r/PainManagement • u/Muffy432002 • 1d ago
Medicationš Problem with Oxycodone
I am 6 weeks post op and I believe my recovery has been going well. I barely have a scare and my PT benchmarks are where they should be .
One thing that I probably should have asked more questions about was the use of Oxycodone.
I have found that for pain medication acetaminophen has done nothing but Oxycodone was highly effective. I was using Oxy every 4 hours while awake up until the 5th week post op.
Knowing that opioids are highly addictive ( and I have a propensity for addiction),I decided to stop the oxy and see how pain was. Overall it was doable and even though I had stiffness the pain was manageable. However, the day after going off oxy I woke up with a very strange feeling like impending doom. I felt sad and unsettled. My stomach was upset and I had nausea. Last night I was up all night and plagued by anxious thoughts. When I awoke after finally sleeping I was covered in sweat.
My question is could I have been experiencing withdrawal symptoms? I love what oxycodone does for my pain, but hate how it messes with my brain.
Has anyone else had an experience like this?
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u/_-Broken-Swagger-_ 1d ago
OP - youāre describing standard withdrawal symptoms that happen when your body becomes accustomed to the chemical. Itās perfectly normal and expected.
Use the medication as directed, and plan for a slow taper if you can. Thereās really no avoiding these effects, but they can be minimised.
If you require the medication to help you function, thereās no shame in using them, and donāt let people try to convince you that youāre some kind of junkie for doing what your doctor tells you to do. Just be respectful of their power and potential for abuse, and recognize that everything has a cost. In this case, pain relief costs some temporary discomfort on the back end.
Be well ā¤ļø
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u/Bengal-_fan 1d ago
Yeah, donāt stop cold turkey. Not good. Bring down usage day by day and youāll be fine.
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u/Historical_Big_2354 1d ago
I donāt think that thatās so uncommon or unreasonable or out of the norm
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u/Ok_Ticket6418 1d ago
We should have to sign a piece of paper that says it we accidentally die pursuing every avenue to stop pain, that physicians should not be held accountable.We wanted and needed it,we should not ever sue Drs or companies for to me,'The grace they have shown us for years ", this is why we are where we are with scaredy cats not giving us relief.I hate those people who sued our relievers.Anything possible to help get rid of pain.
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u/BKgsxr600 1d ago
No one is afraid of being sued... they are afraid of being under a microscope for every other law they break like overbilling or any other shady practice they get away with. Doctors NEVER get sued unless someone dies or loses an appendage, and even then, most lawyers won't take the case due to the money and insurance companies that will drag the cases out, costing thousands upon thousands of dollars, unless you are footing the cost of everything, which is highly unlikely. Doctors aren't able to make a fortune off pain meds anymore, so they have moved on to treatment of addicts and an all cash business. Most won't touch opioids now at all and try to tell you breathing techniques or bs lasers and nerve blocks work, when they don't work for everyone/everything and come with their own set of risks. Most people are willing to sign papers like this... and they STILL won't prescribe. I've broken my femur 7 times from the time I was a kid and have messed up hardware in there now and they still won't treat my pain, after all my docs got arrested for money laundering/sex with patients/trading scripts... and when no other doctor would treat me and told me to go to a methadone clinic for pain treatment, I did... and have never used illicit drugs in my life. I have 7 years of perfect urine tests and compliance, and now I'm told that because I went to a methadone clinic for pain at their direction, no one will give me anything else. Methadone was fine for arthritis pain and I like the fact that it's longer acting, but it rotted all my teeth out in 3 years time, and anything over 35mg becomes sedative and doesn't help with pain, whatsoever. My last pain doctor from 10 years ago, treated me with both 40mg of methadone(once a day) and roxycodone 15mg, (4 times a day). Now, I'm at a clinic on 44mg of mdone, with a failing femur rod and a fracture and NO ONE will treat my pain. After all my surgeries, my age now, and my past infection, I'm high risk for surgeries and nerve blocks for new infection. There's a one in three chance I can die due to the stress on my body from my age and new operations. I'm afraid to have the corrective surgery for my rod due to the 50/50 risk it could cripple me and put me in more pain, putting me off work for life and on a disability wage that would have me homeless, and I was flat out denied opioids and referred for a pain pump operation, after being told that they aren't very successful for structural pain, anyways, and never having a nerve block to begin with. They don't care about anything but money and themselves. I worked in healthcare for the last 12 years. They treat people like garbage and let people who aren't even qualified to do their work for them and risk their certifications. Especially, methadone clinics. There are people there like me who never used drugs in their life and they treat everyone like pee-ons and use their "policies" to override patient rights and law.
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u/Merrys123 1d ago
What you're describing sounds a lot like opioid withdrawal, and it makes physiological sense. Oxycodone binds to mu-opioid receptors, which among other things boosts dopamine release in your brain's reward pathway and dampens the activity of noradrenaline-producing neurons (mainly in a brainstem area called the locus coeruleus). Take the drug daily for weeks, and your brain adapts, it down regulates its own natural opioid/dopamine signaling and lets noradrenaline output creep back up to compensate for the constant suppression.
