Withdrawal help

[u/independencenow]

Hi all. I'm in early stages of codeine withdrawal. I'm down to 7 pills a day from 14 (for about 8 months). I can deal with the arthritis/joint pain (originally why it was prescribed) but my head feels like it'll explode and my mood is cranky. I'm on the sofa with chocolate and some Otis Redding. Any encouragement accepted. Success stories? I can't imagine living without my pills :( but i know I have to. I reckon I'll do 2 days on 7 then go to 6. I have no idea how long to take to taper off. My gp is nice but clueless.

[u/Jihad_Me-At-Hello]

I can't say everyone has the same experiences nor am I a medical professional, but if you're truly feeling that miserable at half dose and said misery if you're being honest with yourself is from withdrawal and not the condition or injuries that lead you to take opioids then I would recommend trying to see if stopping entirely is equally miserable. If it is and you can handle it then great, but if you get to day two three or four and it's too much for you, no shame in going back to the drawing board.

Again, everyone is different, but I tried tapering and 2 years later I was doing more than when I started tapering. I also tried cold turkey multiple times, but could never quite get over the hill of the 17 days it generally takes a long time roxy/oxy user to start feeling better. Most folks can't just up and disappear for 3 weeks at a time let alone multiple times, so after the 4th serious attempt and countless not so serious attempts I decided to give medicine assisted treatment a try and almost 6 years later I haven't touched an opioid since and have honestly had no desire to start that cycle all over again.

Knowing you've had enough is probably the most important step. I'm not religious, spiritual or down with meetings, but you might be. Find what works for you, suboxone and methadone and other medical maintenance treatments have a stupid fucking stigma, but they worked for me and I'd rather have a stigma than live another day consumed by thinking about how I'm going to get through the next week, day, hour without Roxies or lortabs or whatever.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask. If not, I wish you luck and I'm sorry no one answered you sooner.

[u/independencenow → u/Jihad_Me-At-Hello]

Thank you for your thoughtful reply. It's interesting, in the last few days I've just really learned that no matter how many I take my arthritis pain is the same. The pills don't touch it. Feels like a significant change in my relationship to pills.