This is Harder than I Thought

[T2112]

Around a month ago, New Years, I posted that I was going to quit 20+ painkiller (codeine, butabitol) that I had been taking for 10 years or so.  I was able to get down to 6 per day and that was by reading various posts on this site as well as the responses to my initial post (Thank You to those of you who answered).  Well I should have been off everything by now BUT ... the pharmacy called a few weeks ago when I was tapering from 6 to 4 and said they had a Rx for me to pick up and it had been waiting. I never dropped off an Rx or had one called in and certainly didn't expect it. I think when my Rx script ran out in their automated system they called my Doctor and had it refilled. What I should have done was ignore it and came back to the post but NO. My thinking was that I will go pick it up and keep it stored away for those days when the migraines are just too bad to deal with.  Well - 6 per day never did drop to 4. Then 6 became 8 per day for a few days which lead to 10 per day and then 12 per day.  I'm kinda irritated at myself because even though I went through the withdrawls from the immediate drop from 20+ to 8, and even getting to the point where I wasn't feeling all that bad, maybe even better, I allowed myself to escalate the amount per day to 12.

I don't want to be annoying and constantly post but it may be that daily posting is the only way. I have managed to drop from 10 per day to now 8 which is where I am at.  I really thought I could easily taper off these.  When I used to smoke pot I would do so for a month then not for 6 months.  Then make a few weeks and not again for a year.  I used to go out drinking socially and then one day 15 years ago I just stopped.  No issues, never any problems but these painkillers are different. What is it that can make a person look at a situation, tell themselves that it is not good, even counter-productive to take them and then take more pills then the day before.  It is a unrational thought process yet it is what happens.

I have read older posts that advised people to tell their doctor and the pharmacy not to refill any more Rx, which I did at the beginning of this week. I am also curious as to why I am able to stick to the plan if I read the psost on this website on a regular basis but if I stop logging on and just try to stop on my own I can not.  Anyway - Thanks for letting me type.  Any advice would be appreciated and I will continue to read and post until the day I can type that I am done.

[T2112]

Just checking in. Yesteday was another day at only 4 Fioricet.  Other than the Fog most is normal BUT I am beginning to notice that my legs spasm quite a bit during the day. I know it is part of the process. I cannot wait to be done with all of this.

[vicki595]

Hi-   Yes, it's normal.  I only have a second for now but it's true; the symptoms increase exponentially as the dose decreases. That's why a taper needs to be slow...     Hang in there and I'll PM you later.

[T2112]

Wow - What a morning. My stomach is upset, even a tad painful and I can't see all that well - hard to keep the letetrs in focus. I am sooo gald I was told about the Immodium. I actually feel worse going from 6 to 4 per day than I did going from 12 to 8 per day. Does the true WD sysptoms really hit when you hit a certain minimum level? I assume I will find out over the next few days. And another thing - I have become lazy and out of sorts. That's not me normally (on the medication anyway). I hope this is temporary.

[YesLife4Me]

Glad you gave an update.  The vision thing is normal during wd.  I would have blurry vision or sensitivity to light.  The opiates make our pupils pinpoint.  They are larger than normal when coming off them.   I know that feeling all too well when you see the bottom of the bottle.  So glad not to be worrying about it anymore!   Id get panicky and start making calls so I wouldn't run out.  We will be here for you.  You are doing great!!  Now I gotta get off here and get ready for work...lol.  

[T2112]

Hi - I am posting to stay connected and see this through. This weekend was extremely busy and in some ways I think that has helped.  I am following my plan and am now down to 4/day which is an 80% drop since the beginning of the year. I am starting to feel the effects. A lot foggy, a lot tired, and a lot sore. I seem to be having some weirdnedd with my eyesight from the time I wake up until I fall asleep??? I am still in my basic sleep pattern for the most part. It is some scary seeing only 20 or so Fiorcet left in the bottle and knowing there will not be another refill tomorrow. If all goes as planned this week is the last. Then I will need the support more than ever.

T

[HadEnough0920]

I'm glad you chose to post here.  Many, including myself, suffer from migraines.  You will do anything to get relief.  I too took Fioricet for about a month.  It worked fine to get rid of the migraines, but I wanted to prevent them if possible.  I found a doc that sat down with me and we went over everything.  He asked me about my sleep.  It turns out that I would wake up with the migraines about 90% of the time.  He Rx'd me amatriptyline and clonazepam to help me stay asleep and be more restful.  Very small dosages of each.  I noticed that it took a bit to get used to the meds.  I was foggy upon waking for an hour or so.  But the migraines became very infrequent.  Then we worked on finding a medicine that would knock them out if I did get one.  I tried a few, but settled on Relpax, which is a Triptan similar to Imitrex or Frova.  It is not without issues(extreme tiredness), but it gets rid of them quickly for me.

I posted to let you know that you're not alone, and there are safe, non addictive options out there that work.  Talk to your doctor about them.  It may take some trial and error, but you'll be much happier in the long run.  Good luck.