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former heroin addicts.

S

sephrah

Greenlighter
Joined
Apr 16, 2010
Messages
8
for those of you who have kicked the habit, this is a question for you. my boyfriend is a former heroin addict and he was telling me that every time he gets a cold or the flu it feels like he's going through withdrawal again. he gets hot and cold at the same time and throws up, he says the only difference is that he can sleep when hes sick and he couldn't sleep when he was going through withdrawal. we were just wondering if it's like this with anyone else? we googled it and nothing really came up, so i thought we'd ask some real people.
 
Yes, this is the case for the entire class of opiates. Obviously, his withdrawal was much more intense and severe bc he was using heroin.

So to answer your question, withdrawal brings on hot and cold sweats, lethargy, restless leg syndrome. Ok, make that restlessness in the whole body so that you can't get comfortable for more than two seconds no matter what position you are in. Oh and did I mention the ensomnia and anxiety?

Strange familiarity
 
no, we realize some symptoms are similar. but he says that before he used heroin when he got sick wouldn't be so bad. now every time he gets sick its just like withdrawal again.
 
Yea I think people are missing the point.

It sounds like it could be some strange conditioning going on. When he gets the flu his body/mind may be remembering withdrawal which makes his head going irrationally crazy.

That's my guess, unfortunately I haven't been off opiates long enough to get the flu normally.
 
no this is not true. opiates DO affect the immune system. And some people do get physically sick more AFTER getting off opiates. probably because the immune system is adjusting.

This is opposite with methadone i believe. meaning taking it regularly makes people more prone to having a cold/flu.

Opium used to be used to treat colds, fevers, bacteria and viruses.

But yes if he stops using or cuts down his dose it is probably withdrawl. Thing is some users can distinguish between withdrawl and flu/virus. IT does feel very different.
 
OP- I relate completely to your BF.
This is definitely conditioning possibly mixed with a weak immune system. But honestly, the conditioning part would make most sense- Unless, does your BF get sick all the time?
When I am sick, I liken all those symptoms to the dope sick I've felt of the past. The sweating and cold -[cause that really does happen when you have a fever, than break it- naturally or with ibuprofein of something]

This is totally normal, it just sucks having those flashback feelings. Psychosomatically- these feelings are real. Your psyche has a lot of effect on your physical wellness many a time.

The minute I get an runny nose that isn't allergies, I get a pit in my stomach feeling because that was the first sign of the beginning of dope withdrawal for me before all the worst stuff came on.

For me- There just is something though that completely totally separates dope sick from real sick, regardless if I feel so many similar symptoms due to past association of being sick. There's the extra body pain[indescribable- just IS.. mental pain, physical] that's unique to w/d...and the malaise.
And additionally, while being on dope, I never "got sick" from a legit reason. Bbecause the dope seems to cancel out the feelings of the immune system working hard. And since the only sick for a bunch of years that I was used to feeling was only dope sick... Once I was off the dope... any sick I felt would be likened to that.


ok, sorry - long! Hope I made sense!
 
seducedsoul said:
OP- I relate completely to your BF.
This is definitely conditioning possibly mixed with a weak immune system. But honestly, the conditioning part would make most sense- Unless, does your BF get sick all the time?
When I am sick, I liken all those symptoms to the dope sick I've felt of the past. The sweating and cold -[cause that really does happen when you have a fever, than break it- naturally or with ibuprofein of something]

This is totally normal, it just sucks having those flashback feelings. Psychosomatically- these feelings are real. Your psyche has a lot of effect on your physical wellness many a time.

The minute I get an runny nose that isn't allergies, I get a pit in my stomach feeling because that was the first sign of the beginning of dope withdrawal for me before all the worst stuff came on.

