Mine was hard. I'm half nuts anyway and probably some kind of depressive, but you just keep plugging away and eventuially you get through it. Thinking good attracts good, thinking bad attracts bad, sounds hoky, but it's pretty true. I'm not sure what normal is, and I'm sure I've never been mornal but I think that you'll keep getting better as time goes on. I don't know how long you were on it and that would play in to it as well I think in a way that forcing yourself to do something physical would help and it seems to be a common denominator in many posts. I just walk my dogs about a mile tonight and screw around playing basketball lightly in the driveway with my kids. We have a pool and live about as far south as you can, so our pool is usually almost warm at anytime. Jan and Feb are cooler though. So I move around a little I'd try some of that Kratom stuff, I hear alot of people talking about it. I never had it but it seems positive. My friend had the new equiv to Methadone, can't remember it's name, it actually worked will and it was mayb 5 days. He came out ok. You'll get closer to being better each day than being closer to feeling bad, so think of it that way. Good Luck, I think you'll be much better soon. It may not be the pills as much is as you on the way you are thinking that's hurting you. I can suggest everything is cumdrops and cotton condy and tell all is fine, but try to scoot on over to the positive side of thinking and it will show some results. I literally couldn't tie my shoes at first and found vivtory on the day I di it...Things like that
Bottom line - I'm really taking what you said to heart! I wish I lived in a warm climate w/a pool - you are so lucky! It's about 30 here, but I have found a long soak in the tub SO helpful! I also see how just getting some physical activity is huge. Walked a mile on my treadmill yesterday & am gonna go do it again today. And mostly I know I need to THINK POSITIVE! Hearing back from you was motivating & i really appreciate it! Over 2 years clean is the best & you should be so proud.........I'm bragging on my 37 days!
Oh, & I'm so happy to hear that "normal" is overrated - I've always thought so ;). Thanks for the encouragement..........& I forgot to ask bout the kratom thing + isn't that more for early withdrawal symptoms? (Just wondering since you mentioned it). Good luck to everyone out there wherever you may be; @ day 1 or 1001!!!
Well, I'm back in this boat. It seems every 6 months or so, before my rx gets renewed, I go for a couple weeks without tramadol. As much as it's a love/hate relationship with me...it works for my knee pain. From the military, I have little to no cartilage in both my knees (my right is worse than my left). Tramadol and ibuprofen have worked wonders to get back my active life...maybe a little TOO good to be true. But, until it is decided upon replacements, I feel "stuck" taking tramadol. I take 5 pills per day (50mg each).
Anyhow, since I've done this several times in the near decade I've been on/off the stuff, I've found a few things that have helped the withdrawal process. I have a theory that much of the discomfort with the creepy crawly feeling and restless legs at night comes from drain in potassium during withdrawal. I've actually had it tested during withdrawal and, sure enough, I was low. Now, I don't know WHY this is but actual restless leg syndrome and leg cramping comes from low potassium. So, with this theory, I tried upping my intake of potassium during the first several days. And these have really helped me "survive." I do NOT take supplements because I find it hard to know exactly how much you are taking so I choose to get them from food/beverage sources.
1. Glaceau Vitamin Water Revive has 530mg of potassium per serving. For comparison, a small banana has 467mg. I buy a big 32 oz bottle and drink it throughout the day. I also eat 2-3 bananas per day. Because orange juice (the GOOD stuff, not the concentrate stuff) has a lot, sometimes I'll have orange juice in the evening with a banana right after I get home, usually instead of dinner since I have little appetite. I've noticed over the years, when I intake a lot of potassium, the restless leg/body feeling at night is MUCH MUCH less.
2. I take ibuprofen for the body aches. I take 800mg of advil (4, 200mg tablets) twice per day. 2,400mg is the max per day so you can take 800mg a third time but I just do it twice. It does seem to help...maybe not a WHOLE lot but it's better than nothing (cause I tried that too).
3. Flonase (if you have this) helps me a lot with the sneezing and general sinus symptoms I feel. If you don't have flonase, I'd recommend an OTC nasal spray. Or you can try a OTC allergy medication (with psedoephedrine). I've done that too and it did help.
4. Wine. I normally do not drink AT ALL. No reason, I just don't. But, during withdrawals, 2-3 glasses of white wine helps to relax me a lot.
5. Hot bath or shower. I do this at night right before bed, after drinking the wine. It helps soothe my achy body feeling and helps me feel a little sleepy.
6. Nothing OTC seems to help the sleep-loss and the rx sleeping pills don't. Remeron has helped me A TON. It is an rx but I take it for sleep issues as needed. I've tried benadryl, melatonin, sleepy tea, and ambien. Nothing worked. Remeron works like magic but makes me very drowsy the next day. But, if it's that or NO SLEEP, I'll take that...at least the time passes just a little quicker when you get a chance to sleep.
