Using tramadol to help get through methadone withdrawal

[hikfromstik]

Hey Dale , my dad had a colonoscopy a couple years ago and said it wasn't bad. I've cut out all dairy as of last week, per doctor's instructions. I've slowed down going to the toilet, but my stomach and upper abdomen is still swollen. It really hurts at the end of the day after bouncing on heavy equipment all day.
----- yes 60 days is approaching. My sneezing has really slowed down , I still have some nasal drainage , my depression is still lingering. But improving, I'm still taking trazadone for sleep/depression . I tried seroquel, but I cant take it while operating heavy equipment for now (zombie) . My feet still hurt/burn on the bottom , but I'm guessing this is from my gastro issues or the methadone damaged nerve endings in my feet ???

 

[aihfl]

Hik, have you talked to your doctor about gabapentin or Lyrica for the nerve pain in your feet? I've been on gabapentin for years for similar issues in my feet (more a tingling and less actual pain) probably from years of heavy drinking. Lyrica won't be available as a generic until late this year or early next year and it is expensive.

 

[ladyhlove]

Hey Hik...I'm a huge Vols fan! You've got someone around here to root (and probably cry....let's just face it....sigh) for ole Rocky Top around here :D

Have you tried taking Imodium for the runs? It really works miracles. You probably wouldn't even need the crazy high doses former junkies take either..prob just the recommended dose would set you right. Honestly, I'm not surprised that you're still having GI issues 2 months down the road...they DO say that while it takes about a month for most of the opioid symptoms to decrease after ceasing methadone, some do stick around for as long as 6 months..even a year (but I really hope...and don't think...this will be the case for you).

Do you think its possible that you may have something like IBS and taking opiates for so long masked it? I have IBS and opiates essentially cure it for me...if I hadn't had it before I started using, I would think something was really wrong with me if it started up after I finished opiates.

 

[hikfromstik]

Hik, have you talked to your doctor about gabapentin or Lyrica for the nerve pain in your feet? I've been on gabapentin for years for similar issues in my feet (more a tingling and less actual pain) probably from years of heavy drinking. Lyrica won't be available as a generic until late this year or early next year and it is expensive.

I have 90 gabapentin home . They do help temporarily, but they make my feet swell so bad that it makes the pain worse the next day.

Hey Hik...I'm a huge Vols fan! You've got someone around here to root (and probably cry....let's just face it....sigh) for ole Rocky Top around here :D

Have you tried taking Imodium for the runs? It really works miracles. You probably wouldn't even need the crazy high doses former junkies take either..prob just the recommended dose would set you right. Honestly, I'm not surprised that you're still having GI issues 2 months down the road...they DO say that while it takes about a month for most of the opioid symptoms to decrease after ceasing methadone, some do stick around for as long as 6 months..even a year (but I really hope...and don't think...this will be the case for you).

Do you think its possible that you may have something like IBS and taking opiates for so long masked it? I have IBS and opiates essentially cure it for me...if I hadn't had it before I started using, I would think something was really wrong with me if it started up after I finished opiates.

Ladyh , I was taking the imodium, but my runs have slowed enough for me to stop them . I could take 2 and feel a slight relaxing feeling . When I stopped them last Thursday i noticed my feet tingling/pain started again. Maybe I'm one of the people that they cross the blood brain barrier. My dr said he could give me Lomotil, but I refused after finding out it's a strong opiate with atropine added to curve abuse . It's very hard working with gastrointestinal issues. I'm not having the bad diarrhea now , but the swollen stomach has me worried.
I'm glad we have another Vol fan here . Even though we are rebuilding again , it's still a blast watching them .

 

[Jabberwocky]

^have you ever tried fiber for the runs? It can make a useful alternative to loperamide in some situations.

 

[hikfromstik]

Hi hik,

Been dealing with my own pain issues lately, so I have finally decided to go and see my doctor. Can't get in for 2 weeks but that's okay. The ONLY reason I went off my pain meds was that I was sick of this so called opiate crisis here and how the doctors are pressured to cut their legitimate pain patients off too. Plus all the hoops I had to go through and the stigma and scrutiny at the pharmacies now.

Well that's bullshit, I'm gong to go stick up for myself instead of suffering in silence and keeping quiet.

How are you doing today my friend?

Hugs,
your friend,
Ash.

Hey Ashley, it sucks that people that truly need pain meds have a hard time getting them. Don't feel guilty for needing them . You were taking them as prescribed before you got off so if your quality of will improve then by all means take what you need to live . Lifes to short to be in constant pain .
I hope you get better

 

[ladyhlove]

THERE SHE IS.

Welcome back, Ash, haven't seen ya around here in a while.

Good for you. Honestly, if you need pain meds to live a better life, then by all means..I'd say take them. Fuck what people think....most people are idiots anyways...except for the lovely people here, we're all smart and wonderful :D (we just make bad decisions sometimes...lol)

 

[aihfl]

I don't have any opiate scripts anymore, but I'm self conscious every time I drop off or pick up a scheduled medication script. If it's Adderall, I feel like a hyperactive kindergartner and if it's Ativan, I feel like a neurotic, anxiety ridden Woody Allen movie character. It's probably more on me, though. Only in rehab did I have doctors who tried to guilt trip me. And, I probably really am a neurotic, anxiety ridden Woody Allen character.

