Nuvigil Help / Severe Opiate Addict (Page 2)
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I am fresh off a 3 year opiate ride and to be quite honest I am the most weak and tired than I have ever been. The anxiety is killing me. All I want is a couple roxy and some morphine 60's. Before today I was up to about 12 roxy 30's and 10 morph 60's. I am quitting cold turkey and also quiting for the first time. I've heard this will absolutely not work and I will be a junkie again within a day. My friend gave me a handful of xanax, Nuvigil, and Naproxin. If any of you have experiences similar to mine please let me know if I can beat this with what I've been given for help being: Xan, Nuvigil, and Naproxin? I really dont want this life anymore. Everything I get asked to do like go to the movies, go out of state, or just hang for a couple hours all depends on whether or not I have enough pills! It sucks. I'd rather worry about having enough gas instead of how many pills it'll take for me to tolerate my friends, whom I love dearly). Tolerate: meaning fighting the depression of not having drugs and and the almost death that happens to me with every fake hate filled smile I have to give. uhhhggh I just want it to be over. SO I GUESS my question is will the Nuvigil give me the energy and attitude I need for the three days of horrible sickness I am about to go through? I have been off opiates now for 12 hours and I am already terrified. What a great drug for pain but the abuse of it is just a inexcusable insecurity that I would like to abolish asap. I know this isnt the right Blog to write to but all the other blogs just talk about different ways to feel high. I dont need that. Please help if you can, if not I completely understand. Thanks for listening. Good luck to all :)

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My friend, congratulations on taking a BIG step!! Your life will improve, but it'll take some time to get over the physical symptoms of withdrawal and the psychological effects even more time. Believe me; I was a stone-cold- any- opiate-will-be-fine kind of guy, but my preference was(and is, if truth be told) H and oxycontin. I tried cold turkey; you name it. I was on this s*** for more than 20 years, yep, 20! I finally had enough and went the Suboxone route. It's damned expensive but insurance(I hope you have it) will take care of most the cost. I have been opiate-free for 4 years and life has never been better. Lots of people said "Oh man, that stuff's addictive too!" Yeah it is. But there're two good aspects: 1) It's legal, and 2) it chases the withdrawal the hell AWAY! You need to find a doctor who is licensed to prescribe it and you've gotta be serious about getting away from the s***. I hate the term 'clean' because, hell, I already take regular baths; at least once every two weeks whether I need it or not.

There are many schools of thought on Suboxone. Some say you are just substituting one addiction for another. Believe me, addiction to Suboxone is legal, it doesn't get you high but it will damn sure make you feel better about yourself and everybody around you. You'll get something you probably don't have a lot of right now- self respect. True, it is technically trading one addiction for another but the folks that harp on that have never been in the throes of withdrawal that makes you think that death wouldn't be so bad as an alternative. The doc will start you off on a dose sufficient to get rid of the withdrawal. The effect is that when you put that little nasty-tasting(some people even like it) film under your tongue, after 20 or 30 minutes if the doc has given you the appropriate dose, those goddamned terrible
monkeys will be LONG GONE!!

I realize that I can only give you my experience but you don't have anything to lose but those morphine blues( whatever you wanna call 'em). If your doc knows his or her business it will be up to you how much time you want to take to wean off Suboxone. Most people do. I haven't but I I don't take any opiates any more. I've had both shoulders replaced as well as my left hip replaced and these were total joint replacements. While I was recuperating, the surgeons gave me opiates for the pain but I had been taking Suboxone for quite a while previous to the surgeries. As soon as I could tolerate the pain ( hell, there ain't no such thing as a pain-free life, I don't care who you are!!) I got back on the Sub's none the worse for the experience. The choice is yours. It is easy for people who have never had their body scream and convulse for want of a fix to criticize you. Don't listen to 'em!

They have enough problems of their own whether they want to admit it or not. I know how you are feelin' and I wouldn't want anyone to experience that life where your day is eaten up trying to find some dope; anything to get rid of the blues. There's no worse feeling in the world that I can speak of. I took the time to write this, not as a plug for the drug (any way you can find that works is great!!) but as one addict(I hate that word) to another. Only addicts can help another addict. Sure, the doctors can get you through the withdrawal but it is
ultimately your decision. Don't let anyone keep you from your quest for sanity. I know 'quest' is a strong word, but your desire to stay off the opiates is nothing less than a quest. You are on a mission to salvage your life, your relationships and ultimately, your self-respect and the best gift of all- peace of mind.

