Legal high (powders) addiction/withdrawl - help needed.

Oh dear think I maybe in for a rough time as with me when I lasted 5 days the first couple I spent sleeping and then basically then it got to be a very ordinary experience!!

I've been using for around five years myself nearly all that time I have been using pretty heavily and daily.

It completely surprised me how much the journey was going to take out of me. I don't want to be a doom bringer but I have to be totally honest about what may be coming. first I thought I had the flu, I sweated and sweated and sweated, felt weak and I couldnt eat a thing. I lost around a stone in a week, for me the detox process as I call it lasted around six weeks before I started to feel a major shift. For a long time I hadn't been eating a lot or sleeping very much due to the drug use and working a lot. either you have to come clean with those closest to you about what's happening, or get ready to be the bravest you have ever been. I managed to keep working and fibbed to a lot of people about having a virus (which would have similar symptoms) and kept the circle of people who knew the truth very small.

I can't lie, it's akin to coming off heroin. everyone is different and I was a physical mess (as I discovered) but there's no getting away from the reality of the situation.

you might feel like you are going mad some days, and it's an emotional roller coaster, but if you eat good, simple food, rest as much as you can (your body will need all of your energy to heal) and I would encourage you to try a drug and alcohol service, I did and I couldnt have done it without them a judgement free place to express what is happening was invaluable. This is a bit of an essay but I will answer any questions you have hardest thing life has given me so far but I did it and having done it I will never go back to it, and I'm glad people are trying to make them illegal

Yeah knew it was going to take a while but in an odd way I am quite excited about it as it's my final addiction.  I've had a few!

6 months, that's still early days you'll have plenty of time to get your old vitality back. Glad your happy though

I wonder if they'll just redact the swearing and still release your email.  I'm eager to know what it says!!?

You said this is your final addiction. What were the previous ones? (You don't have to tell me.)

I have had two serious addictions but never to legal highs so probably I won't be much help, but all I can say is well done in asking for help, i hope someone will be able to give you the correct advice and obviously legal highs should be illegal if they're causing this much trouble. it's bad enough to be addicted to things that doctors prescribe (as I was and still am) and also to nicotine, which I stopped a week ago because of the cost, the smell and the health risks. I imagine I'm much older than you but maybe this will stop you in your tracks and give you a chance to be unaddicted to eveerything - legal or not. You'll always get support from me but I bet I'm old enough to be your grandmother - which is a good way to say Don't be an addict for as long as I have been. It does make life very difficult and , doesn't help you to achieve everything you want. I'm sending this with affection and hope that someone who knows more about this will offer you better help than I can. But I do care - remember that - and ask me anything about addiction and how it took over my life for over forty years. If you want to, that is........all the best, John.

Addictive personalities! makes for a passionate person but is a burden too

all I can say is stick with it my mental addiction waned when I saw how physically addicted I was. short and long of it, I thought I had flu the first week, sweated like I have never sweated before, couldn't eat anything but soup, slept a lot and no energy.

All I could taste were chemicals, and my skin burned, sore joints, I lost a lot of weight, I thought I looked so druggy but people kept telling me I looked great! (Weird how our society perceives skinny people) emotions up and down like mental, thought I was going mad some days, then I read a legal high withdrawal forum and it helped

took myself out of the social circles for about a month, went out to go to work, but otherwise stayed home, started taking care of myself, got tests done at the docs for deficiencies and bladder and kidney health, ate well and simple, rested, attended drug counselling, ditched anyone who wasn't making me happy or helping, came clean with my mother and she was incredible! started to smile again, laugh with genuine emotion, dream, plan, walk in nature, cook, read, travel, and live my life! These drugs just dull the shine and keep you zombie.

Tips that helped me:

Keep a diary, write everything down, it will help if you feel like slipping, get busy with things that make you happy, and forgive yourself, love yourself, and trust you are not alone do anything and everything that helps you keep clean, I got really into healing angels and community work, that seems to be doing the trick addiction doesn't just happen, there are always factors

P.s you can do the thing! I believe in you

This discussion is about stopping using them, and being positive about it. Not a platform for you to be a troll. cheers for stating the obvious though. and no one mentioned suicide at all. If you had a brain then you wouldn't be so quick to judge. John is trying to get help with something that is very hard to do, please direct your negative comments elsewhere.

I was just wondering why you were so angry, Vickylou?

I doubt if anyone who becomes addicted to anything considers themselves to be actually addicted until they're in way too deep.

John is looking for help. That's a good start. I really don't believe he is considering suicide. Why do you think so? I'm a nurse and I've seen the results of various attempted and succesful suicides - but being addicted to something is a different thing altogether, if you think about it.

I care very much whether or not I die right now. I have four children who, although grown up, still need me and are supporting me in coming off valium. And cigarettes. I don't actually know what would be considered a legal high although I've heard of them. I really hope my kids aren't using them.

I'm struggling to believe you've actually read any of the comments or the title of this post.

I really don't know what to say to you as someone who has that amount of anger towards people they've never met must be in a real bad place themselves.

As Elmtree13 points out we're actually trying to kick the habit. It wasn't a carefree choice and if you speak to anyone who has addiction problems you'll normally find a reason either be it mental health (in my case), childhood trauma or adult tradegy. Rarely do you find someone who really is doing it for a laugh.

I am so sorry if you truly witnessed someone overdose on paracetamol but tell me there wasn't a reason why it happened. People sometimes don't have a choice.

