Opioids First time Opiate Withdrawal! PLEASE HELP!!!

[pureblend]

I need any advise or tips to help me and my boyfriend get through this withdrawal. In order for people to provide the best advice possible I am going to tell about our situation because I know W/D depends on many factors.
For the past 4 and a half months We have been usings fyntal every day. I was a user for about 2 months before I started using everyday. During this time period I was only doing fyntal occasionally like 2 or 3 days out of the week at a low dose. As stated earlier I now use everyday and have for the past 4 and a half months. The way we've been doing fyntal is by snorting fake roxies pressed with it; each roxy is said to have around 100 mcg in it. I believe some have more fyntal in them than others because some seem stronger. For the past two months I have been doing about 15 pressed roxies a day. Since I don't know what mcg each pill contains I have to estimate my dosage; I believe I am taking around 1,500 mcg - 1,700 mcg of fyntal daily possibly more. Starting today we are trying to taper down and only do 6 pills; our plan is to cut down by a half a pill everyday. We know cutting to much too fast can make us W/D, but if done right will lessen the W/D symptoms which is what we want. Is this a good plan and if not what is? We only have roughly 2 weeks to taper down; the last day we could take a pill has to be the 3/26/17. I have only experienced opiate withdrawal once for around 12 hours and my symptoms were unbearable.
A few of my symptoms include being cold but sweating so much my clothes were wet. My hands were shaking to the point when I tried to drink water I'd spill most of it on myself. Every muscle in my body ached but the worst pain was my lower back; because of this pain I could barely move or walk.There was no way I could sit or stand that helped the lower back pain or any other muscle pain. I could also not sleep at all because of restless being so restless. I do not smoke weed but that day smoked bowls and dabs because I heard it would help; smoking gave me no relief at all not even help with sleep. For those 12 hours I really thought I was dying. The 12 hours we had W/D he had the same symptoms except he was also puking. We know no matter what I have put myself in a situation where I am going to feel like shit for a few days; so what is the best way for us to W/D? Should we withdraw at different times that way we have someone who can help us or do it together? Also any tips on how to help that if muscle and back pain start this time when W/D so that we can walk?
I have read on a forum of using the thomas cure (I think that was the name). In that cure it says to buy certain vitamins and take xanax to help get through the first 3-5 days. Does the thomas cure work; if so what if more information on it? I also have 4 suboxone strips I could use but do not want to start at a clinic and take them everyday. If i take the subs I would use them in a way similar to doing 1/4th the first 2 days; then an 1/8 the next 2days after that I would take no more subs! When I stop using on day 4 will this have helped, make me get worse, or prolong my withdrawal? Any answers to questions in my post would be greatly appreciated!! Also does anyone has any other tips or advice that will help me get off them without feeling like I did those 12 hours (if more information is needed to help I can provide it)? Also is there anyway to know how bad my withdrawal symptoms are going to be?

 

[sm0kestack]

You have the right idea with tapering down. Taper to low a dose as possible down to 0mcg. What kind of occasion is the 26th, does absolutely all medication taking have to cease completely?

The good thing about fentanyl withdrawal is that it is pretty quick because of its short half life. It is pretty harsh, but short lived and the worst will resolve in about a week.

Best thing to do is obtain comfort meds, like gabapentin (neurontin) or pregabalin (lyrica). These medications are gabapentinoids and work extremely well for opiate WD. They hit some of the same neurotransmitters in your brain that the opiates do, and balance them out. Like dopamine. This imbalance is why the restless legs and arms occur. So they work especially well for that, and you may notice that they almost suppress all symptoms of WD. If you can get your hands on a benzo, like xanax, ativan, klonopin, or valium, these will help keep you sedated and make sleep easier. I noticed you said you had 4 suboxone strips. If you use these, take the gabapentinoids and the benzo during the first 24-36hours after your last fentanyl dose, then use them and taper those down like you mentioned. After the suboxone taper is done, you may still have sleep issues and other lingering symptoms like gastro intestinal issues. You can tale Imodium (loperamide) for this, and for those nights you can't sleep, ONLY then continue use of the benzo. There are other comfort meds like clonidine, but if you plan on using suboxone, that's good enough to alleviate 95-100% of WD symptoms. Just make sure you take them properly. 24-36hours after last opiate use, or else you may precipitate withdrawal if you use them any earlier than that. Read up on precipitated withdrawal if you plan on using suboxone. It's must know information.

