I am new to forums, but from the looks of it, I think it could be really beneficial, and I really need some advice. I recently confessed to my husband and family that I have an addictiont to vicodin. I've been taking it for chronic headaches for about two years now, and I'm taking about 25 (or more) of the 10's a day. About six months ago, I discovered I had a problem, but I dont' think I was quite ready to quit.
Well, I finally took the first step, and called the precribing doctor about it. She's going to wean me slowly, but she just keeps giving me large quantities of the stuff, and I'm finding it very had to stick to my weaning schedule. On top of that, she recently precribed morphine to help with the pain, which I'm finding myself wanting more and more of. At this point, I can't imagine my life without taking the vicodin.
I know at this rate, I will never quit, so I was thinking about quitting 'cold turkey', but to be honest, I'm terrified. I've heard a lot about the withdrawls from vicodin, and morphine, and I'm just afraid...I know that may sound pathetic, but I'm scared to death!!!
I guess I would just like some adivce on how to exactly go about this. If I stay with my doc, then I will continue to be prescribed large quantities of the vicodin, not to mention the morphine, but as far as detox goes, I dont' have any other options. I really want to be clean of this stuff...does anyone have any ideas?
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Is it normal to be so terrified to give up an addiction? Thanks for your help!
jilly,
I understand how you feel. I have been a lurker here for a while and this is a great place for support. I had to break down and finally admitt to my family that I was addicted to Methadone and had been for seven years. That was tuff but after I did that I felt like a weight had been lifted, First I dropped my pain Dr. and found a new addiction Dr. who put me on Suboxen. I don't know if you have heard of it, there are some people on here who are taking it. It helps me taper down without withdrawal and without cravings. I feel like I am truly making pogress with my recovery. There are many here who have done it cold turkey and God bless them for it because I just couldn't. Just know you have options and you have already taken some huge steps to get better. Stick around here there are some amazing people on here that are ready and want to help you.
renny
I understand how you feel. I have been a lurker here for a while and this is a great place for support. I had to break down and finally admitt to my family that I was addicted to Methadone and had been for seven years. That was tuff but after I did that I felt like a weight had been lifted, First I dropped my pain Dr. and found a new addiction Dr. who put me on Suboxen. I don't know if you have heard of it, there are some people on here who are taking it. It helps me taper down without withdrawal and without cravings. I feel like I am truly making pogress with my recovery. There are many here who have done it cold turkey and God bless them for it because I just couldn't. Just know you have options and you have already taken some huge steps to get better. Stick around here there are some amazing people on here that are ready and want to help you.
renny
Jilly wow firstly welcome to the site and how strong your sounding without even knowing it, lots of addicts cant face to tell spouses etc. Im from the UK and know very little about answering your question but there are lots of people on here who do. I just wanted to welcome you and wish you good luck with your recovery. One thing though i would most definitly seek out maybe an addiction specialist who whould have a better idea more then your Dr. jaxxxxxxxxxx
Hi..just read your post and needed to respond. First off..get a NEW DOCTOR! THis doc is not doing you any good by adding morphine to the mix after you told her you had a vicodin problem. Do you have chronic pain?I know you mentioned headaches..I too suffer from migraines 2-3 times a month for 3-5 (sometimes 10 days) dayys at a clip!Thats how I started on the Vicodin and I have detoxed myself twice in my lifetime. You dont seem to have a big problem yet with the morphine..can you at least get off that? If you can..give your pills (Vic;s) to your husband or other trusted person.. see if they can help you wean down.SLOWLY.I wouldnt suggest cold turkey if you are currently taking 25 pills a day.I was taking 4 pills a day(for years) and felt like hell for 3 days, crap for another 2 and had leg aches for 3 weeks following. If you can wean down..then you can go cold turkey.There are docs that specialize in addiction and can give you sub..but I never took it so I wont give advice on it as I dont know enough.Hopefully others here will respond with SUB info for you as you may want to try that..but pls..fluch the morphine today if you can.Let me know how you are doing and I will check back later. We are all here for you, including me.Best of luck.laurie
Hi, I too am where you are at. I posted here almost 2 weeks ago. I went to my doc and confessed my problem to him. He told me tapering off the hydro or vicodin would be very time intensive and probably not successful. He put me on fentanyl patches (75 mcg) which I am to leave on for 72 hours. When I started on them, I had mild withdrawals from the pills but could easily deal with them. This week he will drop me to 50 mcg. In 2 weeks then to 25 mcgs and then hopefully off. I know there are many who don't agree with this procedure, I have hope in it. At the very least I am not popping 30 - 40 pills per day. I have not had a pill since I saw my doc. I believe this will work for me as I soo badly want to be clean. Also if your intake was that high, at least my doc would advise against cold turkey.How is your liver? I had mine tested and amazingly it was functioning normal. Good luck with your battle, I will be praying for you. I pray everyday for help with my problem.
