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Hi RiffRaff,
I just wanted you to know that you are not alone.I tried sending you a private message but I guess you are not online much these days. I face the same torment as you describe every day of my now miserable life. I have been on Oxycontin for 4 years now and each day gets a little harder. I have even gone as far as going into a drug rehab with no success. I was placed on Oxycontin after a failed back surgery and before I knew what was happening my life was overtaken by the drug. I have heard remarks from the makers of Oxycontin such as "everyone who is addicted has abused the drug" or "the ones who are addicted are on it illegally" but that is not the truth and I am living proof of that. I have always been prescribed the medication by a doctor and I have never crushed, chewed, snorted or done any of the other long list of things they claim makes us addicts.
Just know that you are not alone in this suffering and if you ever need a friend I will be here.We can't give up the fight because then the big drug companies win and continue on the same track.Knowing that keeps me going day in and day out and I hope it gives you something to fight for as well.So whether it is you or someone else on this board that needs someone to talk to, just drop me a note and I will listen to what you need to say and help in any way I can because I do understand and we can't fight this alone.

Monklady

Riffraft,
You are NOT alone!!
I see that you posted this in Dec. How are you doing now?

As I type this, my husband is laying in bed after coming off
160 mg/day of OxyContin.
He's been Oxy free for 13 days now. Thank GOD!!

He, too, has suffered thru back surgery, two of them.
The good news, the fusions in his c-spine and L-spine have taken!!
He still has a long road to recovery in front of him.

The biggest hell of all time, has been detoxing the devil of
OxyContin.

He and I were fully aware that the Oxy is a highly addictive drug. We were happy though to have found a doc that RX'd him strong pain meds, as he desperate for relief. 

NOBODY told us that one of the possible side effects was psychosis!!!

Both during treatment, and de-tox, my husband has become suicidal. My husband was headed for a rubber room by the third dayof detox.  Thankfully, I too suffer from chronic nerve disease, so I have morphine in the house. I was was able to shove 20 mgs of the morphine down his throat to keep him under control until I could get him to the doctor.

The doc rx'd 20 Tylenol 4 to get him thru the rest of de-tox. His sleep and eating pattern are getting back on course, but he is still having some psychosis. He has begun to talk to himself. he wanders the house aimlessly. I am keeping a close watch on him.

I don't know why we need a drug that causes craziness when we have regular morphine available. I suffer from chronic pain myself, I have been on time release morphine (ms contin) for nearly five years now. I did take an OxyContin of his a couple of times, as I was going to ask my doc to switch me to Oxy..... I was hearing all over the news about this new "wonder drug" for pain.
Each time I took it, my thoughts raced terribly. Thank God for my doc's wisdom that OxyContin was not a new 'wonder drug" while morhine does the job just fine.

I have been put on a "narcotic vacation" twice in the past few years. I was pretty un-comfortable, but I never thought of hanging myself!!!

I hope that this drug will be off the market in the next few years, before more people, mainly kids, have to die.
Plus, I don't understand why 80 mg tablets are even available!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just ONE pill...........enough to kill!!!!!!!!

I am so Sorry that you are suffering...Do you take more to control the pain or to control the withdrawal of not having enough in your system? I know what you are going through, I take 80mg 2xday and 10/650 lorcet for breakthru. The other week I ran out of my meds early and went thru HELL, I honestly thought I was going to die. I was finally able to find someone who had some lorcet to help get me through but it was barely helping at all. My body went thru somethings that I not sure anyone has ever heard of, it felt as if my blood had started boiling and I was going to catch fire........Have you ever heard of anything like that? I wish I knew what to do to help you even though I dont know you........Please Pray God can and Will HELP..........But, you must Believe that he will....If you are like me you have to take something to be able to function from day to day, but it shouldnt rule your life, believe me I know that it can. Please reply and let me know how you are...I will remember you in my Prayers.....Trish

[quote]Im a 38 yr. old male who only 3 years ago owned two business's. Today I am in bankruptcy, have no job and less self esteem. I have lost most of my family, all my friends and am criticized by the very doctor that got me hooked on oxycontin.  Im alone too. I dont want to die but i dont want to live like this either. This is no life, this is prison.[/quote]

You're not alone, I have 10 years on you and am starting over also. All because my doctor put me on this med, increased the dosage every couple of months but never, ever saw me. There was no attempt made to find out why I was in pain, but he made sure he charged me full price every 2 weeks. I lost a $250,000 a year job, all my treating doctor had to do was declare me unable to do my job and I could have at least subsisted on some disability pmts. But he refused to do so. I was trying to taper off the meds at that time. In order to be able to go back to work somewhere, I had to go back up to my previous dose. But 6 months ago I decided that no matter what, I was getting off the oxycontin, that I would just live with the pain. Peace brother, I will pray for you.

