posted
I have been treated for Babs and Lyme 9 months ago, and I was doing really well!
After years and YEARS of migraines, which got worse with weather cycles, finally they went away! I was amazed!
I was on long acting Dilaudid . I had taken it with the knowledge that I would be dependent on it, but that I needed it for my pain. It was a great help to me for many years, and I will not regret having made this decision. It kept me alive.
I had done 'research' from groups, and spoken to doctors, and patients. The buzz was - ifyou are in pain, you wont become dependent. Also - if you taper off you wont get sick. ( or not as sick ). I had been on it for 6 years, and now the research I have done sais it depends on dose, length of dosing and physical condition how long it takes to withdraw. For me, the worst lasted 4 weeks, and now I am beginning to feel a bit better! All together I have been going through this for 2 months...
I thought it was true that I could do this withdrawal because I have stopped addictive meds before without ill effects. I am not an addict and I have few compulsions with meds. I thought it would be fine. I was told by doctors and nurses and specialists and pharmacists that I would not go through 'cold turkey' - that it would be 'mild'.
I stopped having my headaches in november during the worst weather months, and decided to taper my medication. I went from 30 mgs of hydromporphone twice daily to 16 mg. 16 mgs - another month. That was in one month. The next month I went to 6. Within days and for 2 weeks I was ill - but not as ill ( as going from 30 mgs to 16 )
My boyfriend fell ill so I thought I had the flu. It was bad, but I toughed it out ( we are so used to pain, aren't we! ). Iwent to the hospital, and med, phoned pharamcies etc. Then I was told I had a kidney infection, probably because I had my usual bladder infection, but not kidneys. I had a pos bacterial test. For weeks I worried about kidney disease, dying, and all my doctors were worried, telling me I had C-difficile, or some other organ failure. I was a mess. I was really SICK. I took Cipro for two weeks. I asked my LLMD - he didn't know!!! Everyone said, I should not be experiencing withdrawals after 2 weeks.
It lasts 2-4 weeks , don't be fooled. It was severe -I had feelings like a kidney infection, my back was so bad spasmed, I could not walk. I was dehydrated. It felt like Lyme so I thought I was relapsing.
I had SEVERE anxiety. I am now taking ambien for sleep....I had FEVER. I was cold and hot. And the worst part is, when I pulsed with pain meds to treat the 'pain' the breakthrough meds were too low. So I was in agony still. I lost 10 pounds in 10 days. I am a manic mess.
The great news is NO LYME Still!!!!! nOw I am feeling better as my doctor is back to managing my med tapering.
Here is the list of symptoms: This sounds like everything I went through the last two months : copied from http://www.addictionwithdrawal.com/dilaudid.htm Dilaudid Withdrawal symptoms include but are not limited to:
severe anxiety insomnia profuse sweating muscle spasms chills shivering tremors restlessness yawning gooseflesh restless sleep irritability anxiety weakness twitching and spasms of muscles kicking movements severe backache abdominal and leg pains abdominal and muscle cramps hot and cold flashes nausea anorexia vomiting intestinal spasm diarrhea repetitive sneezing increase in body temperature, blood pressure, respiratory rate, and heart rate
I will break this email into two parts because it's long.
Posts: 19 | From vancouver, BC, Canada | Registered: Apr 2005
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So my doctor agreed finally that I had been tapered too quickly ( he is a pain management MD ) and told me to pulse my breakthrough pain meds when I felt weird. That does take away some of the discomfort, but I am actually really suffering from coming off the long acting hydromorphone.
So - the breakthrough meds should be 25% of what your long acting meds are and you have to pulse them. Talk to you doctor, you do not need to go through this alone. I was pretty much alone and very frightened.
So now I have stabilised my dose. I went through 9/10 pain scale flu symptoms and now I have gone to about a 3. I am staying on 6mgs this month. I am talking to my doctor ( who is pressuring me now to stop ) about slowing this process so it does not affect my immune system so soon after treatment. If it takes me 2 years, it has to, but I will be comfortable.
I was told that the worst part is still to come, with not much relief at all when I have to cut the medication COMPLETELY. I wont be able to take breakthrough meds for that period, and I can only hope that withdrawing off of 3mgs wont be as bad as 12 mgs.
Please be careful and listen to your gut on medications!
I am very happy that I don't have much more pain and that my Lyme was treated. I took Biaxxin, Flagyl, Mepron, Zithromax and Plaquenil. I didn't suffer from side effects except for Candida.
