Fibromyalgia Support Group

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Titrating off Tramadol

lovingautumn
lovingautumn
I am not 'new' to fibro,it's been a long road...I've tried pretty much everything. None of the drugs like Cymbalta work for me. All they do is make me nuts. Tramadol is the last of what I consider of my "evil drugs". I've become *very dependant on it and I hate that. I don't like being dependant on any drug! I've taken it for over 3yrs. and I want off. I got to 6 pills a day,which created so much dependency & side effects I didn't like. I've gotten down to 3/4 of a pill 3x a day and I'm stuck. I've had to literally shave a little piece from each pill to get to here...with each titration,'brain zaps',overwhelming feelings,familiar pain...all those feelings of my body not being used to taking care of itself. It's been over a month now doing this...and I'm just stuck. I was successful in getting off Morphine...but in doing so became very dependent on Tramadol. When my drs said it was 'very easy' to get off this drug...I wonder if they've ever had to personally fight this drug? I am only able to do very light activity,this has been my life for some time,as anything I do makes me feel sick. Simply cooking a meal for my family wears me out. I describe it as 'the flu'. I'm doing some yoga,eating pretty healthy,taking hot baths,heating pad and doing all I can not to 'over do' it. Can anyone help me further in completing my goal? Any advice on making this easier? The restless legs and arms are killing me,the pain is so bad that I can't think or speak correctly.
deleted_user
deleted_user
Oh wow, I have heard a lot of bad things about fibro. We are all different for sure. I have taken it for 2 years without a break and went 24+ hours with none and really just felt fibro fog, blah. I really hate taking all these meds, too................

It is great that you are working on a more natural approach, I am all for that! Good luck.
gramybear
gramybear
I am so glad you are going slowly with this drug. It is one of the hardest to get off of aside from the opiates. Drink A LOT of water with electrolytes in it. Most stores carry this type of water. It's also spring water. Something else to take is Magnesium and Vitamin D3. Those are vital for your recovery. My doctor had given me Zanaflex for the restless legs and also Klonopin to help with them as well. I tried going off of my pain medication a few weeks ago and it just did not work. I couldn't take the pain and had to go back on, but I'm on half of what I use to be on. Are you using Epsom Salts with Lavender in your bath water? Don't make the water too hot as that will make your symptoms worse. I got most of my information to help me, from my pharmacist. They know even more than the doctors do. I am really sorry that you are going through this as I was only able to last 3 days and I thought my heart was going to come out of my chest. Please try the Magnesium for your restless legs and also a very good B complex. And don't forget the spring water with electrolytes. And NO caffeine at all. Let us know how you are doing, okay? Hugs Gramybear
PeaceN2You
PeaceN2You
It doesn't look like she's posted anything since 07/12/2014, when she put this message up.

I hope she's OK.
mdtutul
mdtutul
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Shakota6
Shakota6
I would recommend increasing your tramadol daily dose by just a wee bit, so that your symptoms are not intolerable. Then, don't be in a rush to taper off. Take two months at each new taper off dose.

I am on low-dose methadone for 16 years and it is helpful along with tizanidine (muscle relaxant) for my fibro pain. However, trying to taper the methadone dose because of the hoopla about opioids is very hard because when I get to less than half of what I take in the past, I have incredible stiffness (as though a god were holding a huge wrench over my body and tightening it tremendously). The only option is to slow down the taper and add something to ease the symptoms.

But again, I ask: if tramadol works well for you, why give it up? Why not just stay at a lowered dose and see how that goes, a dose that doesn't cause zaps and such. Good luck.
Fantod
Fantod
This is a very old post!!
fibrohyg
fibrohyg
To LovingAutumn-I took 7 months last year to titrate off a small piece of Vicodin that I took for over 15 years! Small amount, but a long time! I broke the piece all the way down to 1/8th every 5 days, and got stuck there for over 2 months! I had some old medical marijuana gummies that I used a small piece of that to substitute the time I took the Vicodin. That finally worked. I stopped the Vicodin, and the first 2 months were filled with restless legs, and waking up a lot at night. That has gotten better the longer it goes. But the pain relief is not too good, and I;m putting up with a lot more pain. Try some of the suggestions on this page from others. There is no easy road. I also take tram-25mg per day for 2 years. I don't think it works very well. Fibrohyg
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