Is Tramadol withdrawal hard?

saintamour333 wrote:

empress2754 wrote:

I am post benzo withdrawal and am now tapering off Trams. When I got down to 3 pills, I started cutting all of the pills in half. I also would extend time between pills at least by an hour. This has worked for me because my brain thinks it is getting the full doses!

Stretching out the dosage bit by bit seems to be a good strategy ...working for me as well...also I am decreasing by now only using the 'short-acting'(37.5 mg Tramacet) and breaking them in half as I decrease, but very slowly...like 2 weeks between decreases. Doing a big decrease is definitely NOT the thing to do...the withdrawals are severe...small increments, spreading them out is bearable.

me? i have to have help with mine.....every time i tell myself ok you are only allowed this many today.....then i end up going and get the bottle and taking more....you know it is really funny how the human mind works.....if i have a few to last during the next few days....i would think to myself...everything will be alright.....just take a few and make them last until then.....i have no withdrawal signs unless i let my mind start panicing.....it takes a full 24 hours for the withdrawals to take affect....during that time i am going from friend to friend asking if they have any tramadol....lol what i forget is i asked my friends to lie to me and tell me they have none.....so that i can get off these things....i have to learn to make it last...it is like there is another person in my brain talking to me controlling my every emotion....just to get this pill.....i call it monkey on my back.....telling my i need this damn pill....i never been addicted to anything before....never....i hope everyone of you are doing good and i wish you all the best of luck.....

Michelle,
I am so inspired by your message. I hope you're still hanging in there. I am down to 3 tabs a day (I started this topic Aug 3 I think)...withdrawals have abated and I'm going to my next decrease next week...
thank you for posting...hope to hear from you again soon.
Sheri

I am on Tramadol for back pain prior to micordisectomy.  Only taking 25 mgs every 5 hours.  Only going to be taking this for a total of 18 days.  I am worried after reading everything I could find out about this drug about the withdrawal.  I have made a taper regime for myself for even this short time.  I will be put on Norco post surgery and wanted to have most of the tramadol out of my system by then.  18 days at this dose does not seem like an awful lot so I,hope I am dong the right thing.  Any suggestions or comments would be appreciated.

The best way to detox from Tramadol at home with very few symtoms is to use Kratom. Get a 50 Gram bag, it will last you five days take a couple of tea spoon fulls a day as required for the first five days and jump off day five. Sit out the last couple of days of mild agitation and you will have cracked it. You will hardley suffer at all except in the mornings before you get down to have another spoon. Kratom is legal in the UK and USA and has a very low addiction potential, no chance of addiction over five days at all.  why suffer when you dont need to? Order it on line just google Kratom UK look for what looks a good surplier I used the Green Malay varity from a UK surplier "sorry not allowed to advertise or name the site" but you should be able to find it, The Green Malay cost me £14.95 or £14.99 for the 50 Grams. This is the best way without doubt to have a pain free withdrawal. Order it one day you will get it the next if you get it where I got mine,  Regards Steve

Just need to add to my last post, don't even bother trying to step down it will take forever because of Tramadols half life, you will suffer at every step down plus when you are down to as low as 50 or 100mg you will still go through bad withdrawal when you jump off. GET SOME KRATOM and use it to withdraw when you are off it and if you have any Kratom left bin it along with any remaining Tramadol and live a drug free life.

Chefv1 Is your husband any better? 12 wks ago I discontinued taking Tramadol after 7 years of taking it and now I am having severe severe anxiety. I have never had anxiety before until now. So I keep thinking it's from stopping tramadol.

ive been on and off tramadol for years mainly recreational use i'm off them now and the only way to do it without gettin withdrawel symptons i found is to take co codamol for a week dont take the co codamal for any longer then the next day you will have a mild backache then boom freedom 

7 years is a long time sounds like your suffering post acute withdrawal syndrom ( PAWS) this can go on a couple of years or even life.

i have never had an addiction to  any med or substance except nicotene witch i ended 3 years ago unitil tramadol. I am in complete misery. i cant work i cant drive i feel like im want to crawl out of my skin. i have an appointment wwith my doctor tomarrow to get something to help ease these symptoms. the pharmacutical company that claims tramodol is non addictive needs to be held responsable for this. 

