Thread about Brain Zaps - help

[Donnelly]

So hi everybody here. I would really like to talk about the brain zaps and to get a bit of help regarding them if it’s possible, the reason why I ask this is that I have had quite a few days that were very strange because of those damn brain zaps I am getting, very and very annoying and hard to deal with. in fact, I don’t know how to deal with them. so well, to make the long story shorter, I have left my tramadol at work a few days ago when I have left for the day and by the time that I finally remember and realized it, I was already not able to go back and to get them because the office already has been locked and the alarm set (and it is obvious that I can’t get it until it opens back up). the worst thing is that it happened the last Friday (on 7th October) which means that the office doesn’t get opened back until Monday (until today which is 10th October). I’ve been thinking about going and getting them because I do have the alarm code (we all know it, just in case) however the alarm company is calling the owner and asks him what’s going on, then he calls me back, then paperwork to fill why I have opened the office and so on and so forth…. So then, I have figured and I thought that I could somehow tough out a weekend of no tram (and indeed I did it). Which means from Friday night until Monday morning (until today). I’ve got to say that it has been quite bad, however it was not as bad as I have expected it to be (been thinking that it would be even worse). It have been only those brain zaps that were severe and barely able to be dealt with and every single time that I had one I was thinking that I am going to have seizures soon. that’s how bad they were. The first few times I was thinking that they were actual seizures. Luckily, I didn’t get any seizures, but the brain zaps were annoying enough either.

 

So well, of course, I did have tried to make them stop and I have tried everything that I could and had at my disposal to do so. To begin with, I have tried out the Gabapentin (because I’ve heard that it can help with wds), I have also tried Librium (I had about 3 or maybe 4 stashed), there is also one of my room mate who has been prescribed vicodin so i’ve tried vicodin too. plus, I have even had a shot of vodka as a last resort as well because I didn’t know what else I can do. very well, as much as I can guess that you’ve already figured it out – nothing have worked for those brain zaps. In fact, I have been thinking that maybe a cocktail of those medications might work (combo mix), however this thing didn’t worked either unfortunately… I guess that there’s also no need to mention that I have showed up that day at work the first in fact, I showed up approximately 2 hours early at the office waiting to get it opened in order to get my tramadol. The wait was long but worth it because as soon as it opened I’ve got my tramadol and in approximately an hour or so after taking 100 mg they have all stopped and I was back to normal.

 

So well, to make a conclusion here, the entire point of this story of mine and thread it is to tell you guys that the brain zaps are very real and very annoying and even though I cannot say that they are excruciating, however they are indeed very and very scary and  extremely uncomfortable as well. I’ve also got to mention that I have never been on Ads, however I guess that this is why they are so so hard to discontinue to take.

 

And now, the help that I wanted to get is… sometime I would still want to get off tramadol and I do know that these brain zaps would appear. I will be ready for them and I will expect them. however what I wanted to ask you guys is that maybe there is something that I don’t know but that something maybe can help easing or maybe even completely getting rid of the brain zaps?! I have no idea if there is such a thing (from as much as I have tried, I couldn’t find anything) but if there is and if you do know “the secret” then please share it here with me. thanks for your attention and for reading my post.

 

[ninaflemming]

Well, look, I did not got these brain zaps that you are talking about from withdrawals of tramadol when I have stopped to take it, however I think that it might be due to the fact that I was only on it for relatively a short period of time for a broken arm that I had.

 

However, I have most surely have had the those “brain zaps” that you are talking about from stopping some other SSRI’s abruptly this is why I think that it is in all probability not out of the question that it has happened. One note here that I need to mention is that I have stopped from taking the synthetic SSRIs due to the fact that I was getting too bad side effects from using it and that’s even after being 12 weeks on it. even after so much time but my body still couldn’t get used to it and the side effects have been so extreme that they made me even sicker than simply being in depression. so well, in the end of it all I can tell you that for me, it has turned out to be actually a chronic PTSD (post traumatic syndrome) and this condition it is treated a bit differently than with the conventional anti depressants. It is, in fact, a normal thing for the patients that are experiencing PTSD for some years upon end without any proper diagnosis to have the body respond by slowing down and feeing… oh well… nothing at all, from time to time.

 

Besides, there’s something else that I simply could not pass by without commenting and it is the fact that I need to caution you (being a follow concerned member …) that taking vodka with vicodin and with Librium it is definitely not the answer that you are searching for and I definitely wouldn’t recommend you to do that anymore. by doing so it is simply going to put you (most likely) on the threshold for the overdose which manifests in effects even worse than the brain zaps and it surely does not have the SSRI/NSRI effect that Tramadol has that your brain has been searching for during that time. just know that I only try to help you out and I definitely do not want to say anything that would hurt you and if you would use that combination of substances again then you very well have good chances to hurt you – the reason why I recommend to do the other way around and avoid such combos. But anyway, this is only what I know and I don’t know so much, so I really hope that there is going to be other more experienced members that are going to give a shout out to this thread for their wisdom.

