Journal - Help with oxy withdrawl

[oxyc]

Swim has been taking oxycodone for about 3 years now as he has been waiting for hip surgery, he is currently on 3 different types of it oxynorm instant release capsules oxycontin tablets and concentrated liquid, his total daily ammount excedes 600mg, swims surgery is now due and he is wondering if the doctor will stop his oxy treatment after surgery, swim has run out of oxys before and gone through horrendous withdrawels but only for a couple of days and thinks there is worse in store, he has experienced no sleep, burning hot and cold flashes hyper sensitive skin his legs jolt violently after about 24hrs he cant eat or even think straight when he has run out, what do you think he should do, is there anything the doctor could do, he has tried tramadol but this doesnt seem to help much, any help would be great as swim is terrified of having to stop

[Master_Khan]

Perhaps swim's Doctor's might keep him on a 'maintenance dose' of Hydrocodone after the surgery. At least here in the states, while Doctor's are loathe to write open-ended scripts for oxy, they seem somewhat willing to accept the idea of an open-ended treatment w/ vicodin.

Fear not, there will be a way.

[oxyc]

Thanks, swim was considering smoking h to combat the suffering until he could get his script refilled, swim is an alcoholic too although he has been dry for a long time, he thought alcohol dts were bad until these oxy w/ds he was going to tell the doctor about the w/ds but was afraid he would stop his oxy script, he wants to stop after his surgery but is dreading the withdrawls, how long will they last if he went cold turkey?

[rokman nash]

Swims doc shouldn't leave you hanging. They know how addictive the poison they distribute is. After the surgery they will probably have some sort of program to wean swim off of these dangerous drugs.

Listen to them, and try to get ahead of whatever plan they have for swim. It will make it easier in the long run.


Good Thoughts

Reputation Comments on this post:

Listening to one's doctor and getting a head start by minimizing medication is a sound, common sense solution.

[Master_Khan]

Originally Posted by oxyc

Thanks, swim was considering smoking h to combat the suffering

Like putting out a brush fire with a nuclear bomb.

Good luck oxyc.

[oxyc]

Thanks for the advice guys, swim thinks this is a great forum, swim has used and abused most stuff throughout his life he had a bit of a problem with amphetamines then crack and drink and has managed to stop all of them in the past but he never dabbled with opiates/opoids much now he can fully understand addiction it has made swim see swimmers on stuff like this in a different light and he admires anyone who can defeat it

[Master_Khan]

Originally Posted by oxyc

he admires anyone who can defeat it

Best thing anyone can hope for is to get all the information. Chance favors the prepared mind. Anyone who has found themselves drowning in the deep end of this pool wishes they would have paid more attention while they were dabbling in the shallows.

Swim has always believed in the value of learning from the mistakes of others; too painful to learn the consequences of breaking every rule on ones own. Life too short to spend it all in agony.

[ex-junkie]

Originally Posted by oxyc

Thanks for the advice guys, swim thinks this is a great forum, swim has used and abused most stuff throughout his life he had a bit of a problem with amphetamines then crack and drink and has managed to stop all of them in the past but he never dabbled with opiates/opoids much now he can fully understand addiction it has made swim see swimmers on stuff like this in a different light and he admires anyone who can defeat it

swim doesnt want to rain on swiys parade, but swiy has to be very careful of the amphetamines and crack after opiates. most swimmers who have suffered from amphetamine/crack/drink abuse in the past, have problems resurface after they quit. so just be aware that some people follow the same path back out as they followed in.

be aware that anything swiy tends to reach for afterwards has the potential for further abuse, because nervous system often screams for a replacement. once people have it inside their heads that there will be no more opiates, the mind will try to justify that using amphetamines is harm reduction- after all its not the big bad opiates...

in hindsight, had swim seen it coming/was prepared for it she could have dealt with it proper/better back then.

