Opioids The Opioid Withdrawal Megathread and FAQ

[Albert E.]

I desperately need some encouragement. I just hit the 6-month mark and things are still not good. I feel just as bad as I did at one month. It absolutely SUCKS!! I barely have enough energy to get up from lying in bed. Still close to zero motivation. I tried to work and only made it 1 1/2 days before telling the boss I was distracted and couldn't concentrate due to my impending divorce. They bought it but that is absolutely not the reason. I look forward to the divorce. It's because I can't concentrate at ALL.


For the record (don't think I ever said), I started with Rx'd Percocet back in 2010 for 2 yrs. Switched to Tramadol (the pharm company lied to doctors saying it was 'non-addictive'. Yea right!) Turns out it was and I was unable to continue around 2016 or so when it became a scheduled drug. Then, believe it or not, I started on Imodium and Dextromethrophan (Dxm). That combination, used every 4 hours/ 7 days a week, lifted my spirits and did it's job (as nasty as Dxm is nasty/yuk!) But once I stopped puking it up, it worked well. Imodium by itself works if I took 10 at a time w/ a total of 40-50 a day. Not heart healthy for sure.

So anyway, I feel like a dumbass on that combination for like 5 years. I know many don't think this is a serious as say, heroin or cocaine.......and I have no experience with those. Never even smoked weed in my life. So I have a total of about 10 years abuse. I just can't image those drugs being any worse for withdrawal. And the last 6 months have been total hell on Earth for me. I think if you were fighting an enemy army, and you could slip some drugs into their food or water supply for 6 months and then suddenly take it away, you would just walk all over that army and they'd have zero will to fight.

I am determined to win this. I will NOT use anymore. But my daughter is graduating from a big-time college next week. I have to at least be able to be human for that. I think I'll be alright. I can suck it up. But I seem to only be able to concentrate on any task for like 10 minutes before I get irritated/frustrated and have to do something else. I am, at least, sleeping 7-8 hrs a night.

I have tried:
1. Vitamins
2. Exercise
3. Meditation
4. Distractions
5. Visiting family/friends
6. Tried to travel down to Miami to vacation but only made it one hour down the freeway before turning around and coming back. I have the money but zero motivation..........for ANYTHING! I understand that P.A.W.S. can last from 6 months to 2 years. I was REALLY, REALLY hoping it would only be 6 months. I might can make it another 6 months, but 2 years is a daunting thought. I really thought it would be a gradual recovery...........like I would be feeling a little better each day or week......or even each month. But it's not seeming to be that way for me. I hope I can wake up one day, magically better. I would pay a $100,000 if there was a magic button, I could push to feel normal again!!! Ah, if only, right?!

Please, anyone that has made it through to the other side (final relief and recovery), please post. I could use any good comments. Thanks.

 

[JustferFun]

I desperately need some encouragement. I just hit the 6-month mark and things are still not good. I feel just as bad as I did at one month. It absolutely SUCKS!! I barely have enough energy to get up from lying in bed. Still close to zero motivation. I tried to work and only made it 1 1/2 days before telling the boss I was distracted and couldn't concentrate due to my impending divorce. They bought it but that is absolutely not the reason. I look forward to the divorce. It's because I can't concentrate at ALL.


For the record (don't think I ever said), I started with Rx'd Percocet back in 2010 for 2 yrs. Switched to Tramadol (the pharm company lied to doctors saying it was 'non-addictive'. Yea right!) Turns out it was and I was unable to continue around 2016 or so when it became a scheduled drug. Then, believe it or not, I started on Imodium and Dextromethrophan (Dxm). That combination, used every 4 hours/ 7 days a week, lifted my spirits and did it's job (as nasty as Dxm is nasty/yuk!) But once I stopped puking it up, it worked well. Imodium by itself works if I took 10 at a time w/ a total of 40-50 a day. Not heart healthy for sure.

So anyway, I feel like a dumbass on that combination for like 5 years. I know many don't think this is a serious as say, heroin or cocaine.......and I have no experience with those. Never even smoked weed in my life. So I have a total of about 10 years abuse. I just can't image those drugs being any worse for withdrawal. And the last 6 months have been total hell on Earth for me. I think if you were fighting an enemy army, and you could slip some drugs into their food or water supply for 6 months and then suddenly take it away, you would just walk all over that army and they'd have zero will to fight.

I am determined to win this. I will NOT use anymore. But my daughter is graduating from a big-time college next week. I have to at least be able to be human for that. I think I'll be alright. I can suck it up. But I seem to only be able to concentrate on any task for like 10 minutes before I get irritated/frustrated and have to do something else. I am, at least, sleeping 7-8 hrs a night.

I have tried:
1. Vitamins
2. Exercise
3. Meditation
4. Distractions
5. Visiting family/friends
6. Tried to travel down to Miami to vacation but only made it one hour down the freeway before turning around and coming back. I have the money but zero motivation..........for ANYTHING! I understand that P.A.W.S. can last from 6 months to 2 years. I was REALLY, REALLY hoping it would only be 6 months. I might can make it another 6 months, but 2 years is a daunting thought. I really thought it would be a gradual recovery...........like I would be feeling a little better each day or week......or even each month. But it's not seeming to be that way for me. I hope I can wake up one day, magically better. I would pay a $100,000 if there was a magic button, I could push to feel normal again!!! Ah, if only, right?!