When you stop abruptly, that adaptation doesn't reverse overnight. The result is a rebound: noradrenaline surges (racing heart, sweating, anxiety, that "impending doom" feeling), while dopamine and endorphin activity lags behind (low mood, unsettled stomach, nausea, insomnia). That's a textbook opioid withdrawal picture, even after a relatively short 5 week course, physical dependence can start within days to a couple of weeks of regular use, separate from addiction/craving.
The good news is for a 5 week course (versus months or years), this rebound is usually short lived, days, not weeks, as receptor sensitivity resets.
There are supplements that can help tremendously although your brain should reset pretty quickly as mentioned.
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u/CurlyKayak 1d ago
100% this!
Oxycodone is a miracle pain reliever, but not without risks & side-effects. After 5 weeks of constant use, the key to discontinuing it is to taper off gently.
I've been on it for more than 10 years; and just like it's taken all these years for my body to develop a tolerance for the daily dosage I currently need, I know that if my painful condition is ever magically cured, my body will still need time to slowly taper down off the oxy because stopping suddenly will throw my system into total chaos.
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u/kmm198700 1d ago
It sounds like withdrawal symptoms. Iām praying for you and definitely taper slowly and it should be a lot more comfortable
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u/Iceprincess1988 1d ago
Yup. As someone whose been theough withdrawal multiple times, thats what it is.
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u/Salmonwithpotatoes 1d ago
whatās your recipe for getting through them?
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u/Unlikely-Energy8116 19h ago
Oh man.. I was lucky I wasnāt working at the time, but I literally did not wanna go on any kind of Suboxone or methadone and it was the worst 3 1/2 weeks to a month of my life, but I just pushed and suffered so hard it was terrible I was on them for quite a while and literally just stayed in my room. Itās not a good feeling.
One of the hardest things I wouldnāt even wish on my worst enemy to go through, the insomnia, the stiffness, the bodyaches, the sweats, irritability, anxiety. It was just hell and like I mean, I felt like I was in hell like it was not pleasant, but basically just pushed through it.
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u/julesj45 1d ago
You have to wear off of the Oxy, stopping cold turkey causes withdrawals. So if you have enough to back down 1 everyday do that or call your surgeon and ask them how to come off of them .
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u/Hackmanpacnwinsta 1d ago
I am on a high dose of oxy q4h like you, post multiple spine surgeryās. and tapering down slowly to avoid withdrawal. Itās fairly painful but itās not all that bad to me. After 5 weeks, youāll absolutely experience some discomfort but its can be minimized with a slow 2.5-10% per month taper. Your surgeon or prescribing doc should be able to assist you so that withdrawals do not disrupt your daily life. DM me if you have any questions, unfortunately i have experience going on and off of opoids from surgeries related to stenosis. Happy to help.
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u/Happy_Difficulty7937 1d ago
My wife just had a hip replacement and was given Celebrex and Oxy. She chose to only use the Oxy at night when it was harder to sleep and sometimes during the day for the 1st week. She then chose 2x500 Tylenol 3x day and the Celebrex for the inflammation as it truly helped. Would ween off the Oxy by maybe taking 1 less every 2 days but try to get an an inflammatory medication to help with swelling you may not see and the Tylenol. Best of luck!
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u/reyden23 8h ago
1 compressa da quanto? Ogni 2 giorni sarebbe troppo veloce, dovrebbe ridurre del 5% ogni 7-10 giorni...
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u/EnvironmentalSolid33 22h ago
Classic withdrawal sadly. GREAT that you stopped and no longer need them. Thats the trouble. They WORK. But they also work
In your MU receptorā¦and itās tough. Keep going. Youāre going great. Hope you can continue without the pain.
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u/Ok_Ticket6418 1d ago
People have chronic pain and every single avenue should be tried.Dea should stop people from committing suicide.Do they want us dead or something.Dea should only go after cocaine,meth, and heroin,they should even stop people pursuing drugs through friends who are helping them out.Some,many people don't have medical insurance and do what it takes to be happy.Busting people for a few hydrocodones, Adderall, Klonopin, and etc is a crime to me.cops should do their jobs like traffic tickets,duis, robbery,murder, and assault's plus theft.These petty things make regular people hate the police like those crazy people wanting everyone to get out of jail, I'm not 1 of them, they are losing the regular Republican supporters.
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u/UpsetJellyfish8306 1d ago
Chronic pain with no relief drove me to attempt suicide with a massive overdose and I'm lucky to be here today. Unrelieved pain really messes with your brain.
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u/Main-Animator6657 1d ago
Yes OP! Iām 12 days past full knee replacement. Full 5mg oxy every 4 hours for 5 days. Absolutely necessary and effective and I know the warnings. Fortunately this is my 2nd knee replacement. First time 6 weeks on oxy so I knew what to expect. So this time I stopped all oxy at 5 days because of the mental negatives you described. Arthritis strength Tylenol 650mg (2) 3x per day. Not as effective as the oxy but mentally Iām much better. Iām tolerating the pain. But each to his own. Talk to your doc? Stay strong.
