Declaring you're an addict to prescribed medication on the NHS

[Jabberwocky]

without showing changes in lifestyle they will not help. They are accountable for what they prescribe you.

I dont want and will not derail this thread but this allways pisses me off. The fact that we have authoritarian prescribes who think that they are the ones to decide who gets to take certsin substances and who can't. On top of that authoritarian first pass metabolism of the state we have totalitarianism in which even more deluded or psychopathic people reside and that control this hierarchy from top down. And so on. Why did we all agree to play by the rules made by people we genuinely don't like? Rules that are masked as a scientific summary but are nothing more than cherry picking and confirmation bias for economic/political purposes. People with non scientific principles pretending that they are applying the science. And those are the people who we listen to. Why? Because we are cowards and we are not willing to put in to action a massive and easily seen - civil disobedience. Not protesting but putting into action things that we actually believe in. We are just whining and running away like a prey animals. My body is my temple and I am sick of giving other people authority over me (regarding the themes I actually understanf). Especially when I understand that people who are executors of that system are mostly stuck in the past, just looking after their asses and dont even have experience in what they are "treating" (addiction, withdrawal and all that comes with careless use of substances. PMs and addiction specialists have only book knowledge that is being parroted, or are talking about how good and safe every new medication is. They are not fools and we are the suckers. Sorry for going off topic but I can't contain myself when this subject is raised. We are listening to people who less than 50 years ago still had homosexuality as a psychiatric disorder. And with few raised hands behind closed doors homosexuals were "healed" over night with one stroke of a pen in 1973. And we stil listen and are not standing up for ourselves. With true knowledge gained from proper use of scientific method. We are cowards.

Done.

Cary on I just had to get out of my chests.

-echo

 

[Zopiclone bandit]

Update: the great 'emptying' has begun. I was NOT prepared for this lol

I must say I have a newfound respect for people who get off huge opiate abuse habits. I can't even begin to imagine what this withdrawal is like 10x worse. It must be devastating beyond belief. Kudos to you all.

The negative thoughts are lifting and I feel better, down to the lowest dose now.

Never again. Fuck opiates.

Welcome to opiate addiction.

 

[Inso]

Damn guys, the withdrawal just won't stop. It's getting better slowly. I'm totally off the patches, but I've been taking one 30mg codeine pill each day which seems to have helped slow it down and make it more manageable. Then I will transition to the 8mg pills to tail off. This is honestly one of the hardest experiences of my life.

I've decided my GP doesn't need to know anything, far better advice online anyway. Why don't they warn about withdrawal effects FFS?

Did the NHS screw up giving me bupe instead of morphine? Is it bad because this is a long acting opiate? Morphine was a cake walk in comparison.

I found my stepmum's stash of Oxy (cancer patient) by accident the other day. She hides it because my dad keeps popping one before work lol. I've so far resisted taking, it is rather tempting though...

 

[Jabberwocky]

glad you're doing better. taper as slowly as possible and you should be able to do it relatively pain free. being long acting will have made it worse.

do not steal your stepmum's oxy. i stole my dad's pain meds after his mastectomy, i justified it to myself at the time cos he wasn't taking them (i'd still have probably done it if he was), but i still feel low about it to this day. its not worth it.

 

[Inso]

glad you're doing better. taper as slowly as possible and you should be able to do it relatively pain free. being long acting will have made it worse.

do not steal your stepmum's oxy. i stole my dad's pain meds after his mastectomy, i justified it to myself at the time cos he wasn't taking them (i'd still have probably done it if he was), but i still feel low about it to this day. its not worth it.

Thanks. I don't plan to touch the Oxy. I could also justify it by the fact she doesn't use the full prescription, but it would still be a shitty thing to do.

I don't really desire the buzz of opiates per se, honestly it's just not my thing thankfully. Rather I just desire reducing the emptiness and grief feeling now. I think my codeine taper is working quite well.

I remember you got off H before didn't you? How are you getting on now? Dunno how you guys do it. This is bad enough! And probably a fraction of what you had to go through.