Just found this web site, story is so much like mine it is unreal, 2 businesses, family, back surgery and even the Navy. I was up to 8x80 mg twice a day with roxycodone for break through pain. That is the highest doage I have seen anywhere on the web for one person to take. It still did not resolve my pain. I was built up to this doasge over a two year period and was on it for about two years, Hurricane Charly hit, no meds, went insane until I could buy them off the street until I was able to get refills.

Same withdrawal like symptoms almost on a daily basis until it was time for the next dosage. But I happened to be on a workers comp injury and was suddenly cut off from over 1200 mg a day to zero.  No source or help for any detox treatment, no money to pay for it since WC decided nothing was wrong with me even though a dozen doctors said otherwise. Lost both businesses, tried to keep them going during all this but as you know, your mind is not the most stable or clear, thoughts of suicide and death as a cure on the mind constantly, violent behavior towards the family, no clear memory of 5 years of my life, both of my kids are now teenagers and I missed them growing up because of this drug.

Now I went through nearly 30 days of detox in my own bed, 2 months later and the diaherra finally subsided and I was able to function, just. I still have short term memory loss, have to concentrate on exactly what I am doing at the moment or I forget what I am doing. Have to go to the bathroom and once I start walking through the house I forget what I was going to do, several near accidents to finally remind me of what I was going to do, this is just one example.

Now for those who need to detox, the only good way if you are serious is to cut yourself off and deal with it, treatment centers only care about numbers of people they claim to help in order for more funding or to get what they can from your insurance. I am not the strongest willed person , I still can not quit smoking but I was able to kick this, no money to buy any, no insurance to pay for any, wife kept all persons who I might have asked away soI didn't have access and a month of pure hell just to remind me of why I would never allow myself to get addicted on this again. So people that are serious can kick this with some help of family, with the dosage I was on I admit I do find it difficult to hear of people who are only taking 20 to 40 mg a day having such a hard time with it. Not saying  it isn't true but with me taking over 1400mg of oxy and roxy a day and I was able to do it.

I am a former Oxycontin medically prescribed patient and I am trying to contact patients like me for a paper I am submitting to the AMA(American Medical Association), regarding this drug and why it is still so liberally prescribed.  I too, took it like it was prescribed to me, and became horrribly addicted. 

It is absolutely unfair for Purdue to say that people who have trouble with the drug are people, who abuse it.  Once you have created an addict, how can you dare to expect him/her to act any other way than an addict does.  That's how they have gotten away with this.  And the medical community has allowed it. 

If you would like me to include your story,please contact me at: annieilene@gmail.com

Cares,
Annie Ilene

An update:

Shortly after my last post, my blood pressure dropped so drastically that I called 9-1-1.  I couldn't see.  It took 3 attempts to dial, but I finally got connected.  Paramedics showed up at my door and swarmed into my bedroom.  I was taken to the hospital by ambulance and treated for severe Opiate withdraw.  My blood pressure dropped to 80/40 with a heart rate of 42.  Then within minutes it was 155/95 with a heart rate of 110.  I was put on a monitor and watched closely.  The doctor put me on a Cattapress Patch to help ease the symptoms and sent me home.  I had this patch on for a week.  During this week, I was so light headed and blood pressure was so low that I couldn't even get out of bed.  I went to go see my Dr and she was blown away that they gave me the patch.  Apparently, it is not a good treatment for Opiate withdraw.  She took me off all meds but the OxyContin and we agreed to continue 12 more weeks of tapering down.  I didn't last a week.

On May 8, 2008, I was taken to the hospital again for sever Opiate withdraw.  This time it was as if I were going crazy.  I felt so sick that I couldn't stop whimpering or get out of the fetal position.  My face was beat red, my body was very clammy, I went from extreme hot to extreme cold, sweating, crying, heart palpating like crazy...the list goes on.  I was taken to the Observation Unit where I was sedated and monitored.  The doctor told me I couldn't take Oxy anymore.  At this point I was so bad that she gave me two options.  I could either get admitted to the hospital for a week or sedate myself for a week at home.  I chose option 2.  My only problem is that I am having a hard time sedating myself.  I am so miserable.  Everything that I eat doesn't stay in me very long.  I am extremly nauseated, fatigued, and restless.  I cry so much during the day that I don't have any tears left.  I am alone all day and I am so scared.  I am so afraid that I am going to die it is not even funny.

The one thing that I am greatful for though is this:  Oxycodone is no longer being manufactured or delivered to Pharmacies.  Thank God.  It is very hard for us who have an addiction to it, but it is such a blessing too.  I don't want another soul to go through what i am going through.  It is PURE HELL!!!

~C