL make it through.