Getting off Pain Meds

Posted , 2 users are following.

I have been taking Norco as well as Vicodin for many years and my back pain is still there but need to get off this medication and want to know if any of you have ever completly got off these meds and how you did it. I dont want to go to a drug consulor or treatment center and believe I can do this myself but is there any easy way to just get off this crap? I have read almost every article there is on the internet. I have been off the meds before for two weeks at a time but had an extreme craving for the drug but mostly wanted it to get rid of the pain. Any help out there?

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3 Replies

  • Posted

    I believe you can do it yourself but it is very hard. I myself was addicted to DF118 for 15 years which I think is similar to Vicodin , I was also topping myself up with benzo's and heroin when I could get it. At my worst I was taking between 40 and 50 x30 mg of DF118 a day- which I appreciate is quite a lot. I think the difficulty you'll have is knowing whether your pain is from an existing back problem or the pain from withdrawal because I had severe lower back pain after withdrawing and this went on for several weeks before it started to settle.I did go to a drug treatment centre but only for them to pesribe an opiate blocker ( Naltrexone) this is not a substute for the drug and I had to go through the whole horror of withdrawal ( which I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy ) however this has helped me stay clean as this last withdrawal was the worst yet ( had approx 5 other attempts) so every time I think about using again , I remember the pain I went through.Depending on how big your GP surgery is they may be able to point you in the direction of a pain specialist. You don't have to tell them about your addiction if you really don't want to but ask them not to use an opiate based painkiller and do not take anything else until you are free of the Vicodin ( unless of course you tell the GP first and then they can advise you ) There are lots of pain control options out there , you just need to be free of the Vicodin before you can explore them. Not sure this has helped any but I hope it has . Like I said I never thought I could get clean myself - I'd be clean 6 weeks ( still feel like sh*t !! ) and then start taking again ! But it can be done ,I'm now clean for over a year. good luck.
    • Posted

      Thanks Pootle. I have run out of my medication for three weeks at a time before and the pain was intense but I pushed myself. Of course it would have been nice to take a few when the pain was there but I really didnt have any problems other than night sweats and the lack of motovation to get anything around the house done. I know I can do it but then again the pain----Damned if I do and pain if I dont. Catch 22. Maybe my new pain physician will come up with another plan other than those injections. Have to take one day at a time. Thanks for your message. 
  • Posted

    I cant believe what happened. This last December 22 I woke up with absolutley no pain at all.......YES! I thought I was dreaming. Of course I thought to myself I bet it will rear it's ugly head once more during the day but it didnt. I didnt take any medication and felt like a champ! I still had 17 pills (Norco) left and didnt take any. I saw my pain doctor yesterday and told him I was pain free and didnt need the surgery I was going to have in February. He was amazed as well. He did give me another prescription for Norco which I filled and have not taken any because I feel so good. No withdrawls-No headaches-No craving-NOTHING. I will keep the medication in my desk drawer only if there is a damn good reason to take one. I know it sounds strange but I have not felt this good with good thoughts and excellent energy for years. My wife of course says it was God that gave me my life back but maybe I just grew out of it or maybe he kicked me in the ass. Living the life without having to make sure I had two or three pills in my pocket when I leave the house is beautiful. If I can do this without having to go to a drug re-hab center and spend all day listening to others complain then you can also. It feels really good to just be normal.....Thanks for your posts guys and I hope this post makes someone see the light! have a great life!

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