Sorry that I have not been around for a while but I have been dealing with my tramadol addiction. I have reduced my intake of between 20-30 50mg a day and now I am currently at 8 50mg a day.....In time I will be completely tramadol free and I cannot wait..The reduction was humane obviously I would have the odd bad day but so far so good...Anyone out there considering coming off of this horrid drug all I can say is go for it....I will not go into the details of the reduction unless I am asked.I feel fantastic.Good Luck jx
Well done Jayne
stick with it - you will soon be free of Tramadol 😃
jay x
Thank you so much it,s taken a while to get to where I am but there is no turning back jx
Hi Jayne10080
Do you still have the pain you were taking them for originally. Do you mean you were taking up to 30 tablets a day?
Yes Mark the pain returned when I had gotten down to about 14 . I have been given amitryptaline (excuse the spelling) this is great for my nerve pain..Yes I was taking anywhere between 20-30 a day yet was still in pain....I just have to stick this pain out until I am down to 5 a day then I can instantly be put onto fentanyl patches 24hr a day pain relief, so quite excited about that.The problem with a tram detox is the length of time it takes and how the dangers increase whilst lowering the dose, when you would think its the increasing of the dose ..hope this helps jx
Very very well done. Unfortunately with me working full time I can't afford the time to try and come off and work at the same time. Hopefully one day I can, you must feel a bit better already with the knowledge that you have reduced them so much. Good luck to you I will keep my fingers crossed for you Jayne x
The problem with trams as with most drugs if u have been on them for a long time your tolerance level is so much higher than most thus no affect...so then you increase the dose to get that same affect and it goes on and on...my detox specialist said they have only just started to realise the addictive properties of tramadol and not just the physical but the psychological dependency......The master plan is to switch to the pain patch (by the way there are many to choose one to find one that suits) then after a period of 6mnths change that particular pain reliever for another...I don,t know if this will work, as of yet I am not at that stage. I will say that I have always taken SSRI and diazepam and these have been fantastic had no problems with these whatsoever. I too have a severe spinal injury but at last im having more good days than bad....I know people advise don,t worry about addiction well I have to disagree I would be very worried about addiction because it is real. I was terrified about not being able to have tramadol or a risk that it would be reduced too quickly, thats the last thing u need to worry about...It is trial and error regarding the patches its a gauntlet that im prepared to run....also I use cannabis oil as a topical treatment to rub into my lower back this too helps..(sorry for the waffling on) jx
Thank you Mark I have tried to reply in depth but it has to go to the moderators first. I do hope that you get to read it im sure that you will find it helpful...I wish you well on your painfull journey..I too have severe LBP for the past 5yrs been through pain management steroid injections blah blah all the while trying to care for 2 children. It is as you know very debilitating.....I wish you some pain relief jx
I will see if it's posted, I too have to be careful as I work as a Physio technician and have had all the treatment you can think of without any joy. X
I understand...It is such a shame in this day and age that pain management is so far behind other medical advances...When my 3rd disc prolapsed May of this year they gave me liquid morphine and sent me home, saying that was all that they could do...Obviously I refused to take it for fear of then becoming addicted to morphine its catch 22...I really feel for those that suffer chronic pain me included...Really hope you do find something that works for you...jx
Yeah I to am terrified if something happens and I can't get my tram, I always carry a dose with me everywhere I go, the addition is real but it's now also part of the problem we have to deal with when we first started trying to get pain relief so we could try and carry on a normal life. X
Hi Mark I know that the pain team are debating something along the lines of a 6month switch to avoid tolerance etc. This is something that interests me as you know the next step for me are fentanyl patches which again you can build up a tolerance to. I need to discuss what the long term plan will be because the last thing I need is an addiction or tolerance to the next drug of choice in order to remain free of pain. jx
Wow thats amazing! Well done you!
Thank you Tabstoyou ..8 months ago this was something that I only imagined being able to do. Which is why I have been gone so long. I still get ongoing support from my key worker and would be happy if just one person made that decision , firstly to acknowledge that yes there is a problem and then seek to do something about it....There is hope out there for anyone caught up in the nightmare of tramadol addiction/dependency....jx
When I stopped taking Gabapentin and Tramadol it took ages to sort my body and emotions out, but when I did I completely went back to basics - heat pads, Capsaisin cream, hot baths, yoga and pilates etc. I still get pain, but touch wood have not had a bad flare up since stopping all the meds. Im sure I will at some stage and I have no idea what I will do or take, but for the time being I can cope. Good luck to you Jayne. x
Well done Jayne. I'm reducing Tramas and now on 350g this week reducing by 50g a week. I'm suffering the withdrawals, and know I can get down to 100g (done it in the past) but getting lower that 100g is gonna be tough. Even if I succeed to get off them, the real withdrawal begins PAWS Not looking forward to the emotional, depressive, anger, mood swings, panics, etc while the brain is healing. But I have to do this, I want to feel "normal" again! 5 years I have been on this evil drug. I hate the fact that a Pharmacutical drug can do this to our bodies. I'm gonna try going down the alternative medical path when I'm clear of this drug. So pleased for you that you are on the right path xx
Took gabapentin briefly really did not agree with me I have mentioned this in another discussion that went to the moderators first but then was allowed. I swear by cannabis oil as a topical treatment rub it into the pained area worth researching. Ha ha yes I too rely heavily on heat I am permanantly attached to a heat pad. Reduced by half a tab today so thats 7.5 tabs a day for 2 weeks and counting. I wish you well in managing your pain control jx
Hi Ruth and thank you..Well done to you too..Can I just say if you are suffering withdrawals then thats your body saying whoa slow down..slowly slowly catchy monkey...I would in the past reduce by 4 a day then wonder why I felt so crap..It was only when the detox specialist explained that it,s not a good idea to do it that way. I actually laughed when she said drop one 50g tablet every 2 weeks...so for example I would stay at 12 trams a day then drop to 11 trams for 2 weeks and so on....now im below 8 a day I have to drop half a tram every 2 weeks . Eventually when I get down to 5 a day then under supervision will they do the instant transfer..No more tramadol in replacement for the pain patch....I have also been taking an antidepressant for many years which I swear by and thankfully the diazepam relaxes me prior to bedtime..Touch wood my emotions panics mood swings will remain stable....that sounds a bit bizarre considering I have a recognised GAD. Yes I agree prescription drugs do and can cause more harm than good, as im sure your aware there are more deaths each year from prescription drugs than all of the other illicit drugs put together....Theres big money involved in the pharmaceutical companies, and the prescribing of drugs which is how I could get a repeat prescription for 250 tramadol every 2 weeks no questions asked......I wish you well on your road to beating this devil jx
250 every two weeks????? Whoever prescribed you that deserves to be struck off whatever medical list they are on. 😦
You think that,s bad it was the dispensing chemist that took my husband to one side and said he was quite concerned about the amount being prescribed. My husband said that he was too...It was the chemist that red flagged it on the computer....My pain consultant was also aware and turned a blind eye..When I had to have gallbladder surgery Feb 2014 I even informed the medical team how many meds especially the tramadol I was taking..They were the only ones that were genuinely concerned...yet the same prescribing pattern continued. It was me that demanded that my G.P send a referral to the detox helpers...I question everything any Dr tells me now....jx