[Sib]

600mg is a very high dose, so your doctor will not suddenly stop your usage (unless he's the devil in disguise)

[oxynomo]

Swim thinks it might be good idea if swiy started to maybe lower doses now if possible.Hopefully swiys Doc. puts you on a taper,if so make sure you follow directions.Swiy does know that going from such a high dose to nothing is going to take some time.Swims Doc.wanted him to do a 20% per month reduction.Good luck with the upcoming surgery.o

[ex-junkie]

its more or less a doctors duty of care to not cut patients off opiates, if theyve been on them for an extended amount of time. at the very least, the doctor should offer some sort of taper plan, and shouldnt rush it.

its not swiys fault he is suffering from withdrawals, and its not swiys fault he is on the oxys. to simply cut swiy off is not only inhumane, but its not catering to swiys best interests as a patient.

might be worthwhile to seek a second opinion, or perhaps voice concern to the staff at the hospital when swiy goes in.

[Sib]

There's 1000's of patients that leave hospital only to then come down with the 'flu' and basically know no better

[Feprincess]

I am seeing my MD tomorrow to spill the beans about my abuse.
My biggest fear is that she will say tough shit you got yourself into this you get yourself out....
Any advice on this?
thanks

[Pope Albacore]

Originally Posted by Feprincess

I am seeing my MD tomorrow to spill the beans about my abuse.
My biggest fear is that she will say tough shit you got yourself into this you get yourself out....
Any advice on this?
thanks

Follow through with SWIY's plan to be honest with his/her doctor. If given the cold shoulder, SWIY should seek help elsewhere. Doctors should be compassionate but sadly that is not always so. Some are true dicks. SWIY should find a doctor that he/she is comfortable with if this is the case and be completely honest.

-Pope Albacore

PS- Suffering is suffering is suffering. Sadly, many in the medical field do not see addiction as suffering. These vermin should seek other professions.

[oxyc]

Swim has just gone two days and nights no sleep or food couldnt cope, swims wife is on her way back with 224 oxy pills right now swim cannot wait to be out of the horrendous nightmare, some doctors are absolute idiots stringing swim out for this long its appaling

[Feprincess]

Swim is greatful to report that doctor was amazing. Swim's worst fear of being left alone to do it was not to come to fruition.

Doc put swim on clonidine & clonazepam do deal with the withdrawl symptoms. Don't know what the long term effect will be.

Swim will report experience in case there is anyone else out there alone reading this. Thank you Master_Kahn

Fe_Princess

[kpell]

Hello everyone, Am in dire need of some help and advice dealing with this withdrawl gig...I am a 2 time cancer survivor and was diagnosed with Parkinsons disease several years back. Have been on these oxys 15mg. 4 a day for almost 10 years now. Have decided that I have had enough and if through drugs that this will be the only quality of life I will have I would just as soon NOT...This month I recieved 90 pills instead of the usual 120 as I just changed insurance mid month and they refuse to pay, so ran out 2 days ago..have another script, but cannot fill until next fri. so this next few weeks are gonna BLOW..and not in a good way..I am so sick I feel like I am dying..I just want to quit this life..but at what cost??? any ideas???? Thanks, Kim

[oxyc]

Hi Swim really feels for swiy, is there no other tablets available like Tramadol or dihydrocodiene tabs, swim has used these in the past to take the edge off or codeine really helps, you can get codeine over the counter but its normally mixed with paracetamol so dont take too much, from what swim has heard, the first 3-5 days are the worst and once through that stage it gets a bit easier, how many pills has swiy got left, maybe try to stop before swiy runs out only take one when in real stress, i know this is very hard, swim always runs out early and has to lie to the doctor like saying he is going on holiday so needs his script early or has lost his pills but have run out of excuses now, swim has just gone 2 days without oxy, he is currently on between 6-700mg/day of the crap and it hurt BAD but managed to get 224 20mg pills last night and was back to normal within minutes, Swim also used antihistamine tablets and drinking some night nurse liquid helped a bit, any thing to take that burning feeling away swim wishes swiy the best of luck

