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A Long Time Coming

L

LFA

Greenlighter
Joined
Sep 2, 2017
Messages
11
My story is rather long but will try to cut it short.

I was in an auto accident in January 2006. A garbage truck ran a red light and hit my little Ford Ranger on the driver side door. I don't remember what happened and all I know is I woke up in the hospital with a Split Skull, Frontal Lobe Damage, Broken Neck, Compressed Discs in Lower Back, Broken Pelvis, Broken Left Hip, Messed Up Knees and Messed Up Left Ankle. I also have bad shoulders not from the accident.

Ive been in a Pain Managment since 2007 after my orthopedic doctor said that's what I needed.

What I've gone through to relieve the pain has been everything except for surgeries which I will need eventually. I will eventually need both knees replaced and my left hip replace. I need right now to have the discs in my back fused or removed, whichever I don't remember but I smoke and will have to wait a year after quiting to get the surgery. I will also have to have periodic surgeries on my right shoulder.

For the first couple of months of pain management, I was prescribed Morphine 25mg Extended Tabs twice a day and Vicodin 10/660 four times a day. I didn't like the Morphine so I cut that out and stuck with the Vicodin.

I was brought down to the 10/325's after the laws changed and the pills that had the higher Tylenol in them were stopped being made and that's where I am now.

I asked my pain management doctor if I would be on the pain medication for the rest of my life and he told me "Unfortunately Yes" and this just angered me. He also told me that I will need to start stepping up pain medications as the pain becomes worse and worse.

So I decided to get off the pills and live with the pain. And since the pills don't take the pain away, they just allow me to function, I'm tired of them and will fight the pain.

So I was taking Hydrocodone 10/325 4 times a day for over 11 years. I've always know that I'm dependent on the pills but was afraid to stop taking them because my pain never goes away.

On Tuesday at around 1:30pm, I took my last every four pill.
On Wednesday, I took a pill because I cut the grass and that always kills me.
i took a pill on Thursday night to help me sleep but it didn't work

And that's it, now I'm done.

I guess what I'm asking is will those pills taken on Wednesday and Thursday prolong my withdrawal and what can I expect from here on out?
How long is this going to last?
when will I get back to my four hours of sleep per night?
what can I do to ease the withdrawal?

I know I've been going through withdrawal symptoms since my pains have intensified greatly and haven't sleep in days.

Im sure I'll have more questions as the withdrawal progresses.

Thank You,
LFA
 
In my experience opiate withdraw entails diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, restlessness, depression, anxiety, irritability and restless/ sore legs. Usually the severe symptoms last 7-21 days, usually somewhere in the 2 week range.

Although you took them for a long time, it is a relatively low dose of opiates. This last time I was taking 20-60mg of hydrocodone in one dose as well as mixing it with oxycodone, codeine and benzos for about a year or maybe two. The pain you are experiencing is likely pain caused by the accident.. sounds like it was pretty rough. You may consider taking straight acetaminophen or ibprophen to help with the pain.

If you are having trouble sleeping you could try taking 5mg of hydrocodone at a time rather than 10mg and see if that doesn't help. I would think that your withdraw symptoms will be far less severe than many people I have talked to who abuse pain killers, it sounds like you were pretty responsible with them and had a genuine need for them.

It sounds like you will be in some pain due to your injuries when you stop.. it may be worse for a few weeks until your body adjust to a natural level of opiates. It may be hard to distinguish between craving the pills and wanting relief from pain. Anxiety meds will help if you get nightmares and extreme anxiety but be careful to keep the dose low and few and far between, benzo withdraw is much worse IME. I think it would be best to try a low dose of hydrocodone if you start getting severe symptoms. It may extend the time that you are in withdraw for but it will lessen the overall severity of the symptoms. Sort of like pulling a parachute will slow your descent but instead of plummeting down to earth you gradually float back down. Your daily dose is pretty low, I actually used that as a target to taper down to this last time. I would think the hard part for you isn't going to be so much the withdraws as it will be learning to cope with the physical pain you are faced with. You might even be able to switch to 5mg doses 2-4 times a day for a few weeks, then half the dose again and go through almost no withdraw- I can't say for certain though as you have been taking them for some time. I always try to go until the withdraws are unbearable then take a low dose so I can eat and catch a few hours of sleep. Expect sleep to be erratic as well.