I'm probably a bit older than you think as well.  Give you some bearing I would say it was around the late 80s (all that raving) when I started collecting addictions. Only drug I haven't done to excess is heroin. Tried pretty much everything else be it legal, prescribed or illegal and been addicted to amphetamines, alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, valium, benylin, night nurse and neurofen +.  Oh and tobacco.  I lied this is the last but one addiction I'm kicking. I still smoke tobacco.

Tess yes I am angry as I am married to a consultant chemical advisor whose main project at the moment is trying to discover the chemicals used in the production of legal highs. The government need as much evidence and knowledge of the actual chemicals. Some of these chemicals are unknown. They've been 'split' by cartels, mostly in Eastern Europe.

The reason I mentioned suicide is surely obvious. The majorly of the chemicals identified are carcinogens. 

I cannot say much more about them, other than they are lethal.

i probably did go over the top, mainly because the majority of people when asked about them, seem to regard them as harmless, a bit of fun at a party.

I have three children all adults now, married with their own kids, and I don't want to see them growing up in a country who considers them fun.

Sorry to jump in but I'm going to agree with you. THEY ARE LETHAL. Nothing about them is harmless they are insiduous in nature mainly because they are called 'legal' highs. You go into a shop one day wondering what all the fuss is about thinking how can this stuff be strong it's legal for gods sake......... The rest is an unpleasant history.

 

Well in that case you should be thrown off the website for blatant lying, young man!!! (ROFL)

I was born in the 1950s and have never (thankfully) been to a 'rave'. whatever that is.......is it like clubbing?

In your shoes I should get off the legal highs before you tackle the fags. Fags are very bad for you ( ha ha ha says she who only gave up a week ago) but I do think society and doctors geneerally are better at supporting coming off nicotine than anything else. Also, you will certainly find it very, very difficult to come off both at once.

Nah, worry thou not about fags. At the moment.

Look, I've watched a documentary about legal highs and they didn't seem to me to be very safe, even if they were legal. I've never taken one and wouldn't know how to get hold of them either but I'm very, very good at getting sleeping pills and so on from unsuspecting doctors.

That, by the way, is NOT something to be proud of; however, addicts wlll always go the extra mile to fulfil their perceived needs, as I am sure you know.

I really hope you stop taking them soon, with the right help, which I can't give you. But I can give you support and encouragement even thoough I'm an Old Lady (according to my kids - cheek.)

Stay positive and keep in touch with anybody on this site you've found to be helpful - that is the most helpful thing of all. xx

Well, I totally agree with all of that. I have grown-up kids, too, and I worry about them.

Suicide, I respectfully submit, is a choice made by someone who has decided not to continue living, whereas addiction is a way of life which many people, including me, get sucked into and then can't find a way out - or don't want to. So I still stand by my comment that John isn't actively trying to kill himself, although it is of course possible that anyone who takes things that are bad for them might die as a result.

After forty years of addiction I am now in treatment.Not once did I consider I was committing suicide. And in fact, i wasn't, technically, although the reasoned part of me frequently said STOP!!!!!!!!!

I'm sure you can see the difference. And I'm so glad you wrote back to me to explain - I've spent most of the night ona sister website screaming and shouting about alcohol adddiction - what a lot of patience most people had with me. You see, my husband is dying of alcoholism and I just don't understand why he DOESN'T STOP.

I'm getting cross again!

This is never helpful. I am addicted (to valium) and he is addicted (to alcohol)

So we're alike, really, except that he'll be dead soon and I'm hoping to stay alive.

Thanks again for your reply. It was very illuminating.

Hi Elmtree - I believe in him, too. And I'm very thankful that someone who has been through this personally has taken the time to write such a long and detailed response.

So thanks to Elmtree! And you stay off those things, too, by whatever useful and helpful method there is. I'm rooting for you as well as John.

Do you think you could root for me a bit, please? I need lots of help myself. I am on legal ha ha ha ha valium - just as devastating..............

Well good good luck and much will power to you.

As I've said previously I was addicted to Valium and you shouldn't sell what you are going to do short. Valium withdrawl is nasty, I'm afraid and you shouldn't just stop if you take large quantities, thinking about it I'd say small quatities as well.

How I did it and it took me best part of a year to do was slowly lower the dose each week. Take it on a Monday possibly Tuesday and then because of it's long half life you should get the worst withdrawl over the weekend.  Then be strong see your way through the weekend and drop the dose again. I'd say drop it 1/4 mg a week to begin with if you can handle that go to a half. You may find you have to stay on the same dose for a bit hense the time it took me although it does include the withdrawling after I'd stopped taking if that makes sense.  You can't do this quickly and you certainly won't want to go cold turkey I think I'm right in saying it can cause potentially lethal seizures.

On that happy note all I have to say is be patient, take care of yourself, don't blame yourself and be strong. Easy

tHANKS, jOHN. i'M DOING A SLOW TAPERING OFF, SUPERVISED BY AN EXPERT DOCTOR WHO TREATS ADDICTS ALL THE TIME.

Sorry, why was all that in caps?

Thank you for your thoughts and your support. Keep with us.

I used the word suicide deliberately. I would hope that anyone who chooses to take legal highs is aware of the strength, I.e. Rush 7, chemicals used and the risk of addiction. 

I smoke and and know the dangers, and I would agree that I run the risk of heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, to name just a few, so in a way I'm committing suicide by using a drug (nicotine), knowing it has the potential to kill.

just for the record, I'm no troll.

I never thought you were a troll!

Hope you find the willpower to give up smoking, when and if you're ready. Love Tess