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First time codeine withdrawal

C

contico

Greenlighter
Joined
Jan 29, 2016
Messages
22
Hi everyone,

I've been searching for a similar thread however couldn't find one aligned with my situation. Apologies, if this is a topic that re-circulates.

I have been taking codeine (in the form of co-codomol 30mg codeine/500mg paracetemol tablets) for 3.5 years.

The majority of this time I have had a daily dose of 60mg in one sitting, the highest I have ingested in the one day has been 240mg over 4 doses (I would always dose at 60mg).

So lets say around first 2 years of at 60mg consistently per day, then the last year and a half at on average 60-120mg per day (very rarely any more than that). However in the last 6 weeks I have been averaging (but no more than) 120-180mg per day over 3 doses.

This was initially taken for a injury which I feel I am no longer troubled with to require medication however has gotten out of hand and feel completely dependent to the extent I will take these doses without fail even if in no pain at all. I can admit without doubt that I am 100% dependent/ addicted as they have become such a normal part of my daily life.

I have taken my last dose of 60mg (part of 180mg over today) and have made the decision to stop. My question is, I am fearful of the extent of withdrawal I will endure due to the upped-dosage and length of usage. I realize everyone is different however can you give me some insight at what I should expect with this type of opiate at these doses with my above history?

I am due to start a new job in 5 days, would this be an issue? Also I presume due to the length of usage I would expect some long term psychological effects (PAWS? as Ive read).

Thanks in advance for any replies, they would be much appreciated as I enter this beginning of my recovery.
 
Hi everyone,

Thats about 8 hours now and im slightly nervous what the next week is going to bring.:(

Any input for above?

Thanks again in advance everyone
 
Hey contico and welcome to BL:)

Codeine has a very short half life.. 3 hours so all will be eliminated from your system in less than 24 hours. Then your system will need to adjust back. You should see the light at the end of the tunnel in less than six days from your last dose.

Here are some medications you may wish to explore to help you through this.

medications for acute opiate detox

The medications I would explore the use of for detox would be:
>Clonidine< DOSED EVER FOUR HOURS..

one of either
>NEURONTIN< >HERE< >HERE< >here<
OR >Lyrica<
OR >phenibut<

>A BENZO BUT JUST AT NIGHT<
>a nsaid<
>melatonin<
tylenol
Senokot S is a stool softener and laxative. If you do not want the laxative you can go for strait stool softenerDioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate.

(Opi Withdrawal) what is the best comfort meds for opiate w/d?

Your Personal Opiate Withdrawal Arsenal

The paws if you experience much of that will likely pass in under eight months. Here is some good info around that.
PAWS LINKS
Why We Don’t Get Better Immediately: Post-acute Withdrawal Syndrome (PAWS)
Post Acute Withdrawal (PAW) Excerpted From “Staying Sober” By: Terence T. Gorski
Post-acute-withdrawal syndrome Wiki

Exercise and Brain Neurotransmission
Neurobiology of Exercise
Aerobic Exercise
Exercise 4 Health, Mental Health, and Addiction vs. The Endorphin Factory
Exercise 4 Health, Mental Health, and Addiction vs. I worked all that out
exercise and sleep

Chemicals and supplements to recover from opiate addiction
Diet & Neurogenesis


it is a powerful thing to keep our thoughts positive and here are some threads many of us use to help us do this.
Good things about being off drugs/getting sober
Share Something Positive from Your Day vs. It's All Around You
Today I Am Thankful For... Ver. 4 Infinite Chances in an Amazing World
Daily Personal Affirmations Log Vs IM THE SHIT & NOT a piece a.. not playing me. NOPE
Managing depressive thinking

Here is the mindfulness thread.
Anhedonia MEGA Thread


I wouldn't worry too much about what this is going to be like. You will feal pretty rough, but you will push through to freedom.

You got this!!
 
neversickanymore said:
Hey contico and welcome to BL:)

Codeine has a very short half life.. 3 hours so all will be eliminated from your system in less than 24 hours. Then your system will need to adjust back. You should see the light at the end of the tunnel in less than six days from your last dose.

Here are some medications you may wish to explore to help you through this.

medications for acute opiate detox

The medications I would explore the use of for detox would be:
>Clonidine< DOSED EVER FOUR HOURS..

one of either
>NEURONTIN< >HERE< >HERE< >here<
OR >Lyrica<
OR >phenibut<

>A BENZO BUT JUST AT NIGHT<
>a nsaid<
>melatonin<
tylenol
Senokot S is a stool softener and laxative. If you do not want the laxative you can go for strait stool softenerDioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate.

