[MaisieC]

Hi Ron,

I'm afraid that does all sound perfectly normal for tramadol withdrawal. It can be pretty tough, especially because of the serotonin action you've mentioned. You will certainly begin to feel better! In my experience, coming off tramadol was more unpleasant than coming off any of the true opiates I've used, other pain pills. It's just a more complicated drug, I guess.

Have you tried the Thomas recipe? You can find it on this site and at various places on the web if you google it. You're already well along in your detox, but you might find some of the nutritional suggestions very helpful.

In my opinion, now is not the time to worry about the Ambien. If it helps you sleep, that's great. Sleeping is important right now. When you're feeling better you can decide what you want to do about the Ambien situation.

Good luck, and take care!

[pjm1229]

Originally Posted by taperslowly

Hello everyone out there going through Tramadol problems. It's a genuine relief to find information and sincere honest discussion, and is much appreciated by me.

My own story is probably nothing compared to some of the folk here, but nonetheless I'd still like to run it past you all, and hopefully get some advice on where to go next.

This year I became quite addicted to drinking poppy tea - it was the only thing that would touch my back pain at the time, the poppy pods were available to buy quite easily and legally (at least here), and I didn't hold back in drinking the tea several times a day. Obviously, this led to physical addiction and horrible withdrawals when I tried to stop.

But I did stop (I last drank poppy tea on Oct 28th - today is Dec 4th). I tapered off the poppy tea over the space of a week, and to avoid the worst of the withdrawals, I turned to taking (on alternate days): tramadol and kratom (a dried leaf with mild painkilling properties).

The withdrawals were still there to some degree (appalling aches in the morning etc etc) but have definitely faded over the last 5 weeks or so. I feel quite good now, quite 'normal', I can exercise regularly, the back has gradually recovered, etc.

But still I continue to take tramadol 100mgs (every OTHER morning) and a glass of kratom (on the OTHER days).

The next step, clearly, is to quit the tramadol and the kratom entirely, as I 'believe' that I now have the poppy tea out of my system.

But I'm so scared that doing this might bring on depression again (which is just the worst thing in the world) and possibly opiate-type withdrawals all over again.

With the amount I'm taking (100mgs every other day), am I going to experience further withdrawal like this? Is a taper in order? Am I merely clinging to the idea that I need to 'take something' in order to start the day. That's how it feels anyway...

(By the way, I have no previous record of opiate use other than this year's use of poppy tea - and just lately, tramadol. Also the tramadol and the kratom I take now don't make me noticeably 'high' in any way, unlike the poppy tea, which most definitely did)

Anyone's 2 cents worth will be extremely appreciated!

My fullest support and sympathy to all of you out there trying to get off tramadol.

Many thanks, all the best.

Cheerio

My Father was born in Hull, England . Everybody's story is unique and you never know who you will touch or how you will do it. thanks for sharing

[briannoh]

I just wanted to post my experience with this medication. I had no idea just how difficult it would be to come off of this drug. I was on it for about 2 years and was up to 400mg/day or 8 (50mg) pills. I tried to taper as slowly as possibly. I had a set schedule where I tapered 1/2 pill weekly. I got down to 2 pills/day after about 2 months. Then I thought that I could just stop and this was a bad mistake. I started to go through bad withdrawal (brain zaps, dizziness, upset stomach, suicidal thinking, worst depression ever). I went back on 2/day and took it slowly. i think I dropped by 1/2 a pill every week or two. I finally mananged to get off of it but the sever depression came back and I needed to go on an anti-depressant. I had depression before even taking this and obviously the ultram(tramadol) was treating it fairly effectively. If you find that your depression is intolerable or you begin to have SUICIDAL THINKING, then please talk to your doctor about starting an antidepressant.

The reason that this medication is SO HARD to get off of is because it is:

an antidepressant(effecting norepinepherine & serotonin) & opiod effects.
So essentially it is an anti-depressant & pain killer combined which makes it much more difficult to get off of than just regular pain killers(ie. hydrocodone, oxycodone). This is just my experience but hopefully it will help others and to let you know that I have been off of it for over a year now and will NEVER, EVER, EVER take this drug again.

brian

[priceiswright]

i am trying to quit tramadol slowly after 2 years, 3 - 15 pills a day. trying to take only 1 or 2 for week 1 then 1 for week 2 then 1/2 for week 3 then none or 1/4 for week 4

this is day three. this is my story. i will try to update daily. i have found that it really helps to read other's stories. please give me support during this challenge. i will need it.


