Thread: new here...oxycodone problem

Welcome to the group Philly Bro!

I was also on oxycodone due to a neck injury and I was taking between 60 - 80 mg/day when I began to stop because my pain diminished. For the amount you are taking, I would suggest you consult your doctor and work out a plan. Personally, I do not like the suboxone approach, because it is substituting one addictive opiate for another. If you want to be clean, you need to get off all opiates. That means a long taper for you, dropping a little at a time and allowing your body to body to get used to the lower dose. You have to taper by reducing the total dose, not the individual pills and you will have to split pills in pieces at times to get the proper dose. Everybody's body is different and can handle the taper better or worse than the next person. You have to start on a plan, stick to it and let us know if you have questions or concerns.

Oxy w/d's are not fun and somewhere along the taper down to Zero, you will get them. I use that memory of my w/d's to make sure I never take it again. You may want to reduce down to 120 mg/day and see how your body reacts, then down to 115 mg and continue to reduce a little at a time and each time, wait a few days and see how your reacts. If you start having w/d's that you absolutely can't stand, go up to the last dose and take that a little longer and then drop down again. When you start having w/d's on a regular basis, try reducing no more than 10% at a time or increase the time you are on the new dose. You are looking at months ahead of you. Also, if the w/d's get too bad, a doctor may prescribe clonidine or Valium or a sleeping pill to help.

You're setting out on a very rough trip, but it is worth it at the end! I didn't know how the Oxy effected me and my family until I was completely off of it. I feel alive now!! Good Luck to you and let us know how you are doing. You will have more questions as the process goes along - we've been there and we're here to help.

Hi...I'm new here and I've been really impressed with the help on this board. I'm a 42 yr. old male with an oxycodone problem. I'm doing 125mg/day and I would like some advice. Should I try to taper or maybe try suboxone? I have been doing oxy for about 9 months but only at 125/day for a month. I feel so scared and ashamed. I have a very strong will power but I'm not sure that counts for much against this demon. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

well i would not minumize that amount thats alot, i was taking 30 to 40 mgs a day , for about the same amount of time ,an i chose taper i new it was just a matter of time an 50 60 an more , i was taking it for pain from a bike wreck,i was able to taper it is up to you though , if it was to get high ,you might want to try the sub ,it is very mentaly addictive ,your doing the right thing though selfwill has nothing to do with it , if you cant taper try sub ,good luck scott

Thanks for the reply and thoughts "denon". I am on my first day of taper from Oxy. Today I am taking 120mg and I plan to wait 3-4 days and reduce to 110mg then 3-4 days to 100mg and so on. I would appreciate any and all advice and thought as to this being the right way. If anyone has experience with this I look forward to your thoughts. Too slow, too fast, etc. Also, if anyone has ideas about dealing with the anxiety please let me know. I eat very well, excercise daily and keep busy with work. I am not looking to get "high" anymore but just seek to feel normal. I know that I am in for a long journey back to normal but I am determined. I know that is probably months away. I don't drink nor do I take any other drugs. I really appreciate everyone's responses. Most on here are very thoughtful and knowledgable and I covet your input immensely!

Hello Philly

Glad to see you aboard here. Also glad to see you investigating how to get off the Oxycodone. Good for you.

I was also on Oxycodone when I finally committed to getting clean of all opiates and benzos. ( I was also on Xanax). I was on then much longer than you (about 12 years), but my Oxycodone use was about 60mg a day when I made my plan to put my life back together. As 56789 pointed out, 125 mgs a day is quite a bit. While I believe Suboxone is the right path for some, I also believe it easily takes us from one addiction to another. I have not read any stories here on the board where it wasn't just as difficult to get off of as any other opiate. Do your research before deciding the right path for you, okay?

For me, I chose a long and slow taper from Oxycodone. Even with that, it was not by any means a symptom free path. However, my starting point was not a good one as I had had a complete breakdown before starting the taper and was already a mess. So although your dose may be higher, it seems you are in a better place to start.

I mapped out a strategy with my family doctor. The first cut was probably a 20% cut on both the Oxycodone and the Xanax. Bad start! That night I went into full blown withdrawal and experienced seizures. I truly was never before as frightened as I was that night. It took me nearly 2 weeks to begin to level off physically and mentally to any degree at all. The doctor and I tweaked the plan.... no more tapering on the Xanax and a slower taper on the Oxycodone. I came off the Oxy at about 10% each cut and stayed put for a week to ten days before cutting again. I had to break pills into 1/2s, 1/4s and even sometimes crush them to measure out a dose, but it was relatively easy to do. It took me a few months to get off. At one point about half way through, I had to stay put for nearly three weeks to get level again. I got antsy towarRAB the end, but stayed steadfast to the 10% cut.

There were times of anxiety after cuts during which I would cry hard. I learned to breathe my way through these times and though I hated them, I was able to cope with them. Some cuts were not difficult while others were. Bowels were loose throughout so I always had a supply of Immodium at the ready. Jumpy legs at night sometimes plagued me. Hot baths helped this. Also, the second post on this board, titled Sample Home Detox, provided a wealth of info regarding helpful things during detox. Its suggestions are great whether going cold turkey or taper. Take some time to read it.

