Help getting off hydrocodone

C

chlo

New member
I need suggestions of how to detox and get off this pain medication. I'm taking 4 a day and need to stop. Any suggestions will help. Thanks
 
Welcome!!!

Well, I would suggest that you read as many posts as possible because there is endless information on this board.

Check out at the top of the page the "sample home detox" that should give you the best idea of what is to come and things you can do to help yourself thru it..

Posting a lot here and reading got me thru the worst times... Dig down deep for courage and selfworth... knowing you are worth this fight is the most important thing in my opinion and finding the strength that we all have inside us is key!

Good luck to you on your journey!
~Secrets
 
Secrets is right, there is a really great home detox plan here (I wish I had known about the board before quitting cold turkey!!) The biggest thing is to prepare yourself mentally - and KNOW that you CAN do it. Keep talking to us here - we're here to listen, anytime!
 
Hello and welcome. I, too, detoxed off of hydrocone. I was taking six pills per day for a few years and decided I wanted to quit. My doc told me to taper down off of this drug and it would be a lot better. So, I took 8 weeks to taper down and it wasn't nearly as bad as a lot of the posts on here. I would taper down every Monday, either one-half a pill per day, or a whole pill per day, depending on where I was on the taper. By the time I got down to one-half a pill per day, I did that for two days, and then just quit. I would take Benydryl to help me sleep, took vitamins faithfully, and made sure I drank or ate things that had a lot of potassium in them, i.e., bananas and V-8 juice. When I got near the end, I was so nervous and anxious, I couldn't believe it. I think something that we all forget to do while detoxing is to breathe and try and relax as much as possible. The anxiety of giving up your pills is a powerful thing, but honestly, the best thing for me to do was keep busy and try not to think about it as much.

For me, it was even better not to log on to here for a while, as it reminded me of what I was going through.

I would also tell myself that these pills were not going to win and getting angry even helped me. I am now 25 days clean and haven't looked back. I suffered from some depression for about 10 days, but exercising helped that, I just took short, frequent walks.

I took Reachout's advise and just relaxed and let my antidepressant do its work. Looking back, it was the hardest thing I have ever done, but the best thing I have ever done too.

Take care and I hope and pray that you find the strength you need to get through this. It WILL get better. TaCot
 
Sweating it out can be bad for you and getting on suboxone or methodone is just another addiction. But suboxone has done wonders for me. I'm dt-ing from soboxone right now but thankfully I found you guys. We are not alone!
 
Folks, please address the concerns and topic of the original poster on this thread. Start another thread to discuss other issues.
 
Thank you you so much for the suggestions. I believe I can do it this way. The thought of going cold turkey was too much. Little by little certainly takes the fear away.
Thank you,
Linda
 
Hi Chlo,

You might want to try a gradual taper. Four pills a day is not that hard to come down from. I was at four last month, and am now at two. I took it slowly, and made the taper very gradual.

What I did was buy a pill cutter and break them into fourths. I started by going down to 3-3/4, then 3-1/2, then 3-1/4, and so forth. I bought one of those pill organizer boxes and have my daily dosage in each compartment, so I can see each day what I have, and know that I can't exceed that amount.

Going from 4 to 2 was not that hard, but I am feeling a little "stuck" at two. Part of it is that I am having rebound headaches, so I'm having to fight that pain, but physical withdrawals have not been bad. If you reduce your daily intake by just a little less each day, you'll get there. A lot of people try going cold turkey, but just speaking for myself, that's a tough way to go. I think you can quit comfortably with a tapering program. It takes discipline, but you can do it.

Kathy
 
I can't thank you enough for all the support I'm getting here. This is just what I needed, other people who are going through or have gone through this. I know that I can do this, with God's help. I've got the pill cutter and the pill box, I've already started to use them. Again thank you for all your support.

Chlo
 
Thank you. I don't want to go on something else and then have to go through all this again, once is enough. I appreciate your support and kindness.
 
Hi Chlo! I think from what I read you're now on the right plan. I'm detoxing off of Percocet at the moment (Day 6) and this group has helped me change my original plan and I am not experiencing the withdrawals like I was before. Just keep us informed how you are doing and let us know when you have problems. We're here to help.
 
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