Re: From Norco to Morphine - how do I detox?

[Guest guest]

Dear Maya,

First, ask your pharmacist or if you think your Dr. is " up " on how to wean

off, try him/her. Generally, you keep taking them, just lowering the dose or #

pills per day for at least a weak, and some for longer.

Xanax is the worst - it's responsible for more admissions to abuse centers

than any other drug. You have to wean off it very slowly, to the point where

you are cutting pills in half, then in fourths. This takes 3 weeks.

This works great for a lot of people. There are some who find that even

weaning off slowly, they still have withdrawal problems. Your Dr. can prescribe

a non-addictive med which will help get you through.

That's all I know. I had a Dr. who said I was OK and could stop taking the

meds I'd been given for a broken bone in my back. After 36 hrs. being off all

meds, I called a # in the phone book. I just wanted to know how long this

(withdrawal, but I was too naive about drugs then to know that) would go on.

They asked if someone could drive me over, which is how I ended up in a

rehab center. And the above is somewhat how they do it. They stop the xanax

right away and substitute valium. It's easier to wean off valium. And BTW, the

month I spent in rehab was one of the best months of my life! I met such

amazing people, laughed so much, learned so much about drugs and myself, and

walked out of there proud of my accomplishment, strong, at peace, and knowing I

could cope with anything. Now, how long the program is depends on where you go.

And of course, you can do it on your own. There are also partial

hospitalization plans, which insurance pays for.

Good luck and God bless. Let me know how you are doing. I care.

Jo

From Norco to Morphine - how do I detox?

I was on Norco and preferred it immensely to Vicodin ES. It wasn't covered by

my insurance, however, and I had to pay for it out of pocket. It worked so much

better it was worth the extra expense.

At this time, as my pain increased, I was switched to the Duragesic Fentanyl

patch. First, Duragesic 25 mg with Norco for breakthrough pain

and now

Duragesic 50 mg with Morphine for breakthrough pain.

I have Reiter's Syndrome, aka Reactive Arthritis, which is chronic and I am

going into remission from the flare-up. Now I'm addicted to these painkillers

and will probably have to go through detox. I don't abuse them, I use them as

directed. I also was prescribed Xanax .5 mg for occassional anxiety attacks

from being so disabled.

But for getting off of these hard-core meds.... any advice?

With love,

Maya in the City of Angels

31/female, Reactive Arthritis, DVT, HLA-B27 negativeGet more from the Web.

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[Guest guest]

Hi Maya,

From years of experience of detoxing patients, please consult with your

doctor before starting this process. I have seen many people on different

types of meds decideing to go " off " of them and ending up in the ER from

seizers. I don't say this to scare you or any one else but detoxing can (not

always) be a difficult and long process.

I myself recently detoxed off the Duregesic Patches and am now just using

Lortab for pain. Also other meds for other ailments. I had been on the

patch for over 3 years and went down from a 75 patch to nothing over 4

months. The long detox was better for my overall health.

Good luck!

Kathleen in Calif.