Need help/Advice regarding withdrawing from Codeine

Ah Ian don't beat yourself up mate, firstly your not a failure your just human, you won't be the first or the last but you've done it so far so you can do it again and reach that end goal, if the pain or withdrawals are getting to bad then maybe you need to speak with your GP about the dose and your tapering plan and make sure you tell her all and I'm sure she'll be sympathetic

Can you not go without your wife? Dose she have to know, sorry that might sound bad but if she's not supporting you then you don't need that extra stress,

You can do this Ian you know you can you've come so far so dont give up now, so you've had a bad week that's over now and time to start again it's not the end of the world your looking forward not back, sending all my hugs to you right now, let me know how you get on 😊

Hi Caroline

thanks for your kind words 

I have just got back from the doctors and they have changed my medication again

They have lowered my dose citralopram to 10mg (as 20 was making me worse) and have put me on Amitryptiline again (10mg at night) and also gave me some diazepam for a month to combat the anxiety until the citralorpam kicks in properly, they said it would take about 6 weeks for that to work properly.

they have also put me back up to 8 x 30mg Codeine phos a day until after christmas (as i go away next week for 10 days) and they will start a different taper 1st week in January 

i have to go back next week to see how im doing before i go away

does anyone know if ill be affected taking all those meds to spain ??

Ah so glad your sorted 😊 Iv been worried about you.

Just a word of advice diazaoam is very addictive so make sure you follow doctors advice on these as I was on them for 3 months and found the withdrawals awful and very different to opioids.

Make sure you carry your meds in your hand luggage along with your prescription or docs note just incase you get checked and DONT forget them 😊

Hope your more settled now so all you need is to go away and enjoy your hols you deserve it 😎

Hi ian,

Have just read through this discussion. Just wondering how your doing? Have you had your scan? Im sure its been tough with the set back. Hope alls well.

Im on 30/500s 8 a day for 2 yrs for back problems. Im trying to reduce/stop. Went to my docs and told her i wanted to do this and she just said ok theres 15mg Codeine take 1-2 4 times a day and gave me 28tablets. Really don't know how to go about reducing and cant see 28tablets lasting long after being on 30s so long. Would have loved bit more support. Was thinking of trying 15mg four times aday but have a feeling thats going to be very tough after 60mg four times a day.

Good reading your story and your ups and downs. Your only human you will face some hurdles but the fact you're trying is great.

Firstly I'm so sorry you've had bad news.

Please don't beat yourself up Ian you won't be the first or the last person to slip, where only human at the end of the day and this is a really difficult thing to go through no matter who you are, it takes a lot of strength mentally and physically and it can and will wear the best of us down, it's really is not the end of the world although I understand exactly how your feeling right now.

Tomorrow's another day and you can get back on track with this, you really can do this mate, forget about yesterday it dosnt matter anymore.

Go see your doc they will understand and help you get back on track and there is no need to feel ashamed and make yourself feel any worse than you already do, your stronger than you think and you can do this, where all here to support you and help you get through it, sending hugs 😊 Keep in touch please 😊

Thank you Caroline

I'm actually that sick of it all I am thinking of going Cold Turkey from today...  I'm just sick of these tablets ruling my life

If I went Cold turkey could the doc prescibe me something to help ease the W/D's for a week ??  I couldnt take it for a week on its own i think....

I think I want to do that, right now, Ive got my mind set

Ian, I am dropping one codeine per day with zero withdrawals from taking DPLA and L-Thyrosine to replace what's lacking in my neurotransmitters. I actually feel like my mind is saying I do need to taper, but my body is saying I can just stop!

I've gone from 30mg x20 per day to x7 per day in 9 days.

If you'd like to read the book I am following to detox, I'll send you the link.

All the best

Suz x

Gabapentin will definitely help with sleeping and WLS it was a life saver for me.

I know how you feel because that's what I did, I dropped one tablet a week for 2 weeks and by the end of it I was so mentally ill I thought I'll take a week off then start again so after the third week I dropped my last 2 doses together thinking it will only be a week of hell well it wasn't it took 4 weeks of torture and looking back I still had withdrawals that would just hit me randomly for another 2 months, but everyone's different, all I would say is be careful, drink plenty water, eat well and try and get some fresh air but i would still advise to taper only because if I had to do it again that's the route I would take, I think it was a very stupid thing for me personally because of how ill I really was, I find it hard to even think about it it's still raw.