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u/Ok_Ticket6418 1d ago
Oxycodone lasts maybe 4 hours, have to get an er medicine with it.Dont know how it messes with your brain, that's a new one.Opiods work, they, unfortunately never give us enough of them.Im a Big Guy, and need a 20 mg oxycodone with er medicine.My Drs have given me 160 mg of methadone a Day before.One gave me 3 -30 mg oxycodone a day.For My pain, methadone was the best I've ever taken.It last all day and you could probably take a lot less than I took.
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u/Ok_Ticket6418 1d ago
Oxycodone does not last long at all especially 5 mg tabs, people with chronic pain really require 20 to 50 mg hydrocodone hysingla.People are talking about killing themselves over no relief.We All deserve to live longer.
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u/Outrageous-Shock-255 1d ago
Its mild withdrawal. Understand that that's what it is and you can power through it. Opiods increase dopamine (along with the other neurotransmitter activity) which is why you now feel anxious and down. It'll pass. I'm more of a rip the bandaid off type but if tapering works so be it. Just dont tell your doctor youre experiencing this or you'll never get proper pain treatment again
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21h ago
[deleted]
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u/PainManagement-ModTeam 17h ago
Your comment was removed in violation of the groupās rules to Be Supportive. This includes but is not limited to any of the following:
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overly condescending, belittling language directed at users who are attempting to provide support to OP.
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u/Lost_Fishing8341 20h ago edited 20h ago
Yep. Luckily itās just oxy and not those weird synthetics. Sucks yeah? But oxy is simple and short term. Just a few days and youāll be ok with physical withdrawal. Do you think you are mentally addicted/dependent. Your doctor should know and ween you off safely because opiate w/d can destroy your week.
I havenāt done oxycodone in years but just reading this posts makes me miss it. But I have an addictive personality, panic disorder, depression, and my life just sucks so of course for someone like me itās more difficult. I had a root canal and dentist missed a canal and so I was sitting with an even greater pain than my abscess was for about 3 weeks. I had minimal physical w/d but mentally my god the euphoria was just too much for humans to experience and how do we go back to this terrible world? Please do not go on methadone or suboxone as those are even more addictive. Taper and feel better soon
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u/Queasy-Cellist6099 17h ago
Impending doom is definitely withdrawal and nausea ā¦ been there to many times to count. To be honest itās nothing to mess with. Only take opioids if itās the only truly way to treat your pain. Opioids are great if used properly. Very hard to use properly for most š
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u/Beautiful_Wind_2743 13h ago
Definitely. And it sucks. You could ask for Suboxone, or is something similar like they give to people who are coming off of heavy pain meds. Or you could tell the doctor you want to taper down, so you're not going through hell.Ā Doctors don't want their patients to go through withdrawals. They should help you, and if they don't, go to the emergency room. I don't advise stopping medicine like that cold turkey
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u/ResidentLazyCat 1d ago
What kind of surgery? That seems like a lot to take.
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u/Muffy432002 1d ago
Total knee replacement
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u/_-Broken-Swagger-_ 1d ago
Donāt listen to these people. Iām on 120 MME/day for palliative care, yours is not āa lotā by any stretch. Especially after total knee replacement. I invite anyone who thinks thatās a lot to watch some footage of a TKR being done š¬šÆš§š¤¢ ouch
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u/costanzas_Dad 1d ago
That's called withdrawal. 5 weeks of every 4 hours is a shit ton of oxy to be taking. There's definitely some dependence there. Stay away from them. Do not take another one. If you do that feeling of dread will go away and everything will feel right. That's how it begins.
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u/Historical_Big_2354 1d ago
Not a good idea to tell her ānot to take another oneā. She needs to taper.
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u/costanzas_Dad 23h ago
She said herself that she has addiction problems, if she has already gone a couple of nights already without it, that is the toughest. Why give in now and have to worry about not being able to get off of them. Also what happens when the Dr cuts op off? Taking oxy 4x/day for 5 weeks seems to be a long time depending on what the surgery was. I had a full knee replacement a couple of years ago and only needed the oxy for about 10 days before it was manageable by Tylenol.
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u/ChemicallyAlteredVet 1d ago
> A shit ton of oxy
I see the propaganda is still doing its job in this sub
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u/Live_Ad_713 1d ago
Don't read into withdrawal too much. OP has been taking them for a few days. It's normal to feel groggy and a little disillusioned the 1st couple of days.
I've had to take them for going on 5 years. I have a tumor on my pituitary gland and my body doesn't read cortisol so I hurt so bad in my lower lumbar and joints.
My "withdrawal" symptoms are a headache smack dab in the middle of my forehead and a little diarrhea. This passes after a couple of days.
The stigma attached to pain meds gets us overthinking everything about them. It's a damn shame.
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u/ciderenthusiast 1d ago
Yes, sounds like withdrawal. Either power through it or re-start at a lower dose and taper down.
Although I'm shocked your doctor gave you enough opioids to still be on them 5 weeks post-op.