Co-codamol

[NaturalBlues]

This is really hard for me to write and I haven’t told a soul in real life.

On my other threads people have been rude to me so I beg for kindness only please.

I can’t remember when exactly I started taking Co-codamol but it was likely around 5 years ago since the pandemic. It started with nurofen plus but I thought I would change it to co-codamol as I didn’t want to cause stomach issues with the ibuprofen.

The reason I started was because I’m in constant pain, and the codeine took the pain away. Paracetamol and ibuprofen didnt. It has never made me feel high or anything.

Within those 5 years I’ve been on various dosages from hospitals following some serious surgeries etc. this included slow release morphine and oramorph as well as the higher dosages of codeine. I’ve had no issue coming off them. I’ve always stayed within the daily limit and never overdosed.

My usual schedule is 2 Co-codamol in the morning and then I try and wait as long as possible and take another 2 in the evening. Some days when I’m in more pain I’ll take 6 in the 24hr period.

Ive purposely not went abroad because I know certain countries don’t allow codeine-containing products, or you need a prescription. I have a list on my phone, of all the online pharmacies I buy them from with the dates. So I can keep track and make sure I don’t get declined. It all feels very sneaky. I hate it.

As I said before, I’ve never felt high from Co-codamol, it’s for pain-relief. So two days ago I decided I needed to stop for good. I’ve made attempts previously by halving the dosage etc. but failed miserably. I’m on day 3 of cold turkey and I’m feeling okay. I’m in pain but I’ve been trying to distract myself.

I would love for anyone who knows what I’m experiencing to comment below so I don’t feel so alone.

They should not really be taken for migraines 😕. They can cause Migraine overuse headache and unfortunately that's most likely what your Dad is suffering from.

Unless directly prescribed by a migraine specialist because he cannot take anything else. I'd be looking for am alternative as they never normally prescribed codeine or any opiate for Migraine.

Op I hope you manage to get good help and support, due to suffering migraines myself I often had to take a lot of painkillers and it can be very worrying if you feel you are taking to many or not for the right reasons. I've come across many people who have need to wean off codeine as they certainly can cause a problem.

I know… this happened to me when I used to take sumatriptan. Horrific daily migraines so would take the sumatriptan and it would go away for 12 hours and the cycle continued. I stopped it and was in agony for about 2 days then I’ve maybe had 5 migraines since then (years ago). Maybe stopping all pain relief for a while may “reset” things.

Yes you’re right about the jaw pain, I have issues with the way my jaw lies meaning it is tensed at all times. I’ve been to the dental hospital and had years of treatment with this, I have mouth splints to wear all day and night.

The throat pain is linked to hayfever, it’s a similar pain to tonsillitis if you’ve ever had that.

Thank you :)

@NaturalBlues yes triptains can cause migraine overuse migraine as well. Which is why if your ever under a headache specialist they won't let you have them more then twice a week. I've been prescribed more but am very careful not to take anymore then this.

I don't think all GP are as careful.

Mine clearly wasn’t! It was only because I rang them to explain how bad it had gotten and they hadn’t realised how many prescriptions they were authorising. I despised sumatriptan as well, made my nose feel weird and made me sick, but did the job of stopping the migraine. So pleased I don’t need them anymore.

Sumatriptain has the worst side effect profile of all the triptains. I took it when I had to during breastfeeding, but it would never be my triptain of choice. They prescribe them as they are the cheapest from that class of drugs. If you feel you need to use them again I'd recommend trying a different one. You can now buy both Sumatriptain and zomig at the pharmacy I would always recommend the zomig over Sumatriptain.

Hi OP, it sounds to me like you are in genuine pain and as you’ve mentioned, you’re not taking it to get a ‘high’ from the codeine, it genuinely helps relieve the pain you’re in. With regards to going abroad, depending on where you’re going, you can most certainly take medicine containing codeine with you (particularly as they are not controlled drugs due to you buying otc medication). You just have to ensure you aren’t taking more than three months worth of medication with you- i.e only take the amount you plan on using whilst abroad.

