Hooboy. So I had my bike accident 2 weeks ago now, and I've been off work (on short-term disability) and on vicodin for the pain since. I was supposed to return to work this week on a 50% basis, which required me to travel to DC and San Diego. Now, vicodin is a highly addictive narcotic, apparently, and that's had me a bit worried. The last thing I want is to become a junkie. =P So in an attempt to stave off an addiction, I decided to stop taking vicodin after popping one on Sunday morning before my 5-hr flight from SF to DC.
And yeah, that only lasted ~48 hrs. I spent Monday in pain, experiencing chills and slight nausea during the day. That night I napped from 6-10pm due to exhaustion and pain. But then I couldn't fall asleep again till 5am, and lay there, a slightly twitching, nervous wreck until I finally fell asleep. I had to fly out on Tuesday morning from DC to San Diego, and a couple hours into the flight I caved in and popped a vicodin. I couldn't fall asleep because of my general discomfort, and I knew I had a day of work ahead of me. So I decided sleep would be critical for me to be successful with my rough week, and thus took the pill. Good news is I slept like a baby.
Bad news... I may have made things worse. I couldn't fall asleep on Tuesday night (or rather, slept fitfully with weird paranoia and nightmares) until I popped a vicodin. And then I slept in majorly on Weds. So Weds morning I talk to my boss about whether I should be returning to work so quickly. He's had numerous back surgeries and based on his experience he thinks I shouldn't be rushing back to work. He also tells me that it only takes 2 weeks to develop a vicodin addiction. Oh, what a coincidence... that's how long I was taking it!
So... I'm going to start pounding Advil for the next few days, and keep off the vicodin. I'm also going to schedule an appt with my doctor to see about the best way to manage the pain for the next few weeks while I continue to heal. My shoulder/collarbone still hurts, but the main pain is in my lower back (though that could be phantom... hold on and I'll tell you why). So I want to figure out what the root of the problem is and attack that. But meanwhile, I'm going to do 50% work schedule until mid-May, just to make sure I'm not pushing myself so hard I end up with permanent damage. So... wish me luck!
Here are some fun facts about Graeme on vicodin, based on vicodin's wikipedia entry.
Side effects include: decreased sex drive and constipation, both of which I’ve experienced. Yes, right as I'm having my first real relationship with Daywalker... more on him to come, I swear.
Withdrawal symptoms include: restlessness, muscle pain, bone pain, insomnia, runny nose, loss of appetite, irritability, panic, depression, chills, and sweating. All of which I’ve experienced in the last few days.
The withdrawal symptoms haven't been too bad, so I doubt I'm addicted yet. And honestly, I haven't felt any of the euphoria that vicodin's supposed to induce; I've only noticed the painkilling. I haven't once wanted to take the vicodin because it makes me feel good; only because I wanted to numb the pain. So I expect that psychologically I could sub in high doses of Advil or Tylenol and do just fine. It's likely my body won't like that, but if I made it through 48-hrs of no vicodin after 2 weeks of using it, I should be able to stop by the end of this week of minimal usage as long as I can sub in something else for the pain. Right?
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