Jayla
Stranger
Reged: 08/16/03
Posts: 5
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I have been reading the posts on w/d from Hydro and I have been going thru a hard time myself but have found some very good help that I want to share. I have been suffering from pain for years and have a very high tolerance to Hydro. I have tried to cut back before but the agonizing hip and leg pain as well as the lethargy and "crawling out of my skin" feeling have always brought me back. This time I tried Clonadine. This is actually a blood pressure med and my son takes it a few hours before bed to sleep because he takes high levels of Ritalin. A doctor told me that this was an effective med to take to limit the w/d's.Five days ago, I tried taking .3mg twice a day fir the first 3-4 days (while weaning down with around 10 hydros total, during these first 3-4 days). When taking the Clonadine, as well as Immodium AD, I have had almost NO w/d symptoms including NO hip pain. I have been amazed!!! While Im on my 5th day now with NO HYDRO, I am still feeling weak and also like I have a bad cold, but I havent really eaten anything (wich I dont recommend!). Other than a lack of energy and feeling somewhat BLAH, I have had virtually NO PAIN OR W/D's!!! I wished I had tried this sooner. It will not eliminate w/ds all together, but if you have had a high tolerance to meds and very bad w/ds previously, then trust me when I say that if I can be Hydro AND pain free for 5 days now, WITHOUT any other opiates or benzos, then please ask your doc for a script of Clonadine (NOT Clonapin!!!!!) I do nto know if it can be purchased online but it a script for qty 30 of .1mg costs less than $10.00 at a Brand name store like Walgreens.
I really hope if anyone is struggling with w/d's, then this advice will help. I hope this makes someone's day!!!!!:)
5 Days So Far!!!!
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yawkaw3
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 03/22/03
Posts: 1172
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Congratulations on your 5 days! Cold turkey is quite an undertaking and you seem to be doing ok.
Btw, for anyone who wants clonidine, if you see a psychiatrist (or other doctor, but the one time I've gotten it was from a shrink) who knows you use hydro, you can just ask for clonidine by name.
2015, what kind of side effects did you get? When I took it my eyes got extremely itchy, and I got this weird slow feeling like I was moving in syrup, yet I still felt the restlessness from opiate w/d...if that makes sense. What it did do was reduce the anxiety and make sleeping easier. It also brings your pupil size back to normal.
We all have different reactions to drugs and some people swear by it, so, it is worth a shot for anyone who needs some extra help quitting. It could very well just be that extra ingredient you need in your withdrawal recipe.
-yawkaw
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night_shade
Threadhead
Reged: 08/26/03
Posts: 905
Loc: The State of Hockey
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I take clonidine for blood pressure (which is caused by reduction in my opiate dose) and get little or no relief from my withdrawal symptoms except that it helps me sleep in combination with 50mgs of Phenergan. It also hasn't been controlling my blood pressure very well.
I take .2 mgs twice a day, but I don't feel sedated during the day at all. I did feel somewhat sluggish the first few days, but that could have been the withdrawal itself.
The only weird side effect I have is an increased feeling of shortness of breath, but not certain whether it is from the clonidine.
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Never underestimate the predictability of stupidity.
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Jayla
Stranger
Reged: 08/16/03
Posts: 5
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My sister was a Nurse at Mass General and per her Pharmacy Book, Clonadine (when used as Narcotic W/D) is to be given to adults from .3mg up to 2.0mg per day for the first 1-4 days then taper off by 50% for day 4-7 until off completely. Now thats a broad range for people. Im only 5'tall and 120lbs so I just happen to try myself at .3mg 2 times a day for the first 4 days. Im sure the bigger you are, the more you will need to take initially. The doctor that rx'd me was a Pain Mgmt doc. Here in Phx, it is not a problem or anything that would raise concern by filling this script. It is pretty safe considering the benefits. My sister (an Oncology Nurse-cancer) said that at times the doctors even prescribe Clonadine for Cancer patients as it decreases Nerve Pain significantly in many people. As someone posted, everyone has different reactions, but I just wanted to let people know about this relatively safe med in comparison to Opiates and Benzos. I tried those before and the hip pain and weakness was just too much but I have not felt ANY pain since being off the Hydro. While I am not a doctor and can only relay what my doctor and my sister have told me, and from my personal experience, I just want people to know about another med that could be the thing for them. I hope this helps, but just remember,the dosage can vary a great deal for each person. I only know that for a female my size, .3mg twice a day, worked miracles for me. Let me know if I can offer any more info!!!!!!
