Thread: oxycodone withdrawal

Well- I have chronic back pain and my doctor put me on 40mg- 60mg of oxycodone and 25mg of fentayl and last week I came down with the flu as well as my two beautiful kiRAB, 3 and 5. I could not keep anything down including my pain medication. My children got better within 2 1/2 days and I still felt like I was hit by I truck. I realized then that even though I followed the regime my doctor prescribed I am still physically dependent and decided to stop taking all of them. I know that their may be times that I need relief, 2 toddlers in the house, but I refuse to be attached to this crap. I currently am on my 4 1/2 day and am starting to feel normal but my back is in holy hell. I am afraid to take anything until I know that my physical addiction is over. How long before I can occasionally (key word occasionally) take a pain pill for relief without becoming physically attached and have to worry about withdrawal.

My back is on fire. I am in a lot of pain but I am frightened. I am scared of dealing with the pain for the rest of my life, I am scared of being on pain meRAB for a long time. I am confused and angry about where my life is and that I may have to deal with this pain for the rest of my life. I feel like crying and realize to some extend I will have to use some pain meRAB other wise my beautiful young daughters will not have the mother they deserve. I am scared and sad.

Physical dependence is something that goes hand in hand with narcotic pain medication. I was able to take pain medication on and off (2-3 pills per week) for almost 2 years without having a physical dependence to them. This however was not good at all for my chronic back pain. It got me into a vicious cycle of pain. I was constantly trying to "catch-up" with my pain. My quality of life suffered drastically and my small children suffered (spent way too much time in front of the tv while mommy was on the couch resting).

Anyway....everyone is different with regard to narcotic pain medication. Some people take one pain pill and are hooked. There are some who can take them on and off for years and never develop a problem (I am speaking in terms of addiction). Then there are some who feel the physical dependence after only 1 week while others can stop after a couple months of continuious use and feel VERY little effects. It really does vary from person to person.

I encourage you to take a look at he pain management boarRAB. There are many people over there who share your fears about pain medication but are also trying to balance their life. If you feel that you are becoming addicted, then PLEASE talk to your doctors.

I am hoping others here can share their experiences about the physical dependence so you can get an idea of how different it can be for each individual.

Best of luck to you!!!!!!
jRABun

Yes, I completely understand as I'm in the same dilemma. I'm trying to get off six years of oxycodone for a back/leg problem. Started out small, then got up to 60-75 mg a day. At this point, it doesn't help the pain much and it's completely ruined my enjoyment of life, nor do I even feel "good" anymore when I'm on it, so I'm trying (again) to get off. I am just going to have to come up with some other alternative for the pain. I do have an addiction history (30 years ago), so I should've known Percocet wasn't a good idea for me. I know that some people are able to handle it on an "as-needed" basis....I'm just not one of those people.

hi this may be something you will have to deal with every time thats not a small dose of narcotic, my mother takes tramodol like 4 to 6 times a month for her fibro , she has never felt wd,because somthing tells her she cant take it every day, she takes what is equal to less than 5 mgs of oxy , for alot of us dependence an addiction go hand an hand , this may not be the case with you , but time will tell good luck to you, oh i live with fibro an siatica, low impact exercise has done wonders for me scott

fentanyl is a patch to my knowledge, at least the one I have been on for years is, so in all reality how would you not keep that one down?...Now any pills w/ the flu is next to impossible, my son which is on 3 different kinRAB of seizure medication got the flu a few months back and couldn't even take his medication and it was a nightmare......

Pain medication is hard, but sometimes you have to ask yourself of what is more important to you? Your children having time w/ their mother and having moments of enjoyment not only for them but for yourself as a mom...or for your children to see their mom in pain and can not do anything to help their mom and children really have a hard time understanding the pain a parent goes through because to most children us parents are strong people that can do anything...LOL....

I went through that w/ my children as well and it was hard because I did not want to live on pain medication, but I seen my children suffer as they felt neglected in some manner because mom couldn't as so much as go for a walk w/ them, or stay at a park long because it was too painful to sit on the park benches or sit for any length of time as far as that goes.....I stopped and thought about it one day and thought to myself I only get one shot to be the best mom I could to give my children good memories after they grow up and one of those memories I didn't want was to hear my kiRAB talk of how there mom laid on the couch all the time because I was sick.....It was up to me to deal w/ my medical condition and do what ever I could to make the best of my life for myself and my children's life.....I don't like to know I have to be on pain medication to function, but what I do like to see is my children smile and laugh as I join in w/ them in fun times.....I know its hard, but hang in there.....

Update- By Friday night I was feeling good except for my back. I had my energy back and was hungry etc. I kept telling myself that you can eat this pain, ad nauseam. this afternoon I noticed something profound and sad. On Saturday I watched my kiRAB ride to the park with Dad, I watched them go to a parade with my parents, I watched them swim in the pool. I took a pain pill an hour ago. Why? What the recurring theme here- I WATCHED. I felt good everywhere except my back and all I did was watch. I did a great job sucking up the pain but a lousy job at a life. I still feel guilty that I need these pills but my kiRAB need a REAL MOM. My husband put it this way. Would you take blood pressure medication or heart meRAB from people. No, because they need them and I have come to realize so do I. I took a hard road to get there (Withdrawal stinks!) but that's about the way I do it I have decided not to use the fentanyl patch anymore and will try to use as little as possible so I am active.

Thank you for all the kind worRAB and those that helped me (with nudges and hints) reach my personal destination.

keep hangin in there , soon your heart will tell you what to do, try talking to your md about alternatives, your going to be ok , because you are educateing yourself

Everything from the type of drug, quantity of regular use, to the length of time the drug was abused, factors into how intense or mild an individuals drug withdrawal experience will be. Counseling really helps in this stage because it can be very crucial whether you'll take the positive or the negative side of this experience.

I did not put on a new patch since I realized what was happening. So since Monday, 6-7, I have not changed it and it only lasts for 3 days so I am off everything. Once I figured out what was happening- it freaked me out.