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Coming off Tramadol

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fizzysoap
fizzysoap

Hello all,

I am after some friendly advice. 12 Jan I had a riding accident, hurt my shoulder. It was previously injured (dislocation/fracture of humerus) and it's been weak ever since. Doc put me on cocodamol as of 14th, and then on the 17th I was back at docs because they were making me sick. He put me on tramadol. 2x 50mg tablets three times a day.

I wasn't warned about any possible side effects, other than they may cause drowsiness.

11 weeks later, I can't kick it. I no longer require the tramadol for pain. They tried a weaning programme. I was given Tramadol SR tablets. I cut from 300mg a day to 200mg. One tablet morning, one tablet evening for a week. The week after I was cut down to 100mg tablet in the morning, then nothing.

I lasted a day before I used some left over regular tramadol.

The effects were horrific when I initially changed the dosage, but I thought it would be okay with cutting down and then coming off completely. I was ready for some side effects, but not what happened in reality.

Headaches, nosebleeds, sickness, sweats, freezing cold, aggressiveness, exhaustion, tearful, restless, insomnia.

I had some very very dark thoughts that I haven't had in years. I took the tramadol and felt ten times better.

I have a doctor's appointment today, but they tend to be as much use as a chocolate teapot. Any recommendations or information you think will be helpful to take with me is greatfully appreciated.

A nurse over the phone expressed she thought that the time frame for coming off them was too short, and the leap from 100mg to none was too much.

Please help.

I know I have a problem, but I'm scared to come off them and become the horrid, nasty person I was at the weekend. My rational thoughts tell me once I stop for good I'll be back to normal, but I don't have those rational thoughts when I try and come off them. I need them to cope with the most simple of tasks.

18 likes, 387 replies

387 Replies

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  • michael_67533
    michael_67533 fizzysoap

    Posted

    Hello I was on tramadol 4 years broken bones in Foot & Leg then I had back surgery I had to go cold turkey I tried going slowly off of it decreasing the milligrams but when the symptoms got too intense I would end up getting more Tramadol so I finally made a decision to stop it or die trying it was the hardest thing I've ever done I've had to come off of oxycodone and Oxycotin when I had my back surgeries I've had two back surgeries in the past and that was hard very hard but the Tramadol took much longer for me to come off of I ended up getting Xanax and medication for nausea and it took me about a month solid to come off of the effects and then another month of jet lag I hope the best for you. I even tried Suboxone and then slowly tapering from 1/2 strep too 7 pieces off of 1 strip them down to cutting one strip into 20 little pieces.
  • Flyingkites
    Flyingkites fizzysoap

    Posted

    Hi there I'm just wondering if you're still having tramadol withdrawal
  • mike07558
    mike07558 fizzysoap

    Posted

    Hi!

    I had some arm pain that started almost 2 years ago. I had some physio 6 months into the pain but it persisted and in December the doc put me on cocodamol (30mg?). I found it worked and I was only taking a lower dose of 4-6 tablets a day compared to the 8 I could have taken. But in April I said they weren't working that well any more so they tried Amitriptaline [sp]. I found that just made me tired and I stopped taking it after 3 days. They put me on Tramadol then.

    I didn't notice any euphoria or even much pain killing. But I think the physio I had was helping and I foolishly accredited it to tramadol.

    I've only had this for 6 weeks so far. I've been taking between 2-8 tablets a day depending on pain. Some days I didn't take any at all.

    But 5 weeks in and I noticed I felt bad in the mornings. crippling, doom ladened, nothing is worth it, -type feelings. I've felt this way for about 10 days now. I went to the docs because I was showing signs of depression and was put on an SSRI. I'm 5 days into that course.

    I can't believe how much this is affecting me even though I had no euphoric sensation. I think it was the SSRI withdrawal effect causing my bad feelings.

    Today I'm stopping. Yesterday I only took 2 tablets after a VERY difficult day. I only wondered this morning that maybe this has been caused by the tramadol and this thread helped so so much!

    What helps me is being around my partner running errands. As well as acknowledging I have this and it's okay to take it easy for a while to get back to normal. I'm trying to treat it like a little holiday except one I'm miserable at.

    I feel all the small worries I've had over the years have come back to haunt me. Even the tiny things like a chocolate gift I never finished and forgot about until it went off. Stupid things like that. Ah sad

    • mike07558
      mike07558

      Posted

      This is day 3 now.

