Oxycodone dependence?

[SpunkySkunk347]

I have been using opiates occasionally for about the past year, but never taking them several days in a row until recently.
I have used almost every day this week, and have even begun to start taking 2 doses a day (30mg of oxycodone in the morning and then by the late afternoon I'm craving more of it enough that I end up taking another 30mg).

It wasn't until today that I started worrying I might end up getting sick when I eventually have to stop. Today I ran out of oxycodone, and had to settle with hydrocodone. I took 50mg of hydrocodone in the morning (a dose that would normally be too much for me and uncomfortable), and I barely felt a thing - an hour and a half after my dose I sort of felt a hint of opiate-esque euphoria, and by around 7pm I started to just feel depressed, anxious, and well just sort of sick and uncomfortable... I ended up going and getting more oxycodone, and sure enough the sickness/uncomfortable feeling I had earlier is mostly gone..

I honeslty hope I am just sick with the flu or from the 5 grams of acetaminophen that was with the 50mg of hydrocdone and the reason the pain went away after dosing was because, well, oxycodone is a painkiller after all...
Its only been a little over a week of having an opiate constantly in my system.
I think my week went something like:
Two thursdays ago - 20mg of methadone
Two fridays ago - 30mg of methadone
Waited that saturday, sunday, and monday for the methadone to mostly leave my system before taking any more opiates, but by tuesday I couldn't resist any longer and took 20mg of hydrocodone in the morning (which didn't do anything) and 25mg of hydrocodone later on that day (which also didn't do anything).
Wednesday I took 30mg of oxycodone
Thursday I took 30mg of oxycodone
Friday I took 30mg of oxycodone in the morning, then another 30mg in the evening.
Saturday I took 30mg of oxycodone in the morning, then another 30mg in the evening.
Sunday I managed to wait until about 9pm before taking 30mg of oxycodone.
Monday (today) I took 50mg of hydrocodone which barely did anything, then took 30mg of oxycodone in the evening.

Does that seem long enough to now be physically dependent?
I work manual labor full time for minimum wage, and have already missed too many days to take any more off to deal with withdrawals for a few days. If my withdrawals are minimal, I might be able to tough it out, but the soreness from working manual labor is already tough enough - I can't imagine what the pain would be like amplified by withdrawals.
As a last resort I am consdering checking in to a methadone clinic, only because I need to keep my job. Maybe they would let me do a rapid 1-2 week taper, or would they not allow that sort of "check in just for a week long taper to ease off a binge" kind of thing, since it sort of encourages abuse?

 

[sanpedro20092011]

Well... is the oxy extended release, or are we talking percocet? If its oxycontin (extended) that stays in you system much longer, I.e. you wouldnt start feeling wd symptoms until about 24 hrs after the last dose. My best guess is that you prob have some degree of dependency, esp considering that the vicodin didn't do anything for you... my advice is to try tapering down, and using lower oxy doses in combo with some hydro, eventually going down to just hydro, and then cutting back on that slowly.... peace and good luck

 

[Stay.Blazed.420]

I wouldn't say I'm really the most 'experienced' opiate user, but i do opiates every chance i can get my hands on them. I was even thinking today "wow i only have sixty bucks left in my pocket, i shouldn't go buy pizza", but shortly after i thought "but if i could get my hands on some dilly's i'd spend the cash".

For the past seven months i have been using opiates recreationally. I've already spent thousands of dollars. However my usage started because of high levels of stress and repetitive thoughts of suicide. I was released from jail and drug tests were part of my probation conditions so i stopped smoking weed and started buying hydromorphones.
I remember when I first started buying them I'd sniff a 2mg dilly and be NODDING OUT hardcore and thought it was the best feeling ever. Now to get high I need 16mg+. When I broke up with my girlfriend of over 2 years I would lay in my bed and just stare at the roof... For hours on end, I felt like i was still in jail, just trapped in my lonely bedroom. This is when i started using more and more frequently. In fact - The first time i did dilly after my gf and i broke up was the happiest and most confident i've ever felt in my entire life. She'd call crying and for once I was the one not upset, telling her this is what i wanted. I sat in my room and suddenly EVERYTHING interested me again. Tv, movies, video games, friends, forums etc..

From then on I realized that while I'm still very naive in opiate addiction, opiates were basically a depression-killer.
I actually met a new hookup (who's ridiculously expensive, but -) has offered to come shoot up with him sometime. I've never shot anything before, only insufflated, but now that my tolerance is getting so stupidly high and i need to spend $50 fuckin dollars just to get high for the evening I'm honestly considering it.

Think of me as yourself from the future. It will only get worse and the dependency will sneak in when you least suspect it. In fact, sad and pathetically, i'm looking for my fix right now.. With $60 bucks and that's it. No gas in my car either. It's fucking pathetic.

