Depression After Quitting Opiates (Oxy, fent)

[Rxoxo]

I’ve posted a couple threads about my situation with fentanyl right now, I’m not going to go to deep into the background, but... In short, I’m trying to quit my fentanyl and oxy habit (snorting pressed fent pills and oxy 30s). I have suboxone strips and patches and occasionally find the pill form if I’m lucky. I’ve managed to quit for 3 days by using suboxone, about 3 separate times. I was so proud each time. But by the third day, my depression, it just... runs deep. Don’t know how else to put it. Things that should make me happy don’t anymore. I’m just wondering if that ever goes away. Once I pull the trigger and quit for good, will I ever be truly happy again? Or is my brain receptors just fucked for life?
I’ve been using everyday about 2 years. The first year was just eating Vicodin (30-50mg a night) then it turned into snorting and oxys (60-90 mg a night) then recently been getting the fent 30s (no idea how much I’ve been doing with those).
Someone please tell me there’s hope. Someone tell me that life will be good without pills! I just enjoy life so much more when I’m on them, as sad as it is for me to say that. But don’t get me wrong, i want to quit really really bad.
Before this, I was BAD addicted to adderall, I would take 100 mg a day just twacking out and being productive all day everyday. I never thought I’d quit addies or enjoy life without them. Then I just like lost interest... it was weird. I slowly quit taking them bexause I was ready for a slow down in life or something.
I wish the same would happen with me and pain killers. I wish I’d just lose interest but it seems that’s not going to happen and my bank account can’t wait for that either. The reasons I need to quit now are mainly financial.
Yall... I don’t really know the purpose of my post. I just needed to say this somewhere. Absolutely no one knows about my habit, except my boyfriend who’s in the same boat.
if anyone has some words of wisdom for me, words of encouragement, experiences to share for a similar situation, anything.... I’d love to read it.

 

[OpiateKiller]

You're brain is not fucked for life my friend. As bad as Opiate addiction is, I have found them to be a blessing in the fact that they really don't cause long term damage that does not heal. I have recovered from many long term, heavy dose heroin, oxy, fentanyl habits. After a few months I always return to my normal happiness and my depression goes away substance wise. You will be left with any problems you had before you started using, so if you had some depression before it will still be there when you quit.

But I'm here to tell you you have plenty of hope, and life can go back to normal. Thankfully like I said, in my experience, Opiates do not damage the brain permanently. The biggest danger factors are obviously addiction, death, and overdose causing things like coma, loss of oxygen to the brain, or loss of limbs (my friend overdosed and had his bodyweight on his leg for 8 hours and now can no longer walk without a cane, he killed a lot of the muscle and nerves in his thigh and calf.. sad sad story).

Unlike things like Meth and MDMA, I find that Opiate Addiction does not cause unfixable damage. Even these drugs, the Brain has an amazing ability to recover and bounce back. Especially if you treat it right in sobriety (exercise, proper diet of healthy things (vegetables, fruits, non processed meats, etc). and a good sleep schedule).

But please don't give up hope, after even 30 days of being off of opiates you should find yourself considerable normal, able to laugh at life and be happy. Hang in there.

 

[falsifiedhypothesi]

Please don't give up. It takes time for your brain to return to normal, it won't happen overnight. You can feel normal again as long as you stay clean.

Post acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS) is very common and includes depression but it doesn't last forever. You haven't been using for very long, i'm not saying you will be back to normal quickly but you will absolutely return to normal in time.

 

[hydroazuanacaine]

depression is the worst withdrawal symptom from opiates for me. even worse than rls. is also the first to set in and the last to leave. but it is a withdrawal symptom, not a permanent change. if you have underlying depression disorder, that won’t go away without intervention if some sort. but the ultra intense depression that comes right after quitting dope does just go away with time. a couple weeks for me, but is manageable after a week to 10 days.

 

[nznity]

I’ve posted a couple threads about my situation with fentanyl right now, I’m not going to go to deep into the background, but... In short, I’m trying to quit my fentanyl and oxy habit (snorting pressed fent pills and oxy 30s). I have suboxone strips and patches and occasionally find the pill form if I’m lucky. I’ve managed to quit for 3 days by using suboxone, about 3 separate times. I was so proud each time. But by the third day, my depression, it just... runs deep. Don’t know how else to put it. Things that should make me happy don’t anymore. I’m just wondering if that ever goes away. Once I pull the trigger and quit for good, will I ever be truly happy again? Or is my brain receptors just fucked for life?
I’ve been using everyday about 2 years. The first year was just eating Vicodin (30-50mg a night) then it turned into snorting and oxys (60-90 mg a night) then recently been getting the fent 30s (no idea how much I’ve been doing with those).
Someone please tell me there’s hope. Someone tell me that life will be good without pills! I just enjoy life so much more when I’m on them, as sad as it is for me to say that. But don’t get me wrong, i want to quit really really bad.
Before this, I was BAD addicted to adderall, I would take 100 mg a day just twacking out and being productive all day everyday. I never thought I’d quit addies or enjoy life without them. Then I just like lost interest... it was weird. I slowly quit taking them bexause I was ready for a slow down in life or something.
I wish the same would happen with me and pain killers. I wish I’d just lose interest but it seems that’s not going to happen and my bank account can’t wait for that either. The reasons I need to quit now are mainly financial.
Yall... I don’t really know the purpose of my post. I just needed to say this somewhere. Absolutely no one knows about my habit, except my boyfriend who’s in the same boat.
if anyone has some words of wisdom for me, words of encouragement, experiences to share for a similar situation, anything.... I’d love to read it.