The fear. Friend, we all are terrified beforehand. Do not feel alone in this. Please understand that it is so a part of what we feel as we get ready to erabark on a path that will restore our lives. Don't doubt for a minute... you can do this. The fear leaves as we involve ourselves in restoring out whole being by getting clean. It is a time when we must be selfish in order to survive. We have to concentrate on ourselves and keep gathering tools to help us. By the way, one of the biggest tools is physical activity. When we think we can not possibly move a muscle is the tiome when we have to dig deep and push, push to go for a walk, sweep a floor, workout at the gym.

The shame. Ah, another popular feeling among us! Smiles. I am going to tell you straight up here... the only shame you need to feel is the shame of not confronting a problem and working to solve it. Since you have already mastered this one, let shame go. There is no place for it right now in the mind.. there is only room in there to concentrate on how to find restoration and peace again.

Okay, Friend, enough for now. I am sure you will have more questions and thoughts. Stay with us as you work through this. You are so welcome here.

With all hope
reach

Wow.... My first post.

Hey bud. I'm a Jersey guy here. Age 38, and have had quite a few run ins with drugs myself. Including a perocet habbit that had hit 80mg a day. It is GREAT to hear the determination in your voice to make a change. I went the Suboxone route myself since I wasnt getting the perc through propper channels and it was costing a fortune. Personally, I think Suboxone is easier and a bit safer for tapering since there is no high, and no way to splurge if you hit a point of frustration; but it is still a strong, addictive opiate that has a longer half life, and takes a while to walk away from in the end.

Unfortunatley, from past experience, this ( Opiates ) is NOT an easy drug to walk away from.

The good news.... I did it. It can be done and that feeling of clear headed, wide eyed does come back.

All of the advice in these posts are spot on !!

A few pointers for now, that worked for me. Stay busy. This was HUGE for me. The days go faster if you have a lot to do. Eat right, exercise, take vitamins.... LOTS of vitamins. From what I have read, you cant overdose on vitamins. Your body will flush out what it cant use. I took 5 X what the label said. Kick start your body!

And Beyond what you can physically do.... Think about popping into an NA ( Narcotics Anonomous ) meeting. There is no reason to do this alone. There are THOUSANRAB or people going through excatly what you are, or that have already gone through it and won. I can not stress how much this was a part of me beating my habbits. And I am not a "druggie" by the term LOL. I am 38, married, self employed, father of 2, a volunteer fireman and YES, I was addicted to percocet. Thank God and my frienRAB that I am no longer.



Hey Bud.... Hang in there. You are already HUGE STEPS into this. You are commited to a change.!!

Keep posting man!! It will give you a place to ease your mind and find more and more pointers.

Pauly C

Pauly...thanks so much for the reply. I would love to know the details of your fight. How long were you addicted? What was the suboxone experience like? Any difficulty taking your first dose of sub? And so much more. Thanks so much for your encouragement...I need it bad! We sound very similar (lifestyles) and I would love to hear back from you bro.

Thanks...

Thanks denon, PaulyC and kewood. I'm seriously weighing everything. I still have some questions. What side effects or drawbacks are there to sub. I've read that some have to deal with major headaches and depression. Some have reported that they are falling asleep every 5 mins. Some talk about trying to adjust for weeks. How about anxiety/panic attacks? Any truth to any of these claims for you. I mean I know everyone is different, but what about your personal experiences. I run my own business so right now I can deal very well...well you know what I mean (besides being an addict). The Dr. I talked to said that she also uses Clonidine and a sleeping pill if necessary. Did you all need any of these peripheral meRAB to help supplement the sub? Did you suffer any bad symptoms in the beginning or while on sub?

Anxiously waiting for your thoughts...and thank you soooo much.

Phillybro

Hi, Phillybro,

Well, we're in this together. I'm at 90-120 mg hydrocodone a day, but in all honesty, it's usually 120 mg. About 30-60 days ago I jumped to the 120. I really have no idea why I did a 30 mg leap instead of just going up 10 mg (1 pill), but here I am. Afraid and wondering why in the world I ever got to this point. So, I really support your moving toward detox before you bump it up again.

This board pointed out I shouldn't try to do this alone, so I looked into NA meetings and found a local area that has get togethers every day of the week. I think that's the next step after acknowledging there's a problem.

I come here early every morning then again in the evening. Until I actually walk through the door of my first meeting this is all I've got and I'm grateful I found the folks here.

Keep coming back.

Well it's been a few days and I've been tapering down from 120mg/day oxy and it's a sloooow process. I really just want this over! Anyway, I've made a decision and I contacted the sub Dr. that I spoke about and I set an appt. up for Tuesday at 630pm. I will take my last dose around 6am and try to get through the day. I am nervous and excited. She explained to me that everything is confidential and that she will prescribe other meRAB if I need them. Any thoughts on what to expect the first day/week of this would be great! I can't express how much I appreciate everyone's thoughts and support.

Thanks,

Phillybro