Oxycodone is not exactly two times the strength of hydrocodone: 10 mg oxycodone = 15 mg hydrocodone for potency according to most opiate conversion charts and tables, personal experience, and reports of others. So, watch out for that - you do not want to dose either of these drugs too high, and I think you are already thinking above what you need with the oxycodone. To start with oxycodone, I would probably recommend 10 mg to start - that may sound low, but it really is not for someone with no opiate tolerance that has been established by actual opiate use, and not just a tendency to have a slightly higher tolerance to all drugs as you think you do. Your reaction to codeine may very well have been indicative not of your natural opiate sensitivity, but rather a lack of proper metabolization from codeine to morphine resulting in too little morphine produced to have that pronounced of an effect, and this does vary biologically between different people due to different liver enzyme levels which help do the metabolizing. Even still, though, not everyone subjectively cares for morphine (the most active out of all of codeine's metabolites causing codeine's effects) as much as hydrocodone and/or oxycodone, and it is not uncommon for one to find opiates subtle even when they are strong, however oxycodone and hydrocodone will, very doubtfully, be as subtle as codeine could have been. Still, though always let the opiate's effects roll over you, and go with them. All of this being said, I will reiterate my suggestion, a strong one too, that you try 10 mg oxycodone your first time, and 15 mg hydrocodone your first time. But, for best effect, do not dose opiates close together - if you want to use them only once or twice a month, really KNOW that they will remain most pleasurable that way - that is SO, SO true. When you use either oxycodone or hydrocodone, do so in a comfortable and relaxed environment - I'd suggest somewhere where you can nod out if you feel that coming on, which for someone with no tolerance could easily be induced by 10 mg oxycodone, or the usually more subjectively dreamy and sedating 15 mg hydrocodone. Nodding is so great - some find it the best part of the opiate experience, and others don't much care for it, some in between. If you become nauseated, and chances are you will even if only a little, LIE DOWN and you will get very good nausea relief - opiate nausea just works that way; a lot of movement is not the best idea for someone who is not very experienced with opiates - trust me. Being still is probably the best anyway when on opiates, for it is so easy and so pleasurable, but very light activity in normal tasks around the house is fine if you are not nauseated or lightheaded. You will probably itch some - a lot of opiate users like the itch, some love it, some don't like it at all. I'd guess the hydrocodone to be itchier than the oxycodone, or at least more 'flushing in warmth' than the oxycodone, but this varies on the individual. One is not necessarily more euphoric than the other, though most opiate users have or have had a preference between oxycodone and hydrocodone, but some find them equally enjoyable. Sometimes people will feel them quite differently, and other times they will feel like the same drug more or less. Do not go to school on opiates just because it would be a waste of a good high - a lazy day or nighttime when you can just totally relax is really best for the opiate novice, even though you have used codeine. But, you'll find oxycodone and hydrocodone are different from codeine - almost everyone would agree on this, though how they are different depends on the individual. I have a feeling the -codones will hit you harder with much more euphoria than codeine, where as I LOVED my experiences with codeine, but in a way rather different from hydrocodone or oxycodone. Again, that is part biological makeup, and part subjective taste in drugs. All opiates are, on the whole, subtle drugs - you may not be aware of just how high you are because of the fact they do not fuck you up like alcohol, for example, or speed you to extremes like higher doses of amphetamines, for another example. This is why, in part, some people don't get opiates their first time, first few times, or sometimes ever. Really, keep your doses around 10 mg for the oxycodone and 15 mg for the hydrocodone tops, even if you can't seem to 'feel' it. Your mind and body will learn with time, and learn very well to appreciate the subtle, but so profound and amazing euphoria opiates render. You don't want to jack up your tolerance for no reason, really. But, if you do increase, do so the NEXT time by a SMALL increment, even though I would advise several trials over several months (due to using only 1 - 2 monthly) before even thinking about going above the doses I suggested. Your mind and body, like I said, will learn. Now, I must say DO NOT MIX opiates and other CNS depressants to which you are not dependent - in other words, keep your high with the opiates and don't add other CNS depressants - it really is dangerous, esp. for someone with no opiate tolerance. I must also say opiates are incredibly addictive drugs, but you have heard this - you MAY understand just why everyone says this even though we know you have already heard it, if you have a good opiate high. They, however, can be used responsibly, I believe, IF, and this is a big IF, you know the reward is best with infrequent doses of opiates at steady doses, and you know, too, that opiate addiction is so, so, so easy to fall into and the results are not usually good at all, on the whole. Opiates are not addictive like any other drug; people may disagree, but they just aren't - they can throw someone into an addiction which is seemingly one of the hardest, if not the hardest, to get out of and stay out of, because once the opiate is in you, you just do not care about the pain it took to get the drug, because opiates are such good painkillers. All anxiety, all pain, all discomfort very wonderfully seems distant and unproblematic when you have taken an opiate. My mother who was an opiate addict once wrote something very much like "they don't take the pain away, they just dull it" - this is VERY true, for pain becomes perceived as SO MUCH less bothersome when you take an opiate, but you often can still feel it. It is hard to explain, but it is what makes opiates so unique in their reward system, reinforcing addiction to no end - it is insane what opiate addictions can drive one to do. After all of that, I should mention that at doses that most opiates that are natural or semi-synthetic (including oxycodone and hydrocodone) are not toxic to the brain or any other part of the body. They can cause some health problems, in the short term, really only by causing constipation IF the doses are not too high - they also do tend to weaken the immune system a little, but compared to other drugs they don't inflict damage upon the body like so many others do. It is important, though, to mention that the APAP in the formulations, however, is hepatoxic (toxic to the liver) even at relatively low doses (even normal therapeutic doses), but if your liver is in otherwise good health I would not worry about two Percocet 5-325's every two to four weeks. With the Vicodin, 5-500's might upset the stomach due to the increased APAP amount and not be the best of ideas, but can be tolerated by many, if you take say three at a time without CWE'ing, but DO NOT go above that without CWE'ing. BUT, I would only say this is okay if you can tolerate 1.5 grams APAP in a sitting without pain or discomfort, do not exceed that amount, do not use any other hepatoxins frequently (e.g. alcohol), and do not use APAP itself more frequently than once or twice a month with either the oxycodone or hydrocodone. Anyhow, there is my rant, full of information and suggestion I hope is helpful to you. Happy opiate-times. They are precious drugs - do not take them for granted.
