Trying to quit Vic, rebound headaches unbearable

  • Thread starter Thread starter MvingForwrd
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I'm going to keep posting in this thread, sort of like journal keeping. I need a place to just write about this.

It looks like I may have to go a little more slowly on the taper. Last night I woke up having withdrawals. Kew, I didn't experience the symptoms that you mentioned - it was more like a severe anxiety attack. I was just shaking all over, really anxious and restless, jittery. I took 1/2 vic and the symptoms stopped. I hated having to do it, but at least I was able to stop it with only 1/2 tab. Maybe next time (if it happens again) I can try 1/4 tab.

I'm feeling positive that I'm down to very low doses, but I'm impatient. Want off NOW. But it looks like I may have to go a little more slowly. I'm okay with that. Just have to stay strong and not give in to the drug - keep the tapering going and hopefully I can end this within a week or so. I've cut all of my pills into 1/2, and have them in one of those pill organizers, to keep me away from the full bottle. I have a plan - just gotta stay strong.
 
I don't drink coffee (only decaf, I can't handle caffeine). This is either W/RAB or my anxiety disorder.
 
Absolutely. I have that to look forward to. That's keeping me going . . . wanting to know what it's like on the other side. It's been so long since I've been a "normal" healthy person. For the last two years, the vic has been my "normal." I start to feel WRAB, and the vic makes me feel normal again. THAT isn't normal. I want the drug-free normal that I used to have. It's this pot of gold at the end of the rainbow that I need to see. Kind of exciting, really. :)

BTW, I know that we're not supposed to go off topic, but I feel this is necessary to avoid confusion. The moRAB DID change my user ID. They gave me something different than requested, but hey, it works for me. I will continue to sign my posts as Poozy for now, so that people aren't confused by the thread, and wondering about the references to this Poozy person.

Again, I know the moRAB frown on OT comments, but I'm trying to clarify what happened to avoid confusion, so no one is left wondering where Poozy went.

Now back to my regular posting . . .
 
I'm trying again.

Unfortunately, I suffered a setback after someone doubted my commitment to recovery because I was unwilling to go CT, and I let it get to me. I talked to my Neurologist, and he told me to listen to MY BODY, and not someone else's opinion, so back to square one. Well, not totally back to square one, but back up to 2 a day while my body adjusted to the taper.

After a week at two tabs per day, I dropped down to 1-1/2 on Saturday. So far I'm not experiencing the horrible discomfort that I did the first time around. My taper was too fast. This time it's going better. The headaches are unbearable, but I don't have that tired wonky feeling. I can at least function with the pain, but can't function in a state of confusion.

My neuro made me realize that our bodies are all different, and while we may want off immediately, that's not always possible. I have too much at stake - a job and a family who neeRAB me. I'm going to be moving out of state shortly, and have to be able to resign from my job, not get fired. Getting fired over drug WRAB won't help me on the other end.

So, I'm trying again, and this time will take as much time as my body neeRAB. And I hope that everyone will understand that. I would love to go CT, and end this next week, but I can't. So I'm doing my best, which I think is better than doing nothing.
 
Thanks guys! Having people to talk to helps SO much.

The headaches are a BEAST. The worst of it is knowing that all I have to do is take one vic, and I'll feel fine. But CAN'T go there. Gotta keep fighting.

My neurologist said it takes a full ten days for the vic to completely leave your system, so rebound headaches could last that long. I just have to keep reminding myself of how good life will be when I get past that point. Only a few weeks of my life, vs. a life stuck on pills. It's worth fighting for, but dang, it's one heck of a fight.

Reader, I'm going to go look for your thread. Thanks.
 
Dear Moving, I, too, have had rebound headaches. I have prescription strength ibuprofen, 800 mg, that definitely helped. I took them one to two times a day for a couple of days. I'm 15 days post-cold turkey and they have definitely begun to abate. The ibu was so strong that I didn't want to overuse fearing a negative impact on my liver.

During the early days of WD, I found myself taking baths as hot as I could stand late at night and in the early, early hours of the morning . I'd ordered 30 pounRAB of Dead Sea salt (for a lovely case of psoriasis I developed over the last few months), and I'd pour in two or three handfuls. It was a soothing experience. Perhaps you could find something similar to be gentle with yourself.

Be kind to yourself, live moment by moment, and hang in there. You're braver than you realize.
 
I'm at day 16 WD CT and I'm still getting the rebounRAB. I *really* agree with KEW. Take your time. I tried once to taper and wasn't very successful. Now, I wish I had tried again because I might have avoided all this pain. That said, part of that wish is probably because I'd still be taking the hydro, something that still looks pretty enticing to me.

I'm glad you've gotten something for the pain, and I'm happy you have enough of the hydro to protect you til you've completed this journey, made it to LA, and have become the phoenix we all want to be.
 
I *do* think it is possible to deeply, deeply want to quit using, while at the same time just not be ready. These are really not mutually exclusive feelings.

We all move at our own pace, and for some of us once the realization that we need to quit hits and we're able to stop using quite quickly. Then, there are those of us who use for whom arabivalence and fear make the going much slower, and possibly more tortured.

A script with enough refills for a year may well be no more than an emotional security blanket. Just having it may give some kind of peace in simply knowing that it's available, and in that one degree of torment is relieved.

Also, IMHO, we can all bottom out at varying levels of hitting rock bottom. For some it doesn't happen til Johnny Law leaps into our lives, or the fear that he will, for others it may be concern for our physical self, while for certain folk an observed impact on family life may be the inspiration, and then there are those who just can't take the feeling of not being in total control their life; or it may be a corabination of any, or all of these.

Also, I think there are those who can go cold turkey, or taper, and remain 100% commited to staying the course, while others may experience a one-time slip, with others landing at the opposite end of the spectrum experiencing a series of relapses before the final step is taken on the journey.

As I traveled online here, there were a couple of people who held up a mirror to me about my arabivalence; and while this isn't NA with its stated goal of welcoming all addicts in all the different permutations of addiction, from those still using who keep coming back, to those who have been clean for 30 years, this board isn't far from that goal.

So, in the end the essence of what I want to share is that the desire to want to quit is a complex one, and this is a safe and secure forum to have on board on the voyage through the turbulent sea of recovery.
 
Yes, do move at your own pace.

As to the headaches, mine have finally quieted down, but I'm not sure if it's because of time, or the fact that I had acupuncture and now have these tiny and odd little patches with a seed in the center of each to which I'm supposed to apply gentle pressure throughout the day, when I'm in pain, and/or having cravings.

As to the cravings, I'm thinking that by gradually doing your taper you may--hopefully--bypass the worst of them.
 
Hi readerroz! Thanks for the tip about the acupuncture. If I don't start to get relief from the headaches soon, I may try that.

As for the taper, once my body adjusts to 1-1/2 pills, I think I'll start going down in fourths, rather than halfs. Going from 1-1/2 to 1 may be too much of a shock on the system. I'm amazed at the power that this drug has over my body, even at a small dose. I always thought that this type of withdrawal only affected people who were taking large doses, but noooooooo. This drug is bad news, for sure.
 
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