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two opiates being alike and not alike??

H

HeatherWesling

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May 4, 2012
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Illinois
I have been using heroin on and off for about 4 years now and as of 5 days ago I tried to quit altogether and to deal with the withdrawal pain I have been using halfs of 500mg Vicodin. I feel pretty decent now and I'm finally regular inside but I have mild withdrawals from the Vicodin. Different than heroin. So my question is can withdrawal symptoms be different from pain killers than from heroin even though they are both opiates. Even though they are the same? And if so why? Pain killers tend to cause pain in my hands when I withdrawal. When heroin makes me unable to go to the bathroom and unable to sleep and if their is anyone else with the same story please share thank you :)
 
I'm not experienced with herion but I've heard that they are pretty intense withdrawals. Replacing it with vicodin is just replacing one for the other. So don't stay on them for too long. Opiate withdrawal is never fun but necessary. They're all uncomfortabe. Try to wean yourself off them altogether.
 
Suboxone makes me feel very strange probably because of the anti depressant so I didn't use that. I figured if I took half tabs of the 500 mg Vicodin it would make the withdrawal of heroin a little more tolerable. I certainly do not want to trade one addiction for another. Thanks! :)
 
it would be the same addiction. most opiates affect you the same way and are especially cross tolerant for one another. Withdrawal is withdrawal, methadone has a long withdrawal, fentanyl a short one but the withdrawals are essentially the same, just different in intensity and length.

i'd be interested to know how you get 500mg vicodin pills, most formulations of hydrocodone have far less hydrocodone than that and often actually have about 500mg of acetaminophen in them. I wouldn't think half a vicodin would do anything for heroin withdrawal.
 
Hmm IME it's pretty much the same, heroin withdrawal being possibly more intense than vicodin w/d though. Be careful not to trade your addictions and I wish you the best of luck with quitting heroin.
 
I believe he meant that 5/500 formulation of vics. opioid withdrawal is opioid withdrawal. half life of drug determinines intensity and duration of withdrawal
 
They probably affect different MU opiod receptors, but yes opiate withdrawal is generally gonna be the same. It is using up all your endorphins and leaving you with low dopamine, so you are gonna feel achy, depressed, sick, etc. The vicoden does seem like a pretty good idea to wean your self off heroin, just do not use it for long at all. Your gonna have to tough it out sooner or later.
 
also be careful of apap in those pills. I suggest a cwe (cold water extract) to preserve your liver.
 
Serotonin101 said:
opioid withdrawal is opioid withdrawal. half life of drug determines intensity and duration of withdrawal
Click to expand...

^This^. Symptoms are much the same regardless of the opioid used. What differs is the intensity and length of withdrawal, so heroin withdrawal is intense but relatively fast when compared to say methadone, which is longer, but for some doesn't reach quite the same height intensity wise as H. It's to do with how fast and hard they hit and how fast they metabolise out.

Heather, sounds like what you're doing is a fast taper, so the Vicodin will moderate the H withdrawal, but don't use so many you're actually preventing withdrawal, or for too long that you've got a withdrawal from the Vics still to come. I did fast tapers using codeine phosphate a good few times, using them only for around the 5 days of the H withdrawal, just enough to soften the worst effects but tapering them down fast too from day 3 peak withdrawal down to nothing by day 6-7. Really useful, didn't interfere with withdrawal or string it out overmuch, nothing to rattle off still further at the end of it. Would suggest you use the Vic in exactly the same way though you may have already moved a little beyond that. Taper hard anyways now. Gotta be done but should be more bearable than jumping straight off the H.
 
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