 

[Jabberwocky]

I remember you got off H before didn't you? How are you getting on now? Dunno how you guys do it. This is bad enough! And probably a fraction of what you had to go through.

yeah i was on heroin for 6 years, every rattle tends to be worse than the last. i'm getting on fine now, life is much better without that monkey on your back. the emptiness and grief passes, but it kinda comes in waves, so be warned after it lifts, you may go back to that place- but you haven't gone backwards. don't let it demoralise you.

all opiate rattles are awful. but yeah tbh i didn't do it, i only managed when i physically couldn't get heroin and even then had opiates to reduce the intensity. though probably did drag out my cluck longer than needed at times.

one thing to be mindful of is your opioid receptors are now going to be out of whack. this means you will find yourself getting sick if you use opiates again, you'll be alright with the odd neurofen plus if you have a headache but larger doses/stronger drugs, or multiple days in a row, will get you more ill than feels fair. this will resolve over time but is a slow process, and you slow it down every time you hit those receptors artificially.

 

[Inso]

yeah i was on heroin for 6 years, every rattle tends to be worse than the last. i'm getting on fine now, life is much better without that monkey on your back. the emptiness and grief passes, but it kinda comes in waves, so be warned after it lifts, you may go back to that place- but you haven't gone backwards. don't let it demoralise you.

all opiate rattles are awful. but yeah tbh i didn't do it, i only managed when i physically couldn't get heroin and even then had opiates to reduce the intensity. though probably did drag out my cluck longer than needed at times.

one thing to be mindful of is your opioid receptors are now going to be out of whack. this means you will find yourself getting sick if you use opiates again, you'll be alright with the odd neurofen plus if you have a headache but larger doses/stronger drugs, or multiple days in a row, will get you more ill than feels fair. this will resolve over time but is a slow process, and you slow it down every time you hit those receptors artificially.

Thanks for the advice, I'll keep it in mind. That's interesting to note that opiates in the future would now have a more severe effect.

I'll never be taking opiates again. I suffer from severe, chronic, permanent migraine and SUNA headaches (neuralgia type facial pain). I've just had a battery and nerve stimulator installed in my body, that's how bad it is!

I saw this shit hot headache expert recently. He drew me a graph and explained that long term opiates will make any chronic pain worse. So he thinks I have medication overuse headache too. My pain has got BETTER as I come off the Bupe, he was bloody right. I paid 300 bones to see him. If anyone else suffers from chronic headaches, it's Dr Manjit Matharu @ Queens Square in London. He does NHS and private.

The previous NHS neurologist or GP said absolutely nothing about the above, which I'm really pissed about. They need to warn people about this stuff.

You still have done really well staying off. Good luck for the future.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Weather opioids are effective for chronic pain is still debatable issue. For some conditions they seem not to be good solution but there are painful conditions that require long term opioid pain support. It is a messy subject with lots of variables but I don't think that simple statement "Opioids are bad for chronic pain." is valid. In my case I started to experience relapse of the same kind of pain issues after I stopped buprenorphine and 18 months later pain is still here (so it's not about withdrawal). I started to use kratom few days ago an really hope I will not be forced back to buprenorphine (that didn't resolve pain to a satisfactory levels but it sure did help) or methadone (that helped the pain issues but had me unmotivated and distant). There are many types and causes of pain, and there are many types od CNSs. So long term opioid effectiveness is not straightforward issue.

But I sure am glad that you feel better!

 

[Inso]

Weather opioids are effective for chronic pain is still debatable issue. For some conditions they seem not to be good solution but there are painful conditions that require long term opioid pain support. It is a messy subject with lots of variables but I don't think that simple statement "Opioids are bad for chronic pain." is valid. In my case I started to experience relapse of the same kind of pain issues after I stopped buprenorphine and 18 months later pain is still here (so it's not about withdrawal). I started to use kratom few days ago an really hope I will not be forced back to buprenorphine (that didn't resolve pain to a satisfactory levels but it sure did help) or methadone (that helped the pain issues but had me unmotivated and distant). There are many types and causes of pain, and there are many types od CNSs. So long term opioid effectiveness is not straightforward issue.

But I sure am glad that you feel better!

It's mainly with headaches I think. He diagnosed my constant pain as actually a migraine. Opiates are particular bad for headaches or any nerve pain.

I think for physical injuries it's less of a problem. I was reading that addiction is far more common in people who are prescribed heavy opiates unnecessarily for minor pain. That's what happened in the USA, they give vicodin after tooth pulling FFS!

I had such severe constant pain and kept going to a and e for Oramorph, then my neurologist/GP decided the patches were 'safer' than Oramorph. I profoundly disagree. All they cared about was their liability, not my safety. They told me so. I don't even contact them anymore.