Sunny
Sunny
Hi I am on the Sub and it has been wonderful for me I have been clean for 10 weeks now.If you are taking that many pills I agree you should go to addiction specialist and try the sub it is very simple to find sub drs by just google the word Suboxone and there will be a place where it says find a dr in your area print this out and start calling you do have to be in 24 hours of w/d to start as you will get sick if you do not follow this most important requirement to start and then when you get stablized start working on getting some support like AA NA I have tried everything to quit pain killers to no avail for the last 11 years and have finally found something that works for me and a lot of other people on this board try looking it up and see if it is something you think you might want to try since you are so terrified of going thru w/dsGood luck feel free to ask any ?s if you wouild like and either mysel or somone else will be happy to help you the best we can
If I was in your shoes...
I would find a specialist and find out what is causing the physical pain.
I would find a Suboxone specialist to help me detox and deal with the addiction .
I would get on a strict taper schedule.
I would keep coming back to these forums for support and if possible go to as many NA meetings as possible for the next 90 days.
You can do it!!!
Many here have.:).
I would find a specialist and find out what is causing the physical pain.
I would find a Suboxone specialist to help me detox and deal with the addiction .
I would get on a strict taper schedule.
I would keep coming back to these forums for support and if possible go to as many NA meetings as possible for the next 90 days.
You can do it!!!
Many here have.:).
First of all, I want to thank all of those who replied to the message I posted. I truly appreciate all of the advice. Does anyone know if insurance would cover an addiction specialist? To answer many of your replies, I know I need to get a new doctor....I don't think she exactly knows what she's doing. (it was great to hear someone tell me that because I thought I was just being irrational at first) The addictive side of me wants to keep going to her because I know she'll continue to give me the vicodin, but on the other hand, well, I do want to get better. The vicodin has taken over my life!!
I do suffer from chronic pain. I suffered a concussion a couple of years ago, and still have frequent headaches...daily almost. That' s why she gave me the morphine. On top of that, she gave me the fentanyl patches to try. Those seem to help some. I have never heard of suboxen. Right now my doctor has me on Librium to help with withdrawls...not working too well.
I had my liver tested last week, and should get the results back on Monday (11/7) I'm hoping things are normal.
Anyway, again, I really appreciate all of your feedback....you are all wonderful!!! Thanks so much!
I do suffer from chronic pain. I suffered a concussion a couple of years ago, and still have frequent headaches...daily almost. That' s why she gave me the morphine. On top of that, she gave me the fentanyl patches to try. Those seem to help some. I have never heard of suboxen. Right now my doctor has me on Librium to help with withdrawls...not working too well.
I had my liver tested last week, and should get the results back on Monday (11/7) I'm hoping things are normal.
Anyway, again, I really appreciate all of your feedback....you are all wonderful!!! Thanks so much!
Hi Welcome to the board.First I want to say GOOD FOR YOU for realizing you have a problem.Alot of us NEVER make it this far.I also suffer from Chronic pain(Chrons & other stuff)I am now on Suboxone.I have been since Jan/05.My Dr plans on keeping me on it for along time.I myself am comfortable with that.Some people dont want to use it long term & thats fine for them.Anyways before I started the Sub I tried to W/D many times.I was up to about 20 Ultram a day.Needless to say it was slowly killing me.Anyways I tend to agree with the others about cutting out your Dr.I understand your need to want to hold onto her but honest if you stay with her you may always have that temptation to get something strong again.