 

[EPL1]

I love you all here, and no one's struggle is more important than the next persons.

Thank you for the kind words, that's very nice lady, I hope it goes well for me.

Nice to see you doing so well, I'm very proud of you. You're a good friend!!

Hugs and kisses and shit! ; )
Ash.

THERE SHE IS.

Welcome back, Ash, haven't seen ya around here in a while.

Good for you. Honestly, if you need pain meds to live a better life, then by all means..I'd say take them. Fuck what people think....most people are idiots anyways...except for the lovely people here, we're all smart and wonderful :D (we just make bad decisions sometimes...lol)

 

[hikfromstik]

Good to see you back Ash, I was just thinking about you and Dale earlier . Fentanyl is definitely causing a big problem with the "opiate crisis " now . I wonder if the pain clinics were not closed just how many less would have over dosed from it . Here in the states the naloxone nasal inhalers are a big thing and when we turn on the radio/TV the public service commercials advertise them multiple times daily. I told my wife welcome to the opiate epidemic. Our County even has a Over Dose Prevention Coalition . These are great programs for harm reduction and we are lucky to have these here . Would these programs be here if it wasn't for fentanyl laced drugs ? , probably not , at least not in my small town .

 

[aihfl]

A new law just came into effect in Florida limiting acute pain opiate/opioid prescriptions to three days which can be extended to a week if the doctor jumps through some hoops (the law on chronic pain scripts remains unchanged). Good news for your friendly neighborhood smack dealers.

 

[hikfromstik]

A new law just came into effect in Florida limiting acute pain opiate/opioid prescriptions to three days which can be extended to a week if the doctor jumps through some hoops (the law on chronic pain scripts remains unchanged). Good news for your friendly neighborhood smack dealers.

Wow , patients could go to a methadone clinic and get more take homes than that after a few months. Tennessee passed the 2 week bill in July . Suboxone and methadone gets a 30 day pass though. Now, somebody explain that to us. How can anyone go on vacation or visit someone for more than a few days ???

 

[aihfl]

Well this the state that started fucking with people's unemployment around the time I lost my teaching position at the University of Central Florida around 2010. I remember one state senator from Sarasota calling us "deadbeats." Trying to defraud a system that pays out a max of $550/month hardly seems like it would be worth the trouble. It's the same mentality when it comes to drugs. I understand that up until about 10 years ago, I could walk out of a doctor's office with 180 oxy (multiple doctors' offices in one day if I had been so motivated), but lawmakers have gone way past a reasonable middle ground. The only reason anything remotely progressive happens here is because every time lawmakers and the governor refuse to act on an issue, it ends up getting on a statewide ballot as a constitutional amendment, like medical weed. The ultimate result is there is a lot of stuff IMO shouldn't be in a constitution, but I am grateful that the people have that recourse when government refuses to act.

 

[ladyhlove]

As usual, the government took a problem and made it a HUGE PROBLEM. I don't think prescribing practicesneeded to change for chronic pain patients AT ALL. Prescribing 90 10mg percocets to be taken for 2 weeks fora tooth extraction (this happened to me in 2010) is exactly where the government needed to step in...andthey did..but, like usual, they took it too far. I think limiting prescribing opiates for minor pain and providingeducation about just how bad painkillers can be is where the focus should've been, not coming down on people who need this medication to be able to have a normal life. Most of us got hooked, not because a chronic pain patient sold us pills but bc we first tried painkillers when they were prescribed to us for something minor, all the while being told these drugs were "safe" so we didn't think there was anything wrong with taking "a few extra" here and there. While I eventually got officially hooked from a chronic pain patient who sold her pills, this isn't how I was first exposed. And, from the statistics I've seen, the percentage of chronic pain patients who sell their meds is incredibly low.

I was hooked on pills for years and I always made sure to get my pills from an actual patient so that I knew I wasn't getting knock-off meds (not bc I was worried about them killing me..more like I was worried I'd get ripped off by receiving fake meds). I always felt like I was being pretty safe bc I knew exactly what mg I needed to get whatever effect I was going for and oding on pills alone is very difficult if you know what you're doing. However, as the rules tightened, the pill market became scarce and even though my connections kept their prescriptions, they began charging a lot more for those same pills. So, then what did I do since I couldn't afford the pills anymore? Quit? LOL don't be silly...I started using heroin! I went from a fairly safe addiction to an extremely dangerous one. When will the govt get it through their thick skulls that prohibition isn't the solution for a substance problem...we've seen it fail so so so many times.

