Opiates symptoms and conditions

I too had HORRIBLE experiences on Toprol-XL. I was put on it after I walked into a doctor's office and my BP was 235/152. Yep..you read that right! Scary times. I started taking the med, and I too gained 35 pounds with no change in diet. I was tired, weak, groggy - I honestly felt like I was slowly dying. At that point, I decided that high blood pressure was far better than the experience I had on Toprol. It ruined my marriage. Can you say ZERO libido? I decided that I would try a different form of metroprolol - metroprolol tartrate versus succinate. I did this when I went out of town - I honestly thought my heart was going to pound out of my chest - coming off this medication was horrible, and if the other posts are true about this being worse to come off than opiates, I REALLY feel for addicts now. I have been off the Toprol now for about 9 months, and I feel so much better. I've lost what I call the Toprol weight, and I made some life changes. I did the following: (A) I purchased a rebounder (mini-trampoline) and have built up from 5 minutes per day to 15 minutes per day (goal = 40 minutes per day) - there are HUGE health benefits in rebounding and it's really easy on my joints (google the benefits - I promise you won't be disappointed). I turn on the TV or turn on my Ipod and bounce away. (B) I joined Freelife International, and began drinking Go Chi juice (www.pbowen.freelife.com) because it has three scientific studies proving its effectiveness. (C) I stopped drinking caffeinated soda and began drinking a homemade blend of green (matcha) & darjeeling teas (if you want the recipe, e-mail me and I'll send it pamela.bowen@gmail.com), and (D) I bought a device called RESPERATE (www.resperate.com). I HAVE MY LIFE BACK!!! Don't think you have to live the way you are forever!

Sounds like withdrawal effects. Stay away from them for anything other than pain if you have an addictive personality. These are lesser forms of heroin, morphine released in the brain. The effects you are describing are absolutely withdrawal. If you take them for extended periods of time, you will find the withdrawal symptoms getting worse and worse. You will NEED to have a pill to get out of bed, when you SHOULD be otherwise healthy. Tolerance to the drug will build and you will quickly become addicted... If you have problems with alcohol, you are at heightened risk of opiate addiction, so stay away from it. (family history, substance abuse problems.)

If you are currently addicted to opiates, Vicodin/percocet/ etc. There are treatment options available. If you are feeling down after a short period of use, these symptoms will subside and you will be back to normal in a little time. If you keep taking them, it will only get worse and you may require medical treatment, IE: Suboxone/Subutex , methadone. Paths you don't want to go down. The high, eventually will NOT be worth the HORRIBLE, UNBEARABLE, withdrawal symptoms. You will have to take huge amounts of pills to feel 'normal.'

If your addicted to painkillers, get help. They retard your life IF your using them for recreational 'high' OR to maintain or avoid the withdrawal symptoms, post addiction. If you have legit pain, they are a life saver. But really unless you have a CHRONIC condition, you shouldn't take these any longer than your pain is present, until you are healed, or advised by your doctor.

Get with god, drink water and get a lot of sleep. Some people find anti-anxiety medication helpful for the mental discomfort (don't get abusive of that too, those withdraw symptoms can be fatal.) The addicted brain is damaged by the drug and MUST HEAL. If you believe you may be addicted to painkillers, there is A LOT of help these days. There is no excuse for taking opiates to 'maintain' normality.

Good luck, hang in there!

I have itching, pain in the abdominal area, sometimes panic attacks, and sometimes drowsiness.
The pain I took it for has gone away now, but I still keep taking it cuz I feel like crap when I get up in the morning, runny eyes and nose, and an anxious feeling, with no energy. I take a perc and drink some coffee and I'm good to go. Think I'm addicted? I do.

I started having panic attacks while taking Percocet. I am a chronic alcohol user, and I am saying this just in case it rings a bell for anyone. I have since stopped taking Percocet (about 3 days). I was a habitual/recreational user ... meaning that I took them when available, but I did not always have them. Since my last dose, I have been having recurrent panic attacks that are very scary. They include physical symptoms (heart pounding, cold and hot flashes, feeling of difficulty breathing, sweating, shaking) - and the much more scary mental symptoms (fear of death, walls closing in, inability to think or concentrate, vivid dreaming, fear of people, etc.). It appears that some other people have had issues like this, but not everyone. Can someone share their story with me. Has anyone had similar experiences ? Do they go away at some point ? Is it withdraw (I am not sure since they started while I was using them - but continued after I stopped) ? I have heard that it just takes some time, but it is very scary. I get some relief by drinking ... in fact almost complete freedom from most of the symptoms, but I can't just drink all day. Please help.

My husband was on 80mg of Oxycontin 3 times a day and 40 mg twice per sometimes he would take three if the pain was really bad.
He had a hierniated disc and tried every drug under the sun.
He was on these amount for about a year and half and was well a different person, he dropped down to 80mg on his own ...........he had back surgery and after the surgery really wanted to get off them and be off this awful drugs he suffered withdrawl for about a month and could not drop any more on his own it was too much to bear so he did the methadone maintenace program and got off the oxy you stop the oxy the day you start the methadone, the methadone takes away the craving an need for oxy anyhow he did the methadone maintenace for 3 months he came down in large amounts on his own he started at 15mg and came down from there to 10 and then in singles coming off the methadone was also so brutal and he went through hell with it...........he is now pain free and drug free expect for the occasional anti inflamm he is so so grateful to be off the oxy and able to live a normal life he never wants to touch that drug again.
I want all those out there addicted to this drug to know you are not alone and there are groups and doctors that can help you get off this awful drug and live like a human being dependant only on oxygen food and water and not opiates you are sick and need help and my heart goes out to all of you and your families and I hope you can find the strength and courage to do what my husband did.

