Gettin worse after one month clean

[shelliAS]

Hello, I fear that something is going seriously wrong.  I stopped hydrocodone and tramadol 31 days ago.  The first week off was typical, from what everyone reported - body aches, debilitating fatigue, digestive distress, RLS, poor sleep, just pure misery.  Week two was a tad better, aches off and on, a bit more energy but not much, RLS abating along with stomach issues, etc.  Week three was a sort of plateau - most symptoms gone, except for sleep problems and debilitating fatigue.  I thought surely week 4 would show some improvement, even if small.  In fact, the opposite has been happening!  The most prevalent issue is the fatigue, which worsens daily.  It is almost at the point where I can' get out of bed for long.  I had an important meeting the other day with a contractor at my house.  I awoke that morning feeling worse than ever.  I caved and took a hydrocodone just to get through that meeting gracefully (needless to say I was angry with myself).  Is this normal, or should I see my doctor to see if there is something else going on.  Everyone else seems to be great after a week or two.  I have not seen a post from anyone who continues to worsen by day after a month off this stuff.  Help......

Shelli        

[gnarly_1]

HI ShellAS  try not to get to discouraged it took a wile for me to get rid of the energy crash
I was like you I couldn't get off the couch....my wife forced me out and about to run around
shopping and then we also went for daily walks at first just around the block but slowly built up to around the subdivision it does help to move around....hang in there better days are ahead  and theres no reason to be ashamed your not failing anything we all come around at our own pace...when I was in the middle of it I always use to say...''I just wish I could move up the hands of time you will get there this good luck and God bless....Gnarly    

[shelliAS]

Hey everyone, Shelli here - This has been great feedback.  If tramadol has an effexor-like impact, then I am cooked.  My child takes effexor for depression, and when we tapered her dose from 300 mg (which the doc had her on) down to 225, I had to break open those capsules and literally count those little granules.  Anything more than about a 5% reduction made her physically ill and emotionally distraught.  And I am getting in a bad place emotionally.  I haven't touched the tramadol.  I have cheated and taken some hydrocodone just to get the energy to get through a trying day.  I can hardly drive a car, the lethargy is so bad.  Taking hydro does not give me a mental high at this point, thank God.  I know I should hit the gym as so many of you said; I am so frightened of doing it.  What if I wreck the car on the way, or get there and can't do anything!   I have driven the car in this shape, but I was frightened to do it.  In retrospect, maybe it was mental of me to stop two meds at the same time, as now I can't tease apart which WD symptoms were due to which.  I think I am going to try scheduling days where I have no commitments at all this week and take nothing and see what happens.  My spouse will be on travel and the kids head back to school this week.  I don't want anyone to see me as a complete wreck.  Maybe I can conjure Kathy's energy and clean out my cluttered messy house.  (And yes, I have become a couch potato....) grrrrrr.....this is so frustrating!!!  Oh well, I am whining again.  Thanks for listening to me and please know that you all do give me hope, which I guess is what I need.  Congrats to all of you who seem to be handling this much better than I!  I am so ashamed for failing this grueling test...

[downout45]

hi  my sex drive went to zero cause of the oxycotin i was doing 4 80s/day im hoping it comes back to normal has anybody been thru this and how long did it take.tx
no sex drive

[AZKathy]

I couldn't agree with you more Dav - I turned my pacing around the house into cleaning things out, and I've gotten so much done, and it took my mind off the awful feelings too.

[Dav125]

I have come to realize that as difficult as it feels at times, getting up and moving around is key to getting thru all this in whatever stage a person might be in the process....If you act like a couch potato, it enhances all aspects of the physical drain that being felt..And yes Kristen,depression can really bring on physical symptoms as well..So attitude is all important..Man what a fight it is, but doing so has truly helped me get thru this,,this time..Big,big,difference from my other spell with wd's in April..

[worried878]

The same thing happened when I quit...3-4 weeks later, the fatigue hit me like a ton of bricks..and my physical wd was way easier than I thot//or imagined it would be.
They call it PAWS I think...it is the mental portion of quitting and what does most in///causes way more relapse than physical wds do///many can handle the few days or a week of flu-like symptoms//no biggie for me really...but this is the part that kicked my bu11
I am a nurse//worked out after work everyday...I was a go-er...and I came to a screeching halt..had to do a rocket shot to get out door to go to work
It was the time for me to crack down
Support is crucial..some sort of aftercare///working out whether I felt like I would hit the gym///it releases endorphins and helps alot