Tramadol withdrawal support?
I have been taking the maximum dose of tramadol for about ten years. It was prescribed to me by my regular primary care physician for "fibromyalgia." At that time he told me that it was "non-habit forming" and not a narcotic, but that "they" really were not sure HOW it worked, just that it did.
Flash forward ten years. I've taken between two and five of the 50-milligram tablets three times a day - EVERY DAY - for the last ten years. There have been times when for some reason or other I have run out, which is absolute HELL. The withdrawal is horrible and even a few hours late on a dosage causes severe bone pain, incredible fatigue, sweats, fever, diarrhea, depression, shakes, etc.
Sometimes I feel like a heroin addict. I actually MUST have the tramadol in order to function at all. Yesterday, again, I almost ran out and had to go 16 hours without any. I couldn't get my prescription filled because the pharmacy said I was 20 days early for a refill! Perhaps having taken it for so long now I have built up some tolerance. I have found myself lying about "lost" pills, a teenaged relative "stealing" them, etc. I've gone to a few doctors and different pharmacies in order to be able to keep a constant supply. In other words, acting exactly like an addict. Also, I'm only 41, but taking tramadol for so long has ruined my teeth. It dries out the mouth and allows decay to set in. I actually have teeth that break off at the gumline as I eat french fries. I have already spent almost $8,000 on implants for the top teeth only - and I haven't even gotten to the bottoms yet.
I am depressed about the situation, but I don't think I have the stamina to be able to quit alone. Is there a support group out there, or anyone who has successfully quit taking tramadol after a long period? I sure could use the help and support of people who know how tramadol acts and how it feels. I feel desperate about a time when I won't have it and what will happen.
I don't know anyone else who has taken this drug and who understands the problem. Everyone says to just cut down and tough it out. Help!!!!!
Public Comments
1. This is where the irony kicks in about what are legal and illegal drugs! I have had assorted drug problems since I was 20, I didnt see them as problems until I managed to get myself onto just a prescribed dose of what my doctor wanted me to take. Eventually I got off everything extra or illegal by locking myself in the house for about 2 weeks and suffering, it was absolute hell! That was because I had tried all the traditional routes of seeking medical help, having counselling even rehab. In the end what got me off everything was realising I had a problem and admitting it to myself then getting the willpower to say this is it and get clean. You have done the hardest parts by realising you have a problem and admitting it to yourself, even harder would have been telling other people about it even with the anonimity of the web. Try seeking help, counselling, whatever you find that works for you but stick with it and find a way of keeping your resolve up.People try labelling anyone with any sort of problem but nobody wakes up one day and thinks 'I know what I'm going to become an addict/alcoholic today' it just happens. Some people become addicted to sport, tv, shopping, eating, exercising or caffeine so don't worry about what others think. You have the strength of character and the intelligence to realise that this has become a problem for you seek help and prove to yourself that you are bigger than the problem. You control the drugs they don't control you.
I read a really good book about a woman who was hooked on ritalin among other things called "More, Now, Again" the author is Elizabeth Wurtzel that and bits of the film Trainspotting helped me.
Choose Life!!