FALSE POSSITIVES FOR OPIATS!

I had taken Levaquin 500mg for a Uninary track infection. The first day I took it I had a drug test for work and I failed it for opiates! I thought there must have a been a mistake but as I looked further into it it ends up that Levaquin along with 12 other antibiotics can show up as an opiate in a urine drug test. So do not take this if you know you are going to have a drug test!

I HAVE BEEN ON METADONE FOR ABOUT 7 MONTHS NOW AND I AM UP 150 MGS A DAY, I HAVE FIBROMYALGIA AND THE PAIN IS JUST TERRIBLE MOST OF THE TIME, WHEN I FIRST WENT ON THIS DRUG I THOUGHT THAT IT WAS THE PERFECT DRUG, IT TOOK ALL OF MY PAIN AWAY, IT WAS SOMEWHAT CHEAP, AND MY DOCTOR WOULD GIVE ME ENOUGH OF IT TO TAKE CARE OF MY PAIN. HOWEVER ...I WAS ALWAYS A SMALL WOMAN THE MOST THAT I EVER WEIGHED WAS 150 PONDS AND THAT WAS WHEN I WAS 9 MONTHS PREGNANT WITH MY CHILDREN, I USED TO HAVE TO MAKE MYSELF EAT TO TRY AND GAIN WEIGHT..AFTER BEING ON METHDONE FOR ABOUT A MONTH I STARTED TO NOTICE THAT I HAD INTENSE CRAVINGS FOR SWEETS THAT I COULD NOT DENY...IT WAS LIKE NEEDING A HIT OF HERION OR SOMETHING.. NOW THAT LITTLE GIRL THAT USED TO HAVE TO TRY TO GAIN WEIGHT AND WHOS NORMAL WEIGHT WAS 115 POUNDS IS UP TO 162 POUNDS AFTER JUST 7 MONTHS ON THIS DRUG, I AM ONLY EATING ONE MEAL A DAY AND JUST HAVING A FEW BITES OF SOMETHING AT BREAKFAST..THE MORE I TRY TO DIET THE MORE WEIGHT I GAIN...SOMEONE HELP!! IS THERE ANY THING AT ALL THAT I CAN DO .. I CAN SOMEWHAT DEAL WITH THE CONSTIPATION THAT IS NEVER GOING AWAY AND I CAN DEAL WITH THE SWEATS THAT ARE HORRIBLE - I CAN EVEN DEAL WITH THE SLEEPINESS AT INAPPROPRIATE TIMES BUT I CAN NOT DEAL WITH ALL OF THIS FAT..THIS IS MAKING ME EVEN MORE DEPRESSED AND SUICIDIAL THAN I EVER WAS BEFORE METHADONE....I REALLY AM THINKING ABOUT TRYING ANOTHER DRUG BUT THEY ALL JUST COST SO MUCH.....ANY ADVICE FOR ME ABOUT THE WEIGHT GAIN???

I have been taking Ultracet for over a year now..as needed for back pain from a car accident and significant re-injury of my back. I have sciatica in my laft leg with significant pain and some numbness if I sit too long in one position as well as moderate to severe back pain if I walk or stand up too long.

I will say from the start I have a very high tolerance for drugs. Doses of narcotic pain killers (darvocet, vicodin etc) thta knock most people out will just make me feel slightly "high".

I take Ultracet as needed for pain and Flexeril for muscle spasms in my back. I do not ever go over 3 pills in one day.

I have not noticed any of the reactions people mention here. I can go several days without taking Ultracet with no problems. Perhaps it is that I do days without taking it that has saved me from becoming addicted to it.

I have heard of side effects such as upset stomach, nausea and my doctor warned me to let her know if I felt anxiety or other emotional incidents (mood swings, depression, feeling "high" etc). I have had none of those effects that I can specifically attribute to the ultracet.

After asking my physician about whether ultracet is a narcotic in the same category as darvocet, percocent etc. ( I asked because of the similarity in name). She said it was not classified as a narcotic as it is a synthetic substance and supposedly does not have the addictive ingredient found in the natural opiates. Supposedly is the key word here. She also told me that people who are susceptible to addictions (i.e. family history of alcohol or drug abuse etc) may become addicted to it. She said that the threshold for addiction seems to be when taking more than 3 pills a day.

The ultracet works well for controling the pain in my legs and back. I am fortunate to be able to take a dose of ultracet and rest for 20 minutes until it kicks in most times. I have had no problems with driving or dizzines since I started taking it.

I have had the worst diahrrea with ultracet. It is a wonder I haven't accidently killed myself with this. I'd get the diahrrea and take an OTC remedy for it while not realizing the diahrrea was from the ultracet. I'd sleep for about 3 hours at a time, wake up for 30 minutes, and struggle to go back to sleep. I was wondering why it did nothing for my pain and then found out it is an opiate derivative. I'm one of those not susceptible to opiates for pain relief. However, when given an opiate I do hallucinate. No wonder I was seeing spiders. I'm going to ride out the withdrawal and see what happens. Wish me luck.

Neurontin has opiates