Fentanyl Withdrawal Symptoms (Page 62)
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I'm trying to wean myself off the Fentanyl patch. I went from 75 micro-gms to 50 now I'm on 25. Having a problem and not sure it is related to the decrease in the med. It's been 20 days on the 25 micro-gm and I'm going crazy. I need to keep rocking, moving in any way b/c my body is very restless. Is this a symptom of withdrawal and what do I do? I cannot take it any more.

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yea it is withdrawl see if you doctor will give you some oxocodone 5mg. maybe 10 a day or 6 30mg.morphine ir or even 4 a day i weened the morphine 6 a day for 4 years in 3 weeks 5 to 4 to 3 and had very little withdrawl better than the oxocodone maybe some zanax will help i am down to a 75 patch i was on 100patch for 8 years got to go slow good luck

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My intuition from reading every single post and following this thread for a long time, as well as being on fentanyl for nearly a year, is that the changes it makes to my brain are significant enough to warrant attention for several months (for me). It is not something that one can walk away from as others have said, and it is something to taper of VERY SLOWLY.

I have absolutely stopped my patch now for about 20 days (for the second time in 2 months), but I need something else everyday to both handle the pain and my mood. Gapapentin is effect for 2-3 day stretches once a week. Loperamide 20-30mgs with a P glycoprotein inhibitor (prilosec) works too for the other part of the week. This combination is extremely effective at not only handling pain but also makes me feel "normal", "productive", and just "happy". Interestingly that combination will make sure you use the bathroom properly (on average) in an extreme way. <-:

There are other things one can try. I would recommend ibogaine therapy also for those who feel really trapped.

But getting out an opiate dependence or addiction (you need to figure this out also---this is key to treatment) is very important. Life is more enjoyable when you're not constantly stimulating your mu opiod receptor and your body has reached new homeostases.

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I agree. It is a hard medicine to come down from. If ur going to be able to do it, u must be patient. It is something that u will have to do slowly. I went from 75mcg down to 50mcg and I had the rocking symptom..not fun, but I have disk herniations and just stayed on the 50, just 4 now until they get this mess straightened out. I hope u do well. I will be there soon. Take care and be strong.:))<3

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Been there done that. I;. currently experiencing same issues....I, too, was on the fentanyl 75mcg, down to the 50, then 25. What ur experiencing is withdrawal, what u need to do is go back to ur Dr. and request, an additional12mcg to add to the current 25mcg ur takin now. It takes time for ue body to adjust to this heavy duty opiate withdrawal. The reductuon in mcg is to much, too soon. Remember this is a long acting pain medication that needs to be reduced in low increments. Give it time. Good luck!

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20-30mg once a day. It has a long half life so you shouldn't need it more than once every 24 hours. It will definitely help with the physical WD. Then see if you start cut it down by even as little 2mg every day or 2-3 days.

This will block you a bit. If you can get access to gabapentin you'd be better off too.

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20-30mg of imodium how often?? I have been patch free since Thursday, 6 days ago. On Sunday I started not feeling well, then Monday, I had to travel 2 hours away for my puppy to have surgery. I felt terrible all day. Then Tuesday I layed around all day & forced myself to get up in the evening to go to a close friend's husband's wake. I think that's when I realized that I was having withdrawl symptoms again!! I'm so mad! I thought I had it!! ( Recap. I've been on between 50 & 100mcg for about a year for interstitial cystitis, then I got injured at work, as a nurse. I had back surgery and a year and a half ago I was almost weaned off & had a spontaneous re herniation of in my back. I went back up to 75 mcgs. Finally after another microdisc in Oct '10, and an anterior lumbar fusion in February of this year, I've had it!! I'm done!! I was still feeling sick from the patch AND still having pain!!) I told my Drs that I wanted off the patch!! So here I am! Once again having withdrawl symptoms!! So if someone could tell me about the loparamide, I would be so grateful

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In my view after using fentanyl for a while, acute WD is manageable by the things I've said, but post acute WD looks like it's bothersome for many months.

I am using gabapentin and (immodium) loperamide (which is an opiate that can't cross the blood brain barrier, apparently) to handle this. If you feel edgy and uncomfortable I recommend both those but loperamide is OTC and I take it with a P Glycoprotein inhibitor (prilosec). I think 20-30mg of loperamide is enough and you can VERY SLOWLY cut down the loperamide.

