tapering off oxycodone

Hi, I am very understanding of how you feel... I was worried for many years that I was addicted to my pain meds.  I went through the same W/D symptoms so naturally I felt I was an addict..Then I happened upon a forum that had a discussion about addiction vs. dependance...it totally changed my thought process.   Most CP patients will become Dependent on their medications...it seems like a natural thing because we HAVE to take them to function...I think that we put too much pressure on ourselves abou this..Once I decided that I wasnt an addict and indeed just dependent my attitude changed.... Yes the WD's are not good when we go without, but the pain is awful too... If people want to lable me an addict then I can't stop them, but I can stop myself from feeling like one.

I hope this helped a little bit...Don't be so %@$$*## yourself, we are no less human because we are in pain..

I sincerely applaud your efforts in cutting down and tapering the right way.  For so very many, the drugs become a crutch that is no longer needed.  If you could bottle the traits and feelings that made you realize the importance of standing on your own - you would make millions.  In the meantime, all I can offer you is "kudos"; from the bottom of my heart, I am so very proud of your efforts!

And to the OP that wondered about the long term effects of prescribed narcotics, have some faith in your physician.  A physician, whether PMD or PCP, routinely runs labwork to check for both liver and kidney insuffiencies; both can be affected by long term drug use.  If you a patient and are not having these types of routine screens performed.....what is it the Blue Collar guy says - "there's your sign".

As said above, and I am certainly not a physician, many prescribed narcotics can cause memory loss and that is the only brain problem I am aware of.  Some narcotics can though cause seizures - especially if used improperly, over used or mixed with something else (i.e. alcohol).  That said and you mentioned it yourself, each of us has to weigh the side effects, (real, perceived or potential), to the benefit we receive from the drug and decide if it is worth the risk.  A physician should be ordering tests when necessary, meaning this can be overlooked or delayed, when one is receiving narcotics from multiple physicians or is getting the narcotic illegally.  We all should be reading those pharmacy print-outs that come with any drug remembering that your pharmacist is a good source of information and should be consulted if you have questions about a particular medication and whether the medication is contraindicated or dangerous if used in conjunction with other meds, prescribed and over the counter.  Obviously long term use of narcotics present more issues.

Hey man. Its just gunna be up to you to have control over your usage. You seem to understand that its a "trap" for you but doctors Can not stop giving these medicines to patients because of your problem. Its just up to you man. You know your limits. Perhaps you can see an adictionologist (sp) or a behavioral psychologist. Its hard to do I can understand but it gets to the point where there are people who say what you say and then get "picked" up by the DEA to prove its bad and makes others suffer when all along its up to the person who is having the problem to deal with their own addiction issues. We cant stop getting and taking opiates. if we did, we would suffer to the point of there being no enjoyment of life. People with cancer and degenerative diseases which are in such pain that to live without medicine is not to live at all. I understand that you arent saying that people should suffer for your issues but for the big picture, this is what happends to us. man I pray you get the help you need. I pray every night that people with your condition get the RIGHT help for the issue.

Good Luck!!!

i suggest you dont tell your doctor if you have pain then you need to get your medicene. They key is to not take it unless you need it. It becomes a habbit that feels incredible and the next thing you know your hooked. You can become addicted even if you dont abuse it. I believe you are doing the right thing takeing it when it becomes needed. Just try to go a few days in between doses for a couple and that should help keep the with drawl symptoms awayand it should allow you to take them daily if needed without the sweats when you dont have it.

I remember a thread from a couple of months ago shooting down the idea that being a "good" pain patient means trying to take less than what's prescribed. I used to think that way but it's not the right approach for me. For me, trying to take leas than prescribed produced peaks and valleys - a real impedent to leading a normal life. Plus, for those who signed a pain contract, get tested, or are subjected to pill counts, takin less than prescribed looks like hoarding or diverting. If you're concerned about addiction (not just physical dependence), ask yourself whether you've abused the meds. Are you takin more than prescribed? Do you take them to achieve a high or really just for the pain. Only you know. If you're that worried about it, talk to your doctr about getting off he oxycodone. For me, the try not to take it until I really need it had to do with my own failure to accept the reality of my pain. What's funny (funny cool not ha ha) is that acceptance that the situation is chronic and not acute, real not imagined, something to be dealt with and not wished away, makes it easier to deal with. Just my two cents! Take care and good luck.
Mrs. P

Tike, seizures are a very distinct possibility with Ultram (tramadol).

Red wine does not cause seizures.  But seizures are a possibility if you are an alcoholic and are withdrawing from alcohol.

Here is the warning excerpt from the Ultram (tramadol) package insert:

Seizures have been reported in patients receiving ULTRAM® within the recommended dosage range. Spontaneous post-marketing reports indicate that seizure risk is increased with doses of ULTRAM® above the recommended range. Concomitant use of ULTRAM® increases the seizure risk in patients taking:

• Selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRI antidepressants or anorectics),
• Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), and other tricyclic compounds (e.g., cyclobenzaprine, promethazine, etc.), or
• Other opioids.

Administration of ULTRAM® may enhance the seizure risk in patients taking:

• MAO inhibitors (see also WARNINGS, Use with MAO Inhibitors and Serotonin Re-Uptake Inhibitors),
• Neuroleptics, or
• Other drugs that reduce the seizure threshold.

Risk of convulsions may also increase in patients with epilepsy, those with a history of seizures, or in patients with a recognized risk for seizure (such as head trauma, metabolic disorders, alcohol and drug withdrawal, CNS infections). In ULTRAM® overdose, naloxone administration may increase the risk of seizure.

The development of a potentially life-threatening serotonin syndrome may occur with the use of tramadol products, including ULTRAM®, particularly with concomitant use of serotonergic drugs such as SSRIs, SNRIs, TCAs, MAOIs, and triptans, with drugs which impair metabolism of serotonin (including MAOIs), and with drugs which impair metabolism of tramadol (CYP2D6 and CYP3A4 inhibitors). This may occur within the recommended dose (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Pharmacokinetics).

Serotonin syndrome may include mental-status changes (e.g., agitation, hallucinations, coma), autonomic instability (e.g., tachycardia, labile blood pressure, hyperthermia), neuromuscular aberrations (e.g., hyperreflexia, incoordination) and/or gastrointestinal symptoms (e.g., nausea, vomiting, diarrhea).

You can read the entire package insert at DailyMed (a National Institutes of Health website).