Hi Graham,
A lot of people are not under a G.P to get the tabs they buy them over the counter. Also my experience of gp's is quite bad to shocking to a point where they are clueless or quite frankly don't give a sh*t. Tapering your right is the best way but if you are suffering badly on your own and have no-one to help or turn to it is quite impossible to trust yourself so cold turkey is the only way( 90% of us will be like this ). I have never heard of anyone dying from just stopping codeine and I stopped after a 12 year full on addiction, it like all accounts was like hell for a week but got easier but it's the P.A.W.S stage which is the uphill battle. Believe me I don't envy anyone who has to go through this but it's do-able.
dear kevin ihave been clean now for a few months after taking them for over three years , the rest leg syndrome can be cured by taking ropinol 1 mg at night , i had terrible restless tummy upsets which can be cured by taking bucasem twice daily , the runs cant be helped , just imodium if its bad its because of cronic constipation , after fighting it and going cold turkey and suffering flu like symptons it does get better honestly .....having a clear head nakes so much of a difference you wouldnt belive it , the trick is keep yourself warm at all times , dont listen to the gps its just an assembly line as fast as they can move you on the better take it from one who knows , the drug does what it says on the tin its just when its abused they way i did that things become beyong a joke .....hang in there please ....the temptation is to give up but trust me the paracetamol is the ingredient that does the damage , i just hope i gave you something you can use ........from an addicts point of view , i cant stress enought how much better life looks on the other side ...one day at a time friend .....
I have been on prescription strength co codamol for about 4 years now taking between 4 and and 8 a day. Not many compared to some of you. I decided to kick the habit just two days ago and here i am at 4am in the morning searching for answers as to what the withdrawal symptoms are as i have had the sh**s all day and restless legs syndrome and cant sleep.then i find this forum and this topic Anyway I have a few packets left yet so ive just taken two which has stopped the restless legs and im hoping i might get a bit more kip.
I doubt i will do it c/t but im going to reduce my tablets to just as and when i think i really need them until i come off them for good.
Good luck to all of you with quitting this drug.
ANDY H
the restless legs can be cured by a tablet called ropinrol 1mg, as for the runs cocodamol works by constipating you , hence the runs for how long you have been taking these equtes to the amount your body has to get rid of ....i know not good news .lol . but heres the thing even if you take just a couple to help you you wont get off them i was hooked for over three years and just stopped , insomnia and flu symptoms , are common and all you want to do is sleep , i know . drink plenty of water as this stops you dehydrating , my cold turkey lasted two weeks but now im clean and it has made the biggest changes to me . be under no illusions it was hard , but the damage it was doing to my body was unreal , its the high dosage of paracetamol that will damage everything . just try and be strong and just stop . take care . martin.
Hi all, I have been taking 30/500mg regularly for the past year. At first they made me sick because they were so strong, but the feeling of over whelming numbness was making want to take them more so I have been.I am now 22 and since I was 17 I have been on Anti-Depressants (Citalopram and Fluoxetine) and have also seen numerous therapists.For me the feeling of taking Co-Codamol is more of a relief than me taking my Fluoxetine that I am currently on.I know that the Co-Codamol relief IS only temporary, but I benefit from it so much more than I do my Fluoxetine.I wondered if anyone had any advice or had been through anything similar?
awww i was trying to message you. not many may have replied, but i am sure your story has helped many many people who are in the same position. knowing you are 'normal' - even in the most extreme of situations is, sometimes, enough to let you know you're on the right path xxx
i started taking co-codamol 30/500 for shoulder pain,this is wot was perscribed to me,at first allwas fine but not only did it relieve the pain it gave mesuch a nice feeling of numbness made me feelchilled out in a way,i found myself likeing the feeling when taking then,i ahve the efferescent ones which dissolve on a bad day i take probably 7 or 8 a day on a good one i can go with just 2,which isnt alot compared to some ive read on here,but i relaise now its a problem,my family r worried about the effect this is having on my body.i get to around 10am and its like a feeling in my head and i know i need them.these r on repeat and i get 100 a time so u can imagine it doesnt last long,ive even got someone else to goto their doctors and get some cus they have back pain but they giv halfabox to me each time,this way my doc doeant realise im going through mine so quick.im becoming really sneaky with them and when ever im due to go in for the repeat i panic tht i wont get themto the point of absolute sheer panic!i really want to stop every day i think i willbut i just cant.im hoping reading all of ur posts will give me the push i need.