[ex-junkie]

Originally Posted by kpell

Hello everyone, Am in dire need of some help and advice dealing with this withdrawl gig...I am a 2 time cancer survivor and was diagnosed with Parkinsons disease several years back. Have been on these oxys 15mg. 4 a day for almost 10 years now. Have decided that I have had enough and if through drugs that this will be the only quality of life I will have I would just as soon NOT...This month I recieved 90 pills instead of the usual 120 as I just changed insurance mid month and they refuse to pay, so ran out 2 days ago..have another script, but cannot fill until next fri. so this next few weeks are gonna BLOW..and not in a good way..I am so sick I feel like I am dying..I just want to quit this life..but at what cost??? any ideas???? Thanks, Kim

oh dear.

why dont doctors understand the plight of the needy? you are diagnosed with illness beyond the normal duty of care, and your doctor should be catering to your needs as a patient.

promethazine and clonidine are wonders when you got a week between scripts tbh.

promethazine is a drowsy antihistamine, and clonidine is a blood pressure medication.

the promethazine is OTC hayfever medicine, and unfortunately its going to take double/triple doses to hold yourself whilst withdrawing from opiates. clonidine is something the doctors are usually happy to prescribe you, keep in mind that the usual daily dose of chlonidine with opiate withdrawal is 2 doses of 0.2 mg= this is 2 x 100 microgram tablets x twice daily!!!

clonidine and promethazine in combination usually work great if you take the right amount. this doesn't mean to pop all of them at once though!!! 0.6mg is the maximum recommended dose for clonidine per day. this enables you to take 2 x 100 microgram tablets, 3 times a day. one dose in the morning, one dose in the middle of the day, and one dose at night. this will help you to sleep better than any benzo prescription will.

clonidine is not addictive, but because it affects the blood pressure, it is advisable to wean off of them to prevent spikes in blood pressure afterwards. remember that whilst you are withdrawing, they may be useful, but afterwards it is essential that you wean your dose down so as to not spark high blood pressure!!!! be very careful!!!

swim wasn't careful ever with her clonidine and was fine, but everybody is different in their chemical makeup, metabolism, so should be their utmost careful with any sort of blood pressure reactive drugs!

[w//e]

Perhaps swim's Doctor's might keep him on a 'maintenance dose' of Hydrocodone after the surgery. At least here in the states, while Doctor's are loathe to write open-ended scripts for oxy, they seem somewhat willing to accept the idea of an open-ended treatment w/ vicodin.
Fear not, there will be a way.

Great advice, and perhaps of course, this is what they will do. Swim will be in alot of pain after the surgery and compassionate doctors will not leave the patient in pain. Swim knows because swim had the same thing happen.

[thebige]

Well this thread has gone into different directions from the OP and swim just wanted to bring up a couple of things he noticed......(due to swims ADD this happens sometimes,and hopes others can make some sense of it)

