[Emily131]

HI, not the first time im posting. Ive actually posted quit a few times inquiring about vicodin detox- I have been taking them daily for about 8yr- about 24-40/7.5/750 over the past 2yrs probably. My husband too-- but he only took about 6pills a day. in any event, this past sunday night-- we ran out royally. tried everything, and everyone with no avail. although we have been actively talking about quiting, we never really got there. this time, of no choice of ours, we did. i told him "if we make it thru. 24hr- its over!" (THE PILL CONSUMPTION THAT Is). We I dont know if Im jinxing myself- but I FEEL GREAT! really no symptoms. today is day 3 and aside from trouble sleeping, nothing. I was recommended to take tylenol pm, whihch mind you I always took in conjunction with my vike sessions, but the benedryl in there supposed helps- maybe thats whats helping here. I just dont get it-- all this time, all these years Ive read these message boards to see with detox is like and people scared the **** out of me--- this is a piece of cake! dont get me wrong, I want to use, I do-- thats the worst part-- and were tired, weak-- little sweating I suppose but nothing that high AIR CONDITIONING hasnt solved. My husband is having some really bad muscle pains, but aside from that-- THATS IT!
Why am I writing? too tell everyone else out there like us that quiting will not kill you or send you to the hospital. I know, everyonese different-- but I was a VERY VERY heavy user-- VERY HEAVY, and CHRONIC-- 8YEARS! everyday- never missed a day! and now im 3days off and I FEEL BETTER then I did when I was on them. sure a little muscle cramping, but not worse then the muscle cramping hangover that i use to wake up with after I popped 40pills in a night. no nausia, and many time the vikes made me puck. no diarrhea yet, but the vikes always gave me diarrhea. ok- enough babbling, like I said, maybe im jinxing myself and later today or tomorrow will be awful, but as for now 3days in-- i feel GREAT and to anyone thats scared of the w/d of detoxing, your fearing the unknown, making excuses and frankly have no idea how YOU will react untill YOU try it. Guarentee, IT WONT KILL YOU.
signing off-- Today my husband and I are proud-- not to mention, WE HAVE SO MUCH MORE MONEY IN OUR POCKETS!! LOL

[scruffi]

Very encouraging post - most all of us addicted to vikes would like to get off them - the fear of withdrawal and being able to cope without the help of a pill holds us hostage.

Please keep posting on your progress - could help many of us to take the plunge and get our lives back.

Good luck to you!

[boulonman]

THANX FOR YOUR SINCERITY, I TOO AM A HEAVY DUTY VIC USER IN THE SAME NUMBERS DAILY AS YOU ESCEPT 10/325MGS AND THE FEAR OF WITHDRAWLS SENT ME TO A METHADONE CLINIC WHICH IS THE BIGGEST MISTAKE OF MY LIFE..TALK ABOUT TRYING TO CUT DOWN IT'S MURDER..NOW I'M CONSIDERING SUBOXONE WHICH REALLY WORKS WELL BUT INSURANCES DONT COVER THE PILLS AND IT COMES OUT TO 250$ A MONTH AND IT ALSO IS HARD TO DETOX WHAT A MERRY GO ROUND...GOOD LUCK AND STICK TO YOUR ABSTINENCE IT GIVES ME HOPE...ALAN

[Emily131]