Day three (1/28/09): This is day three of my journey in trying to quit tramadol. Sunday I decided it was time for me to quit. Monday was day 1 which was ok until I started getting hot sweats and bad vaginal pains. I tried to dope myself up on pepto bismal and ib profen to stop the pain from withdrawal. I am not going to quit cold turkey because I don’t think I could do that. It is just toooo painful. I am trying to gradually go off of these horrible drugs that make me feel so good for the short time but in the long run they have most certainly ruined my life. I used to be a very happy, charismatic person, the type of person that everyone wanted to be around. Now I am so depressed I have no motivation to do anything. Tramadol used to help me get through the day but I don’t want it anymore. Ive been on tramadol for 2.5 years. It started when I went to mexico for an annual family vacation. I asked the pharmacist for vicodin because sometimes I like to take that to get high, like maybe 1 a month. Nothing bad, just wanted to do it for fun but certainly didn’t take it all the time. They didn’t have vicodin but they had another drug, which soon became my drug of choice. In the beginning, I took it maybe once a week on the weekend to just relax and chill. It had 2 effects on me. First effect was supreme energy to do anything, to get anything done. I often rearranged my apartment and cleaned. Second effect was extreme relaxation and a feeling of overall goodness. I loved how it made me itchy. Soon I started taking this magic pill every day. Id come home and take one and I would be so relaxed. I couldn’t wait to get home from work so that I could take it. After about 4 months, I realized I had become an addict. I was only taking about 1 a day but I still think this is an addict because I was using it to get high not to stop any pain. And I know this sounds stupid but id never ever taken hard drugs. I have a wonderful family life and am super blessed but for some reason those pills gave me such a good feeling. I felt invincible. But yuck, me, ms. Perfect, an addict. Horrible. The only person who knows about my addiction is my boyfriend/fiancé. Anyway, after about 4 months I decided to go see a psychologist about quitting. They had no idea what tramadol was but it helped to talk to someone. I was able to slowly flush my stash down the toilet. I couldn’t sleep when I was quitting but I was happy I had the strength to quit. The doctor prescribed an anti depressant, xanax, and ambien. The anti depressant Zoloft saved my life. Or else quitting tramadol saved my life. I don’t know which one but I felt so much happier and healthier. I was off tramadol for 5 months. It wasn’t that difficult to quit and I think I say that looking back 2 years ago because I know how hard it is to quit now. Anyway during this time my boyfriend of 2 years and I broke up for about 2 months. He was taking it very hard but I was ok, I kept busy, went out with friends and was doing very well. No tramadol!!! I missed my boyfriend so I decided to take him to lunch for his birthday. Long story short we ended up getting back together and he had tramadol. He had ordered it off the internet. I had no idea you could even do this. I started taking it again, gradually. I also quit my Zoloft because I knew it could give me seizures if I took that with the tramadol. I cant remember how long it took me to get to be a full blown addict again, maybe 6 months. I define addict as taking it every day, even though I imagine that’s not the correct way. I know that ive now been taking tramadol pretty much everyday straight for the past year. Sometimes I take 3, sometimes I take 15. it just depends. In the past few months ive become so immune to this drug that taking 8 at one time doesn’t get me high. Really tramadol doesn’t get me high anymore. It doesn’t give me the great itchy feeling. It doesn’t give me energy. All tramadol does is keep me alive. I had a very ugly experience when I ran out of tramadol this summer. I didn’t have it for 2 days and could not get it because the place I ordered it from wasn’t delivering it to me. After 2 days of not having it I felt so sick. I finally went to urgent care and said I was suffering from extreme extreme stomach cramping, I was also all sweaty. I went to urgent care mostly because I was hoping they would give me some painkillers to get through until my tramadol arrived. But I really was in extreme pain, the worst pain in the world. My stomach was so sore, I had severe cramping, I had diarrhea, hot sweats. I was unable to function. All I could do was lay in bed crying. It was very bad. Anyway urgent care thought my appendix might be exploding so they ran a bunch of tests and nothing. They gave me an ultrasound and all the lady would say is ooooo sooo much gas, so much gas. They gave me some vicodin and I went home in pain. The vicodin sort of helped the pain but it didn’t fill tramadol’s hole. I even went back to the er again so I could get more pain killers because my tramadol hadn’t arrived. So for about 4 days I laid in bed all day in pain and crying. I vowed that I would always have tramadol so that could never happen again. It was complete misery. That was about 6 months ago. I have tried to quit tramadol 1 in this time, it lasted a day. I just always end up making an excuse like oh ill quit when I get a job or ill quit when we do this. There is always another excuse. I started taking my Zoloft again, about 2 months ago. I obviously was taking both Zoloft and tramadol. My life has gotten so bad and im so severely depressed that I don’t get dressed in the morning and just lie on the couch all day. I shower 1 a week. Im a wreck. So on Sunday, I was sick and tired of tramadol controlling my life. And that takes me to day three. I am feeling ok. I had diarreraha this morning and bad stomach pains. Yesterday I laid with a heat paid on my abdominal area for 4 hours because of the pain. On day 1, I had 1 tramadol. i woke up on day 2 unable to sleep so I took 1 tramadol. I took another one later in the day when I started getting hot sweats. On day 3 I took 1 tramadol. again im slowly trying to get myself off because I think its impossible to quit this drug cold turkey knowing the pain I went through. I will keep you updated with my progress.

[MaisieC]

Hi,

I'm glad you're here and sharing your experience with us. I will do my best to be here for you. I am 35 days off Tramadol myself, and I am feeling sooooo much better now! I will never take that drug again! I have been addicted to other pain pills, and I think Tramadol is the worst. I think you're doing the right thing by tapering off rather than going cold turkey. It really can be a beast to get off of it. Also good you have the Zoloft, and I hope that will keep you from getting depressed as you taper.

Do you have a plan for tapering? Or are you just using the pills when the w/d symptoms become intolerable? I'm not suggesting that you use more, but a plan for controlled tapering might help with your symptoms. You don't want to go off this drug too abruptly. How many pills do you have left?

Hang in there and please keep checking in.

[dakingsdakings]

Hi Donna, it's been awhile since your visit here and wanted to know how you are doing? I was also a tramadol user and was prescribed by my doctor with the same advice supposedly. I have never been addicted to anything and was using this like popping candy all day because I suffered from severe headaches. Now though I have everything but headaches,no sleep, no appetite and aching all over when I ran out. This is crazy and needs to be reported to the american medical association. Thanks for courage to speak out! Melissa

[dakingsdakings]

Originally Posted by donnaf484

Hello,
I have been taking tramadol for 10 months. I started using because I had 3 operations on my arm due to a compound fracture. I am now addicted. I cannot get off of it although I have tried. I am up to 18 pills of 50mg. tablets a day. Nine in the moring and nine at noon. When I tried to stop I have brain zaps and sleeping are out of the question. Even while on it my ears constantly ring very loudly. I am frightened because I know I am in a bad situation. I cannot stand the thought of running out. I would greatly appreciate any advice.Thank you,
Donna

Donna Forman

Hi Donna, it's been awhile since your visit here and wanted to know how you are doing? I was also a tramadol user and was prescribed by my doctor with the same advice supposedly. I have never been addicted to anything and was using this like popping candy all day because I suffered from severe headaches. Now though I have everything but headaches,no sleep, no appetite and aching all over when I ran out. This is crazy and needs to be reported to the american medical association. Thanks for courage to speak out! Melissa

[Shade Tree]

I just wanted to post my experience with tramadol and the hell of getting off of this stuff...

I comend everyone who has shared their story, its not easy and until now I have felt alone.

I am 28 years old and a mother of 3. I have experemented with opaites and like the high I get from them, but unless you have a problem, they are pretty hard to get. I found out you can by tramadol online pretty easy. They are realatively cheap and they deliver fed ex right to your door the next day.