I found it hard to taper I just wanted it over with so I totally understand where your coming from, just be careful if you do choose cold turkey and keep in touch with us😊

Oh and I think gabapentin will make it easier for you to taper safely then you wouldn't feel like you have to do it all at once 😊

I am going to stick with the taper but I spoke to a duty doctor on the phone who stated they would not give me anything else to help me, (i wasnt asking for more codeine, just something else to help) so Im actually going to ring in the morning and get an appt to go and see a real doctor

gabapentin? is that something I can ask for ?  is it also addictive?

Make it clear that you need help with withdrawal pains and that gabapentin has been suggested, I took it morning and night for a couple of weeks then just 1 at night for WLS for over a month then just 1-2 a week when WLS was bad but now it's settled and I havnt took any for a few weeks and havnt had any side effects, now I was scared it would be something else to cope with but I think as I felt better I also cut down how much i took so never felt any effects when it came to stopping it, not sure if I'd took more for longer things might have been different.

I hope your doc gives you them, there are other meds such as vallium but stay clear as they are highly addictive and have awful mental withdrawals (for me anyway)

I hope your feeling better after speaking with a doc and hope you get sorted tomorrow, don't forget anytime you need to talk where her me for you 😊

Here for you 😊

Hi Ian how did you get on with doc? 😊

Hey Caroline,

Hope you are good?

I had a pretty crap weekend, couldn't get an appt with my GP until today so I'm going in later.  The surgery must of blacklisted me as no-one will speak with me on the phone, not even the duty doctor.

Im still doing the taper (down to 5 now!) but as you know the last week has been a nightmare and it seems to be getting worse (Insomnia, RLS, Extreme anxiety (from which I have started to pick my scalp, gross I know!) and people noticed on the weekend I am losing weight fast too.

So I'll go in and see what they say, just want some help even if its just a short course... I may even beg

will let you know the outcome later..

Ah Ian iv been worried about you but didn't want to hound you as I know how difficult it is for you right now, amazing that you've got down to 5 however your struggling and really need that help to continue with the good work youve done so far so please don't let them fob you off, if they don't give you something to help with withdrawals I would maybe go to A & E and tell them your desperate and need help, or your pharamacist (mine has been great in giving advice with my taper and may help direct you in the right direction if your doc fails you), I'm with you all the way mate to see you through to the end of this and it will end I promise you, this is hell right now and I get it but your almost there so keep fighting it will get easier I promise you.

Can't wait to hear from you and hope you get the help you need, sending hugs 😊

How you getting on Ian? did the doc give you anything to help with withdrawals, hope your ok 😊

Hi Caroline

Well went to the docs and asked for help but got the same response i got from the duty doctor. Zero

They will keep me on the taper but wont give me anything else from fear of getting addicted to something else.

I mentioned about gabapentin but my doc stated they are just for Epelectics and now are classed as "C" so are controlled even more than they were before.

So looks like I'm stuck with just suffering at the moment and I'm REALLY struggling today

Its no wonder people relapse...

Quick question my wife (who is not supportive of me tapering) is seeing the same doc later on today, can she mention what Im doing to my wife ??

That's disgusting, I'm so sorry they won't help you.

Sorry to hear your struggling, what you down to now? My heart goes out to you.

I think that's a pretty lame excuse to be honest, I was scared I would have more withdrawals to go through with gabapentin once I was off the opioids but I didn't which is why I think so many people on here suggest them to help people through when it gets tough.

Your doctor cannot discuss anything about your medical history to anyone and if she does I would report her.

I think it's difficult for people who have never suffered to remotely comprehend how difficult your life is right now and just hope your wife never has to endure the suffering your experiencing right now, you will get through this Ian I swear to you and you will be a happy person once again and can put this all behind you. Focus on how fantastic your life will be in the near future, you have so much to look forward to.

If you feel like your slipping or need to sound off or scream and shout then I'm here for you anytime don't forget.

you will get through this I promise 😊

Hi Caroline

Thank you for your kind words, at least someone is being supportive towards me, which does help!

I am down to 4 x 30mg a day now.  The past few days I have seriously bad dhiarrea, I have spent 70% of the day on the loo! But the worst is the RLS, Anxiety, and insomnia.  I also have no appetite whatsoever and have lost a lot of weight.  people say its 3-5 days for the wd's and thats absolute crap... i have felt ill for 3 weeks now.  God knows how I would feel if i stopped altogether suddenly.