It is easy for me to sit here and tell you all this? Don't believe it. I have traveled a long and s***-filled road to arrive at this time in my life. Was it worth it? Sure as hell was and is. I say 'is' because each day is an adventure. Each day I can choose to be serene, play my music, love my friends, laugh, fish...you get my drift. Or. Or? Yeah, or I can go go get some dope (it'll take about a week before the naltrexone( the stuff in the Suboxone that blocks the opiate receptors) and feel high. Yeah you can take enough dope to override the naltrexone, but that's a s***-load of hard work. Who the f*** needs to work that hard? I damn sure don't! Let's face it; addiction, whatever your chosen poison, is a FULL TIME JOB!! I know you know that as well as anyone. I hope you quit THIS job and start taking it easy on yourself. I hope you can attain a little sanity and a boat-load of happiness!! However you decide to get off the train is good; there are a lot of stops on this train we have been riding, but they are hard to see because the conductor is a motherf***er! He wants you to ride on to the end of the line. He (might be a woman; I don't know) wants to take you to the final destination- I believe you are intelligent enough to figure out where the last stop is.

Go ahead and do SOMETHING; try Suboxone, meditation, 12-step group( which, by the way I attend on a regular basis; insert your definition or 'regular' here!) church, music(which I highly recommend for the maintenance of your soul)tiddlywinks, backgammon, cold turkey(I myself am too chickens*** to go that way) but do keep trying, my friend. Again, I don't know you but I know the disease; the son of a b**** that controls your every step and I would like to think that just by virtue of your writing for a little advice you'd like to see the dope as something you don't want or need in your life. I've taken time which is always well spent to write a few words which give you a small window into my experience. It is only that- my experience. There are as many ways to overcome this disease as there are faces in the world. I use the word 'disease', not in the commonly understood way, but for what it is. It is what we feel as (here comes that word again!) addicts. Dis-ease; uneasiness; a feeling of general, how shall I put this, s***itude. Yep, that says it for me. Well, you don't have to feel like this. Just do something. Anything. It makes no difference as long as you feel as if you are moving away from the monster and towards something that truly makes you happy. Something that gives you a kick in the pants( or skirt) every morning and tells you to reach a bit higher than yesterday; no matter how short your arms.

I hope you will achieve that feeling of satisfaction; the peace and self-respect. I GUARANTEE you will find it if you give yourself a break and get a little( I had to get a s***load, I tell ya!) professional help; emphasis on the word 'professional'. People want to help. Promise! I wouldn't have taken time to write you a few words if I didn't think so. Suboxone has worked for ME. I have friends made of far sterner stuff than I who have gone cold turkey, but not many. It is no disgrace to ask for help. Hell, make those professionals earn their keep. Alright, if this sounds like a sermon, it could well be. Make of it what you will. Only do ONE thing; just one thing: go to a doctor or someone for whom you have a lot a respect and ask them for a little direction. I can assure you they will be more than happy to do so. I was. I wish you a lot of luck and if there is( I think so, anyway) a God, I pray he, she or it will guide and protect you.

Best Wishes,
Dorman (yeah, really!)

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SallyB-
I've been addicted to opiates for about 6 years now, off and on. I used suboxone for about a year to get clean a couple years ago.. Was clean for about 5 months and then relapsed about 8 months ago. I am seeing a doctor now and ready to try and get clean again doing the suboxone program. Only thing that scares the hell out of me is the suboxone withdrawal. Last time I got off suboxone I went thru about 20 days of hell. Do you think this is because I did not wean properly? What was your experience like coming off suboxone? Did you have withdrawal, how long did it last, how intense, what was your dosage at the end? Etc. hopefully you see this message, I know this thread was like a year ago. Thanks for any info.