      The evenings seem to be good for me. The mornings are hell on earth. I wake up really down but over the course of the day things do improve. For example yesterday my partner went to her part time job in the city centre and I tagged along. She was only in for 4 hours and I just wanted to walk around the big city and hope it washed my worries away.

      And it did! I really forced myself out. I was worried at first. "What if I need to sleep suddenly, what if I need the toilet and I'm not near one?". But it all turned out great. When we met back up and returned home together I took a shower and felt 8/10. Afterwards I was 10/10 again. I could feel it pulling me back down so I knew I wasn't free... but I was trying my best to 'record' this moment and how amazing I felt so if depression/anxiety hit again I could remind myself how good things are really.

      So here I am on Day 3. I woke up feeling 4/10 but that slipped down to maybe 2 or 3. (If Day 1 morning was a 0!)

      I'm going to the toilet every hour or so. But I find that throwing myself into things really helps. This is actually happening right now! I managed to drag myself out of bed and tidy my room a bit, then tidy the computer (things piled up in the depression). Dragging myself out of bed was 2/10, sitting down at the computer was 3/10 but I feel it rising to a nice 6/10 just writing this out.

      I'm sleeping more than usual. I get around 10 hours a day at the moment. I even find myself napping during films before bed, and then still getting to sleep easily. But trying to sleep whilst I'm feeling down is near impossible. Little thoughts crop up and keep me awake.

      I wonder whats going on. The whole "getting back to normal in the evenings" thing confuses me. I'm taking nothing but antidepression medication (lowest dose).

    • Cici163
      Cici163 mike07558

      Posted

      Hi mike07558 and everyone. I have been reading everyone's post and I would like to share.

      I have been on the pills for say a year and I started taking them because of a back ache I had. I honestly didn't know tramadol side effects were this bad.

      I was able to stop taking them at the beginning after I realized I didn't need them. But to be honest I kept taking them for recreational use.

      Whenever I try to get off of them it's so hard that I just give in and take a pill again. My boyfriend is also on them because he has a minor broken back.

      I would also like to say to mike07558, good freakin job for having the strength to get off of them.

      I want to stop them so bad but each time I do, it's just so hard.

    • mike07558
      mike07558

      Posted

      Ok! So I've had loads to think about in that hellish first week of coming off opiates.

      I was taking tramadol and cocodamol at the same time (well, cocodamol in the mornings, tramadol in the evening).

      I noticed my mood was dropping when I decided to stick to just the tramadol. The lack of that additional "boost" from cocodamol was bringing me down. The tramadols helped in a way with their SSRI effect but overall it wasn't good.

      So with that in mind I'm now on Day 6 of opiate withdrawal. Aside from my using them both (at different times of the day) I didn't abuse them or take them recreationally, I didn't always take the max dose and I even missed out a few days here and there when there was no pain. So I'm amazed they managed to get this much of a hook into me.

      I feel cured right now. I decided to take off 2 weeks and try and fix myself in that timeframe. A healthy mix of L Tyrosine, Propranolol, a big multivitamin, paracetomol, valerian root extract, and sleeping tablets helped me through the worst of the withdrawals. As well as caffeine. Trust me on this one! I found the lack of energy to be the worst part of this, and out of fear of getting into an anxiety attack I avoided caffeine. But when I returned to it I found my anxieties wen't away.

      It's not easy but it's possible. I found it interesting watching myself re-learn how to be happy. I spent a lot of time with family, I went on walks in the city and countryside, I tried new foods and new sports (such as climbing and kayaking!). As I say I'm not fixed. I imagine I'll wake up feeling horrible again. But the time spent feeling horrible keeps shrinking each day.

    • john42157
      john42157 mike07558

      Posted

      I got stuck on Tramadol three years ago , prescribed for pain from hemorrhoids, tried weaning myself off but realised I was weaning myself back on. Decided to cold turkey, this is night #6. Have given up trying to sleep, the restless leg syndrome is the worst bit for me. Libido is much improved though. Liable to burst into tears at the drop of a hat. Slowly improving, I think.
  • darla87107
    darla87107 fizzysoap

    Posted

    I appreciate everyone openly discussing this. First, I had no idea that some we're on such high doses. I was only on 5  day and it was too much. I actually would still be taking them if they hadn't starting making my stomach feel like there was a fist trying push it's way out. I started an in depth research and found it was giving a few problems.  Until reading these post..I had no I'd it was why I couldn't give a rats ass about sex. I weaned myself for a few days.. from 5 o 2..one in the morning and one at night so I could rest. Yesterday I stopped.. last night was rough. I came so close to taking one but just talked myself through and I've now made it almost 36 hrs with none. I came here hoping someone could tell me how long will no have after affects?