Basically what I am saying is that there are a lot of unscheduled and OTC meds available to handle the acute and postacute WD from fentanyl use for a long time where you are severely dependent (which is what will happen after using fentanyl for several weeks).

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I have been on the 75mcg patch for about 3 years. I feel like crap. I get chest pains and just feel weak all the time. I asked my doctor the side effects i have and she said i would feel worses off the patch, basically told me to suck it up. I say the little prayer "Now i lay me down to sleep" every night. My body is screaming at me to get off them. I am also Bi-Polar and i am scared to death of staying on them and getting off. Without my doctors help i don't know how to do this. Anyone every have any suggestions to minimize the physotic effects?

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Looking to contact TERRY who ia the author of Post # 438 in regards to weaning off of Fentanyl patch. My hubby is on 50mcg and wants to try your process for weaning. I think I did the breakdown right: 50mcg for 6 days, 25mcg for 6 days, that 12.5mcg for 9 days. Than for 4 days (96 hrs) cut the 12.5 in half equaling 6.25mcg for 96 hrs. Than final step is to cut down to 3.12mcg for 96 hrs. Than, hopefully he will be good to go. If you coulod please let me know if my plan seems correct, I would appreciate it tremendously. email me at - [email protected] [1]. THANK YOU TERRY!!!!!

[1] Editor's note - In order to protect privacy, we do not allow individuals to post their personal contact information on our discussion threads (except in some very rare cases).

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I have been cutting my patches for 2 months now, and I've managed to get them down to a quarter of a 75mcg.

My guess is that the previous poster had experience with the gel patches, not adhesive. But thankfully no heart attacks here.

So to anyone considering using this method, and who has access to the adhesive patches, I would say try it.

Despite my ability to cut down to a quarter of a 75mcg patch,and until I am free from this drug, I remain
-Scared in FL

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Regarding cutting the patches, there are TWO kinds. One CANNOT be cut (and will indeed result in all the fentanyl being released at once which is not the smartest thing to do) and it should be obvious which (this is the one with a sac of liquid in the middle) and the other can be cut (these are the drug-in-adhesive type). In the drug in adhesive type of patches can be cut and since the drug is distributed evenly in the adhesive (has to be; read the insert on how it works) it works. The patch cutting method suggested by a previous poster will work if done properly.

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No fortunately not psychological... I have have spoken to my doctors for years as well about this medication. It can take up to 1 and a 1/2 years to be rid of all withdrawls. The key to healing is wanting to have it, the key to healing is working for it, after is your reward freedom from this creature drug... The Withdrawl Queen

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Dr. Steve Olencheck
Mall ring circle, Henderson Nevada
Nevada Spine Clinic
Henderson,NV

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First whom ever is reading this never ever cut a patch this can KILL you... you may have been lucky but dont give advice you know nothing about unless you speak the truth. Cutting the patch can cause a sudden release in to much which can cause a massive heart attack and or stroke.... NEVER CUT PATCH!!!!!
The
Withdrawl Queen

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I have been on 100Micro grams of fentanal patche,s for 8 years my back is so bad thqat nothing else helps I was on 6 30mg.morphine sufateIR and felt great I weened off the morpahine in 3 weeks with no problems I wish the doctor would cut me down to a 75 patch and 3 morphine pills they are alot easier to ween off than oxocodone I take care of my mother -in -law and my wife is going for a lung operation so I can not ween off now there has to be something they can give me to help with the withdrawl I can't go to a rehab i am on workers comp. got knocked off a ladder I have been looking for a doctor for 5 months theyn are all in big groups so you call one and they allready have your info i can't belive nobody will help me thanks Larry

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I was on 150 mcg for years so I started slowing coming off 150 to 100mcg,then 100 again for 72 hours,then 75 for 6 days,50 mcg for 72 hours,50 mcg again for 72 hours,then 25 mcg for 9 days.Then I cut the 25 mcg's in half making a 12.5 mcg for 72 hours then 12.5 mcg's again for 72 hours.Then I cut the 12 mcg in half again for another 96 hours,and finally I cut the 12 mcg in half again for 96 hours and stopped,with no withdrawl symptoms at all. Believe me I have been on this stuff twice now and with the same way all the time and it works. Use the 100 mcg patch and cut it into 4 so you can maximize the usage,then cut the 25's in half as well.What I am telling you is get the most out of your patch when cutting them.Always wash your hands after. I checked this out with my doctor and pharmacist before I did it

