Hi, this is my first post here. I never really felt the need to create an account as I never really had anything to say. This all changed earlier today.
First a little about me. I'm legitimately prescribed 150 10mg/325mg norco each month for a back injury that I simply haven't had the time to get operated on. This happened roughly 3 years and all was well for the first year. Then I'd have a bad day and take a few extra to relax... and... well... I'm sure you all know how it goes from here.
The last year and half the following pattern has persisted. Get prescription filled (this time I'm going to be strong and only use 4-5 a day so I don't run out early). The first 3 days are great. Then I start chasing that high and within a week I'm back to using 15 a day. 10-15 days later... wtf happened? This was supposed to be it. That's it, I'm never touching this shit again.
I know what I have coming. A seven day all expenses paid trip to hell. I take my last dose even though I know I won't enjoy it. All I can think about is what's to come. 6-8 hours later my nose starts to run. The profuse sweating begins. Next I start to feel that growing inferno in my stomach. As if Hades has taken residence in my abdomen. I'm freezing cold and burning hot at the same time. Put a blanket on it just exacerbates the putrid heat. Take the blanket off and I feel naked outside on a cold winters day. The vomiting and diarrhea are as relentless as an addict looking for his next fix. The mental anguish... knowing that the worst is still to come. I lay down to get some sleep. It is difficult to describe the horror that is opiate RLS. I am exhausted as if I had not eaten in 10 days yet my body constantly taunts me to move. "Move your arms, legs, get up and stretch, jog in place" it says. "I am so completely exhausted, I just want to rest." But it shows no mercy. The depression... oh the depression. My little brother was killed by a drunk driver a few years ago and every time I go through withdrawal the depression reminds of how I felt after my parents told me what happened. An all encompassing feeling of utter doom. As if your life as you know it is completely over.
Sure enough though, these symptoms begin to vanish. The first week after the symptoms subside I have an optimistic attitude toward life. I feel like I can beat this. I start hanging out with friends again. Exercising and playing sports. I feel like I'm in the clear. Then without fail, an indescribable urge to use overcomes me. As a wild boar instinctively runs for its life when chased by a lion, I call in my prescription as if my very existence depended on it. Nothing else matters. The vicious cycle repeats.
Fast forward to last night. In an attempt to get the most out of my last few pills I decided I'd try to potentiate them with DXM and diphenhydramine. About 1 hour before using I took therapeutic doses of both (30mg of DXM and 50mg diphenhydramine). I took my pills and waited. 30min went by and I didn't feel much. "That's odd" I thought. "I'm usually feeling something by now". It took about an hour before I started feeling anything and it went away fairly quickly. "Fuck it" I thought and I took the remainder of my pills (a dose that would normally have my flying high). I sat there and waited... and waited... nothing. "Potentiates my ass, what a fucking waste of pills" I thought. At this point I figure I'll try to get as much sleep as possible because I know I won't sleep 5 minutes in the next week. To my surprise I sleep for a full 10 hours. "That's odd" I'm thinking. Normally I'd be in pretty bad withdrawal right now. I feel a little sweaty and warm but that's about it. "The DXM must have slowed my metabolism of the opiates, guess it's just gonna hit me a bit later". As the day goes on things aren't getting worse but slightly better. Here as I type it's been 24 hours since my last dose and the only symptom I have is mild discomfort due to light sweating.
The reason I bring this up is because I've been through this exact withdrawal at least 15 times. Every single time by the 24 hour mark I'm in full blown, crawling out of my skin, hot/cold, debilitating depression, nausea/vomiting/diarrhea. The mild discomfort I'm feeling now is so far from what I was expecting that it's simply mind boggling. Now perhaps the DXM is only delaying the inevitable. If this is the case I'll be paying the piper in the next day or two. However, I don't see how this could be the case considering the different mechanisms of action between opiates and DXM. There should be no cross tolerance between the two drugs. Regardless of what happens, I feel there is something to this. It might also be worth a mention that DXM has a much greater effect on me than most people due to an enzyme deficiency. 90mg of DXM has me pretty out of it which is the reason I only took 30mg to potentiate.
