percocet withdrawal symptoms

My son, which is 25, is going through withdrawal from Percocet as we speak. He got started on them when he was having back pain. He finally admitted to us that he has a problem. We went to the hospital last evening in hopes that he would be admitted to the addiction center, but they said he didn't have enough of a" drug" problem to be admitted. They prescribed muscle relaxer, and something for nausea and stomach cramps. After being up all night, he is finally getting a little sleep now. We are praying, and believing that with the help of our LORD that he will get through this. After I had back surgery this year I found that I was developing a dependency on them. I got off before it became an addiction. You all hang in there!!!

I'm on day two of no percocet after taking it for 10 months. I took it while waiting for surgery on my back and then after. I was supposed to stop taking them but I couldn't. My doctor told me I couldn't just stop taking them immediately. I was taking 5/325mg, probably about 10/day. I tapered myself down to about 4/day and then ran out a few days ago. I've accomplished that before, but when the doctor gave me more (100 pills each time) I would just sail back up to taking 10/day. So this time I've stopped at four and not asked for a repeat. It has been very rough, and especially since I have not told anyone about it. But, I am on day 2 and I know from the past, that day 3 is the worst and about as far as I've got. I sure hope this time I can do it. I have been taking some Robaxicet with a little codiene in it that you can get at the pharmacy without a perscription. It seems to help a little bit, but I'm still feeling like I'm going crazy. I'm so close to phoning the pharmacy/doctor for a re-fill. The problem is I still have back pain too which makes it even more frustrating.

I am writing this to anyone out there who is on this dangerous drug . My story is of saddness I t started with my husband being addicted some 20 years ago to this drug I did not know him then but he was using a hundred pills a day , when they ran out he went from doctor to doctor to get them he eventually broke the law and wrote his own prepscriptions, finally after a year or more he got caught and after time he went to prison for this ,this a man of high intellagence a college degree a kind hearted soul , after being off this drug for 6 years he broke his foot and started them again why !!!! I dont know , HE has started taking 30 or more a day I finally found out by finding pills on the floors , and doctor appt in his pants, he finally told me he is now once again tring to withdrawal off this nasty nasty drug !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can only pray that he is being honest with himself, and only god knows this he has tried in the past so many treatments even giving all his power to god , but he is back in this deep hole please pray gor him pray for our family I am scared !!! we have a 11 year old son , but I dont know how much I can take and put my son through. please tell your love ones to never nerver take this Drug!! god bless

Thanks for all this, I been on percs for 2 months since getting a pilonidal cyst. Started abusing them then threw them out last friday. The past few days i couldnt figure out what was wrong. I have been seeing things sooooo differently and have been crying non stop. At times feeling like i needed to go to a psych ward or the er or something to find out what was wrong. The Runs started today. Im also on 40mg of paxil and 30mg of Adderall. Im hoping someone can tell me how long i may feel like this. I took probably about 12 5/325's a day :/ I want my life back.
Hopefully i will feel better soon. This has given me some hope
-M

I'm just coming off of a Cold turkey stop after a 3 year, every day run on percoset, due to 8 knee surgeries during that time. It was pure hell for 5 days,with severe dysentary,anxiety/sking crawling feeling in my stomach 24/7, no sleep for 3 straight days,and very little sleep for 5,runny nose,tearing eyes,sneezing uncontrolably at times,and a constant pain throughout my body.Today is day 6,and I'm starting to feel "human" again. :D I would not recomend doing it the way I did it, but I didn't want to wean down from the 12 a day I was up to, and I knew I was spiraling out of control, so I just went Cold Turkey. I feel like I'm coming out of a cloud,and getting my old self back. It's awesome not to have to worry about where my next "hit" is coming from, like when your prescription runs out and you have to go looking to friends.

Bottom line, take as little as possible, and get off of them as fast as possible after an injury.You'll be thankful you did.

And Good Luck to all who want to kick this habit!
Gary

I want to thank all of you for your posts... those words of hope keep me focused on trying to quit my addiction to pain killers. Like many of you, I started as a result of surgery but soon became reliant. I have had easy access but I have grown to hate the way the drug controls my life. It oftens makes me forgetful and unable to focus. I have started a withdrawal plan of 1/2 pill twice a day with the intent of reducing further next week. Today is day 2 and the pain in my legs and hands is unbearable. :-( The sneezing and tearing is quite annoying ! And I find myself alternating between freezing to death and sweating.

Anyone got any tips :-| for managing these symptoms to get through the week?

Thanks again to all of you for sharing your stories.