     

    • mike07558
      mike07558 darla87107

      Posted

      I think it depends on how long you were on it for, and the dosage. I was only on tramadol for a month, but combined with cocodamol it really messed me up. I'm only on day 6, inching into day 7. The first day and today have been the worst so far. The first day I felt like there was no future for me at all, it was incredibly depressive. And today I couldn't shake the fact I once again had no future and all my tricks to improve my situation no longer worked. But later in the day it did, it's all part of the rollercoaster.

      It's up and down but there's a gradual shift towards getting back to normal. I feel 90% like myself now but it also feels like this last bit will take long to return.

      I'm on my 6th day now.

    • mike07558
      mike07558

      Posted

      Day 10 now. It's unbelievable how deeply depressed you can get, I felt so close to calling a mental health crisis team at my local hospital. And then to feel stable just a few days later.

      I had a day where I felt 200% better. My brain was sparking with ideas. It didn't last unfortunately but now I feel around 80%. But I'm happy again. That amount of depression is scary! Everything gets warped but feels so logical and correct.

      To anyone reading this - you can do it! It feels impossible but keep your mind busy, take a week or two off work for the worst part, take good care of yourself and you'll be okay.

    • john42157
      john42157 darla87107

      Posted

      Hi, just done one month cold turkey after 3 years on 8 a day. pretty much all side effects gone now.
  • newmargy
    newmargy fizzysoap

    Posted

    The advice here is excellent. I was on Tramadol for nearly a year and had all the horrible effects when I tried to stop, but doing it very very gradually it is possible to stop and it worked for me.  I had been on 600mg a day. I now have no need or desire for it at all . I suppose it took about 3 months to get rid of most of the withdrawal symptoms, only the sleeping took longer to get back to normal. I just wanted you to know it is possible, you just need to stick at it and not rush it.
  • dawna88832
    dawna88832 fizzysoap

    Posted

    Hello fizzysoap. I live in America. I went in for just a check up and the doctor looked at  my medical records as I had to take on a new family doc. He asked me what I did for my back pain, I said well ive suffered with it for so long that I just deal with it. I told him I didn't want to start the percocet or vicoden merry go round. He told me tramadol was just a little stronger then tylenol and it would be great for my back problems. That one appointment I wish I could go back in time and cancle. Its been 3yrs now and Im living in tramadol hell. Fortunately on the streets here they are a $1 a pill. I've tried many different things and formulas to stop and nothing works. I've had GAD generalized anxiety disorder since I was 11yrs old. Thats the part that ruins my life and of course the horrible nights whenever I run out. I seriously have been looking into suing the doctor and the parmecutical company. Nobody tells us about this part of the hell.

  • sarah1406
    sarah1406 fizzysoap

    Posted

    Hi. Just wondering how everyone is doing? Is there anyone still trying to come off Tramadol?

    I am taking 4 co-cocodamol and 4 tramadol a day. Abit of a long story.

    I really want to come off both now. They don't make me feel better about life. My doctor is going to help me take just one lot of tablets to start with then start reducing those. Anyone else in my situation please, or have you been? 

    • jamal63432
      jamal63432 sarah1406

      Posted

      Hi Sara, I was taking Tramadol for three years due to sustaining a gunshot in my lower back and left hand. I began taking the tramadol bc at the time it was a non narcotic with alleged "lower addictive" qualities. However, when I attempted to discontinue it...I had sever symptoms of withdrawal i.e, increased pain, sweats, fever/chills, depressed mood, agitation...you name it. It was awful. However I was able to develop a plan with my PCP so I could slowly decrease the dosage over time. It took approximately 6 months but this August marks 1 year that I have been completely Tramadol Free...and as difficult as it was.. I feel so much better! If I can do it so can you!!!

    • thebird55
      thebird55 sarah1406

      Posted

      I recommend eliminating the tramadol first. You could still control your pain while dealing with any potential SSRI withdrawal symptoms.
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