Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Getting off Pain Meds: Need help

Came here in search for help...

I was browsing the web to see if I could find some answers.. See I have been taking pain killers for about a year now.. I didn't need them.. Just took them for the high.. Now I am scared! I don't want them.. But it hurts too much to get off them.. All I do is sleep..And I have a full time job and kids.. I am afraid to go to the DR because I am afraid that he may call Children's Aid on me or something.. I just don't know what to do...I don't want anyone I know to find out..
 
dontwaste said:
I am afraid to go to the DR because I am afraid that he may call Children's Aid on me or something.. I just don't know what to do...I don't want anyone I know to find out..
Click to expand...

Doctor patient confidentiality is almost an unbreakable rule. The only time a doctor is allowed to tell ANYONE anything about you without your permission is if he thinks you're an immediate danger to yourself or others. While being on pain meds may not be a great thing for you to do as a parent, it definitely does not put you or your kids in immediate danger, so there's no way he'd be allowed to report you to anyone. The only way the doctor would be at all allowed to report your drug abuse to the authorities was if you told him things like "I was on the highway driving my kids to school and I blacked out but we miraculously wound up not crashing before I woke up." Heck, you don't even need to tell him you have kids!

Trust me, go to a doctor NOW. Doctors, the government, and everyone else knows that you probably aren't going to get out of your addiction unless you get help. So for your sake and specifically for your children's sake, they've designed the system so that you can seek help without worrying that your kids are going to be taken away or that you're going to be thrown in jail.

The only way for you to lose your kids is if you DON'T go see a doctor as soon as possible.
 
Getting help from a physician or Narc Anon is probably the best thing you can do. I would also encourage you to keep this thread going! Everyone wants you to pull through this and everyone understands that it must be awful. Good luck, keep posting, and be strong!
 
Ok yall.

I tried the tapering idea, and it didn't work. I got so fed up that I flushed everything down the toilet during a snow storm, so I was trapped inside for at least 24 hours.

I did it. It's been 2 weeks now, and I'm off the stupid tylenol 1's. I just went cold turkey. The withdrawals weren't even that bad. Just like having the flu for a week, minus the vomiting. Body aches, etc, but other than that, I'm good. I had some headaches, but I just took some ibuprofen and tylenol. Now I'm feeling great, with tons of energy. I know that I am healthier because of my willpower and support from my brother and my ex, as well as you guys, with your suggestions.

Just so you know, I went to my doctor. He just suggested I taper off them. I don't have the ability to do that, because it's so easy to just take more when I feel like it. I guess it's a lack of willpower. He wouldn't give me anything to help the withdrawals. I didn't really need it anyway, since it just felt like a mild flu.

Anyway, thanks for all your support. I hope this thread can help others. Remember, it's not so bad, and it will be over in about a week. Take it day by day, hour by hour. The pain is only temporary!
 
Congrats!! I know from personal experience that it is not easy.

You doctor wouldn't give you anything for the withdrawal symptoms, because the withdrawal medication is a lot stronger than the drug you were trying to get off of and is usually only prescribed for Heroin, Morphine or Oxycontin addicts. Trust me, be thankful you weren't addicted to any of those.
 
I would NOT recommend telling your doctor about this. They will put it in your medical records that you are an opiate/opioid addict and you will have problems for the rest of your life getting adequate pain relief when you need it. You should only 'tell' when you absolutely have no other choice. At this point, I think you have other choices.

You can get off this crap yourself. Taper your doses down little by little and then allow yourself to feel like crap for a week and it will be done.
The most annoying thing is the muscle cramps and sleep trouble. If you can tolerate some ibuprofen and sleeping pills for the nighttime, that will go a long ways toward making it more bearable.

I'm not comfortable sharing my personal experience with opiates but trust me, I have them. This is totally do-able.
Best of luck! :)

p.s. The avatar is perfect for the occasion too. (command Z)

edit 2: crap, just saw post 29, sorry I just noticed it. :eek: Congrats, glad to hear things are better. :)
 
Hey lamina, i'm kind of in the same boat right now with trying to get off this same crap.. are you finding it hard to stay on track? I seem to keep going back to them after a few weeks. :mad:
 
is that oxycodone? You can get codeine over the counter in Canada????

your taking a total of 80 mgs or more of codeine daily? How do you manage to function?

Thats a pretty highly addictive med..

Since youve tried without success to quit, I suggest you seek a doctors help ASAP...
 
Oxycodene is NOT the same as codeine.
Codeine is a relatively weak opiate and yes available over the counter in Canada

80mg of codeine is not excessive when you consider that 30-60mg every 4 hours is a normal dose.
for oxycodone 80mg per day is quite high put still within normal dosage, there are 160mg pills out there.
now this is when you are taking them for pain managment.
with abuse it is a whole nother issue.

congrats on the OP on getting off them, it is not easy.
 
Been there but I was on 30/500 co-coadamol, got through six a day for a little too long, cold turkey worked for me it was just intensely unpleasant, horrific fits of nausea.

Glad you got past it, congrats.
 
Oh geez... maybe that's what I need to do. Lock myself in my apartment and not come out until I'm done with detox.

I've been on Duragesic (Fentanyl) Patches for long term pain and Fentora for the breakthrough pain for the past 2 1/2. Strong stuff... When I started it, I was taking one fentora a day along with a 100mcg patch every 3 days. You'd think my pain levels would be going down. BUT, as you know (!!) I've only gone down 50mcg on the patch and taking up to 5 freakin' Fentoras a day! AHH.... It's so frustrating!! I'm sure you all know about this. I don't really WANT to be on this stuff especially since I haven't been able to get my job back as a pilot since getting on the stuff. Plus, because I've been on it for 2 1/2 years I feel like some days I'm taking them like candy.

Anyway, so you weren't a fan of the "weening" method and you would take the withdraw? Just get it out all at once. I heard that, even though withdraw sucks, it's not medically dangerous. I'm considering that option. What do you think?
 
iBlue said:
I would NOT recommend telling your doctor about this. They will put it in your medical records that you are an opiate/opioid addict and you will have problems for the rest of your life getting adequate pain relief when you need it.
Click to expand...

I hear that. I made the mistake of telling my doctors and dentists I was an ex cocaine addict and alcoholic, and now all I get for pain meds is Tylenol or something over the counter. It's a total invasion of privacy. Whatever you do DO NOT go to NA or AA! :eek:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back