A couple of things that got touched on.......
Going to Hospital to get meds to get you to the next script---
Overall swim thinks this is a poor strategy,in the short term it may seem like a good idea,but it can do a number of things.If swiy are on OCs chances are you will not walk out of the ER with a script for more,it has and does happen but without the documentation and possibly the staff being familiar with your case odds are that you will walk away with something like Vicoden,T3s or something that just takes the edge off withdrawal......but it also puts you on the fast track to getting red flagged,so the next time you walk in you are permanently branded as "drug seeking".Basically you are....thats the whole reason for going there in the first place.right?
Also chances are your MD will be notified of your visit to the ER,not always but just assume that they will be.....So now swiy has just turned a spotlight on their doctor,if the MD has been around long enough it won't phase him.....but if he has any "moral reservations" about treating you with opiates or doesn't want attention from colleges for whatever reason or has recently been posted on some DEA list of doctors possibly over prescribing narcotics,he may see this as a opportunity to start to take you off of them.
He could say......"I feel you may be starting to develop a problem with the medication",or,"I feel your long term management of pain is getting out of the scope of treatment a general practice can manage,and feel you should be turned over to a pain clinic" So basically swiy ends up setting in motion a chain of events that leed to cutting off swims legit or not legit(in some cases,you know who you are) supply of pain relief.....(pain clinics can be helpful sometimes not,swiys mileage may vary)
Sometimes,the secretary does the doctors dirtywork....either the secretary personally gets off on this or it has become part of the job description(maybe this puts the secretary in the doctors good graces or helps to secure their job,swim doesn't know).Sometimes swim thinks thats jealousy is involved,like "I don't get to walk around in constant euphoria,So you shouldn't either,you are going to have to be miserable like me,and I don't care what you have wrong with you,Damit I have the power to stop this and I'm gonna,besides I think your just a heroin junky like the rest of them.......shitbag HA-HA-HA !!"OK maybe you haven't had the wicked witch of the east as a seceratery...but swim has..... In most cases the doctor has his own shit to deal with (wife/husband,the dog,the kids,back taxes,his own narcotic or substance abuse problems........who knows).So the secretary should be your friend and not someone to vent your "hidden abuse problem" on.Swim means that this person is swiy only real time link to the doctor when swiy is not in front of him/her.And if swiy wants the message put through.......be nice.Swim could continue but suffice to say that the ER is not always the best option when you cut yourself short.........but please make swiy own decisions on this.

Also Kpell,you said that swiy got only 90 as opposed to 120 due to insurance......did swiy not get the correct amount because swiy didn't want to pay the balance or couldn't pay the balance?
And after 10 years,wondering if swiy doctor has made adjustment for tolerance,possibly rotating swiy meds,or pressed for any re-assessment on the condition?Swim is not trying to call you out......but was wondering to better understand where swiy is coming from....(not flaming)Because if swiy brought this up to the doctor,he/she may augment the treatment plan with a medication that insurance would cover.
Well swims ADD is acting up again so he has forgotten where he was going with this......another good point lost somewhere in the grey matter,jeeesshhh.
Sounds like the OP got the wife to bring him his medication.so thats good.And Kpell,glad to here your battle with the cancer has gone in your favor.....swim knows how hard these thing can get,hope swiy can find relief for swiy withdrawal and physical pains...........bige

[oxyc]

Originally Posted by thebige

Well this thread has gone into different directions from the OP and swim just wanted to bring up a couple of things he noticed......(due to swims ADD this happens sometimes,and hopes others can make some sense of it)

A couple of things that got touched on.......
Going to Hospital to get meds to get you to the next script---
Overall swim thinks this is a poor strategy,in the short term it may seem like a good idea,but it can do a number of things.If swiy are on OCs chances are you will not walk out of the ER with a script for more,it has and does happen but without the documentation and possibly the staff being familiar with your case odds are that you will walk away with something like Vicoden,T3s or something that just takes the edge off withdrawal......but it also puts you on the fast track to getting red flagged,so the next time you walk in you are permanently branded as "drug seeking".Basically you are....thats the whole reason for going there in the first place.right?
Also chances are your MD will be notified of your visit to the ER,not always but just assume that they will be.....So now swiy has just turned a spotlight on their doctor,if the MD has been around long enough it won't phase him.....but if he has any "moral reservations" about treating you with opiates or doesn't want attention from colleges for whatever reason or has recently been posted on some DEA list of doctors possibly over prescribing narcotics,he may see this as a opportunity to start to take you off of them.
He could say......"I feel you may be starting to develop a problem with the medication",or,"I feel your long term management of pain is getting out of the scope of treatment a general practice can manage,and feel you should be turned over to a pain clinic" So basically swiy ends up setting in motion a chain of events that leed to cutting off swims legit or not legit(in some cases,you know who you are) supply of pain relief.....(pain clinics can be helpful sometimes not,swiys mileage may vary)
Sometimes,the secretary does the doctors dirtywork....either the secretary personally gets off on this or it has become part of the job description(maybe this puts the secretary in the doctors good graces or helps to secure their job,swim doesn't know).Sometimes swim thinks thats jealousy is involved,like "I don't get to walk around in constant euphoria,So you shouldn't either,you are going to have to be miserable like me,and I don't care what you have wrong with you,Damit I have the power to stop this and I'm gonna,besides I think your just a heroin junky like the rest of them.......shitbag HA-HA-HA !!"OK maybe you haven't had the wicked witch of the east as a seceratery...but swim has..... In most cases the doctor has his own shit to deal with (wife/husband,the dog,the kids,back taxes,his own narcotic or substance abuse problems........who knows).So the secretary should be your friend and not someone to vent your "hidden abuse problem" on.Swim means that this person is swiy only real time link to the doctor when swiy is not in front of him/her.And if swiy wants the message put through.......be nice.Swim could continue but suffice to say that the ER is not always the best option when you cut yourself short.........but please make swiy own decisions on this.