7. Keeping up the routine. This is important. It's easy to sit around and mope all day long but it really doesn't do any bit of good. If you can't sleep, what's the point? Usually I give myself only ONE day where I take off work. For me, my 2-3rd day is the hardest. Before, after that it's do-able. Not at all fun, but do-able.
8. Positive attitude and support system. Another must. Feel positive, BE positive. Get support from anyone you can...even here. It helps to not feel alone...even though you will feel that way. The emotional side effects suck. I have to get constant support from my boyfriend and best friend (who are the only ones I tell during this). It doesn't make it magically disappear but it does help.
In my experience, the first 4-5 days are the worse. Then, as if by magic, one day you just feel loads better. I get lingering exhaustion and weepiness for up to a couple weeks after but, for the most part, the worst is the first 4-5 days. It FEELS like forever when you are going through it (I am now too so I know how it feels) but just keep trucking.
You can do it. I envy those quitting for good. I wish I wanted to right now...or could. I fear long-term withdrawal and I fear the terrible pain from my condition. I hope one day to make it permanent (when knees are fixed) because I do know how awesome it is to be TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY CLEAN but, for now, I just need to be without pain. I fear the hard-core opiates. Tramadol sucks but I am afraid to death of vicoden and percocet. So, for me, this is my best alternative.
Hang in there! I'll be hanging in for the next 14-15 days. Let's hope it is quick for all of us.
I’m very tired and in a state of confusion right now so please bear with me. I have degenerative bone disease and 3 ruptured disc. I have been prescribed several different pain killers over several years. Never EVER had a problem discontinuing because I didn’t take them as prescribed. I rode that line between less medication and tolerable pain, if that makes any sense at all. About 3 months ago, during a conversation with my spine doctor, it comes up that I am always in some pain because I don’t take the amount of drugs prescribed (as if that were a bad thing). I am reminding him, once again, that I deeply fear addiction and prefer tolerable pain over intolerable addiction when, as if he is waving the magic wand, he prints out a prescription for something called Tramadol. “It’s not addictive, no major side effects” he says and prescribed two 50mg tabs 4xdaily. I was apprehensive and he reassured me… non addictive, no side effects… I can still hear his voice and those evil words as I am sitting here spilling my guts to strangers because no one around me understands what I am going through. Five days ago, it was time to refill my prescription again when I thought, hmmm, I’m not experiencing any significant pain; let’s see how I do without them. I was expecting to feel some pain in my spine but that was all. At first, a little more than 24 hours in, I didn’t know what was wrong with me but I soon realized it had to be the absence of the Tramadol and I began to research it online. I have only taken the drug for 3 months, anywhere from 200 – 300 mg a day, and now, without them, I feel like I’m losing control of my body, my mind, my LIFE!!!! I don’t recall a “high” while I was taking them. My husband assures me that he noticed zero changes in me when I started them, except that I had commented being mostly pain free for the first time in years but nothing that indicated these pills changed me. I felt nothing more when I took them, than if I had taken an ibuprofen. NOTHING..AT…ALL. But now, here it is day 5 without them and I am still suffering all the withdrawals mentioned here and on numerous other sites. Some of what I have read has given me hope that there is light at the end of this tunnel. I can’t function, I can’t sleep, I can’t eat and apparently eating the right foods is a big factor but regardless of my best intentions, I CAN’T force food down. I feel like I am coming out of my own skin and the brain zaps, all of it!! I am so angry with myself that I didn’t research this drug when it was prescribed. It was a very busy time in my life, and I felt nothing other than pain relief when I starting taking it so there were no red flags I guess. I can’t seem to quit obsessing with the fact that I didn’t research it at the time. I don’t know what to do. I faked it through work yesterday and have to try to again today. OH MY GOD, I’m so tired but I am determined to never ever put one of those pills in my body again. After reading all that I have, I just can’t believe that the doctor had no clue. I am considering call my PCP, but I feel embarrassed and ashamed of my “condition”. GOD HELP ME!!! I have to get through this, I have too!!
You are probably past the worst part of it, and you will feel a little better each day, but it takes a while. Tram is a cheap, dirty pain pill. It's like a bottom shelf vodka that gives you a very hard hangover as compared to the top shelf stuff.
Many people say that drinking water helps. Lots of people say that Katrom helps, but I never tried that. You can read all these posts and see what people went through and realize that you are not alone. I did 7 years on it and maybe 500-600 mg a day, what's worse is that mine was not for pain, it was just an addiction.
Don't give up and it does get better.
It's hard to believe these pills are still being prescribed as "non-addictive", "non-narcotic", etc. I also have problems with degenerative disk issues & have recently had fusion surgery on my cervical spine (neck). I have about a 10 year history with this med; always starting off using as prescribed, but end up crossing over the line from dependence to full blown addiction. That seems to be very common with this drug that so many people innocently & unknowingly fall victim to. Hopefully you will be able to quit it for good & never touch the stuff again.......you are well on your way @ 5 days!!! It is a real nasty withdrawal - but know that you are past the worst of the physical stuff. Read these posts - they Re full of great ideas & support. Good luck - you are doing great!
