I'm quitting pain pills tomorrow is my first day what do I need to expect

Question

I've been on pain pills for around 3 years on an off. I've taken about every thing out their. I'm the morning will be my first day without any I was wanting to know what to expect.i can take up to 15 millagrams of any kind of pain medication at a time an sum of them more I was taken this several times a day. I have 4 kids to take care of. I don't want to get on any other medications the ones that rehabs give you aren't any better, I don't want to end up goin through withdrawal from that later. I really want to do this cold turkey my husband is supporting me but he can't be here 24/7 he works, so I an gonna have to deal with the withdrawals on my own. Anyone with any pointers or suggestions to help will be greatly appreciated

gnarly_1 · Answer

Hey Girl....well your doing it one day at a time...as for the mental part I always say this is 1/3 physical and 2/3 mental....so not to play the physical part down it s ucks but it is the mental part that makes people relaps....right now you need to get involved with aftercare it is the next critical step to winning this thing....I always recamend the N/A progam it is free the meetings are only a hour long and it will give you some place to share where the people will understand....long after the pills stop your still stuck with the addict in your head N/A treats the addict....time to step out of your comfort zone and get to a meeting...just go and lissen you dont even have to speak google a N/A meeting in your area...those that go to meeting tend to stay clean
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Gnarly<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

chunkey92 · Answer

Day 5 has been really hard on the mental aspect more than the physical. I don't want to start back from square one an I refuse to go back. I's so hard on the metal aspect if it I didn't expect it to b that bad for me but 3 yrs on something does that. Thank u all for helping me through this. I've cryed several times today an I'm trying my hardest jus to keep thinking about my kids. I've never been through anything this hard in my life I'm very depressed an that's what started it n the first place. I'm  glade I have ppl to talk to that have been an r going through the same thing.

VICourageous · Answer

I have to agree with the aftercare. This will teach you alot about our thinking patterns and how our Brain works. Studying Addiction and the Brain has helped me big time too. Just know that each day you will get better physically but some of us have that Mental part to deal with. This is where your Brain Chemistry will be trying to balance back and it will scream for a pill to be put in. It starts in the Brain and go down the spine and sends so many false singles. Just know this is part of recovery and sooner or later you will balance back. Some takes week but I know for the long time users the Brain will take a lot longer to find it's balance. 
Try taking that warm bath with Epsom salt and make sure you eat very Healthy. Try to avoid caffeine & sugars at first. Your nervous system goes crazy and you do not want to stimulate it more. If you get the creepy, crawly leg kicks, go get the Hylands Restless Leg pills, make sure it talks about the itching, crawling, tingling sensations on the bottle. Try to blend some good smoothies with lots of fruits, nuts and kale. I was juicing but it takes most of the fiber out. Drink TONS of water and you can add some lemon and a small dash of sea-salt. This will help keep you hydrated. I also do this to this day those frozen Pediatric Electrolyte Freezer pops.
Keep Pushing and keep re-directed the best you can. Just know that we did not get addicted over night so it can take some time and patience to come around. YOU sound good so far, but stay on guard at all times.
Bless
Vickie

SJS49 · Answer

You're welcome for talking to you. This forum, and posting and reading really really helps. Even if you have all the support in the world, "venting" and telling people that know what you are going through is priceless. And all the people here are so wonderful. It's ok to cry. I still cry...it's because we actually have FEELINGS again and can actually FEEL our emotions instead of having them repressed and numbed by the pills. You are doing a great job so far!! I found that laughing and playing and cuddling with my little guy made me feel a lot better as it releases endorphins and endorphins are what your body needs to learn how to make on its own again. The part about this that I find rather comical is that, although you have been through the withdrawals before, it is funny how when you start taking the pills again how quickly you're brain will make you FORGET what the withdrawals were like so that it can scare you into continuing to feed it's addiction and when you think you want to quit taking them, the absolute fear of withdrawal and the "not knowing" what it will be like hits, even though you should know what it is like having done it before, you're brain won't let you remember how quite easy it is to get through that part instead instilling the need to keep the withdrawals at bay by continuing the pill usage. I found that kind of almost laughable when I thought about it. He got me through the worst part, as did my totally positive attitude. Remember, one step at a time, one day at a time, and pretty soon you will be living life in the light instead of in the dark. You can also feel free to private message me anytime you want to. We are all here for support and help and have been where you are (some of us many many times).