(Opi Withdrawal) what is the best comfort meds for opiate w/d?

Your Personal Opiate Withdrawal Arsenal

The paws if you experience much of that will likely pass in under eight months. Here is some good info around that.
PAWS LINKS
Why We Don’t Get Better Immediately: Post-acute Withdrawal Syndrome (PAWS)
Post Acute Withdrawal (PAW) Excerpted From “Staying Sober” By: Terence T. Gorski
Post-acute-withdrawal syndrome Wiki

Exercise and Brain Neurotransmission
Neurobiology of Exercise
Aerobic Exercise
Exercise 4 Health, Mental Health, and Addiction vs. The Endorphin Factory
Exercise 4 Health, Mental Health, and Addiction vs. I worked all that out
exercise and sleep

Chemicals and supplements to recover from opiate addiction
Diet & Neurogenesis


it is a powerful thing to keep our thoughts positive and here are some threads many of us use to help us do this.
Good things about being off drugs/getting sober
Share Something Positive from Your Day vs. It's All Around You
Today I Am Thankful For... Ver. 4 Infinite Chances in an Amazing World
Daily Personal Affirmations Log Vs IM THE SHIT & NOT a piece a.. not playing me. NOPE
Managing depressive thinking

Here is the mindfulness thread.
Anhedonia MEGA Thread


I wouldn't worry too much about what this is going to be like. You will feal pretty rough, but you will push through to freedom.

You got this!!
Click to expand...

Wow, thanks for such a detailed reponse, NSA!

I felt a real sense of denationalization and what I can only describe as a "dry brain" after just over 30 hours, this made me panic and in a moment of weakness I took 60mg and another 60mg just before bed.

I have started fresh today and optimistic. I'll read your info in detail so I am prepared.

Many thanks!
 
If you made it 30 hours, then you know you can do it and it wont be that bad. You are going to have to get rid of all your opiates while withdrawing. You will be too tempted to take some when you feel like shit. Clonidine had worked every single time for me and I was coming off of heavy oxy use.

If you want to be successful and not get much withdrawl, get rid of your opiates, get Clonidine, and give yourself 2 or 3 days of not being interrupted. Tell people you have the flu. Youll be fine.
 
tboy72 said:
If you made it 30 hours, then you know you can do it and it wont be that bad. You are going to have to get rid of all your opiates while withdrawing. You will be too tempted to take some when you feel like shit. Clonidine had worked every single time for me and I was coming off of heavy oxy use.

If you want to be successful and not get much withdrawl, get rid of your opiates, get Clonidine, and give yourself 2 or 3 days of not being interrupted. Tell people you have the flu. Youll be fine.
Click to expand...

Thanks Tboy. I'm just over 24 hours now. Had some up and downs. Taking paracetamol and plenty of vitamins. Some stomach upsets in me last few hours and a bit of a headache.

Unfortunately at this point I can't take time off and was on my feet all day. Legs were agony. But hopefully get a sleep now and imagine it will peak tomorrow.
 
Hopefully the psychological craving goes. I'll just need to sleep it off for tonight.
 
Been through it, you're almost there. I was on codeine for 6+ years. Regular green tea does wonders post withdrawal, the l-theanine in it can help with mood (can also get as a supplement). Are the vitamins you're taking high in B's? A B-Complex can help with mood and energy as well.

Only other advice I can offer for post withdrawal, is find something to fill the gap. Lifting heavy at the gym, a hobby, a club, take classes. Find a goal, and put it upfront in your mind. It'll be what gets you through the cravings (at first at least)

It isn't so much about taking your mind off the drugs, as it is filling the gap that you were using the drugs to fill in the first place.
 
therealbeats said:
Been through it, you're almost there. I was on codeine for 6+ years. Regular green tea does wonders post withdrawal, the l-theanine in it can help with mood (can also get as a supplement). Are the vitamins you're taking high in B's? A B-Complex can help with mood and energy as well.

Only other advice I can offer for post withdrawal, is find something to fill the gap. Lifting heavy at the gym, a hobby, a club, take classes. Find a goal, and put it upfront in your mind. It'll be what gets you through the cravings (at first at least)

It isn't so much about taking your mind off the drugs, as it is filling the gap that you were using the drugs to fill in the first place.
Click to expand...

Thanks, TRB.

Will make some green tea. Have been taking B aswell as other vits magnesium as a relaxant also.