 

I was first prescribed tramadol 3 months ago. I was a fit and healthy male. I ran 4 miles every morning and swam 3 miles a week, I used the gym daily. I was an eager employee and I really loved life. One morning, after a run, I noticed a swelling in my elbow. Three hours later my arm was huge and I went to the doctors surgery. The dr swiftly sent me to hospital where I was put on IV antibiotics for a week. The diagnosis was sceptic olecranon bursitis and cellulitis. I was signed off work for 3 months. My employers were great, coming to see me, checking everything was ok, full pay, flowers for my wife for having to put up with me as I was bound to go stir crazy stuck at home. I'm due to return to work next week. I'd noticed a change in myself, I'd become lazier, I was more dependant on my wonderful wife. I wasn't giving my two kids the attention they deserved. I was living in a dream where work and money didn't matter. Only now does it make sense. Two weeks ago I stopped the tramadol and started exercising. I was fine in the morning but in the afternoons I felt lethargic and sore. I put this down to the change in routine and, perhaps, a flu coming on. A few tramadol (2 doses of 200mg) seemed to do the trick. Only now do I know that the "flu" was the start of the withdrawal.4 days ago I quit. I want ME back. 4 days ago was the start of my hell.Days 1-3 have been a blur. I'm in agony. I'm a failure. My family deserve better. I'm trying to kick the ceiling whilst I'm in bed. When no one is around I cry for everything I've ever done wrong. I cry for my family being mixed up with such a loser. I hate myself. I hate my house. My friends are better of without me. If someone walked in to kill me I would offer no resistance. I'm sweating, I'm shaking. I've forced myself to go for a walk, whilst praying no one sees me. I've ripped the phone from the wall. I have bills to pay, I've put it off. I can't face the teller looking at me.  I want to die. It would be the best for everyone - my wife could find someone good, someone who would give the kids the childhood they deserve. My parents could forget about me and give all their attentions to my sibling who needs them more than I ever have. It makes perfect sense. If I had a 'delete all' button I would press it and make everyone happy.Day 4 (as I type) Damn these sneezes, damn these pains, damn this vomit and burning diarrhoea, damn this ringing and this headache. I never realised what a headache is until now.  Damn it all to damnation and take me with it. I'm sick, I keep being sick. I'm fed up drinking water. I can see no end. Does this get better? I've over 200 pills in the cupboard. Just 1, just 1 to help the pain. That's how weak I am. I'm actually contemplating that after all the support my amazing wife has given me. I want to go on Facebook and post " I'm sorry, I don't deserve friends. You've been too good to me. Goodbye". I want to jump off a bridge. I look at those Paralympics and I look at myself. I'm pathetic. I wish I could tell someone. I won't though. I keep things to myself.This drug needs banned. I'm not one for addictions. I'm a straight kinda guy. I like a beer, sometimes and an odd whisky. Now look at me. I'm done for. My life has changed forever. It's run away and left me. I need a light at the end of the tunnel. Weak minded fool. I'm begging to God and Jesus to help me.Please avoid this drug. Please please please never ever take it.

What is the minimum amount of time it takes for Tramadol to cause addiction to the point where there are withdrawal issues?

A doctor prescribed it (in May 2012) for me as non-opiate painkiller when paracetemol and diclofenac weren't doing anything (oral ulcers - couldn't eat, drink or sleep).  To me Tramadol was a wonder drug, good pain relief and after the first day I didn't even need the max dose.  Tapered from 8x50mg tabs on the first day to zero by day nine, only about 35 or so tabs in total.  I felt no withdrawal and was very happy with the result (ulcers had cleared up, pain gone).  No withdrawal.  I got the impression it was a mild and safe step up from OTC drugs without getting into the serious stuff.  The doctor also provided a script for Vicodin in case Tramadol didn't work but I never filled it because the Tramadol did the job nicely, pain managed.

But this problem reoccurs (like right now - but only a mild incident) and I was thinking about asking for Tramadol again because my experience was nothing but good.  But my research has shown several people calling it "evil" and describing "withdrawal as bad as heroin".  I've tried codeine/paracetemol 30/1000 today but it didn't do much. 

Can I safely use Tramadol again for a week or so without risking the sorts of horrific withdrawal problems described by multiple posters?  Or just live with the pain?  Are different people affected by the drug differently?

