Please Help Me With Percocet Wean

[rosebuddy]

Hi everyone, I have posted before about tramadol weaning and my addiction to percocet. I know that this is a long post, but I would appreciate your advice and support as I wean from percocet. Am I weaning to fast or too slow? Should I keep a stockpile for pain flares? Am I weaning correctly? I truly appreciate your opinions. Thanks in advance for taking the time to post.

I am a recovering alcoholic. I got sober when I was 28 and am now 44. I have fibromyalgia which is a chronic pain condition, with muscular pain flares and difficulty sleeping.
I am willing to wean off of percocet. I want to get off of it after being on it for a year because I don’t have that much pain daily like I used to, and I use it to feel euphoric. I always cheat in the evening and take an extra 5 or 10 mg.

I am tired of being on it, having to take it or having pain from withdrawal if I am late taking it. I don’t want to be addicted to it and be on it anymore. I am an addict and it scares me. I also want to lose weight and I think my combination of pain meds has caused me to binge eat. I have gained 45 lbs in 1 year, going from 120 to 165. I eat all evening out of control and even get up in the middle of the night to eat. I never did this, I rarely thought about food before I got sick and got on all these medications. I also am tired of having to remember to take my percocet with me, not being able to drive because I cannot pay attention, and being high around my family every night.

I know it will be hard to give up. My doctor gives me 42 a week and my husband takes ½ to 1 a day also. I don’t know if I should stock pile for pain flares until the end of May. I don’t know if I could stand to have it in the house and if my husband would stay out of it also. I see a counselor which is helping me get through this. I also see a psych once a month.

(FYI q = hour, and bid is twice a day, tid is 3 x a day, hs is at bedtime.)
At onset I was put on 600 mg neurontin q5, 50mg tramadol q5, flexeril 5 hs, and percocet increased over the last year to 1, 1, 1½, ½ and ½ hs. I have been able to cut the neurontin to 1/8th pill and tramadol to 12.5 mg and only at bedtime. It took a long time to wean. I have tried to cut the percocet but I always give in in the evenings. I really don’t like being messed up during the day,even though I could because I am at home all day.

So my Present meds are: 10 mg percocet am and again 5 hours later, then 1 ½, and 2hours later ½ and bedtime a ½ I keep playing with the percocet because it makes me feel good in the evenings. Every now and then I even take extra, like on Friday nights.
I also take Neurontin 1/8th of a 600 mg hs, ¼ tramadol hs, 2.5 flex hs, lamictal 200 mg hs, colace hs, wellbutrin 150 sr 2 in the morning and 1 five hours later, xanax 0.5 qid and 2.0 hs. (I have been on the wb, xanax, and lamictal same dose for about 5 years for bipolar disorder, I don’t plan to cut these right now. Eventually will wean from xanax) Abilify 10 mg. am.

Percocet wean with caffeine wean (so I can sleep through withdrawals)
5/5 TODAY I AM GOING TO TAKE 1 ¾ 3/4 ¼ AT BED, q 5. 1 ½ coffee, 1 c tea, 8 oz soda
6FRI 3/4 ¾ ¾ ¼ q 6. 1 1/2 coffee, 1c tea, 4 oz soda
7 Sat 1/2 ½ ½ ¼ q 6 start flexeril 5 mg at night for next 2 weeks. 1 mug cof ½ tea no soda
8Sun same ½ ½ ½ q 6, flex 5 hs. 1 CUPcof , ½ cup tea
9Mon 1/2 ½ ½ q 6, flex 5 hs 1 cof ½ tea
10Tues 1/2 q6 tid, flex 5 hs. ½ cof ½ tea
11Wed 1/2 q6 tid, flex 5 hs ½ cof ½ tea
12Thurs 1/2 q 6 tid, flex 5 hs. ¼ coffee and ¼ tea
13Fri 1/2 q 6 tid, flex 5 hs. ¼ coffee and ¼ tea
14Sat 1/2 q 6 tid. ¼ cof and ¼ tea
15Sun 1/2 q 6 tid. ¼ cof and decaf tea
16Mon 1/2 q6 tid, aleve, Tylenol, aspirin to start and visit college ¼ coffee 6 hour drive each way. To start period.
stop caffeine17 Recover from trip.Tues 1/2 q 6, otc pain relievers prn 0 coffee no caffeine
18Wed 1/2 bid, aleve tid, ½ tramadol qid
19Thurs 1/2 am aleve tid, 1/2tramadol qid
stop percocet!!!!20Fri aleve, tyl, aspirin, 1/2 tram qid, 300 neurontin qid, 5 mg flex qid. Stay in bed, try to sleep, lots of water, 0 caffeine, 7 up, decaf tea,
21Sat same
22Sun same
23Mon same
24Tues aleve and ¼ tram and 300 neuron tid 5 flex only hs
25 wed aleve and ¼ tram bid, 150 neuron tid, 5 flex hs
26 thurs aleve tid and ¼ tram and 150 neuron tid in am 5 flex hs
27aleve bid ¼ tram and 150 neurontin bid try 2.5 flexeril from now on.
28 aleve 2 in the morning if needed ¼ tram and 150 neuron.
29 aleve prn and ¼ tram and 1/8 neurontin hs
What am I going to do with all of the percocet? Will it be too tempting to have it in the house? I just want it for when the pain is an 8 or more, but that rarely happens anymore. Well, probably because of the percocet. Other people live with chronic pain without taking narcotics.

