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  • BDD Moderators: Keif’ Richards

Quitting Kratom and dealing with the withdrawals

Mf_Mayhem

Mf_Mayhem

Bluelighter
Joined
Sep 22, 2014
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I've been using Kratom every day (about 20 G 1x) for about the last 4 months or so. Before that I was taking hydrocodone (30-40 mg a day) for a few months. I took the Kratom in attempts to get of the hydros where I traded one for the other. I have decided that enough is enough and it's time to stop relying on a substance to get me through the day. I start "self medicating" like this when I get off my anti depressant medication. I will share my experience so far, and hope that it helps others.

So I decided weeks ago that I wanted to quit, but have found there is preparation to be done to make the transition a little smoother (this isn't my first rodeo, I've been addicted to much harder stuff). I started back on my anti depressant medication so that when I finally did stop, I would have that on my side. I also got ahold of some Gabapentin (neurotin), as I've heard this stuff to be great in dealing with opiate withdrawal. I haven't had much of a chance yet to experience Kratom withdrawal, but what I have experienced feels an awful lot like mild opiate withdrawal.

2/15- Last FULL dose of Kratom- had 2 cups of coffee and poured in 5g. Last cup was at 3 p.m. Took 900 mg of gaba at around 7:30 p.m. Slept all through the night.

2/16 (Today)- woke up at 6 am for work and felt ok. Had a cup of coffee and found not even a full gram of Kratom that I added. Took 900mg of Gaba. It is now almost 10 AM and I've been at work since 8 am. I haven't felt much of any withdrawal yet aside from getting some of the sweats, and I suspect the gaba and my anti depressant are helping.

will update! If anyone has any shared experience/tips/advice on this topic, please do share!
 
I would recommend switching up your dosing schedule with the gabapentin. It's got a really short half life and the method of action is kind of funky. So you should maybe try taking like 600mg and then the other 300mg about half an hour later and see if you find some more relief with this dosing schedule. I'm on 3200mg/day, blech
 
Well, I've about approached my 24 hour mark, and I am quite proud of myself for not even entertaining the idea of doing any. I've heard both ways how much kratom can be like opiate withdrawals, if not worse, or that it's not that bad at all. I've come off heroin several times, and if you've ever come off that then you know the FEAR of withdrawal is almost worst than the actual withdrawal itself. I think that's what was going on with me. I was scared of withdrawing however I became more scared of what could happen if I didn't quit. I won't jump the gun though because 48 hours is usually the worst of the WD. I usually notice WD symptoms creepin' after about 12 hours. I really think the Gaba and my depression meds have helped me immensely.
 
That gabapentin should do wonders, it's probably the main staple in my arsenal. The only problem is tolerance builds very fast, less so to the therapeutic effects though. For me nights are the only challenge, I'm someone who needs sleep and the restlessness from kratom withdrawal is just terrible, easily the worst symptom. What I do for the first few days of withdrawal is abstain all day and when night time comes I eat a small dose, around 2gs or so and catch what sleep I can. I find this approach really keeps me from burning out in the early phase of withdrawal. There's no shittier feeling than the sheer exhaustion from being up for days with no sleep and no sleep in sight, despite being drained.

Given your history with opioids I would definitely be prepared for the worst that kratom withdrawal has to offer, though hopefully the gabapentin continues to provide comfort. Good thing is kratom withdrawal is very short, for most it's about a 5-7 day process, with days 2 and 3 being the worst. A highly absorbable magnesium supplement helps, nothing amazing but something is better than nothing. Although I don't expect you to have all or any of this, for future reference baclofen, cannabis, and a benzo alongside the gabapentin is what I use to get through withdrawal and with this combination of meds I litterally function at 90+%. Obviously one must be careful with the benzo though. Baclofen can be bought online btw, and phenibut, a poorer alternative.

Just remember that the more you worry or psych yourself out the worse it will be. Kratom withdrawal has always been 70% mental for me. There will be times that I've missed a dose and feel fine, but the second I realize it's been x amount of hours since my last dose withdrawal will instantly kick in. I also find that sitting around the house moping around in withdrawal is always so much worse than staying somewhat productive and keeping myself occupied. To resist temptation, it might be a good idea to dispose of all but maybe an ounce if you have any doubts regarding willpower. Good luck though, you can always check out Sober Living and The Dark Side sub-forums for support :)
 
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Mf_Mayhem said:
you know the FEAR of withdrawal is almost worst than the actual withdrawal itself. I think that's what was going on with me. .
Click to expand...

Bingo. I've been using kratom for years daily, currently at ~9g 2x/day. I've stopped cold turkey in the past and the withdrawal is exactly as you said, just some sweats, maybe insomnia, maybe fatigue, but that's it. It also only lasts a couple days. Psyching yourself out about the withdrawal is going to make it worse, just like any other scenario. If you're convinced you have an illness, chances are you will experience symptoms of it even if you don't have it. Hypochondria is a very real thing and is something that exists in all of us in some capacity. Even things as simple as convincing yourself that you didn't sleep well last night, you'll feel tired all day. Perception is reality! :)

Good luck, it sounds like you're well on your way.
 