Glad you're managing your pain with mild opiates like Kratom. Keep it up and feel free to message me about pain, I've been at it 8 years now.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Glad you're managing your pain with mild opiates like Kratom. Keep it up and feel free to message me about pain, I've been at it 8 years now.

Thank you for your kind offer. Ill feel free to PM you when I feel in the PM (without S) mood. Advice from a person with experience always goes a long way.

Regarding managing pain with kratom... I have enough experience know that I know kratom can work in my case for few months and then I need a long break before any benefits can be gained again. So it is a temporary solution to a permanent problem.

I will not go into details of my pain issues but it is something that will follow me for the rest of my life. I am trying to combat it with eating healthy and exercise but unfortunately it doesn't solve the problem. I am pissed that cause I had an addiction to stimulants when (much) younger I was never candidate for opioids treatment. I believe I could have managed it with normal dose of tapentadol, but as I was denied I turned to street sources and ruined my tolerance. In the beginning I could only get MS Contins that contained 100mg (the little grey ones) and methadone. After I pushed my tolerance too high to fast I got access to almost unlimited amount of oxycodone from another person that was going through a very rough time and my tolerance to was already about 100mg oxycodone daily. I was having tolerance brakes (believe it or not) but every time I started opioids again my tolerance was right there waiting for me.

Cause of all that I went to addiction treatment - to get pain medication under supervision of a doctor. But that didn't work out so well as methadone just didnt suit me and buprenorphine was already a bit to weak.

I have got one prescription (a miracle but only for a month) from my GP of tapentadol and I was delighted to find out that it worked in doses that are much lower, opioid wise, than morphine/oxycodone/methadone I had to use before. But as soon as I became happy I got cut out. I was to great of liability to my GP...

Now I am in a no man's land. I can get all the buprenorphine and methadone I want - to treat addiction. But zero opioids to treat pain. And am trying not go back to buprenorphine or methadone as I don't want to experience withdrawal like I went through from previous stint with them. They are just too long. On the other hand the quality of my life is suffering and I don't know what to do. Kratom is viable solution for few months but I don't know what to do after that. Especially cause I am in more pain durring Autumn/Winter. Oh well, it will be what will be. Title of this thread really resonates with me. Hope you will feel better for a long time @Inso , I am always happy to hear someone is doing better.

 

[Inso]

I'm doing better now because I have an Occipital Nerve Stimulator implanted in the back of my head like a cyborg. And a battery the size of a badge under the skin on my chest like a pacemaker. Amazing technology.

Walking around in a fraction of the pain, after having constant burning pressure under my left eye for years, is fucking incredible. I feel like a child discovering the world again.

@Sunyecho I really hope they can find a non-opioid treatment for your pain. Good luck. I had to research the best consultants to treat my type of pain. I hope things improve for you too.

 

[Jabberwocky]

I am so glad to hear that @Inso !

I will do my best and hope that doctors pick up on that and do their part. I really hope that when I turn 50 in about a decade that I will be seen as "a junkie trying to score opioids". We shall see. I will not stop trying that's for sure.

Once more - great job @Inso , I am truly happy that life became more pleasant to your eyes. :D

 

[Inso]

I am so glad to hear that @Inso !

I will do my best and hope that doctors pick up on that and do their part. I really hope that when I turn 50 in about a decade that I will be seen as "a junkie trying to score opioids". We shall see. I will not stop trying that's for sure.

Once more - great job @Inso , I am truly happy that life became more pleasant to your eyes. :D

I'm down to three 8mg codeine pills once a day. Just gonna stay on this now, I still feel empty and depressed if I don't have at least some codeine. I've done it in my own, I doubt GP would have been helpful. This has been one of the toughest experiences I've had, I was not expecting it to be this brutal.

Thanks for the nice words! Hope you get better soon.

 

[dsd]

Thanks for the advice, I'll keep it in mind. That's i. I paid 300 bones to see him. If anyone else suffers from chronic headaches, it's Dr Manjit Matharu @ Queens Square in London. He does NHS and private.

The previous NHS neurologist or GP said absolutely nothing about the above, which I'm really pissed about. They need to warn people about this stuff.

You still have done really well staying off. Good luck for the future.