Thank you for your help.
Donna

[rosebuddy]

Me again. I also take Zink, Magnesium, B Complex, Ester C, flax, fish and borage oils and a multivitamin.

I just saw the post "recipe for w/d from vicoden, lortab," Should i do this for percocet?

Thanks again.
Donna

[MomOf4VA]

I am a CP patient, as well. Talk to your psych about going on Suboxone. It's the best thing I EVER did.

Good Luck!
~Kim

[pawned]

I am an alcoholic with 28+ years of sobriety. I have FMS plus a number of other major problems.

I have been taking Oxcotin and oxyIR for 5 years for pain management.
All Percocet is OxyIR (oxycodone) with Tylenol added.

You need to learn the difference between addiction and dependance.

I am dependant on my pain medication, If I forget a dose of my oxycotin I do go into withdrawl. But I am not an ADDICT.

An addict will take medication for no medicinal reason. I am dependant because I take opiates Exactly as the Dr. RX'ed them. No more, and sometimes less than the maximum amount Rx'ed.

You may want to discuss with the doctor switching from Percocet (oxyconde 5/235) to Oxycodone extended release.

Oxycodone Extended Release is generic for Oxycotin. Oxycodone is the Percocet with the Tylenol ommitted.

If you take the extended release, which is a 12 hour time release tablet you will be taking far less pills and maybe feel better about yourself.

Are you being treated by a Rhumey? If sounds like that you are being treated by a GP. If so, you should talk to a Rhumey and he can set up your medication for proper pain management and it may solve your fears

Ed

[rosebuddy]

Hi Ed

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply to my post. I don't think that my pain doctor will give me oxycontin because I ran out of percocets early one time. She was giving me 360 a month. i only take 1 to 1 1/2 and 2 at the most every 5 to 6 hours. I was prescribed 2 every 4 hours.

My husband started taking them too and that is why I ran out. I didn't explain that because, I didn't think she would believe me and that if she knew, she would quit ordering them because then she would have known that I was giving them out.

I wish i could take the oxycontin. it would just make it so much easier. I am supposed to take percocet every 1 1/2 every 6 hours and she orders 42 a week because i ran out that time about 2 months ago. I always have some left over, even with my husband taking them too. I know when its time for my dose because i start getting w/d symptoms.

I have talked to my art therapist and she even helped me to script my reply when my husband asks for percocet. He does need to see someone for his depression and learn how to handle stress. He is so grumpy. He has been sober for about 15 years. He has been great through my last year of illness. I just cannot bring myself to say no to him. If I got oxycontin, I could tell him no. She could just give me 14 a week if she thought that i was going to abuse them. He would not smash them up. He has gone through w/d cold turkey once and it lasted about 3 weeks. He had to because she cut my dose.

Also i have to pay $32 a month for my meds instead of 8 because she will only fill it every week. I guess I could ask. It wouldn't hurt to ask; I just don't want her to release me as a patient. She is a great doctor; I just love her.

My parents are real down on me taking medications and have voiced that to me over and over. They dont believe in fibromyalgia, they just think that i am depressed. I have gotten off the tramadol and neurontin, but my skin is burning again. So I am going to have to up my doses again.

Does your medicine cause you to gain weight? I cannot get full, I am hungry ALL the time. My weight has become so much of an embarrassment to me that I don't go to AA anymore. I am isolated except for my husband and kids.

Anyway, I am going on and on. I really appreciate your response.

Donna