7 pm: Well, since my last post I feel a little worse. It's weird, I got home from work, took a hit of the herb, and it was that which seemed to make my WD symptoms more noticeable. Muscle aches, fatigue, scratchy throat, watery eyes. Took a other 900 gaba and a .025 Xanax which didn't really do much for me. Sat around and fidgeted for a while.

9:30 pm: I took 1/4 of a muscle relaxer so I would be able to wake up for work, they really knock me out along with a gaba. I smoked a little Mary and I now feel like I can get some sleep. I'm well into day two for sure but I'm still able to function somewhat. Hope I will be ok when I wake up in the morning.

I am very appreciative for your feedback and support. I'm glad I've made it this far and am going to distance myself from addicting substances one day at a time! Until then, I am going to try to get some shut eye. Thanks everyone!
 
CfZrx said:
Kratom in your coffee? Wow! Just taper :) couple grams a day for a month, then a lot less for a month, then none. Thatz what I would do :)
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I know I thought about the tapering method, but I just wanted to be done with it faster. Bite the bullet, you know? And yes, coffee Kratom is very effective and takes a lot less preparation than making a bunch capsules.
 
Seattle_Stranger said:
Bingo. I've been using kratom for years daily, currently at ~9g 2x/day. I've stopped cold turkey in the past and the withdrawal is exactly as you said, just some sweats, maybe insomnia, maybe fatigue, but that's it. It also only lasts a couple days. Psyching yourself out about the withdrawal is going to make it worse, just like any other scenario. If you're convinced you have an illness, chances are you will experience symptoms of it even if you don't have it. Hypochondria is a very real thing and is something that exists in all of us in some capacity. Even things as simple as convincing yourself that you didn't sleep well last night, you'll feel tired all day. Perception is reality! :)

Good luck, it sounds like you're well on your way.
Click to expand...

You are so right! I've had a totally different head than I usually do when coming up on withdrawal and I can't believe the difference it's made!
 
6:00 am: Slept fairly good through the night. Must've been the muscle relaxer, Gabapentin, and weed. Woke up sweaty and achy but nothing too serious. Took 900 mg of Gaba and my dose of anti depressants and started my day.

9:00ish am: The cold is not helping my cause at all. It's in the 30s with a wind chill that goes straight to my bones. Took 1200 mg more of Gaba and drank some coffee. Feeling like I can perform my daily work duties.

To anyone quitting or thinking of quitting, I cannot stress how much your mind set is important in beating this thing. I usually had started my WD in the past with thoughts of how horrible it's going to be and how much I won't be able to deal. I did not do that this time, I spent a couple of days before telling myself this needed to be done and that I COULD do this. I may feel shitty, but this feeling is NOT final. A few days of feeling crappy is insignificant in the grand scheme of things, and you've got to tell yourself that. NO FEELING IS FINAL!

Good luck to anyone who may be going down this same path. YOU CAN DO IT! :D
 
Last night was a little more difficult as I had surpassed the 48 hour mark. My withdrawal symptoms had always peaked at day 2 and continued on
 
Hi mayhem, I took too much kratom before bed last night and couldn't fall asleep till late. I thought Bali would be sleepy but I guess you can overdo it :) I'm tapering a morph habit and find that a kind of manic mood sets in that becomes annoying. I'm sure a kpin would ease the discomfort but my gf hates me usin em. I know I should work on the kratom addiction b4 it escalates. Good to hear your triumph :)
 
After over 2 years of 20+ grams per day, I am on day 8 of going cold turkey. The first 4 days were by far the worst. Yes - stay on a steady diet of gaba, aleve, and bananas (for the RLS, that was the worst part for me). Also, drink TONS of water! It will help regulate your body temp (the sweats/chills were also horrible). I also took trazadone every night for sleep and a multivitamin every day. Also, hot showers were huge for me, they get rid of the RLS (temporarily, but its some relief). Benzos give some relief, but dont get addicted to those in the process.

For anyone quitting cold turkey, I would reccomend taking 2 or 3 days (at least, I had a week) off work with no obligations as everyone can react differently to this.

Most of all, and this has already been said; your mindframe will determine whether or not you quit. In some ways, your success at quitting is determined before you even start. Reading posts like this helped me very much in handling the mental side of this. Mayhem - keep it up! I'm so glad I quit and dreaded it for months, for no reason. Im no longer a slave to a plant.
 
I hope things are working out okay Mayhem.
Currently I am going through a 'somewhat' similar situation, and have yet to feel the w/d's that I am in for.
I'm doing a rapid taper over the next couple days, then plan on utilizing the weekend to jump ship (I work M-F, a very physically demanding job). When full w/d's hit, I intend to take a small dose before bed to avoid RLS (as mentioned by Captian). Then, that is that.
Hopefully you can chime in Mayhem to give us an update. I am interested to hear your results.
 
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