gnarly_1 · Answer

hi........well day 4 can go ether way it sounds like your already getting a bit better just hang in there.....the next critical step is aftercare long after the pills stop your still stuck with the addict in your brain.....with years on this forum I have found those that use some form of aftercare stay clean and those that try to go it alone keep coming back over and over as this disease progresses in your life I have tryed addiction therapist a substance abuse counselor even the pastor of my church but it wasent till I found N/A that I finely got free from the obsessions compulsions and all the addictive behaviors that drove me back over and over again...as soon as your up to it google a N/A meeting in your area and go the meetings are only a hour long and the progam treats the addict it also give you some place safe to share with others that will understand I cannot over emphasize how good this program is with time you will overcome the very reason that drove you to the pills in the first plase as always keep posting here for support
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Gnarly<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

SJS49 · Answer

You are very welcome. And the flu is exactly what this feels like! If you keep telling your mind it is the flu, which I've thought a couple times actually happened...i started detox and got the flu due to the pills lowering the immune system. That's good that you have some help. As well as keeping busy, also try to rest when you can. Take a nap if you have someone to help with the kids and stuff, because day 3 and 4 are the worst, and the insomnia usually hits somewhere around there. If you are able to eat little bits, take some ibuprofen for the back pain. I take the 800 mg prescription ones, but if I run out of them, I take 4 of the OTC 200 mg ones at a time, and it actually helps a bit. And those new back pain patches that they have with LIDOCAINE help a bit too, but you have to find the ones with Lidocaine, they kind of numbed my back pain for a bit. And a heating pad will do wonders while laying down, even if you lay on your back and put it on your belly your back will feel a bit better. Do you see a doctor for your back pain? If you do, you should talk to him about maybe prescribing some Gabapentin. I've never taken it, but I've heard that it works pretty good. My doctor gave me Meloxicam, which is like ibuprofen but just a once a day deal and it worked while I was taking the norco with it, but doesn't work as well now for me, but alot of people say it helps with cramps (which is why I thought it would help with my endometriosis). I'm glad that you are hanging in there. Soak in a HOT bath with two cups of epsom salt, that will calm you and pull toxins from your body. After day 5, you should feel significantly better and pretty soon, your brain will lose track of how many "clean" days you have, which is an awesome feeling. After about 15 days, I started having to look at my tracker on here to see how many days I had. I am going to request to add you as a friend so it is easier to follow you. Keep up the good work!! The worst will be over soon and you can look forward to living the clean life.

chunkey92 · Answer

Day 3 I feel horrible I got diarrhea my back is aches bad. My husband's home all day today so that has helped. I'm almost done is what I tell myself at the week moments. I feel like I have the flu mixed with a virus idk weather I'm gonna puke or poop. I've had hot sweats an cold sweats. I still got up went an took my son to the book fair and went to the store. Getting up an out helps as I've figured that along the way in this journey. Hopefully tomorrow will b a little better tomorrow will be my first day with the kids by myself for most if the day.

chunkey92 · Answer

Today is day 2 I've felt really ruff today. My back is killing  it but I knew that was gonna b a part of this considering that my spine is messed up. But I'm still striving I got out the house one of my friends came over an got me out for a little bit made me put some clothes on which helped a little. My husband's will be here most of the day helping me. Today has been really hard feel like I got the flu an it was a true challenge to do anything  at all. I'll keep u posted on how tomorrow is. An thank u for ur words of wisdom.

SJS49 · Answer

Well that's good. It sounds as if you may get by with minimal withdrawals. My back still hurts and the pain from the endo, it's very challenging as nothing works for that! It's good that you have a good support system and a "sponsor." My fiance is an alcoholic so I didn't really have a support system. I went to a couple of meetings, but I'm doing alright on my own and I don't really think about the pills or anything so I'm pretty sure I was just more "dependent" than "addicted." This forum has been pretty slow lately. Keeping busy definitely helps! And if you do end up getting insomnia, the hot bath and sleepy time tea and good lavender lotion lather works really good. And nice clean sheets! Suprisingly, that helped me alot. Whenever I had a bad sleeping night, I would wash my sheets and the nice clean soft fluffy feeling of them made me so comfortable I just melted! Deleting numbers is huge. I never bought them, so I didn't have that problem, but I do know that if I knew people that were selling them, after the first couple days, I probably would have caved and called some one so big congrats on deleting numbers! That is a huge step!