 

And by the way, one last thing. I’ve seen an extremely good chart somewhere online but it seems that I lost it and I can’t find it anywhere. I will be searching for it more and I hope I would find it. but I remember that the chart was very well describing what is happening to the PTSD sufferers and how it is frequently mis interpreting and mis diagnosed as well. good thing is that it is only as of recent getting the study and the attention that it really deserves. I do know that it should have been done a long time ago but better later than never and yeah, I need to mention here that I am definitely not trying to say or to suggest that this is what you are having, I am only trying to give you an idea of that disease… not sure if this is helpful or useful or not… but I am quite sure that it would have been a lot more helpful and useful if I could find it somehow.

 

[HolyHolly]

Hey there Donnelly, I’ve got to say that I am currently considering about getting tramadol as my alternative medication and this is why I would really want to talk with you a little bit about them… that’s in case you don’t mind it… I only want to ask you something… like how long you have been on the tramadols for this to happen? I mean, I see people saying that they didn’t got brain zaps while being a short period of time and discontinuing. For how long you’ve been on them that you’ve got it? I guess that it is obvious that I am a little bit worried about the withdrawal effects that I might get from using it and stopping if I do not like it or I am receiving it consistently. I would really appreciate your answer. I am currently just wondering and would be very happy if some could answer… at what point can withdrawals begin after stopping to use this drug? thanks in advance!

 

[Julieta]

Nina thank you very much for posting that comment about the chart of PTSD, I did have found something online (not sure if it’s the one you’ve seen, but I still liked it) and I’ve got to say that I found it really helpful which is why I am so thankful to you. I need to mention here that I am having complex PTSD as well as damage from multiple head injuries as well (most recently from a couple of months ago when I have had a fall, not more abuse). So well, from as much as I can understand it – the treatment with the ADs it is no longer a recommended treatment for those people who are suffering from PTSD?! Or there’s something that I haven’t gotten right? thanks anyway for posting that!

 

[ninaflemming]

So well, Julieta, look, only your GP/ Counselor is able to make that call and you should talk with him more about this because he would tell you more. I am surely not qualified to do this.

 

So well, only to be clear here so nobody would take it as a medical advice… personaly for me, the synthetic SSRIs and all its cousins are a no go and they are only making me feel even worse. But again, that’s for me alone. I do not want to say that this is going to apply for everybody else who would take it. it is the issues surrounding the events that I need to deal with now. I need to say here that I do not have what can be diagnosed as true depression here. I’ve got to say that it is more of a way the body is using for self preservation when you have lived most of your life in the upper zone of the chart for as long as I have had to out of necessity.

 

In addition to this I can tell you that now my son is grown up and I am now able, to at least some extent, to delve into my own stuff with somebody who is being well trained on dealing on PTSD survivors. Trust me that this is not an easy call and I know it very well because I have already hit the low area recently and I need now to get my way through the events safely. Plus, I am not even sure if it was the bottom… but it was already… enough for me. this is especially hard to deal with due to the fact that a lot of people simply do not understand, (in fact, most people don’t) and this is why I have lost a lot of my friends, or to be more accurate here I need to say that I’ve lost people that I thought were my friends. However I think that I most likely only picked them due to the fact that I did all of the work and I definitely was not aware of the fact that this is surely not what a healthy relationship is (and by the way, it perfectly fits with the chart I’ve found… it is the upper zone of the PTSD chart).

 

Trust me, I would really wish that I could be able to give you a simple yes or no answer, however it is definitely not that simple… unfortunately. And I do know that most likely this is not what you have been searching for, however I still hope that this is going to help you a little bit, maybe?

 

Good luck.

 

[Jaxon]

Hi HolyHolly,

 

I only wanted to pay attention to your question and say that it is a very good question, in fact. you need to be aware of the fact that tramadol can give you withdrawals after stopping it even after using it only for a while. The time periods are all different to different people depending on a lot of factors such as age, gender, diet, lifestyle and many others, however it is still plus or minus the same to everybody.

 

So well, you need to be very careful because this period is quite short, as short as only few weeks. There are even people who have only used tramadol for like 2 to 3 weeks, some of these people not even used it every day, and they still have reported to have withdrawal difficulties. Maybe after using tramadol for like 2 weeks and not every single day won’t give you big withdrawal difficulties, but that’s a clear sign that they already started which means that they are going to get even worse if using it every day or/ and if using it for more than 2 weeks. Be sure that using tramadol daily, for like 2 months and especially in moderate to high doses – you’ll definitely have quite a hard time to get off it.

 

I’m not a doctor by the way, but this is what I have heard and learned from researching online and talking to other people all over the internet. Good luck.