I have powder L-theanine I might try. And I'll have some green tea too. I'll get to the the gym tonight.

Physically I don't feel terrible. Stomach upset all day, light slow symptoms and body ache but it's more mentally that has hit me in the last 5-6 hours as I approach 48hrs.

I feel so depressed and unable to handle certain ups and downs. But I'm rationalising it's the withdrawals to keep me from using.
 
Had some L-theanine and a nap. It's late but going to do some weights at the gym.

48 hours now, moments of weakness today but looking to the future.
 
Oddly experiencing certain moments of euphoria triggered by music etc.
 
In a short time you will naturally feel better 95% of time then you feal 100% of time time now. Opiates are such a trap.. trouble is that when we are in the trap, its such a mind fuck, this is so hard to see. Your not giving up something amazing.. your cutting a rabid animal from ceaselessly devouring your leg.


Music, exercise, anything positive accomplished (even better if its for no monetary profit), meditation, anything your so into you lose track of time.. these provide more euphoria then opiates ever did. And you get to keep the rest of your mind,
 
Thanks NSA,
Didn't sleep much last night. Emotions were just so intense. The moments of depression were different from what I had before, more clear, but I was more rationale.

Anyway, would you believe it, I went to the gym last night, I weight train 3 times per week and pulled a muscle across my upper back back. I'm moments away from phoning into work as I can barely sit up or move my neck without pain. Despite this I'm going to try to and stay off work and manage without painkillers l, however I start a new job tomorrow.
 
Relapse due to the injury.

But now 60 hours off them again. Today has been the worst so far mentally.
 
87 hours now. Today was better mentally. Still running to toilet a lot today, runny nose, aches.
 
Didn't sleep a wink last night. Non stop feeling of malaise and thank physical and mental feeling of restlessness in my head which made it almost impossible to lie down or close my eyes for more than a few moments.
 
Feel like these W.D are peaking now. Diarrea calming down but still present however I feel that pressure in my head, feel like I have bad heart burn over the last 24 hours. Different symptoms but definitely not normal.

That is now over 4 days since last dose.
 
Use Imodium! That is the drug loperamide for diarrhea. It makes withdrawal so much less painful! It's an opioid technically so you wouldn't be kicking cold turkey, but I promise you'll suffer a lot less. There's lots of info on it here at BL.
 
Diarhea seems to have calmed, thanks Alex.

I'm really struggling tonight. It's 3am and I woke up an hour ago after 1 hours sleep. I was up the entire night last night.

I find this symptom so hard to explain but it is so horrible. I have this once every now and then (every couple of months at night) but I've had it the last 2 nights.

Basically I feel a kind of pressure half psychical/ half mental in my head and at times down my body which leads to an intensive feeling of malaise and restlessness, I can't close my eyes for more than a couple of second after lying down before it becomes to intense, at that point I almost feel it down my back/body also.

Sitting up with eyes open it reduces to about 20% but as I am so tired it gets worse.

This isn't a headache. It's completely different, I feel like I'm burning up and unable to get in anyway comfortable when it happens.

It's happened before the withdrawal for a few hours at night, every 2 Months but this time it's been here since last night.

I can't even "relax" or trying at wait it out as the sensation is very psychical also.

I feel very alone and worried about this as it doesn't seem to be a symptom anyone else has that I can find even with stronger opiates/doses and I worry I'm going to be stuck with this. I can't even explain it to a doctor because the sensation is so indescribable.
 
I'm telling you, large doses of loperamide are used in tapers and withdrawals. Look into it, I would post a thread for you but I'm on mobile. Not for diarrhea but for the physical and mental symptoms. 12 mg should do it. Just go get some at the dollar store, you'll be less miserable. Just don't take it for too long.

This is from user stardust.hero

Are you detoxing from opiates? If you are i would suggesting purchasing Loperamide (Imodium).

Loperamide (Imodium) does act well as a suboxone substitute. When withdrawals begin to hit take 10-12mgs to start and wait 4 hours, if you are still experiencing WDs take another 10-12mgs, repeat again in 4hours~. Don't exceed more than 40mgs/day.

Loperamide works as an opioid-receptor agonist and acts on the μ-opioid receptors just as suboxone and other opiates(oids). It has limitations with crossing the BBB (blood brain barrier) thus restricting you from getting a buzz/high but it does work similar to suboxone at fulfilling the receptors need for the drug.

Goodluck Trust me.

This should not be used as a long term substitute to suboxone. It should be used to get you through the initial withdrawal period only.
 
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