 

[aihfl]

There's one Florida legislator who's on a one-woman crusade to get kratom banned and what is really mind boggling is this is a person that is otherwise a liberal Democrat. The drivel that comes out of her mouth on the subject is some of the most inane shit I've ever heard in my life. She loves telling stories about junkies hopped up on kratom stealing from their families, dying of overdoses and going through awful, just awful, life-threatening withdrawals. It's so over-the-top it really makes me wonder if she's bought off by pharma. Miami has a great alternative weekly with real cojones and this is the type of thing they would love to expose. She likes to trot out this mother whose son committed suicide. It's so obvious it's a dog and pony show when this parent said, "We thought he was on meth. He would barely be conscious and his eyes would roll up in the back of his head and his speech would be slurred etc. etc." Huh??? Meth makes you nod??? Damn, I wish I would have tried it What is really mind-boggling to me is that this legislation failed not once, not twice, but three times. Two of those times it died in committee and never even made it to the House floor because the garbage this legislator, Kristin Jacobs, spews, is something you'd expect to hear from Jeff Sessions and his ilk, not a liberal Democrat from suburban Fort Lauderdale. And we have plenty of Jeff Sessions wannabes in Tallahassee. I guess there are going to be some politicians (whether they have a D or an R after their name is immaterial) who just aren't going to be satisfied until the only thing you can take for pain is a fucking Tylenol.

 

[CfZrx]

SoCal424, you are my inspiration. I will be jumping off my 20mg methadone after the 4th of July. I have friends coming in for our vacation at a local lake and don't want to "seem" ill and bed ridden . I'm at the thresh hold of withdrawal and at this point I'm just extending the pain. Luckily I'm not at a clinic, so I have a great doctor that is letting me do it my way. I've gone from 130mg to 20mg in 6 months. It's time to make the jump. I've been on this crap for 15 years ,so I've been reading about what meds can cushion the jump. Looks like tramadol, clonidine and gabapentin is the way to go. I tried my wife's tramadol 50 cut in half to 25mg for a base line to see how it would help the RLS. It completely eliminated it . Since I'm still on the done, I'm probably not getting the opioid like effect, but the uplift from the serotonin norepinephrine, dopamine was the biggest surprise. My plan is to use the tramadol for 10days then the gabapentin for 20 or so days then only the clonidine. A close friend of mine is a drug treatment counselor. He said that tramadol is the most successful drug for methadone withdrawal symptoms.

Idk if it matters, but subutex has made my methadone WD painless for the most part.

 

[hikfromstik]

Idk if it matters, but subutex has made my methadone WD painless for the most part.

At 60+ days opiate free I'm going to stick to my plan . I appreciate your suggestion though. At first I thought about trying bupe , but rode the storm out and I'm feeling better now. I still have PAWS , but its easing up .

 

[hikfromstik]

There's one Florida legislator who's on a one-woman crusade to get kratom banned and what is really mind boggling is this is a person that is otherwise a liberal Democrat. The drivel that comes out of her mouth on the subject is some of the most inane shit I've ever heard in my life. She loves telling stories about junkies hopped up on kratom stealing from their families, dying of overdoses and going through awful, just awful, life-threatening withdrawals. It's so over-the-top it really makes me wonder if she's bought off by pharma. Miami has a great alternative weekly with real cojones and this is the type of thing they would love to expose. She likes to trot out this mother whose son committed suicide. It's so obvious it's a dog and pony show when this parent said, "We thought he was on meth. He would barely be conscious and his eyes would roll up in the back of his head and his speech would be slurred etc. etc." Huh??? Meth makes you nod??? Damn, I wish I would have tried it What is really mind-boggling to me is that this legislation failed not once, not twice, but three times. Two of those times it died in committee and never even made it to the House floor because the garbage this legislator, Kristin Jacobs, spews, is something you'd expect to hear from Jeff Sessions and his ilk, not a liberal Democrat from suburban Fort Lauderdale. And we have plenty of Jeff Sessions wannabes in Tallahassee. I guess there are going to be some politicians (whether they have a D or an R after their name is immaterial) who just aren't going to be satisfied until the only thing you can take for pain is a fucking Tylenol.

I believe big pharma is out to ban kratom . Its legal here for now. If my neck gives me bad trouble again I'll try it before i take any pills.
Hopefully Jeff Sessions will be gone after midterms . He's the one spouting off about weed leading to heroin. He's living in the "reefer madness" era still. Hopefully the next attorney general will be lax on drug laws.

 

[ladyhlove]

At 60+ days opiate free I'm going to stick to my plan . I appreciate your suggestion though. At first I thought about trying bupe , but rode the storm out and I'm feeling better now. I still have PAWS , but its easing up .

Good call. I'd suggest subs if you were having a really really really hard time staying away from opiates and felt like you were gonna hardcore relapse into something really dangerous if you didn't get on the subs. But I'm not gathering that's where you are at all...

 

[hikfromstik]

So far the only opiates I've had this whole experience is imodium and the tramadol. I did try a tramadol a month or so ago and the serotonin come down the following day was a reminder to not do it again. I'm not gonna lie, I do have cravings, but luckily nobody I associate with is on any (I dont think) . I do smoke weed and drink socially on weekends,so that helps with my opiate cravings. Alcohol is not my DOC ,so I have little problem with it . It always baffles me how people could drink every day . After 2 nights of drinking it takes me 2 days to recover usually. I'm like you when it comes to drinking I think. River trips and booze go hand in hand. Nothing like a cold beer while lounging around the river .