Tapering doesnt work for alot of people myself included.Do you know if your husband would hold the pills for you?That is best if someone else holds them & gives you the lower doses.Youll always be able to talk yourself into needing more when you hold onto them.An addiction speci may also be alot of help as will NA? or private therapy.I have found the more outside support you have the better your chances.For me the physical part only last a bit the mental addiction is the battle we will all have for life.
Anyways WELCOME once again & there are alot of different options open to you,.I would say do ALOT of web searches on addiction etc & learn as much as you can.The more you know the stronger you become in beating this.Please I hope you keep posting & letting us know whats going on....mj
Tapering doesnt work for alot of people myself included.Do you know if your husband would hold the pills for you?That is best if someone else holds them & gives you the lower doses.Youll always be able to talk yourself into needing more when you hold onto them.An addiction speci may also be alot of help as will NA? or private therapy.I have found the more outside support you have the better your chances.For me the physical part only last a bit the mental addiction is the battle we will all have for life.
Anyways WELCOME once again & there are alot of different options open to you,.I would say do ALOT of web searches on addiction etc & learn as much as you can.The more you know the stronger you become in beating this.Please I hope you keep posting & letting us know whats going on....mj
Hello to all again. I did have one more question...have any of you tried inpatient detox, and if so, do you think it would be an easier way (or safer way) to go off of the vicodin? I honestly don't know much about this all. Thanks for all of your support!
Hi again.Ive never done inpatient so I cant be of any help with that.I just wanted to resuggest that besides this board hop on the net & arm yourself with all the information on addiction & vics & than you really will see that there are alot of different ways of dealing with addiction.I know thats the best thing I did,I came here & I searched the net.Than I could discuss my options with a my Dr & understand everything.I wish you the best of luck & look forwards to talking with you....mj
Hi Jilly. Welcome to the board. Today is my 12th day off of oxycodone and my 11th day on suboxone. I was taking 150-170 mg. per day. Before that it was vicodin 150-250 mg. per day.
I'm worried about you adding morphine and fentenyl to your habit. Everyone is different, but it has been my experience that vicodin w/d is harsh, but not as bad as w/d from heavier things. I'm concerned that these drugs will plunge you into a deeper level of addiction and that w/d will be even worse than what you are facing now.
When I went to the suboxone clinic, I was prepared to go to inpatient detox if needed. I didn't go because they said they would not start the suboxone until I was in withdrawl for 3 days. You must be in withdrawl when you start suboxone, but I do not believe it has to be for 3 full days. I took my first dose of sub 20 hours after my last percs. I was in w/d and was almost instantly relieved by the sub. Go to www.suboxone.com to learn about it. I feel great taking the sub. and don't think I could have handled this otherwise. Now I plan to stay on sub. for a couple of months while I get my support system in place, then do a very slow taper. Since sub. does not get you high, I think it will be easy to taper. I could never taper off of oxy because I could not control myself. If I had it I would take it.
Learn as much as you can about the options available and decide which is best for you. In my opinion, sub. is by far the easiest route to take. However, it may be different for you.
One thing is for certain, you should RUN from your Dr. Sounds like she is just a drug dealer with a college education. Cut her off and burn the bridge so you can never be tempted to go back. I cut off every source I could because I know that sometime, my mind will tell me it's okay to have just one or two, and that is not okay. Good luck to you, you can do this, and the people on this board will help you. If you have any questions about the suboxone or if you just want to talk, post my name anytime. Take care, Atlas
I'm worried about you adding morphine and fentenyl to your habit. Everyone is different, but it has been my experience that vicodin w/d is harsh, but not as bad as w/d from heavier things. I'm concerned that these drugs will plunge you into a deeper level of addiction and that w/d will be even worse than what you are facing now.