I know that my doc could really prescribe gabapentin if she wanted too (also Robaxin) but for some reason they look at me as some street Heroin addict (no disrespect to heroin addicts, I kno what your going through).  She said my file is "marked forever" now (but it wouldnt stop any future pain relief if I was SERIOUSLY in need for it, surgery, illness, accident, etc).

I feel a bit robbed as I only ended up on this crap cos of a serious RTA I was involved in and I needed more than paracetamol or ibuprofen (which i cant take anyway due to medical reasons) to stop the pain.  I was in pain for quite a while until the NHS finally decided that I needed surgery (after 2 years)

But after the surgery it took about 3 months to get fully fit and they just kept prescribing (on repeat, no questions asked) the medication.  I am fairly smart and realised at the time I was addicted, but couldn't face being in pain.  Some people have a high pain threshold and some dont, I don't unfortunately.

My doc said she could treat the taper but not the addiction, and i would have to go elsewhere for that.

So now I'm not sure what to do, I dont want to be like this all weekend again, I have a bucnh of pills that are meant to last me till tuesday but I am so tempted right now, so tempted, just dont want to feel ill anymore..

Please don't take them this will only prolong your agony but I'm sure you know this anyway, I totally understand.

What did she mean by treat your taper? If this means going into hospital why dont you look into it and see, I was told that I would probably have to spend 4 days in hospital to get off the crap I was on however I took the hard route foolishly, saying that I didn't look into what a hospital stay entails so why don't you do some research if that's what's on offer, if I had to do it again I would do it that way, I suffered for months but had no clue it would take that long or i wouldn't have been able to face it.

If you take these your going to suffer horrendously because they won't give you anymore, I wish there was something I could do to help you, what about ringing the NHS helpline and see if you can speak with someone, surely this is an inhumane way to treat someone, your clearly struggling and need better care from our professionals, I feel like your doc is letting you down, please ring the helpline and let me know how you get on.

I'll be with you all the way and see this through to the end however long this takes or hard it gets I'm here for you, don't give up your stronger than you think and you can beat this crap 😊

Also just remember Ian 4 tablets is amazing by the way, you really need to give yourself some credit, you've come along way, this crap in your system is playing games with your mind and wants you to fail, dont give into it 👊😊

How you feeling this morning Ian 😊

How you doing Ian? I don't want to pester you just making sure your ok 😊

Hey caroline

sorry its been a while

had a massive setback this week (and its not about me absuing my dosage for a change!) and its been HELL

my other half went mental at me about me still taking 4 a day, so she got rid of my prescription for this week,  I rang the doc and explained but they basically didnt believe me (think I'm trying to get more) so now I havent had any since wednesday morning, I am going through cold turkey (today is day 2)... its hell, i cant even go buy some as my wife has "confiscated" my debit cards...lol, its like im a child

maybe its for the best?  dont seem to be getting anyhelp from GP or anyone else so might as well just deal with it.  it sucks

I will go back to docs next tuesday but by then I will propbably be over the worst ??

ian

So glad to hear from you Ian, I think your partner needs to read a few messages on here so she can understand that where not smack heads and that many people end up on long term prescription drugs because of chronic pain. It's not enough that we have that to deal with but it's normally to late by the time we realise that pain meds are also damaging to us and then have one hell of a battle trying to get off them.

I can't believe the lack of support from your GP it really is mind blowing that anyone can stand back and watch a person suffer especially when she also had a hand to play in you getting to this stage.

If cold turkey is the only answer now

Answer now than maybe your right in sticking with it, if you can get to Tuesday then you can do the rest on your own, what I would say tho is seing your not getting support at home then make sure you take care of yourself until you come through this, don't be worrying about anyone other than yourself right now, take it easy, go to bed when you need to and before you know it you will be back on track with your life.

It won't be long before everything is looking brighter and better, I know your going through hell right now but I'm thinking of you and willing you on through this, don't let it get to you you've come so far, it wants you to give in but don't let this tough time be for nothing, you've got it Ian your nearly there.

Try taking some liquid magnesium it should help with RLS, take care and keep me updated Ian 😊

IAN, I can only suggest reading 'End Your Addiction Now' by Charles Grant.

I cannot go into my story just now, but if you wish to avoid symptoms almost completely, then please read.

Warmest Regards