Best of luck, hope this helps.
 
Oh and immodium AD and pedialyte have helped me with diarrhea and dehydration in the past. Simply staying hydrated helps a lot IME.
 
Thank you for the information, it is greatly appreciated.
 
Reading Mafioso's post again and believe it or not, ibuprofen actually makes my pain worse, it's really crazy. I think it has to do with swelling and how low pressure systems cause me a lot of pain. I'm rambling, sorry about that.

Anyway, the diarrhea started today so I guess I'm right on schedule.

How long will this last? I don't know, lol.

I do know that the pain in my left leg, left hip, lower back and neck is getting worse. I'm going to have to find a way to treat this pain without opiates or I'll be right back on them until I die. I'm only 47 years old, I don't want to be on these pills for another 30 years just so I can get out of bed.
 
The last time I went into withdraw I was taking probably close to 100mg or more of hydrocodone a day as well as smoking oxy and black tar. I had the shits for around 3 weeks, so I can't imagine it would last longer than that. I would think because you were taking a much lower dose that the symptoms will be less severe, probably 1-2 weeks. This is the time when immodium and electrolyte drinks will help, hopefully they can keep you from becoming seriously dehydrated. Stock up on food and supplies so if your symptoms get worse you wont have to go to the store feeling like youre about to pass out looking pale as a ghost.

Have you tried just taking acetaminophen without hydrocodone? That has to be a tough situation to be in, dealing with the pain but not wanting to be stuck on pain killers. I'm surprised that your doctor didn't give you any other options, but I guess these days doctors prefer an easy solution it seems.. idk. I wish I had more to offer you on dealing with the pain but you will probably have to try and find a doctor who can suggest long term solutions that don't involve opiates.

How's our sleep? Are you able to fall asleep for an extended period of time at all?
 
I've been through everything to try and ease the pain. From Physical Theropy to Cortizone Shots in the joints to Epidoral Shots in my spine to a Workmans Comp program I don't remember the name of to a Tens Unit to Braces to Traction to a Brace that shocks like a Tens Unit and so on. That garbage truck screwed me up bad, lol.

As for my sleep, it's pretty much nonexistent at the moment and get cat naps here and there.
Before the accident years ago, I would get 6-8 hours of sleep per night every night.
after the accident I would be lucky to get 4 but once every three months or so I would sleep for 10 hours. I hated those nights because I would wake up in so much pain, lol.

I hope to get back to 4 hours soon...I'm so tired right now it's crazy but the pain won't allow me to sleep.
 
Got a few questions for ya to start off. did you tell your doc specifically that your were stoping your meds? If so did he give you a tapper plan? Have you always taken them as perscribed? no one will judge you here I'm just trying to get a feel of the situation. how long were you on the morphine for before stoping it? Lastly why do you want to be off them if your in so much pain and don't abuse them? That's what they were made for. I take acid reflux meds that I'll have to take the rest of my life and would never consider stoping something that gave me better quality of life (also it would prolly kill me). If you take as directed pain meds should be viewed no different then meds for blood pressure or diabetes.

Also it's crazy that the pain doc had you on the same script for that long without adjustments but turns out to be good in your case because if he would have bumped you up every year or 2 (which according to the old system was the norm) you would be having a lot harder time. But Then again pain is relative to your current experience so I'm sure you feel like your in hell, and I feel for ya as I have been there many many times. In all honesty I'd like to tell you that your doing great and the right thing but based on what you have said I'm not sure you are.

As far as how long it will last.... once the shits start your physical symptoms will subside after 5 days to a week. well lets say 90 percent of them, sometimes the shits will persist also the sleeplessness can longer but after the 5 or so days of acute wds it won't be caused by your legs just what's in your head. The anxiety and lack of motivation are the symptoms that are hard to predict the length of as it depends greatly on a individuals predisposed biochemical composition and the individuals capacity to cope with these things. For instance I have vary rarely expirenced anxiety in my life (not sure I ever really have) so it wasent an issue for my recovery. Lack of motivation and extrem feelings of guilt made up for it in spades, that's a whole other story tho.
The most important thing you could do is tell your doctor about this and he can make the transition so much easier! They give you comfort meds if you need them. I would make getting something for sleep a priority. The no sleep thing is really rough and will wear you down. I like ambien or luneesta, prefer the former tho, there not for everyone and I don't recommend it if you drink. Even 1 small drink with it can have a dramatic effect on some people. Also if your single parent take precautions.
Thanks for you time and I look forward to your response.

