07-20-2017, 09:54 PM
barq-
No personal experience with Tramadol but mucho experience years ago getting off heroin, Methadone, and Suboxone.
Tramadol is bit different beast because it affects both the opiate pathways in the body and the serotonin/norepinephrine systems. It has anti-depressant like effects in addition to pain relief. So total withdrawal sounds like a double whammy where both the traditional opiate withdrawal effects come into play and also anti-depressant withdrawal effects at the same time.
IMO, your doctor should have offered you a taper plan or a referral to someone who can help you taper if you plan on stopping usage. Really would not suggest 100% cold turkey. If your supply dwindles I would suggest 10% dose reductions ever other day until you find a new doctor or figure out what you are going to do. This might involve grinding up the pills and using a scale that can measure to the hundredth of a gram to measure out doses. The only good thing I can say is that Tramadol has about a 7 hour half life which means the withdrawals would last days to a couple of weeks instead of months like with longer half life opiates.
If you are in the US, physicians are increasingly reluctant to prescribe ANY opiates or opiate like drugs due to various regulations and especially potential issues with their malpractice insurers. If it were me, I would insist on a referral from your current doc so you don't show up at a new doc and get labeled as drug seeking.
No personal experience with Tramadol but mucho experience years ago getting off heroin, Methadone, and Suboxone.
Tramadol is bit different beast because it affects both the opiate pathways in the body and the serotonin/norepinephrine systems. It has anti-depressant like effects in addition to pain relief. So total withdrawal sounds like a double whammy where both the traditional opiate withdrawal effects come into play and also anti-depressant withdrawal effects at the same time.
IMO, your doctor should have offered you a taper plan or a referral to someone who can help you taper if you plan on stopping usage. Really would not suggest 100% cold turkey. If your supply dwindles I would suggest 10% dose reductions ever other day until you find a new doctor or figure out what you are going to do. This might involve grinding up the pills and using a scale that can measure to the hundredth of a gram to measure out doses. The only good thing I can say is that Tramadol has about a 7 hour half life which means the withdrawals would last days to a couple of weeks instead of months like with longer half life opiates.
If you are in the US, physicians are increasingly reluctant to prescribe ANY opiates or opiate like drugs due to various regulations and especially potential issues with their malpractice insurers. If it were me, I would insist on a referral from your current doc so you don't show up at a new doc and get labeled as drug seeking.