But to see him on the NHS it'll take 3 years. Private straight away.
Same or worse with UK dentists.

 

[dsd]

If you can afford private doctors and live in London why not try Stapleford clinic in SW1. ( It's called something else now ;. opiate addiction clinic or something like that).
Much easier to get what you're wanting, within reason.
And it won't go on your NHS dr's file , I think.

 

[Inso]

Ten days or so opiate-free now! I am about 90 percent myself and the withdrawal effect is STILL. NOT. OVER.

Well actually I took two 8mg co cododomol just the once the other day, thought it might take the edge off my headache. It actually seemed to make the withdrawal immediately worse the next day. Exactly like @chinup said would happen earlier. The receptors are fucked for a while I guess.

The NHS can't be prescribing stuff that can do this to people without actually warning them about it. For fucks sake. Luckily due to Bluelight reading in the past I understand the concept of opiate withdrawal and how it works. But imagine how many people get this and have no idea what's going on or how to handle it.

 

[Inso]

But to see him on the NHS it'll take 3 years. Private straight away.
Same or worse with UK dentists.

Six years ago, I made one private appointment. Literally an entire hour going over the whole history and explaining to me in detail what's going on and his diagnosis. Treatment plan immediately sent to GP and NHS funds the rest.

That one appointment was enough, totally changed my life. And nothing to pay privately afterwards. Many people assume if you go private you've gotta fund everything thereafter.

Then after he transferred me to his NHS list. There's normally still a waiting time of course, but by this route you can usually jump the queue to an extent. Since the lag time between GP referall and being on the list is removed. I got bumped up to the top due to 'looking desperate', but of course that was totally lucky and not gonna happen to everyone. But that's what these heavyweight consultants can do, bend the rules sometimes. They've got serious influence. You gotta find the best, especially if you have a super rare condition like me.

 

[Inso]

Ive also found myself on bupe after usng DHC for far too long after a work related injury (also just fucking love DHC, can't lie lol) cant seem to take less than 2mg per day even though 1mg should do me. Your right, pregabalin is a very useful drug for tapering and eventually coming off opiates. I found even dosing small amounts of pregab for sleep, the followng day my DHC or now my sub dose felt/feels a fair bit stronger. Only downside to pregabs for me is the spinny fucked upness of them as like to feel functional for the most part for work etc. If they made me less dizzy and drunk feeling id probably use them a lot more.

Pregabalin makes me dumb, that's what I hate about it. I forget simple words and lose shit constantly. It has helped remarkably with the withdrawal effects though so it's well worth it.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Ten days or so opiate-free now! I am about 90 percent myself and the withdrawal effect is STILL. NOT. OVER.

Well actually I took two 8mg co cododomol just the once the other day, thought it might take the edge off my headache. It actually seemed to make the withdrawal immediately worse the next day. Exactly like @chinup said would happen earlier. The receptors are fucked for a while I guess.

The NHS can't be prescribing stuff that can do this to people without actually warning them about it. For fucks sake. Luckily due to Bluelight reading in the past I understand the concept of opiate withdrawal and how it works. But imagine how many people get this and have no idea what's going on or how to handle it.

fuck mate! you've done super well. and yeah its lucky you knew a bit what you had in store through here. my boyf was recently on opiates a while after breaking some bones and then had to CT with no help/warning from his doctors.

it is batty. i've never gotten over, when i presented the letter i got from my inpatient treatment in france stating i was on daily clonazepam and zopiclone, the GP over here refused to prescribe them and instead put me onto venlafaxine which fucked me. and he did not warn me about withdrawal, despite the letter confirming i'd been on these for months at this point.

 

[Inso]

fuck mate! you've done super well. and yeah its lucky you knew a bit what you had in store through here. my boyf was recently on opiates a while after breaking some bones and then had to CT with no help/warning from his doctors.

it is batty. i've never gotten over, when i presented the letter i got from my inpatient treatment in france stating i was on daily clonazepam and zopiclone, the GP over here refused to prescribe them and instead put me onto venlafaxine which fucked me. and he did not warn me about withdrawal, despite the letter confirming i'd been on these for months at this point.

Thanks!

That's fucking criminal, opiate withdrawal is horrible but not potentially fatal. Unlike benzo withdrawal which as I understand it can kill like with alcohol. The NHS really doesn't handle this stuff well. I can't understand why, it doesn't seem that complicated.