2 years is quite a bit, at least you need a month to feel 70%-80% normal and 3 months to be back to normal

 

[Wilson Wilson]

I had the same after kicking oxy. It absolutely does get better. It did take a few months, but I stopped feeling numb and depressed and felt (and still do feel) much more alive than I ever did on oxy. You gotta say strong but you can do it. And @OpiateKiller is right too that opiates do not damage your brain forever. Withdrawal feels terrible, but your brain is not damaged. It just needs time to adjust.

 

[Rxoxo]

All of you, thank you so much for the responses. This seriously means a lot to me. I feel so alone in this, as I can’t really tell anyone in my personal life, or I’m not comfortably with telling anyone yet, so the community here is all I have.
It feels good to know that there’s hope!
Is there anything that you guys recommend that I can do to help in the meantime, any supplements or things like that? I’ve been reading about l-tyrosine and magnesium. Anyone tried those? I know stuff like that will only help every so slightly, but maybe I can trick my mind into thinking otherwise lol

 

[Rxoxo]

You're brain is not fucked for life my friend. As bad as Opiate addiction is, I have found them to be a blessing in the fact that they really don't cause long term damage that does not heal. I have recovered from many long term, heavy dose heroin, oxy, fentanyl habits. After a few months I always return to my normal happiness and my depression goes away substance wise. You will be left with any problems you had before you started using, so if you had some depression before it will still be there when you quit.

But I'm here to tell you you have plenty of hope, and life can go back to normal. Thankfully like I said, in my experience, Opiates do not damage the brain permanently. The biggest danger factors are obviously addiction, death, and overdose causing things like coma, loss of oxygen to the brain, or loss of limbs (my friend overdosed and had his bodyweight on his leg for 8 hours and now can no longer walk without a cane, he killed a lot of the muscle and nerves in his thigh and calf.. sad sad story).

Unlike things like Meth and MDMA, I find that Opiate Addiction does not cause unfixable damage. Even these drugs, the Brain has an amazing ability to recover and bounce back. Especially if you treat it right in sobriety (exercise, proper diet of healthy things (vegetables, fruits, non processed meats, etc). and a good sleep schedule).

But please don't give up hope, after even 30 days of being off of opiates you should find yourself considerable normal, able to laugh at life and be happy. Hang in there.

Holy shit! That’s crazy about your friend’s leg! I think the only “damage” I have done to myself from opiates is due to snorting, my nose was plugged basically all winter, in the absolute worst way. But after quitting for 3 days it immediately went away. Man you don’t realize how lucky you are to breath out of your nose until you can’t anymore

But thank you, for giving me hope. As bad as the physical symptoms of withdrawal are, the depression has always been what gets me.. mostly because it lasts the longest of all the symptoms. I noticed that I physically feel better about 2-3 days after quitting. Over the weekend I was actually forced to quit, as my dealer took off Friday morning without telling me. I felt like absolute shit Friday, even worse Saturday day, then Saturday night I finally started feeling better. Wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for damn restless legs making it impossible to sleep! Anyways, I’m doing pretty good today. I am planning on getting a little fent at some point, having a tiny bit today and a tiny bit tomorrow, and making the jump Tuesday to quit for awhile.
I actually have another question for you — when does your tolerance go down? Does it ever? Say if I didn’t do anything for 3 months, then tried again, do you think I’d still have my same tolerance level? Or would that take upwards of a year to actually go down? I know everyone is different, just wondering how it was for you!

 

[OpiateKiller]

Holy shit! That’s crazy about your friend’s leg! I think the only “damage” I have done to myself from opiates is due to snorting, my nose was plugged basically all winter, in the absolute worst way. But after quitting for 3 days it immediately went away. Man you don’t realize how lucky you are to breath out of your nose until you can’t anymore

But thank you, for giving me hope. As bad as the physical symptoms of withdrawal are, the depression has always been what gets me.. mostly because it lasts the longest of all the symptoms. I noticed that I physically feel better about 2-3 days after quitting. Over the weekend I was actually forced to quit, as my dealer took off Friday morning without telling me. I felt like absolute shit Friday, even worse Saturday day, then Saturday night I finally started feeling better. Wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for damn restless legs making it impossible to sleep! Anyways, I’m doing pretty good today. I am planning on getting a little fent at some point, having a tiny bit today and a tiny bit tomorrow, and making the jump Tuesday to quit for awhile.
I actually have another question for you — when does your tolerance go down? Does it ever? Say if I didn’t do anything for 3 months, then tried again, do you think I’d still have my same tolerance level? Or would that take upwards of a year to actually go down? I know everyone is different, just wondering how it was for you!