I had taken tramadol before here and there and liked the energy I got from them. I started out only taking them on the weekend. I would take them and clean all day. Play with the kids and get so much stuff done. I thought it was great.

Then I started taking it everyday. I loved going to work. I was excited about getting up and starting a new day. At first I thought of it as a weak harmless drug. But it is totally the opposite! After building a tollerance, one day I took 500 mgs in the morning and went to work. Just a slight buzz, so I decided to take 500 mgs more at about 1pm. I knew the onset was about an hour and a half so I would always schedule to get home or to work ( not to be driving ) Well this day it hit faster. I was driving home and the last thing I remember was following a bus and coming up to a stop light. I woke up upside down in my car. I flipped and totaled my car. I was soooo lucky no one was hurt! including me. I dont remember anything that happened as Im sure I blacked out.

I was taken by ambulance to the e.r. where they prescribed me none other but tramadol... When I got home I swore I would never take it again. I dumped my stash down the toilet and was done.

I wish it could have been that easy. I started going through withdrawls so I got the rx filled and decided to taper off. No one knows about my problem. Since I have started taking the demon drug in December I have lost 20 lbs. which I am not happy about! I cant afford to lose any weight. I am about 5'5'' and 130 lbs. I have a high metabolism and cant help it. Anyway, I have come very close to having a seizure. I have had a couple really bad panic attacks and I sware if I would have given in I would of had a seizure. But I fought it with everything I had. I am tapering off of it now. Im on day 3. I have read all the posts and have gotten alot of useful advice. I plan to taper off 1/2 pill per week. Which sucks because Im staying on the junk but cant afford to go through the anxiety and depression it causes. My family and friends are very worried about me... but like I said no one knows.

I know I can get off of it myself and by the grace of God. I wont ruin my reputation to this s**t. It has taken enough of me already.

Im working out and exercising extra to get out of this hole I have dug myself into. I take wellbutrin for depression (well havent since I have been on tramadol) But plan to get back on it as soon as I can.

My dad almost died from an overdose to this stuff. You would think I would have learned from his mistakes. He is know on suboxone. And probably will be for the rest of his life as he is a full blown addict. Which I am to I get genetically Im sure.

This is such a dangerous drug I would tell anyone thinking about trying it to think again. I wasnt even on it for very long...two months and I cant get off of it without tapering.

Thanks for reading. If anyone has any advice for getting off the stuff I am more than willing to listen. Good luck to everyone & God Bless!

[MaisieC]

Hi Shade Tree, and welcome!

You're definitely doing the right thing about your tramadol habit...getting off it! It's a very dangerous drug, as you say, and the fact that it's so easily available is alarming. The exercise will certainly help...anything you can do to take care of yourself right now will pay off.

Absolutely terrifying car accident, and thank God you lived.

I think doing a slow taper is the best way to go. How many are you taking now? Here is a link to a taper schedule that has worked for some people; you can tailor it to your own situation:

http://www.medhelp.org/user_journals/show/725

Tapering is especially wise with this drug, because you can get seizures if you yank yourself off too fast. However, it also requires that you sustain your commitment to getting off it over a long period of time. It helps to have some support as you're doing that. We are here for you, of course. Have you thought of going to any NA meetings? Especially since you haven't talked to family or friends about it, NA would be a good idea. You'll feel supported right away, and you'll learn techniques for staying clean long-term. Getting off the stuff is hard, and then once you're clean you come up against having to live the rest of your life without it!

Please stick around and let us know how you do.

Take care!

[Shade Tree]

Hi MaisieC,
Thanks for the support. I am currently taking 125mg in the morning, 75mg around noon, and 75mgs at about 5pm. I am not having any trouble sleeping... yet! I know its comin. I am quite familiar with my body and how it acts during depression. I have been healthy for a while and quite mad at myself for letting my self get here.

I am also very knowledgable in herbal suppliments and natural healing. Although I am scared to start taking anything out of fear that it will interact. I feel ok right now. Im not experiencing any w/d symptoms.

I plan on going down to 200mgs am, 50mgs noon, & 50mgs 5pm. next week. Then the following I am going to go to 100 mgs am, 25mgs noon & 25mgs 5 pm. I will then revaluate how I feel. I might then start my wellbuterin, vitamins and suppliments. If I still feel w/d symptoms I will decrease by half. I have enough I would just rather be done.

About the class... I already see a therapist. And with a husband and 3 kids, I have very little time outside of work and all of their extra curricular activities to do much of anything. I do feel ok, and strong about the whole thing. The car accident was pretty life changing for me! And talking to someone really helps.

Thanks for your input and being concerned. It really helps.

Talk to ya soon.)

[Jennifer1984]

can someone actually tell me what tramadol is? i found these pills that say APO on one side and TR50 on the other. when i looked these up i learned that the were 50mg tramabol. what is this exactly?

is it an opiate like percocet or oxy?

what is stronger: 10mg percocet or 50mg tramadol? is there a way to compare the two?

Thanks!!

[Sue13]

Hi all,

I am glad I read this thread because 30 days off pain meds (percoset and mostly Hydrocodone), I had totally forgotten that I had Tramadol. When it was prescribed I never liked it, and didn't take it.

After reading the horror stories here I will gladly dump the stuff!

Sue

[Shade Tree]

[QUOTE=Shade Tree ;225096]Hi MaisieC,

Oops,, I meant I plan to go down to 100mgs in the am... then 75mgs the next week. Decreasing 1/2 per dose per week until Im off...



QUOTE]

[God'sGrace]

can turn into another wrecked life. It's amazing to read through the posts on this site, particularly those regarding Tramadol, and the hell of getting off of Tramadol. I for one, have called my Senators and Congressman and have directed them to this forum. I think given some political spotlighting, this particular drug, and how the manufacturers and doctors have lied about its addictive nature, will be exposed, and thus regulated accordingly, not that that really slows the glut of addiction in this nation. Regardless, I echo prior remarks about class action. The "non-disclosed" negative affects of this medication have, without any doubt, had very negative impacts on those of us who have taken, for legitimate reasons, and who have really struggled and suffered to stop. We have experience real, tangible negative impacts, and so to have our families, employers, etc. To convey how it applies, this really negatively impacts this country, and us who are going through it. I urge each of you who read this forum to contact your local, State and Federal reps regarding this.