Also Kpell,you said that swiy got only 90 as opposed to 120 due to insurance......did swiy not get the correct amount because swiy didn't want to pay the balance or couldn't pay the balance?
And after 10 years,wondering if swiy doctor has made adjustment for tolerance,possibly rotating swiy meds,or pressed for any re-assessment on the condition?Swim is not trying to call you out......but was wondering to better understand where swiy is coming from....(not flaming)Because if swiy brought this up to the doctor,he/she may augment the treatment plan with a medication that insurance would cover.
Well swims ADD is acting up again so he has forgotten where he was going with this......another good point lost somewhere in the grey matter,jeeesshhh.
Sounds like the OP got the wife to bring him his medication.so thats good.And Kpell,glad to here your battle with the cancer has gone in your favor.....swim knows how hard these thing can get,hope swiy can find relief for swiy withdrawal and physical pains...........bige

Absolutely true to the t, swim has had this very same scenario, with the receptionist playing god, being refered to the pain clinic, the doctor pulling his hair out because swim is ordering too soon etc, very good advice

[bodymore]

Yeah, swim got started with percocet and vicoden from the doctor... had a couple of epidural blocks. Finally changed insurance and got the MRI that the old insurance wouldn't pay for and low and behold sent out in the dark. MRI shows no intrusion to spinal canal. One parting script for vicoden that they wouldn't refill and sent to the Reuhmatologist, this doctor gives tramadol and HIGHLY recomends treating my Hepatitis C (which I have been putting off for more than 10 years). The hep c meds are ROUGH! I already know people that did it so swim has been dreding this appt for many weeks now (it was a long time wait for the specialist). Anyway in that time swim managed to say eff'it 'let's just see how hard it is to get heroin'. Turns out not too bad most of the time. Paid too much for a while and got burned twice but that is the way with the street. Only trouble is that stuff really pulls you in fast! Well in all truth swim has been a drug abuser and alcoholic for many, many years. No alcohol for about 15 years then started again and then quit about 2 years ago. Have not had a problem per-se with pills but can never seem to get enough. Wife gets pills monthly but doesn't like OC or any of the 'good stuff' only Percocet which is fine but that is gone now too. AUGHHHHHHHH I can't escape this hell! I DO so love jabbering on... I WILL get through this mess. I just hope that the hep c treatment is worth it. From what I've read my particular genotype is very treatable and my viral load is only 1.4M or something, I just have a lot of aches and pain and there is arthritis in various joints that really hurt, especially since I work with my hands. I guess this IS kind of off post here but it's only my second post so we'll see what happens... I guess my point was that if you 'have the bug' (addiction) you always have it. I can control it to a point but it always bites back!