Hello,
I want to say thanks all for the info first of all.I stareted taking painkillers/percocet when I was 28 from a back injury.I started taking vicodin at first and 2 550's would make me feel great!After that it went to 2-3 750's vicoden.After that I started taking percocet and been taking them for about 2 years 7, 5/325's a day.Well to make a really long story short I am addicted to them.When I couldnt get them I started taking methadone and sometimes 100 miligrams a day but still always preferred the pills.I also would take up to 10 xanax a day with the percocet.Soon after that came oxy's and even herion,ITS A DISEASE AND WILL ONLY PROGRESS!!!Its carzy when I read some of these post and the orrible stories that ohters have all because of pills and never sew myself getting wrapped up in drugs of anykind.Now I have decided to take control of my life and say NO to the pills and all the drugs PERIOD!I am on day 3 and believe me it sucks!!!I hurt everywhere,seat,hot/cold,cramps,very stressed and jumpy,feel like I am going crazy! BUT I WILL STOP! I am done with these pills! They say do not go cold turkey and believe me it feels like sh*t and there is no way around it but my advice is vitamins,vitamin c,rest,chicken soup,exercise even though it hurts it helps! Lots of showers,soaking in the tub and if possible get ahold of a nerv pill like adivan,or even a sleep aid to help the restless feeling also taking a few tylenol will help but DO NOT ABUSE THEM! Bottom line is life is yours,yes it sucks getting clean at first because of the withdrawals but the strong will SURVIVE.I will say sobxone and methadone are an alternative and will help the withdrawals but its another vice you have to deal with so thats why I preferred the cold turkey approach.5-7 days of hell are worth a lifetime so stick it out it gets better.!!!

My husband has been taking percocet for about a year. 10/325 The last few month he has been taking more than prescribed. So, he is now out and cant get his refill for another week. I have been with this man for 20 years and see the pain he is in everyday. I relize he is addicted to the medication. day 1 without - he was having suicidal thoughts I couldnt stand to see him in so much pain. He is 45 and hopefully many years left.
But the pain takes over and the only thing that relieves it is the pain meds.
How is he to deal with the pain if they take him off.

Please help

I have been taking 20-25 10/325 endocet a day...I can't take it anymore....the pills are causing me more distress than my herniated disks...the dr has given me methadone to try to get off them with because I am so afraid of the withdrawal I have already experienced....any advice...this has been almost 3 yrs now...thanks BB

I'm a 33 year old women who never really bothered with painkillers, In fact never really even knew what they did for someone, just assumed that they take away pain. Till I got Into a car accident, and recieved a compound fracture. I started getting the perocet In the hospital. At first I got sick from them, but was engouraged from the doctors and nurses to take the pill. So I would't have so much pain. Well I took them and I got addicted. I started to become a totally different person. And It always seemed that I needed more and more. I am now recovering from perocet addiction and If I knew then what I know now, I would of found other alternatives. It felt like I was going to die. I never felt that bad In my life. The sideffects were just a nightmare. I don't believe that anyone should live In pain. But I know 5, people right off the top of my head who can walk into a doctor's office and recieve percocet, oxycontins, vicoden, all because they have a back pain. Doctors need to stop handing painkillers out like candy. This Is becoming an epidemic. I didn't choose to become addited, and some people might say I should have know better. I agree, but doctors, also need to start knowing better.

I became addicted to percocets and other forms of narcotics through my work. Started of taking 5mg loratabs and they really boosted me and made me chatty, happy and itchy. Then i was taking 10, then 20 a day. Then i found someone w/ access to 30mg percs for 15$ a pill and started those at half a pill a day. I could get as many as i wanted or could afford and unfortunately i could afford alot and got alot. I worked at a bar and made 200 to 600 a night so it was no biggie to blow 40-50 bucks on some pills I was soon up to 90mg a day, i just could not think of starting the day w/out. Highs were not as good, lows kept getting worse and it was getting expensive at 45$ a day 1200$ a month. Then something bad just happened a month ago that scared the sh*t out of me but now has me seeing it as a good thing. The company i work for went out of business, went to work and got the slip, no money, no pills. I knew i was up sh*t creek and rationed what i had left for 3 days then i was out of pills w/ no way of getting more. Then pure hell started. Day 1 i was so anxious and depressed, no job, no money, no pills all the stress and kept feeling worse and worse. Started to feel like the flu, runny nose, diarrhea. At night full body cramps, legs hurt could not sleep. Day 2 even worse, all the above but tenfold, really felt like dying would be better, bought day quill and it helped with the runny nose but otherwise could not move except to run to the bathroom, and after about 10 trips with what i call the acid sh**s you need pain killers just to wipe. That night was horrid, with the cramps and tossing and turning, thought it would never end. Day 3 the same but lessening a little, started to eat a little and dragged my sorry butt to the ocean and jumped in, water was about 74 and i truly felt like i was in heaven, it invigorated my soul sitting out there jumping the breakers watching some storm clouds roll in, i felt great, felt like i was seeing the end and knew i could get through the rest, i did not want to get out and when i did the symptoms slowly crept back. Slept a little better that night. Day 4 felt like just the normal flu, sluggish, stomach still upset but i felt a little better mentally. Went out and worked my butt off in the yard, felt good to sweat something out. When i was done biked down to the beach for my ocean therapy and it felt great again. Slept pretty well that night. Day five and i just felt stiff, stuffy and stomach mildly upset but overall better. Day 6 i felt like a new person. It was hard, so much so that i will never touch them again, if i hadn't lost my job i would still be popping em so I'm glad it happened. I know going cold turkey is not the best way to get off them, bu it helped not having to get up and work everyday through the process. If you are out there and want to get off them, yeah it's gonna hurt and suck and drive you to the the brink but let me tell you it is worth it. I thought the pills made me more sociable, active, and happy. I now see they were slowly dragging me down into a pit of self worthlessness where i was nothing without them. I hid them from my family, and never told my wife about the pills or what i went through afterwards and i wish i had so i could have had some support but i am proud that i did it. There is a price you pay for everything-- so go on and suffer for a week and see if you don't feel like a better person. Good luck people. And if you live by the ocean, let mother nature help you out a little.