I recnetly quit and luckily for me the withdrawels were NOTHING. My husband also quit with me and he on the other hand (whose daily dosing was less then 1/2 of mine) has had some pretty miserable muscle and bone aching- and I mean miserable--- not "wanting to die miserable like everyone refers too), but aside from the aches, nothing else- so I guess in a way hes lucky too. We quit exactly 7days ago now and he's still suffering, but gradually getting a little better everyday. As I said above, I was fortunate to not experience w/d symptoms, but really the more I think about it I wish I had something-- that said- I have relaped unbenounced to him- well he knows, but not to the extent. I was at about 30 7.5 vicodin es day, i went 76hrs with none, and since i had no side effects I decided to finish up the remaining few "emergency" pills that I had kept (others were either sold off or flushed- flushed for to closures sake)- like any addict I thought- whatever, ill finish off these last 8 and then tomorrow start again and hey- no w/d who cares. well--- that plan worked with the exception of me feeling terrible about decieving my husband. a few hrs before I relapsed he said to me "im so glad were going thru this together", then I betrayed him-- but then told him the next day that I took one,, and regreted it- he was disappointed but totally understood. I took 7 in one day- early weds. morning, 4 then 3-- ironincally, i didnt even like it and the next morning I felt hungover-- here my husband is having all these aching problems and me none until I decide to take them and then I had muscle pains-- very weird. so i took those 7 and now here I am again 84hrs clean and serene. doing very well. still affraid some crazy symptoms are gonna pop up, but after how ****ty i felt after relape dosing, im ready for it. my poor hubby though is not so thrilled- but totally sticking to it and hes doing so great. Im so proud of him.
anyway, wanted to give you guys an update. Im still with no withdrawels and my husband like i said is uncomfy- and were both having sleeping issues, but aside from that its pretty much a piece of cake, maybe were lucky or maybe others are just more susceptable to discomfort. PLease dont let these boards scare you because everyone is different. i was scared ****less about w/d from these boards and honestly i can say I regret ever reading most of them. everyone saying "im dying" " i feel like i cant survive this " "oh the agony" "oh the diarrhea" " oh the vomitting"//// i dont doubt people experience that stuff-- and I know everyone needs these boards for supprt-- but if your seriously quiting and going thru w/d, plesae just try and describe the symptoms and try to not just scare everyone out there like myself. had i not been so actively reading these boards over the last yr- i know i would have quit sooner---- but everyones words terrified me.
for all of you that are terrified-- go for it and quit! everyone reacts differently to w/d-- take benedryl, multivitamins, potassium and calcium (with vit d) supplements... and if needed flexeril for muscle pain and a low dose of xanax if you cant sleep. my doc. told me to take 1muscle relaxer, 1 0.5mg xanax and 2tylenolpm if I had trouble sleeping. benedryl throught the day is also highly recommended---- although we have not had diarrhea like everyone else says they have had-- my doc recommended that if diarrhea did start- take imodium, not just for diarrhea but there is also another drug in imodium that somehow decreases the receptor w/d symptoms

GOod Luck to all, thanks for your replies, the more the merrrier. i appreciate any advise, statements, or whatever-- the replied help to keep me goind.

thanks again!

EMily


ES

[kg7866]

oh my gosh I can't believe it... I also take 8-10 10/325's a day. Yesterday was my last day. My husband has no idea. Or so I think.. I was so scared when I woke up this morning and I still am but your story gave me hope. I am a little shaky. When does it kick in..... the worst part of detox? I had been buying it online and ran out too soon. I usually can get some from another source but not now. Any suggestions other than benedryl tonight? My husband cannot find out. He would be so hurt. It started when I got my appendix out then a few months later I broke a toe then a few moths after that I broke another toe.Crazy I know.. Each time asking for vicodin then asking for stronger ones. Now I have no exscuse and nowhere to get them accept online and my 24 days wont be up until the 20th so maybe now is the time to stay clean. I feel week and I HAVE to work in the morning but I am scared tomorrow will be worse than today. I always thought the 2nd day was suppossed to be the worse. Please help! I am so scared but my family deserves the best I can be. I cry a lot today.But the bondage has been to much. Like you the thought of goi ng thru all the horrible withdrawels has stopped me from even trying. Now without a choice I am finding I am lazy today but it's not as bad as I thought!!! ANY TIPS WOULD BE GREAT!!! I DON'T WANT TO LIVE LIKE THIS ANYMORE

[mpvt]

Immodium is a must for withdrawls also if you can get a hold of some valium for a week or so.It's tuff going alone but it can be done....Dave

Finally my pain is under control!!!!!!!

