I'm a 25 year old women with three little boys, when I had my eldest at 18 I was put on cocodamol and tramadol 2tabs 4times a day.
7 years down the line I am still on these tablets and feel so depressed! I worry when I'm running low or notice I have very little left and psychologically started instant fear. I've tried cold turkey 3 times and it was absolutely horrendous I was taking fits, sweating, being sick, shaking every few minutes, suicidal thoughts, angry, sad and overall I'll like I had flu! My doctor cut me off completely two years ago and I was left ill and was feeling very suicidal!
I've tried everything and I need help otherwise I fear the worst for myself! I misscarried 9 weeks ago and lost over 2 1/2 litres of blood and was operated on and my body went into shock. I nearly died. BUT I was kept in and they didn't give me my correct medication and by the next morning I was feeling very upset, agitated and down right sad I had to beg them to give me my proper prescription other I'd be very unwell.
I realised when I ran out I'd be very unwell (before I knew about withdrawals) I'd end up in hospital each time having panic attacks and what not. My heart rate was through the roof and they always thought I had an infection but it was indeed the tramadol withdrawals!
I have looked into rehab facilities and tried to see if I could get some help.
I'm from Scotland and don't have no help
Amy you poor thing, my heart goes out to you. I was on tramadol 100mg per day and felt so ill on them (4mths) I just quit them not realising the consequences! Agitation, sweating, claims, awful nausea. Thought I'd got over it and bang - 4 weeks later was flattened by horrendous rebound anxiety which I had never had before. I am now on antidepressants !
Please get medical advice to help you taper down, it'll take time to do it really slowly. It's a frightening experience , let us know how you get on x
I'm in the same position.
I went to the docs and they increased my tremadol to counter side effects. Not a solution atall. I've tried cold turkey and cut right down .. both made me feel completely rubbish and even suicidal.
I feel your pain x
It's so awful rob, it's sad seeing other stuff like yourself experience the same symptoms, I've read many posts about real life people who have and still are struggling! I see other posts about rarely about medical people who say it's not living hell withdrawing.. oh it really is! You need to have been on these tablets to realise it is hell trying to come off them not everyone will agree but that's my realist experience X
Oh my goodness gerrymoo! - do you feel it's took its toll badly?im so sorry to hear that, absolutely horrific the things you can suffer😔 I'm still on medication for my blood to go up I did have two transitions but I'm still unwell. Trying to cut down right now is proven harder than ever😔 I'm very proud you stopped tho I'm not obviously happy or the outcome but you must be very strong xx
It is hell Amy you're right. No one tells you when you start them that they are part opiate and part ssri which is an antidepressant which affects the serotonin levels. When you quit cold turkey which I did you go through the opiate withdrawals and the ssri withdrawals which kick in a bit later. I only found this out by googling it cause I felt so crap. I think my brain just crashed and went through 2 months of hell until I realised what was going on. I was diagnosed with gastroenteritis and I think it was just the anxiety escalating . Been on antidepressants now 9 weeks and after their hellish side effects just starting to feel better.
Amy and Rob hang on in there and just taper really slowly. Keep in touch.x
Thanks.
I've tried my hardest and thats an understatement. 6 years on these things.
And would love to be normal again. Even would put up with the pain of ruptured discs.
I'm going to look at rehabilitation off these.
Thanks for your comments.
Fingers crossed
I know exactly what you are going through. You cannot just stop taking this nasty drug, you have to reduce very slowly and over many months. I too was on the same drugs as you for 7 years. Two of which I was trying to get off. I was having tolerance withdrawals while on full doesage! I managed to get off, 8 months now and still in withdrawals, the first 4 months I was bed ridden, it was ones of the worst times of my life, the withdrawals were horrendous! We are all unique and no withdrawal is the same.
Doctore unfortunately have had no training or insight to what long term use of this drug does to you or how to wean off! The do not know the dangers of this drug, but due to media, they are beginning to find out, although the pharmaceutical companies will not tell them!
Start researching this drug and SSRIs. There is lots of support out their, FaceBook has many support groups.
Good luke xxx
if you fill ok went you taking them jest keep taking them the end of the day any tablet we taking they are all edit I BEEN TAKING TRAMADOL for over 6 year now I started with 3 four time a day now I only take one a day with one paracetamol for my cervical pain and back pain and as long they relive my pain I keep taking them good lake
Unfortunately my problem was that I increasingly felt Ill taking them and then went through hell when I quit them
Yep, same, I reached what they call "tolerence withdrawals" while actually on them!
It was hell Ruth! 4 weeks after quitting I was hit with a wall of nausea and rebound anxiety. Just levelling out now on antidepressants. I quit tramadol in may !!! Never want to go through this again.
Its very tough to stop using tramadol. I used for over 3 years and finally stopped because I got in trouble over it. I detoxed in jail which was not fun. I'm now 4.5 months sober and feel great! It can be done. Good luck on your journey.
