can i make it and will this stop?

[livemanwalking]

I am going to come clean, in more ways than one. I've been on prescription painkillers for years and have stolen from family. I have been blessed with not having to score off other people on the street or buy pills. I did buy poppies online once. Been on everything from lortab to dilaudid and I used to love every second of it. Not anymore. I gradually felt like I was drowning and for the first time I was starting to come up for air. I've detoxed before but I've really only quit once. Now I'm on less than a half of hydrocodone 5:5/500 but I just got shitload of 7:5 so I look forward to cutting those down. To anyone who has an addiction or is still feeling it I just want to say you're not alone and I've got your back as much as I can. Because going through this truly makes you want to help other people.

Having quit figs and some dabbled with alcohol I can say this was opiates are terrible and prescription ones are so goddamn dangerous because its an easy habit to conceal especially with pills. I wanted to tell some people and hear your story and support if you're at all interested. I'm in a rare moment of clarity bc I took my dose not too long ago. I

All I can say is I choose life, its as simple as that. Going to a movie now so ill check back afterwards. By the way, I'm not really religious. Not even sure I believe, not in 12 step that's for sure

I was taking a 1/8 of hydrocodone 5:5/500 yesterday. Down from several 10mg of oxycodone a day. Tapering from a half a lortab to the 1/8 was too much for me. How do I properly taper down from half a 5:5 lortab to nothing without too much withdrawals?
I can't do the cold turkey thing again, I know I would kill myself. It was too much for me to ever experience again. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemies.

Also on my second month of zoloft, I've been taking tramadol and hydroxyzine hcl and zolpidem er.
What do I do? Someone help me, please

[Julia M Aharonov, DO]

You approach is basically correct and is close to what I normally recommend. This is my usual approach:
to space out the pills you take in a consistent manner until you take only one at night, then half at night and then none.You can try asking a physician to prescribe you some Requip for restless legs, Neurontin for overall distress, Clonidine for blood pressure and general anxiety control and maybe get some over the counter Valerian for sleep and sedation and chelated magnesium for muscle relaxation.
I have a huge problem with you taking tramadol "for the detox". You have to understand that tramadol is also an opiate and a highly addictive drug in its own right. It is actually harder to detox from tramadol than from a shorter acting opiates like Vicodin. Please beware and read my blog on tramadol and especially the comments on it.
But, seriously, you must be completely committed to the goal of quitting.  I have written a blog that has rather detailed information about options for detox. If you click on my name and then click on blogs you will see one under that heading.  Take a minute to read it. I hope you will find it helpful.  
The main thing of course is the decision that you make and making it a priority in your life, because that will determine what your life will actually be and mean in the end.  I don't want to sound preachy but it is not a decision you make one day, it is a decision you will make every day for the rest of your life. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with my other readers. Good luck to you and take a look at my clinic website for even more info www.mdsdrugdetox.com

[hbock09]

I was a heroin addict for 2 years but started with vicodin and methadone. Any opiate I could get my hands on really. Anyways you're right..it isn't easy but its worth it. I have tried and tapered myself off before but it didn't really work. I went to a 28 day residental treatment plus 2 days of detox in may and haven't used since. You don't have to be religious to work a 12 step program. It's a higher power. That could be mother nature even. And it also says, God as you understand him. Which is  your own idea of God. Do you have a prescription to the vicodin? Does your doctor know? Try a suboxone tapering dose. If youre 100% commited to quitting then I'd clue your Dr in. As for zoloft that's fine but the ambien is very addicting as well.