I hope this helped you. If you have more questions feel free to PM me if there is something I forgot to say. Good luck.

 

[pureblend]

Thank you for you advice it is very much needed as I have no clue what the W/D will be like or how to help. No pills may be done after the 26th because that is 2 weeks before I take a vacation which involves flying on a plane. I obviously do not want to get caught trying to bring pills onto the plane. I have to get the worst symptoms over before the vacation so I will be able to leave the hotel room. The vacation is 2 weeks and i'll be in a place I don't know anyone and can not buy anything; I think that is a good opportunity to not relapse because even if I had a craving I could not get anything. I know two weeks isn't that long and some symptoms my linger but I will not have severe physical withdrawal by then. Should I use the strips on suboxone as I said I would where I do a 1/4 of an 8mg strip for 2 days then 1/4 of an 8mg strip the next two days. After 4 days I would not use at all. How will I feel after the 4 days will I have severe symptoms because the sub is gone or only mild ones because the sub blocked the W/D for the worst days?

In your opinion is quitting cold turkey and using the comfort meds a better than tiny its of sub? I can definitely have xanax to go along with these comfort meds. I have never been through a Withdrawal so i'm unsure what to expect. I want the quickest way for the sever symptoms to stop and start feeling normal? I don't think I have enough time to taper down enough to only have mild symptoms. I just can not feel like last time I had never been in so much pain. Also the lower back issues and cold chills were the worst part for me. Will comfort meds help with that if not what will? Also if I do any opiate during my withdrawal such as half a pill to sleep will it help or make it worse and the withdrawal last longer?

 

[ingannilo]

In your opinion is quitting cold turkey and using the comfort meds a better than tiny its of sub? I can definitely have xanax to go along with these comfort meds. I have never been through a Withdrawal so i'm unsure what to expect. I want the quickest way for the sever symptoms to stop and start feeling normal? I don't think I have enough time to taper down enough to only have mild symptoms. I just can not feel like last time I had never been in so much pain. Also the lower back issues and cold chills were the worst part for me. Will comfort meds help with that if not what will? Also if I do any opiate during my withdrawal such as half a pill to sleep will it help or make it worse and the withdrawal last longer?

When you quit the full agonist (fent), you wanna stay quit. Yes taking half a pill to sleep will make you feel better, but it'll also mean starting back over on the whole withdrawal process.

Regarding cold turkey + "comfort meds" Vs. suboxone (buprenorphine): there is no comparison. Even with all the "comfort meds" in the world, a buprenorphine aided withdrawal will be so much less painful, so very much easier, it's not even a fair comparison.

I have a lot of experience kicking fentanyl in particular. It's a dangerous one. Suboxone/subutex is your friend. But you MUST wait to take it until you're well WELL into withdrawal. Do not take it the moment you first feel sick. Wait a minimum of 24-48 hours after your last dose-- I've precipitated withdrawal taking it around 24 hours, and it was bad bad bad-- I suggest waiting at least 36 hours, and then take a tiny tiny piece. If you don't notice it making you feel bad after an hour, take more. Do that in small amounts until you feel okay. You'll never get to "feeling good", but you should be able to get to "feeling okay" with no more than 8mg or so. You may need that much or a bit more on the first day.

Once you're comfortable on the buprenorphine, you can taper pretty quickly without too much pain. I'd take whatever dose you stabilize at on day 1, and cut that in half for day 2. After that, I'd consider halving again for day 3, then maybe going to a more conservative taper.