[Emily131]

Howdy All,
as requested but "scruffi" here is an update on my husband and my vicodin cold turkey status.
if u all read my original post- we were very heavy chronic users- over 8yrs of daily vicodin consumption- NUTS! surgery induced the addiction for both of us,.... inability to score induced detox. we have wanted to quit for years, but were both affraid of the withdrawel symptoms, i was TERRIFIED of the symptoms, (esp. due to reading these forum postingins) and i really didnt want to quit- i mean i did but i didt,- my husband did want do but just couldnt find the motivation. so long story short 12days ago we just couldnt "score".
SO-- here we are now, 12days out... and doing great. trouble sleeping is the worst of it. its actually kinda weird- i was terrified of the w/d symtoms, my husband was not-AT ALL. I had NO symptoms---NOTHING. i mean trouble sleeping a little- but my doctor gave me a limited supply of xanax to help (i dont like the way the xanax make me feel, either does my husband- but when push comes to shove they certainly put you to sleep) anyway, like i said my husband never feared the w/d, it was only me--- he wasnt as lucky as i was and had some pretty uncomfortable muscle cramping- greatly reduced by using flexiril (muscle relaxer). his aches started day1 and lasted for about 4-5days, worse on day 2(48hrs)- then consistant improvement every day till it disappeared.
anyway, so theres the update-- i read and read these boards for the past yr and just scared the ******************** out of myself by reading about symptoms like "agonizing muscle pain", "nausia, vomitting, diarrhea, seizures, faining, dizzy spells, feelings of wanting to die, hell on earth, crying, screaming in pain etc,.. etc,... etc,..... AND SO NOW HERE I AM 12DAYS OUT AND NOT 1 SYMPTOM TO REPORT.
i guess im lucky-- my husband id say was mildly uncomfortable for a few days, but just aches thats it!

anyone in my shoes that can relate to chronic vicodin use, dont get scared by these boards- everyonese different, go for it and QUIT! If you have the willpower to quit-- u may be like me and my husband and thats all you will need- willpower. the cravings are the worst, but its all mental.

GO FOR IT GUYS!

GOOD LUCK TO ALL!


ES

[scruffi]

Thanks for the update Emily - so encouraging for those of us wanting to get off this stuff.

I hope a lot people "caught in hydro's grip" find your posts.

there's millions and billions of people out there who go about their daily lives without any "feel-good" drugs, it's a non issue to them.

You guys are well on your way - and you give me hope that I can be too.

[pamricktab]

i am new to this board. but want to let you know how my husband is doing coming off at least 20 or pills a day . percocet, lortab and vicodan . also combinded with smoking pot every 20 mins thru the day. and xanax and soma . he was a mess . could not think straiht. but felt he needed the energy to run his own buisness. this went on for about 4 or 5 yrs. until this past weekend.... his moods were becoming very unpreditable with mood swings with anger. we had a fight and i ended up calling 911 holding my 2 yr old for protection. they arrested him . and he went to jail with the scare of his life . never relizing it might come to this/ well hes been off everything now for 4 days . not saying he felt missrable for the first couple .. diareai and vomiting. but today he said he cant belive how good he feels. and never thought he would. he said hes going to beat it.... and i never thought he could do it either.. all on his own. i know now it can be done . not saying its over yet tho..

[jamjam]

Congrats on the success with your detox, sounds like you had a relatively easy time of it. Others may not be so lucky as everyone's body chemistry and history is different, but still very good for all to hear words of encouragement. Decided I would post about my own experience with it as it might help others. I was taking Vicodin for about 5 years under the care of a pain management clinic doctor; 550 mg 4 a day; I never bought or took beyond what was prescribed but did sometimes go to 5 day which of course shorted me on the other end but I dealt with it. Eventually I developed a tolerance of it and when they wanted to move me up to oxycontin I decided no. To transition me off it they prescribed ultram and xanax which did help some, but Xanax ended up causing a FAR WORSE problem for me in the long run because they kept me on it for 1 year due to other co-occurring life crisis things with work and family. The xanax withdrawal was absolutely pure hell; far worse than Vicodin -- they say Xanax detox is actually worse than coming off heroin--wish I had known that BEFORE I agreed to stay on it....lesson learned....very hard lesson indeed. But, now that I know, I am sharing the information with others about. Personally, I will never ever allow a doctor to prescribe xanax or any other benzo for me again. Xanax is the worst of the benzos....far worse than valium. If you are going to take anything, I would have it be valium, but only short term, for no more than a week or so. But other OTC alternatives to consider are Valerian Root (health food store) it works similarly to Valium but is nonaddictive. A combo thing with Valerian and Benadryl would help a lot. Also a prescription that helps with all opiate withdrawals is Clonidine which is a blood pressure drug that they discovered works well in opiate detox; only take it short term as it can also come with its own set of problems if taken long term. There is lots of information out there online about how to detox safely at home. The safest and most credible resources are educational institutions (universities) and/or medical institutions/associations. Use caution about individual doctor websites as their information is generally based on their limited experience with just their own individual small client base. I found the following website helpful and is in fact where I learned about the Clonidine http://members.optusnet.com.au/~apfdfy/