When I went to the suboxone clinic, I was prepared to go to inpatient detox if needed. I didn't go because they said they would not start the suboxone until I was in withdrawl for 3 days. You must be in withdrawl when you start suboxone, but I do not believe it has to be for 3 full days. I took my first dose of sub 20 hours after my last percs. I was in w/d and was almost instantly relieved by the sub. Go to www.suboxone.com to learn about it. I feel great taking the sub. and don't think I could have handled this otherwise. Now I plan to stay on sub. for a couple of months while I get my support system in place, then do a very slow taper. Since sub. does not get you high, I think it will be easy to taper. I could never taper off of oxy because I could not control myself. If I had it I would take it.
Learn as much as you can about the options available and decide which is best for you. In my opinion, sub. is by far the easiest route to take. However, it may be different for you.
One thing is for certain, you should RUN from your Dr. Sounds like she is just a drug dealer with a college education. Cut her off and burn the bridge so you can never be tempted to go back. I cut off every source I could because I know that sometime, my mind will tell me it's okay to have just one or two, and that is not okay. Good luck to you, you can do this, and the people on this board will help you. If you have any questions about the suboxone or if you just want to talk, post my name anytime. Take care, Atlas
DEAR ATLAS....WOW I remember you.Im so glad to hear the Sub is doing so well for you.Have you gotten any extra support yet in place?I hope you post more so we can know whats going on & how well your doing.Take Care....mj
I apologize in advance for repeating as I didn't read all the responses. First of all, you're doctor is a complete and utter idiot. Absolutely get rid of him/her. Once you do that and get a new doctor to help manage your legitimate pain without ineducably shoving more Vics at you, you'll start to get some answers and some knowledge of how to properly manage your pain. Oh crap, I gotta run I hear major crying from my kids upstairs. I'll catch up with you later.
Hi Jilly;
You have received some great advice! I too was adicted to vicodin Hp 10/660 for over five years. I tapered down and quit many times, only to go right back after 2 or 3 wks clean......I know this sounds crazy, but it is the disease of addiction.
If this is your first time trying to quit it is very scary, but it can be done, but there are easier, and less uncomfortable ways to do it.
I recently went thru a 10 day, Day treatment program. I went in three days into withdrawall, and they decided I did not need any meds, However there were others who were on suboxone for the first 4 or 5 days then weened off it by 7 days. They all did very well, and were able to focus on the rehab/recovery part of the puzzle.
Most people find getting off the drugs is the easy part and staying off them the challenge.
I think you would be best off getting into a detox/recovery program as soon as possible, it should be covered by most insurances, at least partly, and if it is an option for in house tratment I would do it.
Paul
Ps; When looking for a place to get help ask if they have or are affiliated with a chronic pain clinic. In some cases they prescribe suboxone for pain controll!
You have received some great advice! I too was adicted to vicodin Hp 10/660 for over five years. I tapered down and quit many times, only to go right back after 2 or 3 wks clean......I know this sounds crazy, but it is the disease of addiction.
If this is your first time trying to quit it is very scary, but it can be done, but there are easier, and less uncomfortable ways to do it.
I recently went thru a 10 day, Day treatment program. I went in three days into withdrawall, and they decided I did not need any meds, However there were others who were on suboxone for the first 4 or 5 days then weened off it by 7 days. They all did very well, and were able to focus on the rehab/recovery part of the puzzle.
Most people find getting off the drugs is the easy part and staying off them the challenge.
I think you would be best off getting into a detox/recovery program as soon as possible, it should be covered by most insurances, at least partly, and if it is an option for in house tratment I would do it.
Paul
Ps; When looking for a place to get help ask if they have or are affiliated with a chronic pain clinic. In some cases they prescribe suboxone for pain controll!