good luck everyone
tj
Interesting to read, I fear I will be going down this path!
I currently take between 12 and 20 a day easily, by week 3 I have ran out and become moody, down, snappy not a very nice person actually, I hate this about me. I am addicted to them and over the last few months tried to cut down, by week 2, so I end up with only being out for 1/2 days. My doctors are strict and will not give me early (I dislike them for this, even I know they are 100% in the right).
I have been on these for nearly 4 years now and feel I need to ween off them now. I will keep posting on here how I am doing too, and comments would be nice, thanks in advance.
hiya i am 20 year old and i am addicted to cocodomal i took them when a was 15 and it started from there i take upto 32 a day i dont know what do i wake up with sore heads all the time i went to my docs nd they didnt do nothing i dont know what do can you help please
Hey people, I usually look at this thread a lot but lately life just got in the way. Here's a thing I want to share with my fellow sufferers. I have an addictive personality it's a help and a hinderence all at once and it makes me use codeine when I need to get stuff done which I hate e.g D.I.Y and other boring stuff. When I'm finished my mind says "hey , I've had a enough of this shitty stuff, it's time to kick" and so the withdrawal merry go round starts. I know down to a tee what's coming, I've done it quite a lot but it's still daunting..!!!
Now here's something I've stumbled upon by accident that really works. When the squirty bum started I took a lot of Imodium cos' I knew it gets bad to the fact it becomes basicaly water or fire..!!! For some reason taking 4 Imodiums some how calmed down my withdrawal symptoms big time. The next day I did it again taking 4 in the morning then 2 in the afternoon and 2 at night. The third day all my withdrawals had gone and I felt normal. I've never got over withdrawals so fast and slept well so quickly and if someone had told me I would never have believed them as I know how bad withdrawals can get..!!!
I've done a little bit of research and apparently all "Imodium" is is Lopermide which is an "opiate" which cannot pass the blood brain barrier but soothes the opiate receptors which codeine forms in the nervous system. I guess it's like putting a "dummy" in a crying baby's moulth..!!!! I've also read some addicts take quite a lot of lopermide it depends I guess what works for you. Warning... You will get constipated for a while but it's a small price to pay for the relief...
Try it , it works well for me, and let us know how you get on. It's really cheap to by supermarket brand lopermide as named seems to be 4x as expensive for exactly the same stuff and there is usually only 6 or 8 tabs in a packet.
Good Luck my friends..!!!!!!!!!!
in my experience it took 8-10 days to start feeling normal again and then about a month after that to really start feeling good...it takes time but it sound like you really want to be done with this.. i personally know that lots of liquids is a must, as well if there is any way you can go for a long walk)several) through out your day as this helps your receptors to function properly.lots of exercise will speed things up. an anti-anxiety med for short term only as these are addicting(very)60 days off my self.. lots of fruits and veggies or nutricional food is a must..you will get through it. i did..be strong and dont cave in..u will have a good laugh after your better,lol..tc.
also if you can take advill or ibuprofen this will help get u through the worst of it...some people cant take it . too hard on the stomach..and very hot baths 2-3 times daily helped me big time.. i felt great in my hot tub..tc
oh and the post up above mentioned the amodium.. ive read it helps like majic for widrawal but i never had the chance to try it but would definatly try it if i ever had to go through that again..if u do let us know how it works...tc