There is a lot of information on various boards such as this one that is helpful. From several Boards I learned about the [u]Thomas Recipe </u>which many people swear by. I used a hybrid of the [u]Thomas Recipe</u> to home detox off the Xanax. http://www.rxlist.com/rxboard/ultram...ames;read=1955 You will find the Thomas Recipe on many opiate type boards; just type [u]Thomas Recipe</u> into Google.com and you will get many hits and can read many discussions written by those who have used it to help.

For the muscle pain/cramping Hyland's Leg Cramp pills (holistic) w/Quinine helps a lot, about $4 at WalMart; also very hot Epsom Salt baths and Aspercreme throughout the day worked wonders. The Thomas Recipe also includes amino acids that help. For sleep, VERY hot bath before bed, rubdown body joints & back with Aspercreme, take the Hyland's and Valerian Root. I found helpful information on Valerian Root at the following website http://www.mindpub.com/altern08.htm. In my experience I found it took more Valerian than on the directions as I was copint with a detox issue. I started out with 4, then re-evaluated in 30 min intervals and took 2 more each time til comfort level tolerable. Also when you are able to get out -- walk/exercise -- it will get your natural endorphins and dopamine to kick in which is critical as it has been on simmer while relying on external drugs to handle its work.

Also find an Acupressure Massage Therapist -- you will be absolutely amazed how much it helps. I learned about that at the following website http://cms.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-1057.html. So, I am trying to manage my pain now with Acupuncture and Accupressure Massage working in tandem together. I get the the Accupressure Massage about 2 days before I go for Acupuncture...it relaxes the muscles in preparation, and for me it substantially increases the results I get from the acupuncture. If your pain is not as acute you might want to only try one or the other. For me, my pain is quite acute so I am doing both in the beginning til my body has been jump started to find its own natural balance and harmony. I will do those once a week for 1 month and then reassess/adjust and hopefully go every other week for 1 month, and then down to once a month for 6 months and reasses. Good luck!!!

[teeth]

go to google anddo a search for the thomas withdrawel recipe.

[sweetchikk05]

The best advice I could give any of you addicted to pills especially vicodin, cutting down never worked for me I mean if it works for you more power to you!! Me I had to go cols turkey in a rehab and bite the bullet, I saw alot of people in there for vicodin and I wont lie, they went through hell for a few days but once that was gone, als they had to do was beat the mental addiction, if tapering down doesnt work for you I would strongly consider rehab...It works if you work it, good luck to all of you that are still prisoners to your addiction, there isnt one person on this forum that doesnt have the ability to recover!!!! you will all be in my prayers


Liz ann

[-runzwithscissors-]

Ive never had any type of withdrawl. Ive used 7/day for like 5months and then quit and started using 5/day again.. then I quit again and then relapsed AGAIN with 3/day.. and now I take them occasionaly and I dont even think about them that much and I take like 1 when I do it.

[sweetchikk05]

Hey Emily, how are you doing how are things going right now??

Have you and your hubby considered methadone maitainance?? It could be benificial to the both of you!!


Liz ann

[DSLDAW]

Methadone for me, is the hardest one to kick.With a 150mg plus a day
Roxicodone habit and only sweats for withdrawls.I'm scared to death of stopping methadone.I've cut back from 4(10mg)twice a day to 2pills
twice a day.Any less than that and "Oh My God".Can't sleep.Tossing and turning all night.Feel like I'm dying.Great advise JamJam. Thanks
a million.Gonna take the Valerian and taper on the Methadone.The root
should help me taper on the Roxi too.Now I've got hope and hope everyone out there is encouraged now to stop the insanety.

[sweetchikk05]

Hey emily, where have you been how are you doing?

Liz ann