How long does it take for withdrawal symptoms to go away?

[WidowerDad]

Hello everyone.  I apologize if my post appears twice.  I posted it as a comment to an ongoing discussion, but then decided to post it as a question.  I've enjoyed reading each and every one of your comments in this forum which makes me feel better to know I’m not alone in this journey.  Just to give you a quick snapshot…I’m 42, a retired disabled veteran and off the meds for 4 days.  My wife of 22 years died of cancer two years ago, a week after I retired from the military.  I was initially prescribed Percocet 10/325 for my injury related pain about 4 years ago. Although at the time I was extremely naïve about pain killers and prescribed narcotics, I soon learned the truth.  Although I wanted to put away the pills, the transition from being a happily married family man with a beautiful wife and a career to a retired widower dad in a week was too much for me to handle and stopped me from quitting at the time.  About a year ago I decided I wasn’t going to let pills rule my life anymore so I weaned myself off of them very gradually.  Even though I still felt lot of the withdrawal symptoms you all have described, the physical aspect was not as bad as the psychological.  I became extremely depressed and began mourning and reliving my wife’s death again and it got worse.  I couldn’t handle the depression and lack of interest in life so I began taking the pills again.  I have never purchased any illegally since my doctor continues to prescribe me a low dose (10/325) 3 times a day.  I had been taking anywhere from 3 to 4 and on occasion 5 a day, but never taken larger doses.  4 days ago I decided once again that it was time for me to put away the pills, but I went cold turkey.  I’ve been experiencing all the symptoms you all have described…cold sweats, the shakes, horrible body and head ache, nausea, diarrhea, sleeplessness, restless leg, and of course depression.  For some reason I don’t feel any better today than I did day 1.  Wondering when this horrible physical feeling is going to end because I thought I would feel better after a couple of days!  Does the depression go away along with the physical side effects, if ever?  Any advice, comment, support, or suggestion you have would be greatly appreciated.  Good luck to all of us.

[pharma9]

That book really does sound delightful.Those descriptions sure depict an interesting visual....LMAO

[kickeditafter10yrs]

Day 9- There seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel, and this time I don't think it's a freight train coming towards me, like the first week was. I have taken an Ambien the last two nights, and slept 8 hours each night-OMG what a relief! Still weak and under-motivated, but not that sense of gravity crushing me to the couch like it has been. I feel like I could get up and around, maybe take a short walk or go to the book store and lounge in a big overstuffed chair with a latte for a bit, just haven't made my mind up to it. Call your doc or VA ASAP and get something to sleep- all the things I've read say that sleeping through this hell is the smartest way to get through it. Some even get Benadryl and take it to drowse down and sleep or at least nap the day away. Get some Ambien or whatever your doc will go for, but get in there today! The body has to process this poison and sleep lets you miss some of that and restore some semblance of an energy level meanwhile.

I agree with you about the pain, I can deal with pain- it mostly just pisses me off which motivates me to ignore it. Narcotics are more of an insidious soul and life-stealing thief that acts like your best friend until you gradually realize that he has been lying to you and egging you on the whole time.

After 10 years of opiates, I have had a CT scan and been diagnosed with cerebral atrophy- brain shrinkage commensurate with someone 20-30 years older than I am. My neurologist tells me that is a side effect of long-term use of narcotics. Thank God we only use 10% of our brains, right? But who the hell knows what is down the road to lose if it continued, memories, cognitive ability, vocabulary?? I'm ok with that if I'm 90, but that's 40 years away right now...

Pharma9- You can use that, got it from a delightful book called "Texas Crude", a collection of scatological inferences attributed to denizens of that great state used to describe everyday events in less than erudite terms...  Each one has the common statement, followed by a very proper and scholarly definition- the combination will just slay you... okay, one of the more clean examples- "Slicker'n snot on a doorknob"-  "A friction coefficient closely approaching zero".   : )

[WidowerDad]

Thank you both for your responses.  Yes, Kickedit, it seems you're a strong man like your dad and thank you for your kind words.  I do miss being on active duty, but not the deployments!!!  Even though I'm working part-time at the moment, I'm lucky enough to have some time off to deal with this.  No matter how sick I've gotten in the past, I've never felt this horrible...I just wish my doctor at the time had never prescribed the damn meds to me because I never imagined the consequences, long-term use, and most importantly, getting off of them.  Like I mentioned before, I rather deal with the pain than to continue taking this crap.  I wish all of you luck and please keep posting...thanks.

[pharma9]

"I feel like I was eaten by a coyote and shat off a tall cliff"....I love that description....chuckle...
I am not laughing at your situation,just your description.
I also love your attitude..You can do anything you put your mind to do....You just have to put up with the short term pain for long term gain
I took normal doses of opiates,but found myself looking forward to the high rather than the pain relief.
I knew I had to stop and did....and suffered withdrawals and detox while I put in long days at work.I was able to control my rheumatoid arthritis pain and my rebound pain with otc pain meds.
When I realized I did not NEED the opiates for pain relief I did not crave them either .

[kickeditafter10yrs]

P.S.- Even on day 8, feel like I was eaten by a coyote and shat off a tall cliff. Absolutely NO energy, listless, just can't seem to find the strength to even pick up something I set down...

From reading other posts, looks like we may be in for at least a couple of weeks of this before the energy level starts back up. Hang in there brother- thank you for your service, and thankfully you are retired and can stay home and deal with this. I am starting a new job in a couple weeks, can NOT imagine doing this while getting up to go to work and cope with kids at home etc! (shudder)

P.P.S.- My meds were all under the supervision of a pain management doctor, still have pain but just got pissed that this poison has been robbing me of my life for this long. I have 120 pills left in a bottle and am damned if I will ever take one. I am taking a page from my father, who quit smoking in 1959 carrying around half a pack with him for a week, after finding out that my mother was pregnant with me and there was not enough money to their name to buy another pack. Dad's a WW2 vet and was a POW, he is hardcore.

[kickeditafter10yrs]

On day 8 from Hydro 10's 4/day, after stopping Methadone 10 2/day a few weeks prior. Heartrate and BP were both elevated, normally 112/70 went to 130/85.

Clonidine is supposed to help withdrawal symptoms, and is a medication for hypertension. Do you have an amiable family doctor?