actonbell
Journeyman
Reged: 09/08/03
Posts: 82
Loc: Oklahoma
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I have been taking this now for about 6 months. Four tabs a day 50mg per tab. I know that the stuff is addictive, and that a tolerance can develop. I have been thinking about upping the dosage because it isn't working as well lately. Or maybe stopping for a month would be the best. What is the best way to cope with Ultram withdrawal and is tapering or cold turkey the best?
Well hell, I was using the search function to see if I could come up with anything concerning tramadol withdrawal and I found the thread about tic's and seizures while taking tramadal and I have been having a tic in my hand all morning! My right index finger, large twitching of the major muscles. Now I am scared. I have never had a seizure before, but from what I have read it seems that tramadol stays in your system for a very long time and that taking it lowers your seizure threshold, lowers it a lot.
Now I don't know what to do. I am afraid to stop cold turkey, but I am going to start to taper. Today only 3 doses, I would split it to 25mg per dose if I could but I have the tramacaps. D%$n, da#n. I thought I had found a regimen I could live with for a long time that kept me off the opiates and all their associated problems. Does the twitching always lead to a full blown seizure? I did have a trip planned today about 30 miles to a nearby large city, but I think I will cancel. I don't want to risk a wreck, espcially since I was taking the grandkids.
I am so depressed. I have been so happy with this, tramadol daily and a mobic or bextra on the really bad days (like today, a cold wind is blowing)no "fuzzy brain" no constipation, no horrible "coming down". Just a whole lot less pain.
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All it takes to fly is to hurl yourself at the ground....and miss.
Edited by actonbell (10/25/03 09:55 AM)
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wildbill
Member
Reged: 04/28/03
Posts: 124
Loc: USA
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If you have been doing it through a doc, don't hesitate how to ask to taper. Don't cold turkey - you're asking for a seizure! My wife and I have had TERRIBLE reactions to ultram, it is a narcotic antagonist to boot and is another thing "given out" recklessly by physicians because it's not controlled. There is no substitute I know of (wish I did so I could pass on to any on the board) to bring you down. You can even anonymously ask a pharmacist, or if you know one. This is not one to go at alone. I'm not trying to make you paranoid, but I've seen a lot of bad stuff, and an ounce of prevention. Best of luck to you.
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actonbell
Journeyman
Reged: 09/08/03
Posts: 82
Loc: Oklahoma
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The twitching started today about an hour after I took my first dose of tramadol. It hasn't gotten any worse, and it is now 4 hours since my first dose, but then it hasn't stopped either. Just occasional twitching, but oddly enough only in the one finger, and seems worse if I hold my hand in certain positions or try to type or hold items.
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All it takes to fly is to hurl yourself at the ground....and miss.
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phinny
Enthusiast
Reged: 04/09/02
Posts: 247
Loc: Canada
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Wildbill - how well do you know this med? I have used it to lessen wds, but I have found that it exacerbates anxiety after a week or so. I also started to get muscle twitching as well. Being an opiate agonist, does it test positive for opiates in a blood or urine test? Do you or anybody else know?
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Sherman, set the way-back machine to 1970.
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BRIAN220
Member
Reged: 08/27/02
Posts: 149
Loc: NorthEast
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It will not test positive for opiates. A special drug screening has to be done to detect Ultram. It is only screened for by some Airlines and in Hospital employees. Dont worry more than likely it will not be tested for.
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Sweetz
Diamond Mind
Reged: 05/11/02
Posts: 765
Loc: Texas!
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I don't want to scare you, but I never had twitching until that fateful day I started twitching and then had my one and only seizure at work. It was due to the Wellbutrin I was taking. Now, I still twitch, but have had several EEGs that do not show any seizure brain waves. I'm so glad I don't have epilepsy. Please be careful and wean yourself slowly.
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"If you choose not to decide you still have made a choice."
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Trampy
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 04/02/02
Posts: 1239
Loc: Southwest U.S.
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Twitching and tics are neurological symptoms, but they are not seizures. Twitching (e.g. Restless Leg) is a common occurrence when discontinuing any type of opiate or opioid pain killer to which someone is dependent.
Ultram is a very unusual drug. Structurally, it looks more like a tricyclic antidepressant than an opiate. They don't know how it works as an analgesic but it does not seem to be active until an enzyme in the body converts it to something else. That's why it does not do anything right away. I would taper down gradually. That would be the safest way to do it. Unlike opiates, tramadol can cause seizures. I think that the DEA will eventually make tramadol a C-IV controlled substance because of its dependence potential and its risk of seizures.
Trampy
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Your mileage may vary ...
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actonbell
Journeyman
Reged: 09/08/03
Posts: 82
Loc: Oklahoma
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I am unsure what to do. Continue with the tramadol and its hazards or start opiates with their problems. I thought I had found the perfect treatment, cheap, non scheduled, very slow build up of tolerance and for me, little or no side effects. I know that everything has a price, but I sure thought that I had found a bargain with tramadol. Whatever I choose I am not going cold turkey. Although after 4 months of daily use, I went without for 4 days with little or no withdrawal that I noticed. I simply felt more tired than I had for a while. And after sitting down in a quiet corner and really thinking about it I am not sure that I am building up a tolerance or its that my arthritis is just simply getting worse.
Speaking of restless leg syndrome, I had a lot of problems with that for various reasons until I started tramadol. Another reason I was so happy with the tramadol. Nothing before had stopped it completly.
Oh well, I have some thinking and planning to do and maybe a trip to the doctor is in order.
Thank you all for your suggestions and comments. What did I ever do before I found drugbuyers.com? Floundered around in the dark I did. 
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All it takes to fly is to hurl yourself at the ground....and miss.
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plotinus
Enthusiast
Reged: 09/16/03
Posts: 277
Loc: California
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Tramadol seems to be one of the most unpredictable meds available. I have taken 100mg/2x/day for about six months and never experienced anything like the reports I've heard (e.g. wildbill). I started it because I wanted to move from "not-depressed" Effexor to feeling good Effexor+. Tramadol is not my solution for that issue. But I have skipped taking it for a day etc. No w/d's, nothing like a seizure. It does eliminate the headaches from "teeth-clenching" Effexor. Sometimes it seems to potentiate anything, e.g. coffee. Seems like a drug well worth further clinical investigation
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"War on ...." is the wrong metaphor!
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