And by the way, if you're already sniffing oxy 40's or 60's you really need to cut the fuck back. I've been irresponsible with these drugs for 7 months and 60mg oxy gets me feeling pretty damn good for a while.

 

[SpunkySkunk347]

Well... is the oxy extended release, or are we talking percocet? If its oxycontin (extended) that stays in you system much longer, I.e. you wouldnt start feeling wd symptoms until about 24 hrs after the last dose. My best guess is that you prob have some degree of dependency, esp considering that the vicodin didn't do anything for you... my advice is to try tapering down, and using lower oxy doses in combo with some hydro, eventually going down to just hydro, and then cutting back on that slowly.... peace and good luck

Its instant release oxycodone with no acetaminophen (are you drooling? )
I don't even want to waste my time with hydro anymore, since I had a shitload of it and it didn't do anything at all next to the oxycodone... I basically just took it and thought "Well this blows, time to do some oxy"
I honestly like a hydrocodone high better than an oxycodone high when I can actually feel the hydrocodone, which is a bummer.

If I am physically dependent on opiates right now, its about to get even worse because today my dose went up to 45mg, which I have taken twice today now.
I have got to stop this now. Not just because withdrawals suck, but because I simply can not afford the doses I'm taking.

How long will I have to wait for my tolerance to go back down to 30mg? I am going to wait even if I start withdrawing, no matter how unbearable it feels.

 

[laCster]

physical - 2-4 weeks everyday opiate use

-----------------------------

mental - most people it's the 1st time..some it takes a few tiems....

i'd say after about 5-20 times of using opiates psychological addiction kicks in. that takes years to go away

 

[xstayfadedx]

If you're worried about being addicted that already tells you you're going down the wrong path and quick.... Addiction can happen mentally to anyone right away or not at all. Physical addiction usually happens from two weeks to a month or so of constant abuse no matter what opiate you may be using. Some even come quicker....shit if you use heroin for a week straight you'll be coming down hard and having withdrawals affter that short time (I know that's not what you're taking but is just an example). In the end, play your cards right and don't think it won't happen to you because it can and it might just will. We can't control or tell your future, you're the only one who can. Good luck and I suggest stopping while you're ahead.

Also to your tolerance question... Tolerance can easily be lowered in a week to three weeks. Even if its just a little. I would just try to go cold turkey for now if you can handle it (and most likely you can remember more than half of it at this point is mental) but if you feel as if you can't you can taper down....which in the end might be more of a hassle but what ever helps is all that matters.

 

[Oxide]

I took these posts and made them into their own thread, as I thought it was deserving of it. The thread you had originally posted in was quite old, and I think this way you'll be able to get more responses.

Anyway, it sounds like you are well on your way to a dependence if you are not already there, and the hole only gets deeper from here man.

More or less any amount of consecutive daily use will develop some sort of dependence eventually, but it's also important to remember the mental aspects can be just as unpleasant to deal with as the physical stuff. Don't psyche yourself into feeling physically ill if you are unsure. Although a physical dependence can have milder symptoms as well(i.e. no/minimal nausea or vomiting), especially when the doses involved are low-moderate.

 

[SpunkySkunk347]

I ran out of oxycodone completely today and I did start getting withdrawals by the end of the day. However, I don't really know how bad the physical withdrawals are, or maybe my mind is just making them seem a lot worse than they actually are.
I'd get sudden rushes of coldness and shakiness which felt sort of like an adrenaline rush or something, and I'd have to sit down and breathe and tell myself to calm down. By the end of my shift today at work, I could barely stand up because of how shaky and on-edge I felt. I went home and immediately started guzzling down alcohol to get myself sedated. No diarrhea or vomiting yet.
I'm glad I ran out when I did before this got out of hand.. If I still feel this way tomorrow morning, I might call the local methadone clinic to see if I can get in, but then again its probably better if I don't and just tough it out. Tomorrow is my day off (thank god), so maybe I can just take it easy and feel better by the next day when I have to go back to work.

 

[effie]

^ I'm sorry dude, WDs are no fun.. can you get yourself some loperamide? It can help hugely with the physical withdrawal symptoms. If it does get too bad then it might be worth checking out the methadone clinic - then again, if you think you can stay sober once you've got through the WDs, it might be best to try and persevere. Methadone is best for if you need something to hold you and keep the cravings at bay.

Other than that - stay well hydrated, try to get healthy food into you, take vitamins.. try to distract yourself - watch films, play computer games, whatever works for you. If you can exercise, then great, it will release some endorphins, but I realise this is unrealistic in full-on WDs. If you need some emotional support, head over to The Dark Side forum (link in my sig) - there are a lot of people there who have been through what you are going through and can offer a lot of support and advice.