Thanks so much MJ. So far, this board is my only form of support. I thought my sub doctor was going to assign me to a counseler last Wed., but he didn't. He just took my urine, asked if I had used, wrote my a 2 week script and told me to go to NA. He said we could talk about counseling on my next visit after I went to NA. I was going to try NA, but I think I will do better with one on one therapy twice per week. I just need to find my own therapist because I have a feeling that when I go back to sub Dr. he might not help if I haven't went to any meetings. Also, the meetings are required 4 times per week for the sub program. No substitutions. But for multiple reasons I want to try other options instead. I'm debating with myself if I should lie to him or tell the truth about the meetings. I don't want to get booted from the program, but I want to get my therapy in other ways. The Dr. is a real a**. Very patronizing,condesending and rude. He also made me say my first and last name and where I'm from to the whole group. This made me very uncomfortable. There are people from my town that go to this clinic. I am not ashamed that I am getting help, but my town is small and my husband is a well known Dr. He is trying to be supportive but he's very angry and very adament that he does not want my problem getting out. Bad for business and his reputation and all. But I feel pretty good and I have not been the least bit tempted to use. Thanks for asking, mollyjean. Your words have encouraged me these last 11 days. Take care, Atlas
Jilly, I forgot to tell you that suboxone can also be used to manage pain.
Dear Jilly:
I was scared to death of W/D's - I had stopped 100 times but would only last 2-3 days b/c it was so bad. This time I went out and bought all of the stuff on Rae73's thread- OTC meds, supplements, what's easy to eat, stuff like that - all was only about $20 - $25. Lots of Potassium - for energy - as soon as you can drink OJ, it has a lot more Potassium than the supplements.
I stopped the next day and it was not easy but it was easier than it had ever been - I planned on a week of being miserable. The 1st few days were bad. the 4th and 5th day, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel and the 5th day was okay. By the 7th day, I knew I would come through this. Some have worked through W/D's - I really admire these people, I couldn't have done it.
Coming to this board that 1st horrible week and just reading or asking a question helped me so much. I feel like it had a big part in saving me. I had just kind of given up, almost 50 and I knew they were going to just kill me slowly.My whole world revolved arounf those pills - counting - I drove myself crazy counting Lortabs to see if I would have enough which I never did - I would always run out.
The saying "one is too many and 1,00 is not enough" - so true.
You can do it. The stories on this board will give you hope, they did me. Some have been on pills a lot longer and they made it through.
We want to help you - any questions, anything we can do to help. Don't feel bad asking any question. We will try our best to answer.
Best of luck. It CAN be done,
Love, Jean
I was scared to death of W/D's - I had stopped 100 times but would only last 2-3 days b/c it was so bad. This time I went out and bought all of the stuff on Rae73's thread- OTC meds, supplements, what's easy to eat, stuff like that - all was only about $20 - $25. Lots of Potassium - for energy - as soon as you can drink OJ, it has a lot more Potassium than the supplements.
I stopped the next day and it was not easy but it was easier than it had ever been - I planned on a week of being miserable. The 1st few days were bad. the 4th and 5th day, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel and the 5th day was okay. By the 7th day, I knew I would come through this. Some have worked through W/D's - I really admire these people, I couldn't have done it.
Coming to this board that 1st horrible week and just reading or asking a question helped me so much. I feel like it had a big part in saving me. I had just kind of given up, almost 50 and I knew they were going to just kill me slowly.My whole world revolved arounf those pills - counting - I drove myself crazy counting Lortabs to see if I would have enough which I never did - I would always run out.
The saying "one is too many and 1,00 is not enough" - so true.
You can do it. The stories on this board will give you hope, they did me. Some have been on pills a lot longer and they made it through.
We want to help you - any questions, anything we can do to help. Don't feel bad asking any question. We will try our best to answer.
Best of luck. It CAN be done,
Love, Jean
Hello. I don't understand why it's so hard to stick to a weaning schedule when I truly want to get off of this stuff. It's like my subconcious won't let me get better or something. I just started the weaning process this past Friday. Right now, my doctor has me on one 10mg vicodin every hour throughout the day and night. How did everyone else wean off of this med? Was it done that slowly, or does it just depend on the amount you were taking before?
It depends on the amount, and length of use....my problem with weening was the desire to get high, and not just get off the drugs.....