First a little about me. I'm legitimately prescribed 150 10mg/325mg norco each month for a back injury that I simply haven't had the time to get operated on. This happened roughly 3 years and all was well for the first year. Then I'd have a bad day and take a few extra to relax... and... well... I'm sure you all know how it goes from here.
The last year and half the following pattern has persisted. Get prescription filled (this time I'm going to be strong and only use 4-5 a day so I don't run out early). The first 3 days are great. Then I start chasing that high and within a week I'm back to using 15 a day. 10-15 days later... wtf happened? This was supposed to be it. That's it, I'm never touching this shit again.
I know what I have coming. A seven day all expenses paid trip to hell. I take my last dose even though I know I won't enjoy it. All I can think about is what's to come. 6-8 hours later my nose starts to run. The profuse sweating begins. Next I start to feel that growing inferno in my stomach. As if Hades has taken residence in my abdomen. I'm freezing cold and burning hot at the same time. Put a blanket on it just exacerbates the putrid heat. Take the blanket off and I feel naked outside on a cold winters day. The vomiting and diarrhea are as relentless as an addict looking for his next fix. The mental anguish... knowing that the worst is still to come. I lay down to get some sleep. It is difficult to describe the horror that is opiate RLS. I am exhausted as if I had not eaten in 10 days yet my body constantly taunts me to move. "Move your arms, legs, get up and stretch, jog in place" it says. "I am so completely exhausted, I just want to rest." But it shows no mercy. The depression... oh the depression. My little brother was killed by a drunk driver a few years ago and every time I go through withdrawal the depression reminds of how I felt after my parents told me what happened. An all encompassing feeling of utter doom. As if your life as you know it is completely over.
Sure enough though, these symptoms begin to vanish. The first week after the symptoms subside I have an optimistic attitude toward life. I feel like I can beat this. I start hanging out with friends again. Exercising and playing sports. I feel like I'm in the clear. Then without fail, an indescribable urge to use overcomes me. As a wild boar instinctively runs for its life when chased by a lion, I call in my prescription as if my very existence depended on it. Nothing else matters. The vicious cycle repeats.
Fast forward to last night. In an attempt to get the most out of my last few pills I decided I'd try to potentiate them with DXM and diphenhydramine. About 1 hour before using I took therapeutic doses of both (30mg of DXM and 50mg diphenhydramine). I took my pills and waited. 30min went by and I didn't feel much. "That's odd" I thought. "I'm usually feeling something by now". It took about an hour before I started feeling anything and it went away fairly quickly. "Fuck it" I thought and I took the remainder of my pills (a dose that would normally have my flying high). I sat there and waited... and waited... nothing. "Potentiates my ass, what a fucking waste of pills" I thought. At this point I figure I'll try to get as much sleep as possible because I know I won't sleep 5 minutes in the next week. To my surprise I sleep for a full 10 hours. "That's odd" I'm thinking. Normally I'd be in pretty bad withdrawal right now. I feel a little sweaty and warm but that's about it. "The DXM must have slowed my metabolism of the opiates, guess it's just gonna hit me a bit later". As the day goes on things aren't getting worse but slightly better. Here as I type it's been 24 hours since my last dose and the only symptom I have is mild discomfort due to light sweating.
The reason I bring this up is because I've been through this exact withdrawal at least 15 times. Every single time by the 24 hour mark I'm in full blown, crawling out of my skin, hot/cold, debilitating depression, nausea/vomiting/diarrhea. The mild discomfort I'm feeling now is so far from what I was expecting that it's simply mind boggling. Now perhaps the DXM is only delaying the inevitable. If this is the case I'll be paying the piper in the next day or two. However, I don't see how this could be the case considering the different mechanisms of action between opiates and DXM. There should be no cross tolerance between the two drugs. Regardless of what happens, I feel there is something to this. It might also be worth a mention that DXM has a much greater effect on me than most people due to an enzyme deficiency. 90mg of DXM has me pretty out of it which is the reason I only took 30mg to potentiate.
I, for one, would subscribe 
I was absolutely devastated and had no idea how bad it would be.