I'm on day 4 without! Starting in November, I was prescribed Ultram 200 mg ER (once per day). I was prescribed Ultram for TMJ, or technically, TMD. I had been through different pain meds (percocet, vicodin, darvocet, etc.) over the past year. I'm definitely an addict. I admit that, which is a great thing (to admit it that is). We went the Ultram route because I requested that I not be prescribed opiates. Well, the neurologist I was working with gave me the whole, "have you heard of Ultram/Tramadol? That may be an option as it's non-habit forming and is a non-opiate pain medication." I had heard of it. My wife was prescribed it when she had back surgery the year before. She never went through ANY of the stuff described on this forum.

Well, after 2 months of taking it, I decided that I didn't want to take it. I felt myself becoming addicted to it, reaching for it, thinking about it, and feeling like poopie when I didn't take it. If it smells like a pig, it's a pig. It's definitely a pig. Ultram/Tramadol is, without any doubt, a highly addictive pain medication that we, as the patient community, are not being told the truth my doctors and pharm companies. When I called my doctor to ask her to switch from the 200mg ER to the 50mg, and why (that based on what I was reading on the internet, that I would experience withdraws and I needed to taper), she indicated that I wouldn't go through withdraws and that I shouldn't put too much into what I read on the internet. Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep. Red flag. Red flag. Obviously doc has her head up the pharm company's a**.

After 2 months of trying to taper (not as successful starting out), I finally go down to 100mg per day, and that was 5 days ago. It has sucked, badly, but I shall not turn back at this point. My persistent symptoms of withdraw include:

-brain zaps: Not extreme, but enough to annoy greatly.

-moody, impatient, short tempered: not good with children and work.

-I am Sir Poop-A-Lot at this point.

-I'm peeing a lot as well, only because I'm drinking about 10 large cups of nice, cold, filtered water per day (which I might add, is also helpful. I haven't seen much on this forum referencing the importance of hydration).

-High Blood Pressure - My BP has been quite high over the past few days. I'm prone to this anyways, but have noticed elevated blood pressure and some fatigue as a result.

I'm trying to carry on my life as normal. I'm getting up early, I'm reading my Bible, I'm contributing around the house, although somewhat less, I'm going to work, I'm playing with my boys, etc.

I keep telling myself that I'm NOT going to let this interfere with my life. Of course it is. Let's be realistic, but I think the right perspective and attitude, and really anger towards what the drug is doing to me, to us, and fighting it back to continuing to do that which is seeks to destroy.

I think what people are looking for on this forum is some information related to "ok, I took this much, for this long, and it's been this long since I've had it. What am I faced with?" I think that's impossible to apply to every case, but readers should get some sense of where they are in their withdraw process. I feel like I'm at about 40 percent at this point. Not a scientific figure, just a hunch.

Two last points:

I'm not a God pusher, but I do believe God is real (us hurling through space randomly just seems odd to me, plus, look at people in relation to all other animals on earth. Don't we seem different in a unique way?). Anyways, folks, fellow withdraw/addiction sufferers, the God I believe in, created us, and doesn't care if we're addicts or have failed, or have lied, or stolen, or cheated, etc. That's why I've chosen the screen name God'sGrace. When you're in the depths of your withdraw, and I've read some very heartbreaking stories on this site, when you pray, I believe God hears that and can help you in ways you cannot prove by measure.

Secondly, everyone who has read this forum really should be in a support group. Without compassion, empathy and accountability, we're all doomed to relapse. It will happen. We can say it won't, but without involving others who can support you, and not only on this website, because as much as I respect what you're going through, I can't touch you, you can't touch me and you have no idea who I am and vice versa. Get connected with a group! Take that first step. It will help you so much. Don't be fearful.

Thanks and God bless all of you good folks.

[ColoradoRiver]

Hey everyone.....just reading through and thought I'd register and share. I've been using this medication (tramadol) for around 4 years and I've been abusing it off and on for the last 2. I'll be honest and tell you I was first introduced to while doing a 9 month bit in the County jail. Another inmate had had knee surgery and had no interest in taking his pills. He would pretend to swallow them and instead tuck them back in his cheek and give them to me (the co's watch you take your meds and look in your mouth afterward so this is risky). Anyways I would only be taking 100mg at a time back then but for someone with no drug experience of any kind prior to that, they made me feel great. Long story short, I have finally made up my mind to get off this ******** because honestly I'm afraid it will eventually kill me and I have way too much to live for. As of last week I was taking between 20-25 pills (50 mg) a day. I have gone through the withdrawals that aren't suppose to occur many times. This is the first time I have forced myself to taper down and I am doing remarkably great. basically I went from the 20 (roughly) a day down to 18 then 16 then 10 yesterday and so far none today. I am having no symptoms yet but I will take no more than seven. Keep in mind I am not taking all of these at once but splitting them up three (now twice) a day. If I end up taking the seven today I will have a dozen left. I will take 4 tomorrow, three Friday, three Saturday and two Sunday.
I agree that these need a different classification. I don't even need a legitimate prescription to easily get 200 pills or more a week. All i need is internet access and my credit card. They are very very addictive pills and should not be taken lightly. I am not saying this taper method will work for everybody because chance are it will not. Just throwing in my 2 cents on the topic. Wish me luck as I try and kick this addiction as I wish all of you the best as well.....

JP

[ColoradoRiver]

God's Grace.....man I wish you the best. Be thankful you came to the realization that this medication is bad news when you did. I wish I could rewind a few years back but hey, better now than never. Tried to send you a private message but i guess this site doesn't support that feature.....anyways good luck!