Please, anyone that has made it through to the other side (final relief and recovery), please post. I could use any good comments. Thanks.

I would think that 6 months would be more than enough time. I've stopped heroin and I was better much sooner than 6 months later. Low energy and lack of motivation sounds like it could be depression. Maybe talk to your doctor?

 

[Myeaaa]

I desperately need some encouragement. I just hit the 6-month mark and things are still not good. I feel just as bad as I did at one month. It absolutely SUCKS!! I barely have enough energy to get up from lying in bed. Still close to zero motivation. I tried to work and only made it 1 1/2 days before telling the boss I was distracted and couldn't concentrate due to my impending divorce. They bought it but that is absolutely not the reason. I look forward to the divorce. It's because I can't concentrate at ALL.


For the record (don't think I ever said), I started with Rx'd Percocet back in 2010 for 2 yrs. Switched to Tramadol (the pharm company lied to doctors saying it was 'non-addictive'. Yea right!) Turns out it was and I was unable to continue around 2016 or so when it became a scheduled drug. Then, believe it or not, I started on Imodium and Dextromethrophan (Dxm). That combination, used every 4 hours/ 7 days a week, lifted my spirits and did it's job (as nasty as Dxm is nasty/yuk!) But once I stopped puking it up, it worked well. Imodium by itself works if I took 10 at a time w/ a total of 40-50 a day. Not heart healthy for sure.

So anyway, I feel like a dumbass on that combination for like 5 years. I know many don't think this is a serious as say, heroin or cocaine.......and I have no experience with those. Never even smoked weed in my life. So I have a total of about 10 years abuse. I just can't image those drugs being any worse for withdrawal. And the last 6 months have been total hell on Earth for me. I think if you were fighting an enemy army, and you could slip some drugs into their food or water supply for 6 months and then suddenly take it away, you would just walk all over that army and they'd have zero will to fight.

I am determined to win this. I will NOT use anymore. But my daughter is graduating from a big-time college next week. I have to at least be able to be human for that. I think I'll be alright. I can suck it up. But I seem to only be able to concentrate on any task for like 10 minutes before I get irritated/frustrated and have to do something else. I am, at least, sleeping 7-8 hrs a night.

I have tried:
1. Vitamins
2. Exercise
3. Meditation
4. Distractions
5. Visiting family/friends
6. Tried to travel down to Miami to vacation but only made it one hour down the freeway before turning around and coming back. I have the money but zero motivation..........for ANYTHING! I understand that P.A.W.S. can last from 6 months to 2 years. I was REALLY, REALLY hoping it would only be 6 months. I might can make it another 6 months, but 2 years is a daunting thought. I really thought it would be a gradual recovery...........like I would be feeling a little better each day or week......or even each month. But it's not seeming to be that way for me. I hope I can wake up one day, magically better. I would pay a $100,000 if there was a magic button, I could push to feel normal again!!! Ah, if only, right?!

Please, anyone that has made it through to the other side (final relief and recovery), please post. I could use any good comments. Thanks.

Not sure if others have mentioned this, but Imodium is a powerful opioid and has a bitch of a WD period on its own, and PAWS can last a long time, but never has for me personally.

I'm guessing if your daughter is graduating college you're no spring chicken.

If you're no spring chicken, AND you've been using opes for 10 years, your balls are likely still snoozin away.

People don't talk about this enough, but opes absolutely wreck your endocrine system.

That will cause most of the symptoms you describe as well, and the opes could have been masking changes in your body that naturally happen anyway.

If your heart and liver are okay, or you don't mind seeing a doc, I'd see if they will give you a squirt of Test.

If you find that your life miraculously goes back to normal the next day, then you have a new game to play - raise your testosterone. Opiates basically shut off the LH signal, so it's highly likely that's a factor, especially If you are over 40.

If I was experiencing what you are describing, I'd go find the biggest beefcake roid guy at the local gym, get a bottle of that T400 and some oil needles along with a cycle of HCG to run afterwards, and I'd turn my asscheek into a pincushion.

I wouldn't run the T400 long term, guys do it, but it makes the problem permanent. As an experiment to validate whether you have an endocrine issue however it's a pretty solid plan IMHO.

Life sucks in general, and it's worse without drugs. That you never get over, but you can and will get your joy and motivation back.

Am with you brother, keep going. You're not the only one in that race so don't fucking give up.

 

[JustferFun]

I desperately need some encouragement. I just hit the 6-month mark and things are still not good. I feel just as bad as I did at one month. It absolutely SUCKS!! I barely have enough energy to get up from lying in bed. Still close to zero motivation. I tried to work and only made it 1 1/2 days before telling the boss I was distracted and couldn't concentrate due to my impending divorce. They bought it but that is absolutely not the reason. I look forward to the divorce. It's because I can't concentrate at ALL.