Glad to hear you’re doing better my friend! And yeah it is a sad story he’s a wicked nice guy too, thankfully he’s gained some movement back but small steps.

So tolerance wise, your tolerance will never return to what it was before you ever did opiates but it will go down. Like if I take a year break, and take a Oxycodone 30 mg, i will feel it but it won’t get me high like they used to. Even after a year with my severe opiate tolerance I’d need about 100-150 mg of Oxycodone even a year sober.

Which is honestly why it’s better to either get on Suboxone or methadone for safety and financial reasons, or to just quit all together. Eventually drugs honestly stop working like they used to.

Probably not the news you wanted to hear, but it can be eye opening and help you realize it’s better off sober or using other things instead of trying to catch a feeling that is no longer there.

Best wishes and good luck w everything

 

[nznity]

Holy shit! That’s crazy about your friend’s leg! I think the only “damage” I have done to myself from opiates is due to snorting, my nose was plugged basically all winter, in the absolute worst way. But after quitting for 3 days it immediately went away. Man you don’t realize how lucky you are to breath out of your nose until you can’t anymore

But thank you, for giving me hope. As bad as the physical symptoms of withdrawal are, the depression has always been what gets me.. mostly because it lasts the longest of all the symptoms. I noticed that I physically feel better about 2-3 days after quitting. Over the weekend I was actually forced to quit, as my dealer took off Friday morning without telling me. I felt like absolute shit Friday, even worse Saturday day, then Saturday night I finally started feeling better. Wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for damn restless legs making it impossible to sleep! Anyways, I’m doing pretty good today. I am planning on getting a little fent at some point, having a tiny bit today and a tiny bit tomorrow, and making the jump Tuesday to quit for awhile.
I actually have another question for you — when does your tolerance go down? Does it ever? Say if I didn’t do anything for 3 months, then tried again, do you think I’d still have my same tolerance level? Or would that take upwards of a year to actually go down? I know everyone is different, just wondering how it was for you!

Your tolerance goes down considerably after 3 months+, 6 months to go back to almost baseline. You got to be careful though, i used to think like that aswell. I'm Gnna quit for a while AND then do opis every once in a while. I'm still in the same spot i was back in 2014. 6 years gone down the drain, I'm fucked up to the core and it's getting harder AND harder every Time i try to quit. Lay off the opiates before the real misery begins man, there's a hefty price u gotta Pay in return if u Wanna keep experiencing this kinda pleasure. Good luck AND stay safe.

 

[Iceman1216]

From what I have seen here at my local rehab, tolerance does go down rather quickly, when totally clean. I have watched 30,60,90 day stays at the rehab, followed by picking up, with terrible results!!! With all the Fent out there in all opiates, it’s dangerous! People are ODing right and left.
you can Always take More , you can Never take Less

 

[nznity]

From what I have seen here at my local rehab, tolerance does go down rather quickly, when totally clean. I have watched 30,60,90 day stays at the rehab, followed by picking up, with terrible results!!! With all the Fent out there in all opiates, it’s dangerous! People are ODing right and left.
you can Always take More , you can Never take Less

That's right Man, even just not doing opis for 3 days AND then using the same dose can make Smeone OD. Especially if they're using fentanyl.

 

[Wilson Wilson]

Is there anything that you guys recommend that I can do to help in the meantime, any supplements or things like that?

Good old weed is the least harmful thing you can do to chill out your mental state during withdrawals and at the same time calm down any urges to relapse.

It does differ by individual, for some people weed does not help because they get paranoid, but for me personally I find it calming, uplifting, and just overall pleasant. So when I first kicked oxy, first I smoked weed during acute withdrawal, but second during PAWS when the depression really hit I used it a lot to distract myself from the urge to just go back.

It also can make for a good replacement drug. You can change your ritual so instead of taking opiates you just smoke a joint. You are still taking something to keep you calm and happy, but something much safer, so you are not just sitting there sober thinking about getting high on opiates again.

For me weed was the big life saver in getting off and staying off oxy.

I actually have another question for you — when does your tolerance go down? Does it ever? Say if I didn’t do anything for 3 months, then tried again, do you think I’d still have my same tolerance level? Or would that take upwards of a year to actually go down? I know everyone is different, just wondering how it was for you!

In my own experience, tolerance goes down very quickly but also rises very quickly. In a few months you can probably feel low doses of oxy again (so do NOT take high doses thinking you still have the same tolerance!) but you will notice within a week your tolerance will shoot back up. This was the case for me.

But yeah as others have said, do not go back once you quit. It gets harder and harder to quit each time! Get off and stay off. I really do recommend weed as a far safer replacement drug.

 

[Keif' Richards]

Hey man, there is most definitely hope for your condition. The depression that often follows chronic Opioid usage is long-lasting and dependent upon how much you were using and for how long.

It is work. You have the hope of knowing that it WILL get better, but you also have to accept that it takes time.

You have a long road ahead of you, but that day when you wake up and realise that you have improved, it is an amazing feeling. Once you get to that point, each successive day gets better.

Sleep is better and more complete. The depression will slowly lifet and each day is a little boost that will help you keep going. We are always here for you, even if it is just for support.