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haven been on fentanyl patches for over 3 yrs i was gettin withdrawelasymtomy after 48hrs..where the patch should last 72..the syptomys were ants runnin over body restlessness,,hyper...and eratic breathing..i told to come stright off them after 4yrs of use..i went cold turkey..suvier shakes..intatable,,hyper and so on...i had this for bout 48hrs...i didnt sleep thru this period....it put a strain on my marrage to how i felt..no one should suffer like this..at the doctors u are a five min patient..when will they listens not them suffering

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This message is for Larry, in case he is still reading this. If you have patches with the drug in adhesive formulation, you can cut them. Plan out your taper with the 10 25 mcg/hr patches. You can do something like 8-12 days of 25mcg/hr (4 patches); 8-12 days of 12.5mcg/hr (2 patches, i.e., cut your patches in half); 8-12 days of 6.125mcg/hr (1 patch cut in quarters); 8-12 days of 3.0625mcg/hr (0.5 patch cut in eigths). And then jump off. So you can do a patch taper in 32-48 days (depends on whether you change a patch every 2 days or 3 days) with less than 8 patches. Basically I think you need to stabilise on a lower dose for 8-12 days every time.

If you don't have drug in adhesive patches then it is difficult to do the above. The drug in adhesive patches wil be completely flat, unlike the other ones which are like a pouch/bulge in the middle containing liquid with the fentanyl that is then distributed through a membrane---you cannot cut these.

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Hi, I too am just tapering off the evil Fentanyl patches:(. If I had known it would be this difficult I would have never agreed to start using them. I started at the 12's, went up to 25's and ended up on the 75's for about 2 1/2 years. I was also using about 12 Vicodin /day to help with acute pain..... no good. As of today I have not had a Vicodin in a month (cold turkey) and I'm on my last patch of 12's after tapering down from the 75's. I get the chills, my energy is low and can't sleep very well but this will come to an end and I look forward to being drug free. The pain will still be there and it will be interesting to see what my doctor decides to do. I have been to pain clinics and all they do is pump more drugs into you until you become dependent/addicted!! Once you are done with the meds, try contacting your local NA group and start going to meetings, it will make you feel better knowing others have gone through the same thing. I wish you good luck and it will get better.

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I have now been off the fentanyl for nearly two months. I actually went off for about 3 weeks, and then used it for another week, and then I stopped again with no WD whatsoever the second time (so I'm now 50 days from my first jump off) . The first time I had the most WD on day 2 which was tolerable (just feeling clammy). Mentally I feel fantastic. Here's what I did to ease off of it:

1. First I tapered down extensively from 50mcg/hr to 12.5mcg/hr and then more. I cut my last patches down. but I probably was at 6.25mcg/hr when I jumped off. Whenever I felt even slightly off, I did the following:

2. Took loperamide at fairly high doses. I found that 30-40mg per 24 hour period would remove ALL wd and even make me feel good. Loperamide is an opiate that's not supposed to close the blood brain barrier. Stopping and starting loperamide was NOT a problem for me. My stomach was just the same as with fentanyl.

3. Gabapentin was the real life safer. I took high doses of gabapentin (3 grams or more) every 8-24 hours. I can also stop and start gabapentin without problems.

4. I also used something I can't say but you can guess but it relaxed me. I did this for two days. Mentally it cleared me a HUGE amount. It wasn't smoking anything but rather an oil. I got it from a medical prescription so statewise it was legal. Isti found this is effective for pain also which I still have. (3) is

I never do (2) and (3) more than 3-4 days in row. I switch back and forth. Gabapentin leads to tolerance so you can't use it anyway for more than 4-5 days.

So far, for about 50 days, I've been "free. Even when I reused, I didn't use long enough to become dependent (one week doesn't seem to be enough). Obviously a part of my come off revolves opiate use but considering that I have 0 mental issues and 1 day of physical WD (day 2), and 50 days where I knew I didn't have to use it, I feel pretty good. I right now am not on anything and although I have pain, I no longer am physically dependent on the opiates. I think true psychological independence can't start for 90 days at least and I'm not at a stage where my pain is controlled. I'm just making sure my dependency on fentanyl is not there anymore. I had been using for about 10 days straight before. I don't see myself going back to that. I probably need to use strong painkillers for another year due to my pain which is a dilemma but I really don't see myself going back to.

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