I feel the f*****g exact same right now. And I'm at work around all these shitheads!

This is my third day without tramadol.  My doctor refuses to refill my prescription because I have not been able to afford another office visit since April.  I was exposed to highly toxic chemicals in new carpeting in 1989, fibromyalgia set in within hours of exposure.  I have only been on tramadol two years after being in excruciating pain since 1989.  I have to say, even though I have not been able to make another office visit, I feel as if I've been abused by this doctor because of his lack of care.  It feels like my head is about to explode, I am burning my back from heating pad use, my breathing is erratic, my blood pressure is sky high.  PLEASE, people, do NOT install ANY CARPETING in your home, especially if you have young children.  My daughter was only 6 when this happened, and because of the hormone disruptors in this "chemical soup" called carpet, she grew up with only one breast.  We both have permanent heart damage, immune system damage, neuromuscular damage, and the list goes on.  I had been a successful freelance paralegal and realtor, and now I am homebound with only Social Security Disability for income.  Yes, I do cry when I get hungry and there is nothing to eat.  Yes, I sued.  Warren Buffett owns the company I sued, so we never received one penny.  I am a young 60 year old yet I can barely move.  I was told by this doctor (a rheumotologist) that I should try pregabilin, but he will not prescribe it unless I go to another office visit.  And they wonder why health costs are so high...  

 

Thank you for allowing me to vent.

For anyone planning to stop taking tramadol, I recommend doing it with a very slow taper.  I have been on 6-8 tabs a day (300-400mg) for the past 3.5 months due to back pain caused by a small tumor.  I called to refill my normal script a day before I ran out, and since my doctor was on vacation, the "on-call" [very rude and unhelpful] physician at the medical group would not refill it. So I made my last 8 pills last two days, but still had to go 3 days more before my GP was back.  It was not a fun experience. To begin with, even on day 1 I had minor withdrawal symptoms after taking only 4 pills compared to the usual 6-8!  So on top of my back pain, I had diahrrhea, a headache and less energy than usual.  Day two it was the same after taking 4 pills, but the real fun began on day 3 without any pills.  I was dreading it, but I knew it was inevitable based on my online searches.  I had all the symptoms that other people have mentioned; the most problematic was lack of energy, followed by a piercing migraine headache, shakes, and a complete feeling of being out of it. These side effects lasted two full days -- that felt like eternity -- but when I woke up on day 3, I felt a bit better. The shakes had stopped, the headache went away, but I still had a little anxiety.  By day 4 (ironically, the day my doc was back and I was able to refill it), I felt pretty much normal.  It is interesting to note that I am also prescribed percoset 5/325mg for breakthrough pain, which I did not run out of, and taking even 3-4 of the percs per day, 2 at a time, did not help the tramadol withdrawal at all -- and they did not relieve any of my back pain during the withdrawal experience.  

This is the first withdrawal of anything I've ever been through, and trust me, I will go lengths to avoid this in the future.  When my GP got back from vacation, I told him about this, and A) he was blown away that the on-call would not even give me a partial refill; and B) he was shocked that tramadol would cause withdrawal symptoms of that magnitude.  I told him that, after my surgery when it is time to go off tramadol, I wanted to taper it down over at least a month.  He seemed to think that was excessive, so if he challenges me on that, I'll bring in print outs of these posts if needed!  Good luck to all going through this. I truly think tramadol withdrawal is as close to hell on earth as you can get.  My guess is the withdrawal is made worse by tramadol being a weak SNRI, so you're having to deal with anti-depressant withdrawal AND opiate-like withdrawal.  Definitely plan on NOT working or doing anything social for a few days -- possibly more based on your long-term dosage.  

I totally agree with you hydrocodone withdrawals are nothing I have been on every pain killer you can imagine. After A accident in 2000 I have severe back problems along with permanent right leg nerve and damage chronic back pain have had several surgeries.my damage is permanent Physical therapy epidural injections you name it I've had .I'm 29 years old and have been like this for some time. I keep a good frame of mind and am always cautious with the medications I was takeing tramadol and it's definitely the worst I have only been on it for three months at a dose of 350 mg a day I never exceed my dosages and never let anything overcome me. Regardless of how bad I heard how much I wanted to go away. I stopped taking the medication three days ago the withdrawal is very strong more than anything ever experienced