For me- There just is something though that completely totally separates dope sick from real sick, regardless if I feel so many similar symptoms due to past association of being sick. There's the extra body pain[indescribable- just IS.. mental pain, physical] that's unique to w/d...and the malaise.
And additionally, while being on dope, I never "got sick" from a legit reason. Bbecause the dope seems to cancel out the feelings of the immune system working hard. And since the only sick for a bunch of years that I was used to feeling was only dope sick... Once I was off the dope... any sick I felt would be likened to that.


ok, sorry - long! Hope I made sense!
Click to expand...

okay, this made a lot of sense to both of us. thanks for all of your guys' answers, at least we know he's not the only one that this happens to now:)
 
yeah you feel shit depends on how severe your withdrawal is I suppose - feeling physically desperate isn't good - it's the desperation that's possibly the worst part. If I'm ill I don't really relate it to withdrawal from opiates tho some symptoms are similar. sleeping when withdrawing doesn't really happen - sometimes it doesn't happen long after the physical discomforts have passed.

so i thought we'd ask some real people.
Click to expand...


There are no real people here
 
yea except ive actually been through heroin withdrawal and if you havent heres a little fact about it. You dont sleep. for a long time. and iv been sleeping fine.
-dk
 
stuckinaloop said:
are you sure that he's not just ACTUALLY sick with HEROIN withdrawals and leading you on to beleive he has the flu?
Click to expand...

Oooor this. I kinda thought that maybe he's doing heroin again but that's not something I wanted to suggest. If he has flu like symptoms all of the time (and it sounds like he does quite often), I would look into whether or not he has been honest about kicking his habit.

Now that I think about it, this actually sounds more feasible =/
 
User Name Here said:
Oooor this. I kinda thought that maybe he's doing heroin again but that's not something I wanted to suggest. If he has flu like symptoms all of the time (and it sounds like he does quite often), I would look into whether or not he has been honest about kicking his habit.

Now that I think about it, this actually sounds more feasible =/
Click to expand...

honestly, i know for a fact he's not using anymore. im with him constantly, and i can definitely tell when someones on something. he doesn't have flu symptoms often, it's just that when he does get sick it seems like he feels much worse than he usually did before he started using. his symptoms aren't as drastic as withdrawal symptoms-just very similar.
 
sephrah said:
honestly, i know for a fact he's not using anymore. im with him constantly, and i can definitely tell when someones on something. he doesn't have flu symptoms often, it's just that when he does get sick it seems like he feels much worse than he usually did before he started using. his symptoms aren't as drastic as withdrawal symptoms-just very similar.
Click to expand...

Well you'll know better than anyone. I just know that I was able to hide my heroin and oxycontin addiction from the man I lived and worked with. I literally spent at least 20 hours--usually 24--with him every single day. He had no idea until he found a syringe in a cup in my car that another friend had left without my knowledge and he put two and two together. I hope you don't take me suggesting that the wrong way and like I said, you'll obviously know better than anyone else whether or not he's using anymore.

If you're 100% positive he's not using then I would just assume that the cold/hot flashes and nausea are nothing more than symptoms of whatever virus or cold he has at that moment. I know that personally I have gotten similar symptoms to withdrawal when I'm sick with a stomach virus or flu ever since I can remember. They're just common symptoms of a lot of various illnesses.
 
well, this may sound a little gross but this is how i know for sure. i know opiates make you like, fucking really constipated hahahah. and i DEFINITELY know he hasnt been. hes pretty much at my place every night so......yeah, im pretty sure hes not using hahah. but i really didnt take offense to you suggesting it, i totally understand why that thought would come up.
 
sephrah said:
well, this may sound a little gross but this is how i know for sure. i know opiates make you like, fucking really constipated hahahah. and i DEFINITELY know he hasnt been. hes pretty much at my place every night so......yeah, im pretty sure hes not using hahah. but i really didnt take offense to you suggesting it, i totally understand why that thought would come up.
Click to expand...

Haha. You have a point... And I'm glad no offense was taken.
 
What if he was using laxatives to stop himself becoming constipated?

Ha ha sorry just playing Devil's Advocate.

How long has he been clean?

And to the people saying it might be still has a lowered immune system, surely that doesn't last that long after physical WD has subsided? Is there any research into how long the immune system might stay suppressed after ceasing opioid abuse?
 
^^^^ I don't know about opiates, but I do know that even when stimulant use is reduced/ceases, one is no less prone to falling ill than they were at the height of their habit.... :\

Here's hoping the immune system will build back over time!
 
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