Good luck

 

[JAREDMORGAN]

I've been an opiate user for about 2 years now... Growing up I knew about narcotics and what they do, but it wasn't untill about two years ago that I fell deeply in love with opiates...Started out on a 30mg oxycodone a day, then a couple months later I was up to 60-90mg a day, then a few months later I was doing anything I could to get another pill because the bank account was running dry...My point is that opiates grab you and never let go...Im sure you did the same thing I did in the beginning tellin yourself "I can quit anytime I want." But the euphoric effects keep you coming back for more untill it has you in its grip and quitting won't be so easy now, so you just keep using more and more untill either you're out of money or you can't handle the lifestyle anymore...What also made it hard for me was that a few years back I got hit hard with severe depression, along with having a child, buying a house, and getting engaged...This all happened within about a year and i was on overload along with the depression...Then i found opiates, it was like a miracle, a way to escape from life...We all know about the powerful mood lifting abilities that opiates have and i said to myself, "I'm NOT going back to the depression." ...So about nine months ago I ran out of money and broke down and said I had enough, I couldnt take the withdrawls anymore...So I found this psychiatrist, didn't tell him about my addiction at first, but a few weeks after my first appointment with him I couldn't take the WD symptoms i was currently having so I called him up (my appointments are at his house so I have his number to contact him directly) and I told him everything...It was like a miracle when he said well that's weird because I have a Suboxone program (If you don't know, Suboxone is a weak opiate that is prescribed to people with an opiate addiction, If you would like to know more about Suboxone, just ask.)...So i was like awesome I can get help with my depression and my addiction...I'm still on the Suboxone and doing alright, but the thing is I'm still an addict...And yes your brain can make things a lot worse then what they really are, I know it's hard but you have to think positive because things always get better at some point! If you have any questions or just want to talk about it just let me know...I'm here for anyone to talk to about addiction because I've been there where all you want is for someone to listen and for you to be heard.

Good luck everyone!

 

[J.Wallace]

You don't need methadone! Don't even think about starting that crap just from a little Oxy habit. Ride it out, the worst is over in a few days, tops.

 

[SpunkySkunk347]

well turns out there is a 6 month waiting list to get in to the methadone clinic, so i won't have to worry about getting sucked into that black hole
this is the end of day 2 now without opiates, i think the worst is over
my WDs were mostly limited to cramps, diarrhea, chills, and anxiety attacks. The worst part though was having to work outside today in the freezing cold, but I'm glad I persevered, because I think the exercise helped my endorphins get pumping again and might have shortened my withdrawals by 24 hours or so, I don't really know though as this is the first time (and hopefully the only time) I've ever had to deal with this

 

[effie]

^ Yay you did it, good work! Really glad you're feeling better! Exercise can indeed work wonders I also hope it is the only time you have to go through that.

 

[whippa craka]

Good for you man.

However, stupid choice on the Methadone. You are far away from an addiction needing it. STOP TAKING THEM WHILE YOU CAN.

 

[WayneRooney]

physical - 2-4 weeks everyday opiate use

-----------------------------

mental - most people it's the 1st time..some it takes a few tiems....

i'd say after about 5-20 times of using opiates psychological addiction kicks in. that takes years to go away

Interesting post.

Would you say someone with a mental/psychological addiction could go many a year without even worrying about physical addiction?

I probably tried opitates properly about a year ago, and as you say, after the first time it was real good, I'd say I became 'mentally addicted' in a certain way. More specifically to the extent that I was happy knowing that I'd always be able to, and indeed always eventually would, be able to feel like that again.

I still feel exactly the same way. But in the whole period I've always been well aware of the risks and catastrophic consequences of physical addiction. So I've rarely dosed on consecutive days. In fact I've rarely got high from opiates over once a month. But at the same time I've always known (and been content with the fact) that I would be getting high again, at some point.

 

[SpunkySkunk347]

Interesting post.

Would you say someone with a mental/psychological addiction could go many a year without even worrying about physical addiction?

I probably tried opitates properly about a year ago, and as you say, after the first time it was real good, I'd say I became 'mentally addicted' in a certain way. More specifically to the extent that I was happy knowing that I'd always be able to, and indeed always eventually would, be able to feel like that again.

I still feel exactly the same way. But in the whole period I've always been well aware of the risks and catastrophic consequences of physical addiction. So I've rarely dosed on consecutive days. In fact I've rarely got high from opiates over once a month. But at the same time I've always known (and been content with the fact) that I would be getting high again, at some point.

after 3 years of being an amphetamine addict, I'm pretty sure I've fried the pleasure centers in my brain.
I can't get that euphoric enlightening top of the world high anymore, not from anything, not even from opiates.
All opiates do for me now is give me some peace of mind; being able to go to sleep at night knowing things will be alright the next day because I have a dose of oxy I can take