WOW, I have to say, I thought I was so alone! After years of surgery's for this and that, I am now an addict!

I have been Percocet free for 4 days, and still feel REAL bad, I don't know I woke up and said "I wanna Live again" so here I am, grinning and bearing it all, trying like heck to find faith and what I'll do with my NEW life?

I too felt like it made me a better per say person when I took them and when I finally came clean that I hava Problem, people said they could see me, or see that something wasn't right!
As I sit here I am cawling, not that I wnat more but that when will it all end?!?!? I am in search of a local meeting but geshh is it that hidden that these places are so hard to find.?

I wish for all of you that we can all look back on this and say WOW, I made it thru!! My Best to ALL!

yes ive been on percoct 5mg for almost years, and i beacame very dependent on the drug,its very very prowerful. and my script is almost up. ive been takin way too many. if im in a bad mood i take a extra, if im sad, aonther one, if people come over aonther one, and now, i dont have very many left, and im tryin to take less, beacause ill be goin through a 3week withdraw, which is hell. i did 3 days a month ago, and i was lossin my mind, i lost 20 lbs in the 3 days. only slelpt 2 hours a day. everything was painful, i couldnt eat, i was thowin up 2-5 times a day. and the days felt like weeks. and felt like i was diein slow which i was. i was doin alot of reseach about withdrawal and on alota of the pages, they say valuim helps, and tylenol PM helps, also majuniana belive it or not. i just hope and pray i can get through this 3 weeks.and if anyone is readin this and just got put on percocets, i'm tellin you do NOT abuse this medication cause it will take hold of you fast. only take it if you REALLY REALLY need it.

I am 26 yrs old and have back pain, i was prescribed percocet (5/325) about 3 yrs ago, i had taken them for months, by prescrition of corse, then about a yr ago started 10/325 a higher does, it is extremly hard to stop, you cant sleep, you do not want to eat, you find yourself not wanting to go out, or do anything with friends if you do not have these pills, i am addicted, i have been off of them several times, trying to just stop, but i always find myself getting back on them, dr's will prescribe them very easy and as long as you say you have pain they give em out like crazy, anyone who is on them GET OFF NOW! there is many other meds i have found to help, non norcotic like soma and ultracet which work well for pain, if you have a problem with percocet please get help, i still am trying to stay off and it is very hard.

thanks for all these great posts-- you have all been very helpful.

i am going through perc withdrawal as i type, and it's an evil rollercoaster. i was perscribed them for a tooth extraction last week, and finished a bottle in 5 days taking them as perscribed (every 3-4 hrs), and sometimes just for fun, even though i was aware of the consequences. my roommate got concerned that i wasn't sleeping, and said i acted like i really needed them, that i was addicted. so i flushed the perscription paper for a refill yesterday, and now i am going INSANE!

i have a dual diagnosis of addiction and bipolar disorder. many of the withdrawal symptoms (insomnia, racing thoughts, short temper, tired but awake, crazy) are very similar to the symptoms of Bipolar Mania. i'm on a psychiatric drug for that, Risperdal, but it seems to have temporarily stopped working. i'm doing better today, but i still can't sleep or eat-- i was awake for almost 60 hours before last night. i wrote a lot, walked around, and felt like i had clarity of thought for a while (good symptoms?).

i've been taking a low dose of ativan for the anxiety. is there anything else i can do to sleep, or anyone else with bipolar disorder who has gone through withdrawal? thanks again.