JP

[sdrcm4444]

I have been on tramadol for 4 years for severe arthritis, And tried to quit multiple times, without success. I already suffer from anxiety, and the thing I hated most about trying to get off of it was the anxiety was 10 times worse. I starte on suboxone 3 months ago and for the most part it works awesome. no side affects at all! but now that I am down to half a pill a day, my anxiety is off the charts, but for me, that was the only side effect. I would ask your doctor avout suboxone. Oh and by the way, I was using about 12, 50 mg pills a day. so try suboxone it really works! And the cool thing about it is when you take suboxone, if you try to take an opiate within 7 days of taking suboxone, it blocks the effects of the opiate, and it kind of makes you sick, so you have no desire to take tramadol during the time you are on suboxone, just to see for myself, I took 4 tramadol 5 days after not taking suboxone, and I had no effects from the tramadol at all it blocked any effect it usually had on me, it was pretty cool!! Good Luck.

[MaisieC]

Hi Colorado River,

Congratulations on your decision, and I do definitely wish you the best of luck getting off tramadol. It sure does stink going through the withdrawals over and over again, only to start the whole process again. You can take comfort in knowing this will be your LAST time to go through it! Please hang in there and keep us posted on how you're doing.

Hi sdrcm,

So your anxiety pre-dated your taking tramadol? Was the anxiety ever treated? This seems like a good time to talk to your doctor about doing something to manage it, just because it can make getting off the subs harder. You've been on the suboxone for a long time and have invested a lot in the whole process of getting clean and feeling better. I wish you the best of luck and hope you'll keep us posted!

[Shade Tree]

Hello everyone,

Hope all is well. Just wanted to stop by and update. I have been tapering for 6 days now.
I have come across a new symptom. I wake up every morning with debilitating gas pains... I read in a recent post that this was a withdrawl symptom. Glad I did because if I didnt I would of thought something was seriously wrong! Gas x seems to work, it is just odd.

Just thought I would leave my 2 cents.

To colorado river: How is the tapering going? I would like to taper faster...Im just scared.
Let us know how it goes...pls.)

God bless you all!

[God'sGrace]

Just wanted to provide an update on where I am as of today. I feel much better. I'm sleeping normal. That's a big plus. I'm still getting some brain zaps, but noticeably less than even two days ago. I anticipate that I'll be having these for another week to 2 weeks. My irritability has greatly subsided. I'm altering between constipation and loose stools.

I'm hydrating like a mad man. I think that water has really helped. When you're hydrated, the cells in your body are well hydrated and carry out the various functions they're suppose to more efficiently, including restoration of seretonin levels, removal of cell waste, etc.

I'm also walking each morning. This has helped as well, and not only for the physical benefit of combating the very physical nature of the tramadol withdraw, but the psychological/spiritual aspect as well. With the weather I am having been beautiful over the past week, it has really been helpful to be out in the fresh air and the SUNSHINE (vitamin D). It's a great boost to get our and get moving. It's us saying that we'll combat this bastard of a substance head on. In all reality, not everyone can do this in every stage of the withdraw, probably only after one "turns the corner." There's no specific point of which one turns the corner. You only know it when you turn it. Once you start to feel at all better, get out and get moving. Keep drinking your water and keep your head in the game. At this point, there's no turning back. You are winning, and you will win. You will get your life back!!!

Everyone on this post can get to this point. I pray for each of you.

One last note, my blood pressure has been through the roof. I've had to monitor this with my physician. If your vision is altered or you feel faint, or if you feel flush or pressure in your head, call your doctor asap to get this checked out. I'm prone to high blood pressure, so I take this very seriously. I'm positive that the strains of withdraw have caused my blood pressure to go up (probably related to the body process of re-regulating seretonin and norepinephrine. yet another reason this ******** is so dangerous.

God bless all.

[MaisieC]

Hey Shade Tree,

Well, I guess you never know what your body is going to do! W/D is definitely a learning experience! I'm glad to hear that you're doing well.

Don't worry about tapering any faster than you are. A fast taper is not really the best way to go with this drug, but sometimes people just gotta do what they gotta do. As long as you can trust yourself to stick to your taper schedule, you're going to keep doing great!

Hang in, and take care.

[AnonGuy]

Hello everyone,

I am yet another anonymous person who has stumbled upon this forum via searching Google for "tramadol addiction" and I have a story to tell.

Where to start?

Well I'm nearly 30 years old, live on my own, and have no wife, kids, nor even a girlfriend at the moment. And thank god to that, due to what I'm going through, but more ont hat later. I have a college degree and have a very respectable job with a salary of around $50,000. Without a wife or kids, I live pretty comfortably with that income.

I made it to the age of 18 and into my first semester of college before I even drank a drop of alcohol in my life. I made it to 19 before trying any drug in my life. A bad breakup with a girlfriend threw me into my first depression in life and subsequently started my life of drugs.

At 19, the first drug I did was ecstasy. I loved it and still consider it the best high of any drug out there. I immediately started using it every weekend for a couple years and experimented with tons of other drugs, too. I thought, "If ecstasy is so great, I wonder what other fun things are out there!?" So throughout college I ended up doing every drug in the book, even research chemicals which 99% of the world has never heard of. I've owned nitrous tanks, sold pounds of weed, done boatloads of cocaine, and so on. I have basically done everything out there and let's just leave it at that.

The only drugs I ever really thoroughly enjoyed to the point of doing them 100's of times were stimulants like ecstasy and cocaine. But did I ever find any of them addicting? Nope, not at all. And of all the pharmaceuticals in the world, the single only one I have ever found even remotely addicting is Tramadol. I've taken 100's of valium, xanax, klonopin (and other benzos) along with hydros, oxys, and every other abusable prescription med on the planet. But Tramadol remains the single only substance which I've ever found addicting and, no, I'm not kidding or exaggerating one bit. Pure meth or aka Ice? I used the ******** out of it smoking it 6x a day for 6 months and then I ran out. I never even cared enough to find it again and didn't suffer withdrawals at all.

Tramadol... Where should I start? Well I began to enjoy ordering 100's of pills of dozens of different pharmaceuticals over the internet via international pharmacies back around 2002. What was the most fun out of all of them? Tramadol. And so it began...

It got to the point where I haven't done any single drug in the last 4 years except tramadol. I kid you not! I have only drank alcohol maybe 5 times in the last 4 years and I have not consumed a single other presciption or illegal drug except tramadol. Although I'm proud as hell in myself for never becoming addicted to anything else, I hate myself for ever discovering this ********.

