Be Selfish…No, Seriously. It's Time To Be Selfish.

Much of the anguish that I felt as I was taking pills was caused by guilt. I felt guilty that I was neglecting my responsibilities. I felt guilty that I was not spending enough time with my family and not enjoying it enough even when I did spend time with my family. I felt remorse for all of the things...

New Google Group For Pain Killer Addiction

Hi everyone. We have been meaning to start a message board here due to the immense amount of questions that we get for both Dr. Earthman and myself. Keep them coming. However, as a good preemptive step, we’ve started a new group on Google called “Pain Killers Anonymous”. It’s...

Dr. Earthman's answers to your questions – March 2009 – Part 2

Jerrod C.: “If you have a bad heart can Oxycontin withdrawals kill you?”
Dr. Earthman: Detoxing from any substance has potentially damaging physical symptoms.  A person’s level of withdrawal will depend on what drug(s), how much, how often, how...

Vicodin Withdrawal – Did It Take You By Surprise?

I would say about 75% of my visitors here are taking Vicodin or some other derivative of Hydrocodone. It’s a popular drug to say the least and doctors give it out like candy for all sorts of aches and pains. As funny as it sounds, I think it’s a good drug and it controls pain quite well...

To Sub Or Not To Sub – Suboxone That is…

If you have been doing research on the topic of opiate addiction, you probably have come across a few different options and if you are like me, none of the options seem very appealing. Rehab is too expensive ($30,000 for 30 days, and up), it takes too much time and frankly is not what I needed. Rapid...

Dr. Earthman's answers to your questions – March 2009

Question from Linda F.:
“Is it possible for someone to taper off Vicodin, and lessen
the withdraw symptoms?”

Dr. Earthman:
“Yes.  Typically lowering the average dose...

There's Never Been a Better Time To Quit

Wow, with all of the doom and gloom, sometimes I just want to curl under my sheets in bed and start sucking my thumb! I can’t stand to watch the news any more; how about you? Sheesh. And if I see one more “poor” former billionaire being relegated to a pauper millionaire I’m...