chunkey92 · Answer

Idk if I will b doin after care I know I'm changing my phone number so ppl that I got them from I want talk to anymore I jus moved so that will help alot and I have great support from my brother which is here alot of the time an my husband an I have a girl who also use to b addicted that comes to my house an we can support each other an keep each other busy at the week moments I've been up an keeping my mind busy all day with an doing the mommy thing so far I've only had sum hot flashes an my back is really achy

SJS49 · Answer

Well, you are still young, so that should help overall. I am 38 and I also have endometriosis and I know exactly how you feel. I started taking by taking 2 or 3 vicodin 5/500 per day and a couple years later I was taking 8 vicodin 5/500 and I eventually got switched to norco 10/325 and I started off low again because they were twice as strong and when I quit taking them about 3 months ago, i was up to 8-10 of those a day. Now that I am off of them, I have alot of pain due to the endometriosis and some bulging discs in my back, and I take ibuprofen, but it doesn't do much. I'm not really sure what to do about the pain of that. Day 1 off the pills usually isn't that bad, day 2 a little worse, day 3 and 4 are the worst (even though it still isn't as bad as alot of people say or the horror stories you can read online). By day 10, I was almost as good as new. Hot baths really help when you get to the achy part. I also have children, and I found that just focusing on them and doing my normal duties (maybe not to the fullest) helped alot. Keeping your body and mind busy will make time go by much faster, as a couple of the ladies on here say "time and patience are the two most hated words in this forum" but really, that's what it takes. And not looking to the future as in "i can't wait until i'm better" or "how much longer will this last," and living for the day and in the moment, will also help alot. Once the mental part kicks in, that is where it is hard because your addict mind will try to think up reasons why you should get some more pills and of course if you are in legitimate pain, you will want to and the anxiety was the hardest part for me. I was suprised at how fast my brain forgot about the pills though. I didn't think about them, I didn't really crave them. My body was more dependant on them than my brain was addicted to them though, and believe it or not, there is a big difference between dependency, tolerance and addiction. VICourageous is a member on here and she told me to look up addiction and the brain and addiction in a more scientific way and reading about that helped. I never took the pills for "fun" or for recreation or to get high from them, I just wanted my pain to go away, and although I took 8-10 a day, I never went over that and stayed there for years. Are you planning on doing any kind of aftercare?

chunkey92 · Answer

I was taken that at least 5 times a day jus depended on what I could afford.

chunkey92 · Answer

I an 24 yrs old. I've been through them 2 or 3 times before last time was almost a yr ago. I was getting them for my tail bone I broke it am my spine leaned to the left from it an then I got endometriosis which is absolutely  horrible, but that jus got me addicted to them so I started buying them off the streets. I made my self get up an do things so far this morning I don't feel that bad so far but I did take my last one last night. An thank u for helping

SJS49 · Answer

Hello, and welcome to the forum! How many times a day do you take 15 mg of the pain meds? And your age and health will also play a big part in the withdrawal process. Is this the first time you will have gone through the withdrawals? Is a doctor prescribing the pills for you? If so, he can plan a taper with you to help limit the withdrawals, but nothing will eliminate them completely. I have gone through withdrawals more than I care to admit... the physical part of the withdrawals usually last 5 to 7 days with days 3 and 4 being the worst and a noticeable better feeling on day 5. Most people experience hot/cold flashes and/or sweating, some nausea, loss of appetite, fatigue, body aches and insomnia. Your body will feel like you have the flu. I have had really bad withdrawals, and then I've run out of pills before and thought I was going to be in bad shape and felt completely fine other than being tired, yawning alot and sneezing. Most of the time, we make it alot worse in our minds than it really is. It really helps to have a positive attitude going into it and even though you really won't feel like doing anything because you don't have that "energy" that you get from the pain pills, if you make yourself get up and do stuff (as much as you can muster energy for) such as light cleaning, taking a walk with your children, etc, it will help your energy level and your recovery in general. Melatonin, sleepy time tea, HOT bath 1/2 hour before bedtime (then drink the sleepy time tea) and rubbing your legs with lavendar lotion helps relax you and makes it easier to fall asleep and also helps with the RLS. Drink plenty of WATER!! For a few days it may seem as if time is standing still, but you'll be suprised as to how quickly it goes. After the physical part you will experience the mental withdrawals, cravings, etc, especially if you weren't taking them for pain and just taking them recreationally. You will get a lot of support here when people are up and about, you will get more advice. Most people believe in getting yourself into aftercare (n/a, a/a) when you are through with your detox to help deal with the addiction. Good luck to you, keep posting with your progress and remember to stay positive and tell yourself than you are stronger than your "addict" and you will do just fine!