Right away from day 1 of experimenting with tramadol I realized that 50-100mg did absolutely nothing. 200mg, or 4 50mg pills, is what I always took. For the first year or two, I would never take it unless I was going to work. So 5 days a week I would take the stuff and enjoy it but my days off I would do fine without it. It made me enjoy going into work. I would take my 200mg right before I jumped in the shower 45 minutes before I had to be at work. By the time I got there, I was superman. I could deal with anyone and anything and enjoyed my time.

After a couple years I left that job to finish up my degree. I also subsequently stopped taking tramadol though I still had a couple 100 tabs left. I didn't care-- No withdrawals at all. I tried taking it some time later after my degree a couple times and I literally just hated the way it felt and I really honestly couldn't believe how I ever enjoyed it. Well, that sure didn't last...

After my degree and my new job, I began to get bored with the fact I was no longer going to parties or enjoying anything that made me feel "high". I tried taking it again with what I had. I loved it! Within a couple weeks I ran out of the 100-200 tabs I had and already had more being delivered. At that point, I even began taking it on days I was off-- And I still loved it! It would give me energy, boost my confidence/attitude, etc. I was taking 3-5 tablets twice a day at that point. Then, after about 2 years, I started needing more so I started taking 4-6 tablets 3 times a day! That's where I've been at now for the last year.

I'd continually think to myself how I was wasting my money on this ******** and I couldn't keep buying and taking it forever. What if I had a wife or kids, which I intend on soon, and they find out? What if I'm spending the money on more tramadol instead of buying diapers? It really started to piss me off thinking about this stuff. So I wanted to quit but just couldn't try yet.

Well a month or two ago I ended up running out for about 2-3 days before I got my next shipment in the mail. I was an absolute wreck during that time.

Here I am in the same situation. Only this time, I really want to throw away my next shipment when it comes. I haven't had tramadol now for 36 hours and I am a w-r-e-c-k!

Just like before, I have bad withdrawals. I have essentially no energy. I don't feel comfortable no matter how I'm sitting or lying down for more than 2 minutes. My limbs ache like, my head pounds!

I have been taking tylenol, ibuprofen, and/or aspirin to get rid of the headaches. It doesn't really help at all, but I take it anyway. I bought a bottle of No-Doz for caffeine to help since I don't like drinking coffee. It doesn't really help either. It makes me mentally alert and feel like I have energy but physically I have absolutely none no matter what. I even had to leave work early with diahrea and feeling like absolute ********. No matter what I try or do, nothing helps.

Last night I couldn't sleep for ******** just like last time I went without. I want to toss or turn every 5 seconds, no joke. No position feels comfortable and sleep is near impossible.

BUT--- I do have one thing going for me. I know that no matter how rough it is, eventually it will subside. Will it be 5 days? 10 days? 14 days? 1 month? I am not sure but I know it can't be any longer than that. That faith is getting me by, that's for sure.

I will prevail, no matter what! More tramadol could show up at my door via the mail any day now but guess what? I do NOT CARE. I will NOT TAKE IT. I WILL FLUSH IT! NO, I am not kidding! The way I feel SUCKS, sure, but it will be over in days and I will be back to normal. This I know! To everyone else out there, hang in there. Remind yourself no matter how bad it is, that it won't last forever. You must be more powerful than your addiction. I know I am more powerful and this will not beat me. I will never, ever, take this ******** again no matter what.

Tomorrow I can only feel better. It will only be maybe 5% better, sure, but it will be better. With each passing day I will be better, and so will everyone else going through this.

[MaisieC]

That is quite a story, AnonGuy. If anyone needed any further convincing that tramadol is a powerful and potentially very dangerous drug, that should just about do it.

I wish you the very best of luck with your detox. You had a pretty good habit going there, so the withdrawals are not going to be fun. Please do be careful, because withdrawal from high doses of tramadol has been known to cause seizures in some people. Not trying to scare you, but rather to alert you in case you start feeling especially bad. I am tempted to suggest that you taper, but your resolve is so strong I don't want to discourage you. I admire your commitment to getting clean and getting on with your life.

I know you're sick as a dog right now, but when you're feeling a little better physically you might want to check out some NA meetings. You're in an unusual situation with respect to drugs, in that you don't seem to have a history of them screwing up your life they way they do to the rest of us. This leaves you with a different kind of vulnerability, and NA is a great place to learn strategies for staying clean long-term.

Anyhow, I will be thinking of you and praying for you this weekend. Please come back and let us know how you're doing. And take good care!

[Shade Tree]

Hi anon guy,

Just wanted to wish you luck, I will be praying for you. I do agree with MaisieC though, about the tapering. This is such a dangerous drug to just quit... But it you dont have any, well I understand. I hate this stuff now more than ever! I have been very tempted to flush the ********, but I have a family and the state I would be in wouldnt be fair to them.

When I use to take it I would anxiously await the hour and a half...Now I absolutly dred it!
I am tapering and lowering my dose, but every time I take it Im so scared that I will pass out or have an anxiety attack... or even worse have a seizure. Its absolutly horrid!

God is taking me through it though, I know it will all be better. I just wish I could turn back the hands of time and do it all over (not take it). But then agian maybe I dont. Now I know how nasty this stuff is and maybe I have saved myself from something horrible. who knows.. God works in mysterious ways. And the devil is always trying to ruin us!

I hope you start feeling better, its only a matter of time. And like you said everyday will be better even if it is only a little. Keep us posted...God bless.

[AnonGuy]

Well last night was even worse. I don't think I got a single wink of sleep, no joke.

Physically I was tired and exhausted so I tried to go to sleep around 7pm. I tried and tried until 6am at which point I gave up seeing as how I had to be at work by 9am.

I would take some diphenhydramine hcl, doxylamine succinate, and melatonin with theanine every couple hours to try to sleep. Nothing worked. I would get so frusterated and upset that I'd feel so uncomfortable within seconds of laying in any position that I wanted to scream and hit something. I know it sounds crazy but it's true!

I am freezing yet it's 74 degrees in my apartment with the heater on. I had to leave work after about 5 hours because I couldn't take it anymore. It's funny too because this morning after I got dressed for work I orally said a very serious and deep prayer to help me make it through the day but it didn't help. No matter, as I have never been very religious at all. I kept feeling extremely light headed and as if I would pass out. All I had eaten was some applesauce and granola bars in the morning before work.