For the record (don't think I ever said), I started with Rx'd Percocet back in 2010 for 2 yrs. Switched to Tramadol (the pharm company lied to doctors saying it was 'non-addictive'. Yea right!) Turns out it was and I was unable to continue around 2016 or so when it became a scheduled drug. Then, believe it or not, I started on Imodium and Dextromethrophan (Dxm). That combination, used every 4 hours/ 7 days a week, lifted my spirits and did it's job (as nasty as Dxm is nasty/yuk!) But once I stopped puking it up, it worked well. Imodium by itself works if I took 10 at a time w/ a total of 40-50 a day. Not heart healthy for sure.

So anyway, I feel like a dumbass on that combination for like 5 years. I know many don't think this is a serious as say, heroin or cocaine.......and I have no experience with those. Never even smoked weed in my life. So I have a total of about 10 years abuse. I just can't image those drugs being any worse for withdrawal. And the last 6 months have been total hell on Earth for me. I think if you were fighting an enemy army, and you could slip some drugs into their food or water supply for 6 months and then suddenly take it away, you would just walk all over that army and they'd have zero will to fight.

I am determined to win this. I will NOT use anymore. But my daughter is graduating from a big-time college next week. I have to at least be able to be human for that. I think I'll be alright. I can suck it up. But I seem to only be able to concentrate on any task for like 10 minutes before I get irritated/frustrated and have to do something else. I am, at least, sleeping 7-8 hrs a night.

I have tried:
1. Vitamins
2. Exercise
3. Meditation
4. Distractions
5. Visiting family/friends
6. Tried to travel down to Miami to vacation but only made it one hour down the freeway before turning around and coming back. I have the money but zero motivation..........for ANYTHING! I understand that P.A.W.S. can last from 6 months to 2 years. I was REALLY, REALLY hoping it would only be 6 months. I might can make it another 6 months, but 2 years is a daunting thought. I really thought it would be a gradual recovery...........like I would be feeling a little better each day or week......or even each month. But it's not seeming to be that way for me. I hope I can wake up one day, magically better. I would pay a $100,000 if there was a magic button, I could push to feel normal again!!! Ah, if only, right?!

Please, anyone that has made it through to the other side (final relief and recovery), please post. I could use any good comments. Thanks.

The only other thing that comes to mind is kratom, which acts as a weak opioid. That seems like a better option than the Immodium and DXM combo, but it can also become addictive if you're not careful. If used prudently, I think it may be worth a shot. Kratom is actually related to the coffee tree. It gives you a boost in energy but the effects only last for a few hours, so you'll want to keep redosing, and that's not a good thing. It's possible to develop a physical dependence to it. People have used it successfully to reduce opiate cravings, but it could be a slippery slope.

There's also obviously Suboxone, but that seems like overkill. However, even in low doses it has some antidepressant properties. But taken long term, it also causes dependence.

For your energy and motivational issues, adderall may even be an option. But again, there are potential pitfalls even with that. I feel for you, I really do. I wish I had better advice, but just don't give up. It's probably best to start by getting a full physical just to rule out any potential physical causes. As the last poster pointed out, it could possibly be an endocrine/ testosterone issue. It could also be a thyroid issue, which is also part of the endocrine system. I'm guessing it's not those things, but they have to be ruled out. Just be honest with your doc and tell him/ her the situation. There's no shame in that.

 

[Hexenstahl]

hey @Nas47

u joking?

cold turkey from 200mg substitol? really?
man i am om 800mg daily since 2018 and i tell u omce i missed the assignment
and that next night was horror really hardcore and i cant believe u made it out .. respect
did u had this hardcore severe diarrhea that was crazy and did u really had no medication?

thanks lets stay in contact

You should consider switching to Polamidon. Depending on how fast you metabolize drugs, you can miss your dose for up to 48h without suffering wd. The half life is even longer than methadone. Polamidon has a half life of 36h whereas Methadone has a half life of 24h.

 

[rock1970]

I posted the OTC solution to these withdrawals above. Again:

#2: Loperamide, low dose DXM (40-60mg), and white grapefruit juice.

Which brand of DXM do you use? Thank you for posting.

 

[HateMe]

Here's a dumb question.

How long do the anti-WD meds last? Like Naloxone, Bupe, etc? I think I had a bad patch of meds, and had no euphoria, little pain relief. Got my refill for my normal pharmacy, with a supplier Ive had before (5mg Oxy), and even an increase in dosage, but deal God, they feel like nothing at all.

Im not WDing, so they must be working but I feel like....nothing is happening. Im going to have the other bad meds tested, and see whats in them, but until them ,I dont want to jack myself up and take too many. At least if I know it will pass. Its my second day back on normal meds.

Just want to say, that I think this is a great community and for those wanting to stop, theres always somebody online, willing to be there so to speak. Youre doing good!

 

[bunny22]

a lot of thjose links dont exist anymore :/