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Listen, I am telling you this from experience...If your habit is what you say it is then you will have a really hard time kicking cold turkey!!!! You need to go to a 7 day detox and clean all that s*** out of you...For you to be worrying about Nuvigil is just crazy....I really hope you get the help that you need...AGAIN I am telling you this because I have been there and kicking is NOT fun at all....If you need that stuff to cope with your friends then you need to seek some help and get busy living...See my problem has always been that I compare my insides with everyone's outside and I could never understand why I always felt that way...Once I got the correct help I started to enjoy my life...OH YEAH, I have had an opiate addiction for 20 years and if I could do it then you can too!!!!! GOOD LUCK BUDDY

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I have been in the same boat your in due to a motorcycle accident taking every kind of legal opiate out there for 5 years. They do take care of the pain but they also turn you into a legal junkie. Forget about the Nuvigil and the Xanax is as hard to detox from as the pain meds. Methadone is a full opiate and you will become addicted to them if you take them to come off the Oxys, Morphine etc. You need to start a Suboxone program. This will get you off them fast without feeling sick. I started with the 8/2mg film twice a day. After 5 days I cut the dose in half per day. Now I'm off. One thing you should know. If you try this, before you take your 1st film you need to have NO opiates in your system for a minimum of 24 hours or more. It worked like magic for me. Good luck.

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It is really amazing to me how little the general population knows about addiction!! Nuvigil and Xanax are both very addictive drugs, for those who are allready suffering from addiction--it's like trading seats on the Titanic! Whoever is telling you it absolutely won't work is absolutely right! I am speaking not only from my own experience, but from the many people I've come in contact with during my struggles with addiction. Anything you use that rapidly causes euphoria (or intense excitement or serenity) is an addictive substance--including alcohol of course. Naproxyn is just an anti-inflammatory, like Motrin, so it's OK to take that for that awful joint pain opiate withdrawel causes. Most antidepressant's are also considered OK, because there is a subtle improvement in mood over time. The vast majority of addicts will tell you the only way to stop that runaway train is to STOP! This means ALL mood altering drugs. But it doesn't mean you have to suffer. The best way, for most, is tapering doses of either methadone or suboxone, in a CONTROLLED environment. For me, I had to do this inpatient, at a rehab, with a nurse bringing me the meds--tried to do it on the outside ( Dr.'s prescription or methadone clinic ), unsuccessfully quite a few times. There are those who have been able to stop opiate abuse by diligently following a Dr.'s or
Methadone/Suboxone Clinic's recomendations which always incude some kind of self-help--AA, NA, out- patient treatment,and/or counselling etc. I really wish the best for you--I felt your despair coming right through, the same despair I have felt. It is hard to stop at first, and there are good days and bad, but it can and has been done and once you realize you are on your way down that road of light and life (instead of pain, darkness, and ultimately an untimely death), the feeling is indescribable.

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I have been taking nuvigill 250 mg. one only every morning for 3 months and most of the day I am almost euphoric and get a lot of work done. However I can not sleep until 4 a.m. so I take klonipin 0.5 mg and sleep only 4 hours. With insurance 30 pills cost me $ 90.00..I have tried twice to not take a nuvigill and could not function. So I took one the next day and tried to skip and then every time I skip for one day I fall into a deep hole and get dehydrated very easy and no appetite. I am frightened that I see no way out. When I try to skip a day by noon I have to take one.. I miss the sense of well being it gives me. The delema scares me.Any thoughts?

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know a woman w/fibromialga & because of some legal issues they cut her off her opiate medications & she took some of a friend's nuvigil & she said she gets a huge energy difference. Ive Bern prescribed opiates bover 10years & I know long term use they give u energy as oposed to draining energy. Best of luck to u. I never take more than I'm supposed to so I don't have a withdrawal when I don't take them, just more pain in the areas I take them for.

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I honestly wish I could say whether or not any of those drugs would benefit you, but medications can and usually do affect everyone differently, whereas some people get great results, but there are others that it inevitably just doesn't work for no matter how many they take. Unfortunately when it comes to prescription drugs the only to find out is to try it for yourself and decide after a few days to a week or so if they are really right for you.

Armodafinil (Nuvigil) is a stimulant-like drug that seems to have a number of different uses from sleep disorders, to depression, jet lag, and schizophrenia. Personally, I would just stick to some strong caffeinated tea, so as to at least reap any additional health benefits in the process. But yes, Nuvigil may help you with energy.

And although I don't have any personal experience with this type of situation, I think it would be helpful to make some sort of chart on a calendar showing how much of each of those medications you're taking and at what times you plan on taking them. A strict schedule like this should help you make the most of what pills you do have.

If anyone else has some helpful information to share that would be great too!

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