I have since eaten two bowls of soup and two Gatorades. It is really important to stay hydrated and keep food in your stomach in times like these.

I am happy the sun is up and I absolutely dread it going down for another roller coaster. I have been taking Immodium AD for the runs but it doesn't help at all. I am still in the bathroom every couple of hours right now as I was at work today, too.

If I don't get some sleep tonight, there is no way I will feel any noticeably better tomorrow. If that's the case, I will call in and use some vacation time. I pride myself in having never called into work so this is really bothering me.

I am happy I am finally facing this addiction in the face. Ever since that show on tv "Intervention" has been on the air (3 years or so now I think), I have seen every episode. I have also seen every episode of Celebrity Rehab and Sober House. High on tramadol I've always thought while watching, "that could be me." Sure my life isn't that f'ed up that I lie, cheat, and steal but it is just as serious in my opinion.

I can't imagine how hard this would be to go through with a wife and/or kids. There is no way I'd be able to hide my problem and hide my recovery if I was in that type of a situation. A tiny part of me actually thinks it would help to be in that situation, though-- I would be able to come 100% clean to everyone I know and face the addiction with professional help. I could still do that now but I am sure I can conquer this on my own, even if taking this route is tougher.

I know I am getting better and even though I can't feel it, I know it is fact. I am quite sure that by Monday, or 48 hours from now, I will actually notice some energy and a slight sense of well being coming back. Maybe even tomorrow this could happen if I can actually get some sleep tonight. I don't want to get my hopes up, though.

Thanks to those who have said they'll pray for me. I really, really appreciate it. I look forward to being able to report some good news in the coming days so I'll keep you posted. Keep me in your prayers, please!

[AnonGuy]

A short while ago I had a family member pick up and drop off some more Immodium for the runs, a new bottle of multivitamins, a bottle of TheraFlu, 6 cans of Progresso soup, a box of saltine crackers, a box of Chicken in a Biscuit crackers, a box of popsicles, and a package of Jell-O.

I immediately took a dose of the Thera-Flu and Immodium as well as cooked up my second bowl of soup in the last 2 hours and ate half a dozen saltine crackers.

I have been feeling quite a bit better now, to say the least.

Since I am ashamed of my addiction, I just told them I had to leave work sick and think I have the Flu. They said, as my coworkers earlier today said, that I looked noticeably not well; more pale than anything else. They said my apartment was like a furnace even though I had the goosebumps and was shaking.

In the next year or two when this Tramadol ******** is long gone in my life, I will very much look forward to letting my family in on what was going on with me. But for now, I feel it best to not let them know the truth.

I wanted to let everyone know I highly recommend this diet of soup and water or Gatorade along with Flu medications and crackers. It really helps a lot overcoming the addiction withdrawals. I literally, no joke, feel 95% well right now mentally and 100% better physically than I did last night, this morning, and today at work. I know it's basically the vitamins, medicine, and food with fluids but hey, I am happy to report that since I ran out of Tramadol 2 days ago that this is literally the first time that if I had some in front of me I would pound the ******** out of it with a hammer and blow it off my balcony.

I still fear the sun going down a little bit because I know what a struggle last night was. But I know that the combination of 0 sleep last night, barely any the night before, and feeling good at the moment that I stand a very good chance of actually getting some solid hours in tonight.

At some point the body will force itself into sleep due to the lack of it as of recently and I really feel like tonight is the night. I don't expect to doze off for 8 hours uninterrupted but I do expect a good amount.

My body is still in a shock over the lack of having a fresh Tramadol dose in a few days and the medicine is finally starting to work a bit but I really feel like I'm well on my way to overcoming this horrible ********. I cautiously await tonight and still intend on calling in to work tomorrow but I think I should be back at work in a functional state on Monday. I also intend on updating this thread with my thoughts and feelings tomorrow.

Keep me in your prayers and I'll keep you in mine, everyone.

[Robert_325]

Just one quick suggestion. Sleep is SO tough during this period of time. If you feel yourself tossing and turning get up. Just get up and stay up regardless of how long it's been without sleep. You'll pass out eventually. That so beats fighting it. No one ever died from sleep deprivation during opiate detox. It beats the anxiety and restlessness big time. God bless.

[Shade Tree]

Hey there anonguy,

I am glad to hear you feel a llittle better...

To bad you have to work on the weekend...you could take it to recover. I can relate to what you said about 'intervention, celebrity rehab & sober house" I have seen every one too. I have a fascination for them, must be because I relate. I am totally a closet addict. No one knows, or would guess for that matter. This is the only communication on the subject for me. It is only opaites though. Im not that interested in alcohol. I occasionaly used to smoke marijuana...but not anymore.

Once I get over kicking this habit. That is it for me. Its time to get healthy again, I work out all the time and eat well when Im not pre occupied with opaites. Well good luck with your sleep tonight, Im definatly not looking forward to that part of it for me...but i know its comin. Have you considered taking any sleeping aids? They dont work for me, so Ill be up a creek when the time comes. Anyway take care...

[AnonGuy]

Originally Posted by Shade Tree

Hey there anonguy,

I am glad to hear you feel a llittle better...

To bad you have to work on the weekend...you could take it to recover. I can relate to what you said about 'intervention, celebrity rehab & sober house" I have seen every one too. I have a fascination for them, must be because I relate. I am totally a closet addict. No one knows, or would guess for that matter. This is the only communication on the subject for me. It is only opaites though. Im not that interested in alcohol. I occasionaly used to smoke marijuana...but not anymore.

Once I get over kicking this habit. That is it for me. Its time to get healthy again, I work out all the time and eat well when Im not pre occupied with opaites. Well good luck with your sleep tonight, Im definatly not looking forward to that part of it for me...but i know its comin. Have you considered taking any sleeping aids? They dont work for me, so Ill be up a creek when the time comes. Anyway take care...

Before I get to Shade Tree's comments let me say that trying to not fight the sleeplessness really doesn't work well for me. The main reason is how uncomfortable it feels to try and sit up in bed or on the couch and watch tv at night. I have never been a nightowl in my life so that no doubt has something to do with it, too. It's good advice to recommend not fighting it but for me it doesn't work too well.

