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vicodin addiction
I started vicodin not quite 3 years ago for a back injury during a difficult divorce. I kept getting the script refilled off and on but kept it under control. I never took over 2 at a time, and never more than 4 x a day, so my addiction peaked a few months ago, and I have been weaning down to 2 - 4 a day and I have 2 pills left. Most of the time I was able to keep myself to 2 pills 2 times a day when I needed the extra boost. I am overwhelmed financially, emotionally, and mentally with work and kids. I am a self employed professional without any insurance and I have a public job that I would lose if I admitted the problem or took time off. I had a meltdown after drinking and freaked out one night and caused a bunch of drama in my family recently. I told a family member about my problem and she told my friends and family and tried to stage an intervention that caused me to pull away because of the consequences and the lack of concern for my job or custody of my children. I think I can stop on my own, as I have done so for a up to a few months at a time during the last few years. I am extremely ashamed and embarrassed and the intervention made me feel so bad that I just need some support from someone non-judgmental so that I don't feel like such a loser that I don't have the strength to beat this. I've been in counseling for 3 years and I do have some legit pain. I use the vicodin mostly for energy at the end of the day so I can clean and take care of my kids when I am beat from work. Does anyone have any suggestions or positive feedback for me? I so need to stop beating myself up about this because it makes me feels worse... help!
Thank you. I am really afraid of telling my doctor. I have a huge fear that once that is put in my chart, that if I really need pain meds I will have to suffer and that scares me.
so your down to only two pills left...from any personal experiences and from others as well here is some info I can share with you that I think can help-
Take those last two slower than what you sued to do, cut them in half, take a half in the morning and then another half at night, then do that the next day, but the biggest thing you need to do is within these next two days is go to either your primary doc, an urgent care, or clinic, explain your issue, and they will be able to set you up with a couple medications that truly help any wd problems and help you figure out what you can do after that in order to keep yourself away from it....
It sounds like you have a good life, you work, you have children that truly need their real dad, not their dad numbed up on opioids, their dad that brought them up, and more so you need to do this for yourself, you have alot going for you and your not to far in as far as opiates and the addiction go so today is the day, you can do this now and believe me doing this now instead of 2 years alter will save you thousands of dollars, a family, and your life..trust me..
What you need to do is see a doctor if you have one get in asap if you have a therapist/psychiatrist, just as good, get in as soon as they can get you in, or if you have neither you need to go to a hospital, clinic, or an urgent care cuz they can help you just as much. What you need to do is fully explain the extent of your opioid use and for how long. Since you are not on a large dose and it hasn't been too too long you're saved from really experiencing any horrific wds. Which is a godsend that you wont even be able to comprehend you should be counting your graces that you dont have to go cold turkey or quit taking opioids with a severe addiction to a very potent opioid like heroin or hydromorphone, hell I am even jumping up and down for you..
So I will put it like this say if you didnt take those last two and you sat it out, you wouldn't really get too sick you would have about 4 or 5 days with some minor discomforts and some mental cravings and anxiety, but compared to if this was a lot different and also worse this would be a whole other story completely, so thats what would happen if you just stopped all together.
Now even easier than having to do that and believe me its easier on your mi9nd cuz im sure your thinking quite a bit about whats going to happen or what could happen, but you can see a doctor and explain fully whats going on.
He will tell; you taht you are incredibly lucky and smart that you made the choice to come in now as opposed to a year later when youve lost everything and you are much much sicker and need to go on a long term treatment program like myself.
What a doctor can do for you is prescribed you a couple meds that will truly make any chance of wds you could have basically unnoticeable.
He can prescribe you, and will be very willing to if you are honest with him and want to stop the cycle of abuse, he will do so with little ease, but first will be Clonidine (catapres), which is primarily prescribed for high blood pressure, but over the years they have found it to be one of the best WD aids available out there. Though your wds will be very mild (I know in your head they will seem a little more severe, but i mean mild in the grand scheme of things, dont take it as i mean that its weak or anything, any wd at all is bad), but the clonidine will get rid of any hot/cold flashes, goosebumps, hot and cold sweats/chills, restlessness, high blood pressure, aches, spasms, and insomnia. Now the second drug the doctor will prescribe will be depending on if he feels the wd may be bad enough, it may not and it may be just enough to where a short term script for 2 weeks of a benzodiazepine will help out a lot. The most often prescribed is generally Lorazepam (Ativan) or Valium (Diazepam) and that will get rid of any muscle weakness, ache, spasms, body problems, bad anxiety, cravings, or depressive thoughts, and insomnia.
Those two meds alone would get you through the week long process with no problems at all, but just to be safe there are a couple OTC meds that will help just in case, there is Immodium AD which will help with some stomach issues, but mainly diarrhea, and then get a anti-nausea med like milk of magnesia or Maalox with Tums, that works fine,a nd that will help so much with any stomach discomfort and cramps.