*I'm doing this on my crap phone and can't go back and check through it.
 
Oh also use Imodium only if your basically stuck on the toilet because once you stop taking that you will experience rebound from that also.
 
LFA said:
I've been through everything to try and ease the pain. From Physical Theropy to Cortizone Shots in the joints to Epidoral Shots in my spine to a Workmans Comp program I don't remember the name of to a Tens Unit to Braces to Traction to a Brace that shocks like a Tens Unit and so on. That garbage truck screwed me up bad, lol.

As for my sleep, it's pretty much nonexistent at the moment and get cat naps here and there.
Before the accident years ago, I would get 6-8 hours of sleep per night every night.
after the accident I would be lucky to get 4 but once every three months or so I would sleep for 10 hours. I hated those nights because I would wake up in so much pain, lol.

I hope to get back to 4 hours soon...I'm so tired right now it's crazy but the pain won't allow me to sleep.
Click to expand...

It will probably be a while before you are able to sleep normally to be honest. I remember feeling really drained but still unable to sleep. At least you are able to take naps though. It sounds like you have tried most everything for the pain, which is probably why your doctor said that you will likely be taking pain killers for the rest of your life. I wish I had more to offer you regarding your pain, but I haven't had to deal with chronic pain personally nor has anyone close to me.

Do you feel like the withdraws are getting worse or do you feel like you are starting to adjust and get better?

Hang in there, they wont last forever.
 
I never abused my pain medication, I always took the pills as prescribed.

I think my withdrawal is over, I have no cravings for the drug but then again I never did. I just had to go through the physical symptoms since I stopped taking the pills.

But...

Im afraid that the only way I'm going to be able to function day to day is to go back on the pain medication. I'm exhausted and can't sleep because the pain just won't subside even a little. I've been up now for about 35 hours I think, lol. I'm hoping to become so exhausted that my body will force me to sleep and won't care about the pain.

I'll give it another week, if I don't start sleeping regular I'm going to have to go see my Pain Managment Doctor.

I think someone asked if my doctor knew I was going to do this? The answer is no, he didn't. I had to reschedule last week so I thought I'd try it without taking any pain medication. I guess I got to revaluate my pain levels by doing this.

Just pisses me off that I won't be able to live drug free.
 
You might try a medical marijuana prescription just for sleep. Being stoned all the time would just be replacing one drug for another but I have found it very effective for sleep if taken right before bed.
 
So the reason you decided to stop taking a medication that improves your quality of life is that you want to live life drug free? Im sorry but I must be missing something and I'm just trying to understand the logic. Is it just because the social stigma associated with hydrocodone?
 
XopanaMinded said:
So the reason you decided to stop taking a medication that improves your quality of life is that you want to live life drug free? Im sorry but I must be missing something and I'm just trying to understand the logic. Is it just because the social stigma associated with hydrocodone?
Click to expand...

Sometimes the things that "improve the quality" of life are pretty subjective. Higher and higher tolerance and all that comes with heavy use of opioids, less effective at relieving pain and feeling drugged all the time is not something that everyone thinks is worth trading.
 
I went to my doctor today and he yelled at me then put me on a diet too! Lol.

I guess I will be dependent on these things for the rest of my life.

Thank you all for the advice given and for the support.
 
Hey man a restricted diet may help with inflammation and stuff like that.

I don't want to sound like I'm encouraging use, but I don't think taking 40 mgs of hydrocodone a day in your situation is anything to beat yourself up for. It's not like you will be nodding off and all the horrible things that come with heavy use.

Chronic pain and such is what opiates are made for... just try to keep your use as low as possible and make sure to check yourself from time to time. best of luck
 
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