Shade Tree, yeah I think that's why I enjoy those addiction shows on TV as well-- Because I can relate. I am also a closet addict in that only one person in my real life of friends actually knows I've been taking Tramadol now for years. But I have never shared with them the withdrawals I have. It's great that we have the benefit of the internet to spill our beans to the world on such a topic as this because it really, truely does feel good to get it off your chest, even if it is to strangers.

I just spent a bit of time re-reading my 3 posts on this thread in the last 48 hours and every bit of what I said was 100% the truth. To any other addicts out there, if you don't have the courage to get your addiction off your chest in an online forum like this, keep a journal on paper or on your computer and re-read the ******** you've gone through. It definitely helps me...

Anyway, about last night. I am happy to report that I got some much needed sleep. It wasn't all that great but it was a lot better than what I got the last two nights before it.

I started to get really sleepy again physically shortly after the sun went down. At about 8pm I decided I would try to go to sleep even though I wanted to wait a bit later. Somewhere around 9:30 I fell asleep and woke up at 1:30am. I was very happy to realize I had just gotten 4 hours of uninterrupted sleep but for some reason it didn't feel like it had been that long-- Probably because my body needed so much more.

It was very hard to get back to sleep at that point. I tried taking some more medicines but an hour later I thought I had to try something else. I was a bit hungry so at that point (2:30am) I made another can of soup and crushed up a good 10 or so crackers in it. I then tried to get back to sleep for another hour or two until about 4:30am when it finally happened.

I awoke about 90 minutes ago shortly after 7am. I am very happy I got about another 3 hours of sleep for a total of about 7 hours last night. It still doesn't feel like I really got that much but again, my body is still needing more. I have taken more of all the medicines I have and have already visited the bathroom a couple times still having the runs very bad.

I have tried many sleep aids, yes. I have always required a dose of melatonin along with doxylamine to sleep every night for a couple of years now. I have always kept large amounts of diphenhydramine in my medicine cabinet as well even though it's not nearly as good of a sleep aid to me. For those who don't know, both doxylamine and diphenhydramine are both antihistimines sold and used as sleep aides. Diphenhydramine is also the same thing as Benadryl and is also sold as generic Benedryl, sold as the sleep aide ingredient in Tylenol PM and Simply Sleep, etc. Doxylamine, which is far more effective IMO, seems to primarilly only be sold as a sleep aide most commonly as Unisom or generic Unisom (although some forms of Unisom are Diphenhydramine instead). Throughout my history of drug use I have learned a ton about pharmaceuticals and that's how I know all this ********.

Boy, what I wouldn't give for a prescription to Ambien right about now. Then again, the last thing I'd want to do is become addicted to -that- even though there's no reports of withdrawals from it that I know of.

I am just about to make a bowl of soup as my first meal today. I am thinking about running an errand this afternoon to sort of "test the waters" of how well I feel out in public to determine whether or not I could go back to work tomorrow. I am also feeling adventurous about eating some solid food (such as a hamburger), which is something I have not felt one bit since I started having withdrawals.

These are probably good signs, I suppose, but I keep reminding myself to be cautious as I still know there's no way I'm even close to 100% yet.

Yesterday I really felt that by Monday (tomorrow) I would feel quite a bit normal. I am starting to wonder if I set my prediction too high. Does anyone have experience with Tramadol withdrawals after the 3-4 day mark because after today it will be uncharted waters for me. I know I could look it up online but I am really in no mood to do so at this point. I would like to know how much longer to expect the diahrea and physical exhaustion being so extreme that I cannot go to work. Again, I originally thought that by Monday around noon (which would be the 4 day mark since my last dose of Tramadol) that I would be at that point but right now I am doubting that...

Surely by Thursday-Friday of this week I'll be at that point, no?

[AnonGuy]

Well I answered my own question by doing the subsequent research on my own.

Isn't it strange how these withdrawals cause you one moment to be so out of it you don't want to do something but a little bit later you really want to and it's no big deal?

http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:...lnk&cd=2&gl=us

I have seen the medhelp.org and user journals there even referenced on this drugs.com forum in another Tramadol addiction thread.

That one lady at that link really knows her stuff when it comes to quitting cold turkey. She was on as much tramadol each day as I have been and was on it for about 5 years she says which is extremely similar to my situation.

She says 3-4 days of the worst withdrawals then at the 7 day mark you will start feeling normal. Well that's great news for me then. Thursday morning was my last dose of tramadol (150mg to be precise) and that wasn't even a lot. I had been taking 200-300mg three times daily! Once when I would wake up in the morning, once around 1pm and again around 5-5:30pm. My withdrawals started Thursday afternoon, really, and that's why Thursday night I had the first of 3 nights of bad or no sleep now.

So right now it's been 72 hours since I first started craving more. I can call in to work again tomorrow if need be then I have 2 of the next 3 days off anyway. Going to work on Friday I will have been 7.5 days of having been off this garbage tramadol then!

Judging by the well-documented case by Emily or aka EmilyPost at that medhelp link a couple of paragraphs up, that should be when I start to feel "normal". Heck, tomorrow I should be through the worst of the withdrawals!

I am not going to get my hopes too high, of course, but I must admit I am excited.

Later today I will run an errand to Wal-Mart to get a couple things and see how I feel in public. I am already right now feeling quite a bit better than I was yesterday at work.

It's so strange how everyone quitting tramadol has these feelings of mentally feeling close to 100% normal yet physically being 100% out of it. The absolute worst feeling is having cold chills yet having the furnace set to 75 degrees (usually, while on tramadol, I keep it at 70 and need the ceiling fan on). My legs/feet and arms/hands are the most chilled parts of my body but if I put on a long-sleeve shirt or heavier socks or slippers, for example, I will sweat there and feel uncomfortable.

It's extremely annoying!

I really look forward to my errand today. If it's as successful as I hope, I should be able to function at work when I go back. I doubt I'll be "superman" again anytime soon but at least I'll be functional and not feel like absolute garbage the whole time.

I'm slowly getting my life back, one day at a time!