Now honestly I know coming off any medication especially pain meds that youve been accustomed to is something that is scary and I fully understand that, but you are at a low enough dose of a moderate opioid that your wd will be very mild, so with the help of these wd aids you should be able to go about your week like theres nothing going on at all. You really will be surprised in the 2nd or 3rd day at how much less serious and bad it is and then a few days alter youll be able to see how much life is different out of the daily haze of taking opioids daily. You get your life back. Now if you have chronic pain that is something you need to discuss with your doctor or a doctor in than specialty, but he needs to know what you were on in the past and this situation because he then can make a scholarly decision on what would give you the right amount of pain control with the least abuse and addiction possibilities. Their are meds that are non-opiate that can truly help chronic pain, but that can be discussed after this once you're off.
Take those last two slower than what you sued to do, cut them in half, take a half in the morning and then another half at night, then do that the next day, but the biggest thing you need to do is within these next two days is go to either your primary doc, an urgent care, or clinic, explain your issue, and they will be able to set you up with a couple medications that truly help any wd problems and help you figure out what you can do after that in order to keep yourself away from it....
It sounds like you have a good life, you work, you have children that truly need their real dad, not their dad numbed up on opioids, their dad that brought them up, and more so you need to do this for yourself, you have alot going for you and your not to far in as far as opiates and the addiction go so today is the day, you can do this now and believe me doing this now instead of 2 years alter will save you thousands of dollars, a family, and your life..trust me..
What you need to do is see a doctor if you have one get in asap if you have a therapist/psychiatrist, just as good, get in as soon as they can get you in, or if you have neither you need to go to a hospital, clinic, or an urgent care cuz they can help you just as much. What you need to do is fully explain the extent of your opioid use and for how long. Since you are not on a large dose and it hasn't been too too long you're saved from really experiencing any horrific wds. Which is a godsend that you wont even be able to comprehend you should be counting your graces that you dont have to go cold turkey or quit taking opioids with a severe addiction to a very potent opioid like heroin or hydromorphone, hell I am even jumping up and down for you..
So I will put it like this say if you didnt take those last two and you sat it out, you wouldn't really get too sick you would have about 4 or 5 days with some minor discomforts and some mental cravings and anxiety, but compared to if this was a lot different and also worse this would be a whole other story completely, so thats what would happen if you just stopped all together.
Now even easier than having to do that and believe me its easier on your mi9nd cuz im sure your thinking quite a bit about whats going to happen or what could happen, but you can see a doctor and explain fully whats going on.
He will tell; you taht you are incredibly lucky and smart that you made the choice to come in now as opposed to a year later when youve lost everything and you are much much sicker and need to go on a long term treatment program like myself.
What a doctor can do for you is prescribed you a couple meds that will truly make any chance of wds you could have basically unnoticeable.
He can prescribe you, and will be very willing to if you are honest with him and want to stop the cycle of abuse, he will do so with little ease, but first will be Clonidine (catapres), which is primarily prescribed for high blood pressure, but over the years they have found it to be one of the best WD aids available out there. Though your wds will be very mild (I know in your head they will seem a little more severe, but i mean mild in the grand scheme of things, dont take it as i mean that its weak or anything, any wd at all is bad), but the clonidine will get rid of any hot/cold flashes, goosebumps, hot and cold sweats/chills, restlessness, high blood pressure, aches, spasms, and insomnia. Now the second drug the doctor will prescribe will be depending on if he feels the wd may be bad enough, it may not and it may be just enough to where a short term script for 2 weeks of a benzodiazepine will help out a lot. The most often prescribed is generally Lorazepam (Ativan) or Valium (Diazepam) and that will get rid of any muscle weakness, ache, spasms, body problems, bad anxiety, cravings, or depressive thoughts, and insomnia.
Those two meds alone would get you through the week long process with no problems at all, but just to be safe there are a couple OTC meds that will help just in case, there is Immodium AD which will help with some stomach issues, but mainly diarrhea, and then get a anti-nausea med like milk of magnesia or Maalox with Tums, that works fine,a nd that will help so much with any stomach discomfort and cramps.
Now honestly I know coming off any medication especially pain meds that youve been accustomed to is something that is scary and I fully understand that, but you are at a low enough dose of a moderate opioid that your wd will be very mild, so with the help of these wd aids you should be able to go about your week like theres nothing going on at all. You really will be surprised in the 2nd or 3rd day at how much less serious and bad it is and then a few days alter youll be able to see how much life is different out of the daily haze of taking opioids daily. You get your life back. Now if you have chronic pain that is something you need to discuss with your doctor or a doctor in than specialty, but he needs to know what you were on in the past and this situation because he then can make a scholarly decision on what would give you the right amount of pain control with the least abuse and addiction possibilities. Their are meds that are non-opiate that can truly help chronic pain, but that can be discussed after this once you're off.
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