I think it would be a good idea to make an appointment with your GP and explain the pain that you’re in every day and take it from there? I understand feeling guilty that you are somehow doing something wrong by buying your meds from so many different chemists, but as you’ve explained, you’re not exceeding the maximum dosage. If you get a repeat prescription from your GP for codeine, if that is what they think you need, this may alleviate some of your guilt?

Co-Codamol is an extremely good painkiller for some people. Morphine can sometimes make people throw up without warning. Ibuprofen works well, as does paracetamol, however I have found that aspirin is my go to pain relief. If that does not work then I take co-codamol, generally first thing in the morning when the pain is really bad (I broke my hands and back in a fall) and then again last thing at night so that I can sleep. I am old now, so doing a bit of gardening causes immense back pain. There is the danger of relying on co-codamol excessively as it gives you that floaty feeling especially on an empty stomach. The other danger is that too much paracetamol can damage your liver. I can't stomach morphine, tramadol does nothing for me, so co-codamol it is.

I take Co-codamol and Tramadol for my pain and my chronic health condition which causes severe pain and other issues however it is as needed (which is up to 8 a day). I've been able to manage it well because 1. It's not a nice 'high' like other drugs even cannabis and I do have side effects which wouldn't be worth it if I wasn't in so much pain. Somedays I take 2 or 3 and others more, very rarely 0 but occasionally I do. Mine is prescribed and on the days I take none or less, I don't have any withdrawal symptoms. I think talk to your GP, my doctors know it obviously needs to be watched to avoid against addiction but I do need opioids to touch the pain. They'll be willing to help you and it's rarely good to go cold turkey - most of thr time you slowly taper dose and frequency of taking the med (5x a day at 30mg to 3x at 25mg etc) because then it's not such a shock on the body.

However it sounds like you take it for any and all pain? Because that's where the danger is, I have a very high pain tolerance because it's
my every day to have pain which other people may go to A&E for. It's my everyday to have mobility severly limited and combormidities which worsen my symptoms. However you can try to take meds which help that aren't pain relief but perhaps NSAIDs which are anti-inflmatory meds. They aren't addictive and can help for pain - also it could be good to actually get your pain investigated by a doctor- you might not have a chronic condition it may be difficult to diagnose but is actually treatable and then you can get on with your life. You could also try CBD oil and gummies to lower some stress and pain.

I also have regular medication reviews with my GP - my GP let's me request prescriptions for a few times before I have to either go to my GP for re-prescription or now fill in one of the online forms for med reviews.

It sounds extreme having sweats, vomiting and diarrhoea when coming off of 4 co-codamol a day. That’s 8mg of codeine in one tablet so you’re having half (32mg) of a normal prescribed dose (60mg x 2 a day) throughout the whole day.

I went from 25 Nurofen plus to nothing in a day (320mg) and had only extremely minor symptoms.

Codeine has a half life of 4 hours and you’re taking it hours and hours apart and a tiny dose. It doesn’t seem to me this could really be withdrawal. But see your doctors

Also at this dosage you’d be buying a packet every 8 days - why does this necessitate 31 pharmacists! You won’t ever be visiting them more than once a year!

Op have you been to your local hospital pain clinic? If your GP hasn’t been v helpful with your pain I’d ask for a referral.

I’m on Tramadol for chronic pain but tapering down as per the new NHS guidelines wanting people off opiates long term, it hasn’t been easy but I reduced by 1 tablet at a time for 2 weeks and I was on a pretty high dose. Why not try reducing 1 tablet a week? The key with tapering is to go slowly, avoiding the withdrawal symptoms from going cold turkey. 4-6 co-codamol tablets a day aren’t a huge amount, you could do it over 4-6 weeks? I used to take codeine tablets but stopped due to awful constipation, I don’t remember having any withdrawal effects but then I was taking Tramadol so maybe that masked them. What you’re taking isn’t a lot imo so I’d be confident you can taper down over 4-6 weeks, have a look online for NHS tapering guides.

If your pain isn’t controlled though and your GP hasn’t been v helpful I’d definitely ask for a referral to the pain clinic though x