Im on tramidol s well idky nvr had that experience before but you cant do it cold turkey some places have out patient rehabs do that have it thier. Basically most places will put u on a detox pill mayb a small dose if adivan and a anti depressant from a week to 28 days you should look into a clinic mayb or a pshyic dr that would put u on a detox regament as out patient but dnt give in n slip stay to the plan good luck
Know your enemy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tramadol
"It has two different mechanisms. First, it binds to the μ-opioid receptor. Second, it inhibits the reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine."
Just like an SSRI antidepressant. Some people have more trouble with SSRI drug withdrawal than opioid withdrawal. I suggest dealing with one aaspect at a time. Either continue taking some kind of opioid while while your body adjusts to doing withont the elevated serotonin, or (and this is trickier) start an SSRI just before stopping the tramadol. The latter method runs the risk of serotonin syndrome.
Speaking of serotonin syndrome; this could be why you started feeling bad while still on the drug. The article I posted above contains a list of substances (and substance types) that can cause serotonin syndrom (and other problems) when combined with tramadol. It could be something as simple as grapefruit or St. John's Wort.
I was on a similar dose of the two but for much shorter, just two months. And that was a fortnight of hell! But apparently that's all it is for anyone with any opiate withdrawal. The first week is the worst and the second is bad, but you start to feel yourself get dragged back to 'normal'.
Speak to your doctor obviously. Then I found drinking smoothies, taking something for diahhrea, lots of water all helps. In the first week I found keeping people at arms length helped. I slept in the spare room away from my partner and I went with them on car rides. That took my mind off it all. Then the second week I wanted to be around everyone all the time!
It's not easy because these drugs are very powerful, but you absolutely can beat it.
I'm not a doctor but in your situation, if I had to do that again, I'd stop the tramadol first, then the cocodamol.
Hi Amy ,
I feel for you and I totally understand how you feel ,withdrawal from tramadol is horrendous ..Especially cold turkey ..which I might add your doctor should have Not just stopped your prescription ,he / she should have given you a weening off plan ..
You've been through a lot and every emotion ,every emotion you describe I have personally experienced with tramadol also ..
Iv been hooked on them for just over 2 yrs and can't function without them ,I'm trying to ween myself off them as we speak and finding it very difficult ..
If you haven't done so already go back to your gp and tell them you need help ..
I am currently weaning myself off Tramadol 😖 It's hard but I am making progress! My background is that I was prescribed Tramadol 9 years ago for prolapsed and herniated discs. For about the first 4 years I was on 800mg per day then managed to reduce to 400mg which is what I remained on until I was diagnosed recently with epilepsy-yes, probably caused by the Tramadol as it lowers seizure thresholds. I I was advised last month to come off it 😱 You can imagine my horror at the thought! Anyway I am down to 150mg per day just now and have and still am doing it by reducing by 50mg at a time-so for example for the first week I will alternate daily taking 3 one day and 4 pills then next day and so on for about a week and at the end of the week I should be able to level off on just the 3 tablets. Then give my body a chance to get used to 3 and recover from the drop for about a week then I will start the same method for reducing to 2 pills (hopefully at the end of this week). Things that I have found that are helping and wish I tried years ago are 1. I talked to my GP openly about being afraid of the 'coming off Tramadol journey' and he sees me every 2 weeks to keep up with my progress so I feel obliged to keep going-a bit like being more likely to loose weight if you have to get weighed by someone at weight watchers!
2. Keep an HONEST diary about what pills youve taken and how you've been feeling. Being honest is important because it's good to look back on times that you've struggled especially if there's been progress afterwards-a few nights ago when I had just started dropping to 3 pills I ended up taking 3 EXTRA just to stop the pain and shakes but looking back I've only had good days since which is my focus!
3. Take paracetamol! I space my Tramadol and paracetamol out so that when my body is going to be struggling without the Tramadol it has the paracetamol to take the edge off. I set alarm reminders on my phone so I am taking the Tramadol and paracetamol at set times, otherwise there's the danger of waiting too long for one and that's when the withdrawals get a proper grip.
Anyway that's where I am at-still struggling on but determined that these pills are coming out of my system and won't mess up my brain anymore!! Good luck x
Sorry I've not had internet but I have currently came off cocodamol now completely my next stop will be tramadol. The thought of this scares me. After I lost a baby a few months back it's been very difficult to think of anything else then my brother in law was in a severe car crash on Sunday. Trying to cut down is so difficult with all these problems around me that make me feel so much worse.
It gives me some comfort or hope with these posts that I'm not alone and I can 100% understand how you guys are feeling. I'm in high hopes of being able to cope with these things we are all only human and our body doesn't cope as well as others sometimes xxx
I am so sorry to hear about your baby 😢 I can not imagine the pain you must be feeling and I hope your brother in law recovers well.
I have found that prepreparing my pill box (I am on other meds too) helps me not to have to over think about how much Tramadol I've to take. Especially when you are deallling with so much stress it may be an idea to do the same as it is easy to take more and more each day with out realising it! Take care x