I am now feeling 80% better and I NEVER EVER EVER thought there was hope. I was so beyond it. I am so glad I met my LLMD. He is staying in his profession and not retiring anymore, and I am very happy.
I guess the lesson is to try to get the right treatment first. Imagine if lyme were like other diseases where the first migraine with flu like symptoms, a blood test would be 100% accurate. No scarey pain killers to get addicted to!
Sounds like you are very proactive and recovering. So great to hear of your lyme recovery. I also suffered for years with migraines and now am being treated for lyme.
I hope that like you, they never come back again but it's hard to believe it can happen.
You said you had no side effects on your abx only candida...did you herx at all in the beginning?
-------------------- We are spiritual beings on a human journey...
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At one point in this lyme ordeal, I went to a pain clinic too and was prescribed time-released morphine. When I decided I wanted to stop it, because I didn't like having to be on something 24/7, the doc actually tried to convince me to keep taking it.
So, I decided I would taper down and quit by myself. BIG MISTAKE. Well, tapering down was ok, but stopping it completely was not. I started going through all kinds of withdrawal symptoms. My intestine felt like it was being physically twisted. My legs started jumping up and down uncontrollably, etc., etc., etc.
After going to the ER......
The doctor decided he would help me, if I was so decided to get off it.
They prescribed two things... don't remember their names. One, was to calm down the smooth muscle in my intestines, so I wouldn't have all the twisting, etc. Another, was for nerves, to stop the things like were happening with my legs. For me, it took about 3 weeks. It wasn't too bad with the 2 drugs.
I had asked my pain doc whether this med was addictive too. I was told, NO. Not true. Pharmacist agreed with me. Later, pain center doc told me that it wasn't addictive, but one could become dependant. Ha. Sure seemed addictive to me. I was not mentally attached to it at all, but physically I was.
Posts: 856 | From Texas | Registered: Jan 2005
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Well I was surprised because I did a search on here as well for morphine withdrawal and there was not much. I imagine many of us have been through this.
I have made an appointment to see an addiction specialist next week. I am not sure I trust my doctor right now, with how he titrated me. It took me years to get to this level, and now it may take me months to go down.
Very importantly I thought that symptoms I was having were LYME DISEASE - but it was actually withdrawal! I had been forgetting to take my pain medication daily - I probably halved it on most days, and would casually pop a long acting med if I remembered! I had no idea I would react so quickly ( within 12 hours withdrawal can set in!! )
ALSO - it had been making my moods worse. Seriously. Every time I tapered down or titrated up, my emotions would fluctuate. It's been one of the hardest emotional roller coasters I have been on. I have to remember to now take my meds, even if I don't feel pain.
Even with slight fluctuations one can get so sick. It's not a good idea to stop on ones own. I was extremely confused and had I not used some common sense, I could have done some real damage to myself by malpractise, etc. The ducks DO NOT know what they are doing.
And I am filing a complaint against my pharmacist, who never bothered to see how much I had tapered off, or what meds I was taking. He knew I was on dangerous meds, and still didn't care.
I also would like to mention, that here in canada we have a medication interaction system. Like everyone days. But know this.
Ambien and Morphine interact. They potentiate each other. That is very dangerous. My specialist had been giving me both for months. It could have hurt me. When I looked it up, it didn't come up in the system. In other words I very much doubt these pharamceutical companies are giving us the right information so they can sell their drugs.
My pharamacist said morphine and ambien do interact - dangerously. She was puzzled as to why Ambien is not contraindicated.
What that means is, any of these newer sleep medications are being pushed to the consumer to such a degree, and that no matter how dangerous, the real side effects are not being told to your doctor or your pharmacist.
It's ALL about MONEY.
Please look at all your medications and have a pharmacist take the time to look. I found no less than three interactions with my meds, even though they didn't 'interact' according to the 'system'.
I am still going through extreme mood swings and restlessness and I wouldn't wish this upon anyone. I feel our rehabilitation system is severely flawed, and since I have a legitimate problem that is being 'legitimately managed', I can figure my way through this - but I feel AWFUL for anyone on the street or going through this alone. I don't know how they do it.
I will keep you updated And will post more re my recovery later today The bottom line is I am completely well except for the odd bladder infection and odd mild migraine. I had been going through months of pain medication withdrawal unknowingly. Now I feel much better about tackling this.
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nOw I am feeling better as my doctor is back to managing my med tapering.
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And will post more re my recovery later today 
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