I am getting a 5 day dosage that will be tapered down on the promise that I wll submit to a drug test every month for the next 6 months for him...I will not know when the tests will be, I will have 24 hour notice
The tramadol will definately help the wd but just remember that it is addictive also so just be careful with it. I took 2 a day for 5 days once to help me get thru the worst of the wd but if you have 4 days in your almost over the worst of it. Wishing you the best of luck!
Hello - just want to warn you about the Tramadol. I was prescribed it for back pain over 15 years ago and just finally broke free from it about 101 days ago. It stole away years of my life, my friends, my health, my career . . . It is VERY addictive and dangerous - search the Emily Post journals here on MH to read the stories of so many people who have battled with addiction to this "non-narcotic", "non-addictive" medication. It is unbelievable to me that a dr. would still prescribe this as something non-addictive.
If you do take it, please stick to the 5 day minimum . . . the w/d affects from the Tram are just as bad or worse than any other opiate.
Whatever you decide, its awesome that you want to get off the pills - be strong - it is SO worth it!
Julie
hey, whatever he feels will work!
I am heavily addicted to opiates but when I was on tramadol I never got addicted so his reasoning was put me on a 5 day dose of something that is non addictive to me in order to taper off the opiates...he doesn't want to taper me off the opiates with other opiates so he figured tramadol would be much better....lesser of the 2 evils I guess I personally hate Tramadol they do nothing forme but he assured me they would make the qtting much eaasier
I would not question your doctor's treatment and competency based on what a stranger on the Net says about his or her personal and nightmare with the drug.
Your doctor sounds great and what I would do is ASK the doctor about your concerns related to his prescribing Tramadol. Your doctor knows his patient best. Moreover, you know your limitations, weaknesses, and attitude about certain drugs. It sounds like your doctor is working with you, taking into account what he knows about you.
Very generally, from what I have read, opioid taper plans fail because people can't deal with the withdrawal process. So if a doctor can prescribe things to lessen discomfort and help assure overall success, that sounds reasonable to me. Additionally, from the limited prescription it sounds like he is making sure you don't go from addiction to abuse or dependence of another drug.
(Note: As I understand Tramadol, you don't get addicted to it, you develop a dependence to it.) This distinction is similar to the Ambien I take. One does get addicted to Ambien, meaning if I don't take an Ambien my body is screaming for more. But I do have a dependence to it, where I need to take an Ambien at some point to get to sleep.
Regardless of medical terms, my understanding is that when going off Tramadol one suffers withdrawals too. But AFAIK suffering withdrawals does not medically escalate a dependence into an addiction. So this is why you may have never felt addicted to it, because it is non-addicting. And it may be what the doctor meant by it being non-addicting, if he said that.
Again, this is just my understanding, but when you say Tramadol does not do anything for you and it has never been your thing, IMO that's because Tramadol is not a drug that gets one high or gives a buzz. It is a pain killer that works differently than the strong opiates (Oxy, Vicodin, etc.)
Note: I have seen people, and myself, use "addiction" and "dependence" interchangeably. Although I tell people I am "addicted" to sleeping pills, I know that my Ambien use is a dependence. (The luxury aspect of a dependence is that if I don't take an Ambien I will not suffer WD symptoms, unless laying bug-eyed in bed unable to get to sleep is a WD symptom ;)
That Tramadol is not medically considered an addicting substance is indicated that the federal government does not treat it as a federally controlled drug. However, some States have passed laws or regulations listing and handling Tramadol as a Schedule IV controlled substance.
Hope that helps.
(Note: Getting rid of a dependence on Tramadol can be physically uncomfortable too. So I would NOT want to go from one set of WD symptoms to another. So you are right to be concerned. Then again, if your doctor prescribes Tramadol to help you handle the opiate WD process, that looks like a good plan.)