Jayla (2015)
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Jayla
Stranger
Reged: 08/16/03
Posts: 5
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Yawkaw, Im sorry - I did not answer your questions in my last response. I did not feel much side effect from the Clonadine at all. The only thing I noticed was it made me a little drowsey but nothing worse than what you feel when going through W/D. My vision is a little blurred but that happend to me regardless when I tried to stop taking Hydro before. So basically, I can say there were no side effects for me- just relief from all the nasty side effects from tapering down/quitting in general. Hope that helps you!!!!
Jayla (2015)
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Jayla
Stranger
Reged: 08/16/03
Posts: 5
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I am sorry_ I would like to clarify and add something to my post. The Davis Drug Guide says to give patients .3mg-1.2mg per day for Narcotic W/D's. I misstated this earler. Also, I just want to point out that if anyone does try this med without having discussed with a doc (which is really what you should do!!!) it is important NOT to discontinue abrubtly. This is a blood pressure med although its uses are for many things like W/D, PMS Cramps, Headache maint., etc. I just want everyone to always take all precautions before doing anything, Hope I have helped!!!!
Jayla (2015)
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zeuzjuz
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/16/01
Posts: 1149
Loc: the milky way
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Just wanted to mention - Clonidine can also be good if you have an un-expected shortage of benzo's and have been taking them long term. Anyone has experienced the utter misery of a benzo w/d (in my opinion benzo w/d is 1000x worse than opiate withdrawal - for one it can cause seizures, hyperventilation, panic attacks, and even death! - which opiate withdrawal rarely, rarely ever causes (except maybe in cases of VERY strong opiods like people who use high amounts of illicit opiates like H***in - ) -
You know that feeling when you are in benzo w/d that is like your heart is racing 10,000 miles per hour and you can't catch your breath - and you feel like you are 'right on the verge' of a panic attack/seizure for like 3 days straight??!!  (Horrible, terrible feeling - especially Xanax w/d causes this) - In my mind, xan w/d's are the closest thing there is to he11 on earth. I can't imagine a worse reaction from stopping a medication. It happened to me only once, because of a refill/prescrption mix-up and I had to go a weekened cold turkey from Xanax after being on 4mg's per day.... 
Clonidine can also help greatly with this, in my experience at least.... It slows the heart rate down a little bit, helps with that feeling of 'I am about to either explode, seizure, or die' - and can just overall really help with the symptoms of a benzo w/d. I know this is off-topic since we are talking about clonidine and how it relates to opiate w/d's here - but just wanted to throw this in. Clonidine is a great medication to keep around for *emergencies* involving accidental/sudden w/d from many different medications. The reason I emphasized 'emergenecies' is because this is NOT something people should take regularly without a doctors' knowledge, just to 'keep themselves under control' - Messing with your blood pressure and heart rate is serious business. But when in opiate or benzo w/d - I see no harm, only good, in taking something to slow the 'ol ticker down a few notches....
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//zeuzjuz
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junebug101
Journeyman
Reged: 03/27/03
Posts: 69
Loc: NY
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Jayla, did the Clonadine help with the skin-crawly feeling? For me that's the worst; I feel like I'm losing control. I can deal with the runs, but the nervousness I'm actaully afraid of. Thanks!
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Kid Free and Loving It!
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lttlbit
Member
Reged: 11/12/03
Posts: 192
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I have to say that I am lucky in the sense that this is day number 6 for me from completly stopping hydro cold turkey and I have not had any withdrawls except for going to the bathroom and I have a major cold but I am not sure if I got that from my kids or not. I have not taken any pills at all since last weekend and I feel ok. However I am scared because my endo is starting to act up and will get painful for me next week, but I have a refill coming up on the 9th so I am going to get it. However, I have had this cold for about a week now and do you all think that it could be from stopping the hydro?
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Dasani
Enthusiast
Reged: 10/29/03
Posts: 286
Loc: FL
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Almost certainly....The first sign of W/D's is Flu-like symptoms and the runs. Some take it worse than others, just as we all react differently to pain, we also react differently to withdrawls. But after 6 days, you're in the clear, it should all be downhill from here. Good luck to ya'.
D
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lttlbit
Member
Reged: 11/12/03
Posts: 192
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THanks for the reponse, I am feeling better today, my ears finally popped. I remember when I stopped taking fioricet becasue I did not help my headaches like the hydrocodone did, and i got the absolute worse headaches and I assume those were rebound headaches, but never knew it until reading this board, you guys are the geatest.
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opie_waan
Member
Reged: 12/19/01
Posts: 161
Loc: Philly
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Poppy pod tea always takes care f the monkey for a while..Let me know if you need a recipe
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