[BetterOffDead]

After a year of working up from 7.5mg hydros to 100mcg fentanyl patches every 48 hours for chronic back pain, I read a couple of books that changed my life and my outlook ("Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection" by Dr. John Sarno, in particular). I found the pain stopped, but obviously the dependency didn't.

Over 14 months, I tapered down from the fentanyl patches to 30mg methadone. In January, I switch to Suboxone, continuing to taper over the next four months. On 4/23, at .25mg every 18 or so hours, I stopped altogether.

After 30 days, I have to admit that I'm getting very frustrated. I expected the first couple of weeks to be hell...actually, only the first week was hell, the second week just sucked hardcore.

My frustration is that I don't feel any better now than I did after two weeks. I still feel like I need to crawl out of my skin. I still get very restless (it was my shoulders and arms that were bad...my legs were OK, even during the acute withdrawals). The worst part is that I still have no energy or motivation.

I understand the issues: too long not needing to fire my own natural endorphins and other "-ins". Given my past history, I think I'm probably not one whose "-ins" fire completely even in the best of times and I've given them an 2.5 year vacation.

I'm just really tired of feeling like ******************** (I have since I started tapering 18 months ago) and having no energy. Knowing that everybody is different, what are people's experiences 30 days out off of sub? I honestly thought I'd be feeling better than I'm feeling now, so I'm worried its going to be a year or more to be OK.

Thanks.

-t

[Robert_325]

Originally Posted by BetterOffDead

After a year of working up from 7.5mg hydros to 100mcg fentanyl patches every 48 hours for chronic back pain, I read a couple of books that changed my life and my outlook ("Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection" by Dr. John Sarno, in particular). I found the pain stopped, but obviously the dependency didn't.

Over 14 months, I tapered down from the fentanyl patches to 30mg methadone. In January, I switch to Suboxone, continuing to taper over the next four months. On 4/23, at .25mg every 18 or so hours, I stopped altogether.

After 30 days, I have to admit that I'm getting very frustrated. I expected the first couple of weeks to be hell...actually, only the first week was hell, the second week just sucked hardcore.

My frustration is that I don't feel any better now than I did after two weeks. I still feel like I need to crawl out of my skin. I still get very restless (it was my shoulders and arms that were bad...my legs were OK, even during the acute withdrawals). The worst part is that I still have no energy or motivation.

I understand the issues: too long not needing to fire my own natural endorphins and other "-ins". Given my past history, I think I'm probably not one whose "-ins" fire completely even in the best of times and I've given them an 2.5 year vacation.

I'm just really tired of feeling like ******************** (I have since I started tapering 18 months ago) and having no energy. Knowing that everybody is different, what are people's experiences 30 days out off of sub? I honestly thought I'd be feeling better than I'm feeling now, so I'm worried its going to be a year or more to be OK.

Thanks.

-t

Having stopped after reducing your dose of Suboxone down to .25mg a day, which is a good dose to stop at following a taper, I would think you would be feeling better than what you describe too. Of course, we are all different. I stopped buprenorphine after abusing opiates for decades when I had been on Subutex for about six weeks. I was also down to less than .5mg when I stopped. I had no problems at all except for some mental issues right in the beginning when I stopped. I was mainly used to putting something in my mouth all day long and that was my biggest problem. No physical issues like you describe though at all. Just wondering ... have you tried any vitamins or supplements of any type? That could possibly help. There are things that will help with restlessness, sleep issues, all of that. I don't think you will have to deal with this for a year... but Fentanyl is a very tough drug to stop ... one of the most difficult of all opiates. Add methadone to that and you have a bear to deal with. MD hangs with us for a good while and is really tough. I think some vitamins and supplements could be worth checking into at least for a while until this smooths out some for you.

[BetterOffDead]

Thanks for the quick reply, Robert.

I am taking a multivitamin twice a day and an additional B complex in the mornings. I'm not great about what I eat, but I'm trying to get a lot of extra protein in. I also try to get out for a good walk (45 minutes to an hour) every day.

I do worry that nutrition is playing a role in this. The thing that "started" my pain in the first place was massive weight loss due to gastric bypass surgery. In addition to the malabsorption issues of the surgery, I worry about the damage that the narcotics might have done to my healing intestinal track.

As a for-instance, I never had problems with constipation from the narcotics. On the other hand, thirty days out and I still have yet to have a regular bowel movement since stopping.

-t