In reply to someguy and mrss:
Thank you for the support. Yes, it is hard to believe they are still being pushed as non-addictive and it's even harder for me to believe that my spine specialists had no clue when he prescribed them to me. I'm sure I'm not the first patient he has ever prescribed tramadol so he had to know. I will never go back, I don't trust him.
Good news, a baby step, but I'm calling it a small victory.... I slept two SOLID hours after my first post early this morning. I work evenings today and the rest, however short, will surely help. I'm doing my best to stay positive, to focus on the smallest success, but I don't have to convince anyone on this blog that it's not easy. All of you know what's going on inside of my mind and body.
I strongly encourage anyone who has stumbled onto this site due to tramadol withdrawals, please post. Doing so was very theraputic for me and it might help you too.
I want to educate the world on tramadol, but to do that, I have to come out with my own story and doing so would cause me to lose my job. It's like we are trapped, we have an evil secret but we can't tell for fear of being labeled. We have to hide it and that adds to my anger.
Thank you to EVERYONE who has told their story here and to those of you who have shared the different ways to help get through this. I am a basket case (internally) right now so I have nothing to share on getting through the withdrawals other than staying focused on every positive step or moment.
Keep at it tellmeimnotcrazy! I am now on day 8 clean. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd days were the worst for me. I am starting to feel semi normal and can now sleep a full night. I was put on valium to help me get through and help sleep but yesterday I cut down on that big time and took natural avenues to help with sleep (plus a glass of baileys) haha.
I feel I want to do more stuff now. Yesterday I went to the beach for the first time since i've lived in this town, almost 4 years and sat down on the sand with my daughter. The day before I took my horse out for a ride - I fell off and twisted my ankle a bit but I pushed through without the need to want to have something to stop the pain.
Day 4 and 5 were pretty emotional for me, and the anger set in that I did this to myself and to my family but I am starting to be positive. I own and run my own business and i am starting to get much more motivated about it and getting my work done quicker and not stressing about it.
Music has helped me too! Plus I have been eating lots of foods and juices with berries (strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and cranberries) as well as bananas and mixed nuts and seeds on yogurt.
Good luck to all. I love reading everyones stories and having the opportunity to share mine. My goal is to make it more known to the public about the affects tramadol can have on you. I will keep you posted :)
The best way to look at it is that each day will be better than the previous once you are past the bottoming out day (say day 5 or so). You will have many naps coming, you will seuddenly feel exhausted and just collpase for an hour or two. Eventually this goes away.
You are well on your way and stick to it. You can return the thanks by helping people down the road when you see posts. I'm 2 1/2 years clean and still help people with insight.
Good luck
You all are right. Today, the fog started to lift, a little at a time all evening while I was at work. I can really see the light at the end of the tunnel now and never thought I would. I realize that was part of the withdrawal, the hopelessness and fearing I would be stuck in that state forever. If you can put a percentage to it, I'm about 70% back to normal. I also know what you mean by feeling exhausted and wanting to collapse. Even as the fog was lifting I kept having to fight back the need to nap as sleeping is not well thought of at work. I'm still having the skin crawling and some restlessness in my extremeties, but not nearly as bad and I can busy myself somewhat and it's less noticable. I will be going to bed soon and feeling a bit of dread. Hopefully I will get some real rest tonight. I sure need it and right now it feels like I could sleep. @someguy, THANK YOU for sticking around and continuing to help and support us. I will take your advise on that too. @veejay81, I have noticed that music helps tremendously. Oh, and I actually ate a meal this evening too. I have a ways to go but I'm excited and hopefull now thanks to all of you for encouraging me to push through and not give up. Please, any new comers, believe these people when they say that it will get better. You have to go through a hell that only those of us who have been there can understand, but it's worth it in the end. My only regret is I didn't find this site on my 1st or 2nd day.
Be careful, you may become very "depressed" soon, I experienced it and I see many other people do as well. It goes away as well.
I think you'll be amzed at how much better each day becomes and how much better you'll feel.
Good luck
I have already mentioned this to my husband. He, and those of you here have been my rock through this. I have my husband and the people here to lean on when the feelings of depression come. My heart truly hurts for those of you who are just starting your journey. If you made it to my posts then you have read over and over again not to give up. PLEASE don't give up or give in, you can do this and it will get better.
The depression kicked in for me around day 4, but it only lasted a few days. Ive got anti depressants to take in the mean time. But I found just crying and letting it all out and talking about it to your support person is the best thing.
Today is day 9 for me. There is tramal in the house and I have no interest whatsoever in looking for it or wanting it. My issue now is I constantly want to be doing stuff.. im getting bored very easy LOL.
Im just about to head out for a ride on my horse, first big ride ever drug free - lets see how this goes :)
Everything will become much clearer as the haze is lifted. In a weird way, the sky will be more blue and the grass more green. You'll actually want to do things and it sounds that way, just don't get thrown off the horse.