Archive for the ‘Tramadol’ Category

Alcohol and Tramadol don’t Mix!

posted by admin 3:47 PM
Monday, June 29, 2009

Female Doctor

When it comes to staying fit and working out, I am a very active person. I go to the gym a lot, training and lifting weights, doing plenty of cardio workouts and generally looking after my body weight. The many hours spent in the gym are showing but they also demonstrate that ones body suffers from hours of intensive training. When I get home, my body aches, every muscle and joint is sore and I just cannot relax. The decision to take Tramadol was based on the consuming pains I was feeling, without any doubt.

I started with a dosage of 100 mg, which usually means two tablets and waited for the effects to appear. It was not my first experience with an opiate but it was definitely a first for Tramadol. The pain-relieving effect appeared in half an hour and it was accompanied by a feeling of general relaxation, of well-being or content. As time passed, the effect became more and more intense, offering me the exact rest period I needed to recuperate. I recognized some of the opiate-like effects present in other narcotic drugs I have taken before, but this time they had a different flavor and they were not that intense.

As Tramadol did not have the slightest effect on my rational thinking, I began to recollect the effect of other opiates on muscle pain. I was satisfied with the pain relief offered by such a small dose of Tramadol and I considered it to be definitely more beneficial than codeine, another powerful painkiller. Still, I considered that the effects of Tramadol were not even half as stronger as the ones of hydrocodone, the one I used to take in such situations. I decided to take 50 mg more just after a couple of hours just to see what would happen. What can I say; I am the type of guy who likes to experiment. The new dosage made me feel a little bit anxious agitated but the pain subsided even more so I was contended.

So, as I had nothing better to do, I thought to myself (after an hour or so) that I’d take one more tablet. But as it was my first time taking Tramadol and I was not exactly sure about high doses and adverse reactions, I decided to drink some alcohol instead, some fine brandy. Originally, the sweet-hot taste of the brandy released some of the nervousness into thin air and made the entire Tramadol experience a little bit more bearable. Still, in a very short period of time I started to feel restless, extremely nauseous and unstable when I tried to get up from the chair. Well, something was not right, I said to myself. Yes, I knew that Tramadol and any other similar medication should not be mixed with alcohol. But it was too late for regrets and the situation was indeed serious.

When I started to throw up, I could not stop for several minutes and I was incredibly scared. I grabbed the telephone and even though I was not very sure of myself, I pressed the speed dial and called my sister. I do not know up to this day if she understood anything I said but she rushed to my apartment, certain that something was amiss. She decided to call for the ambulance and she arrived just when the doctor entered the door I had left open. They found me semi-conscious and tried to find out what medication I took. In my mind, the words rushed out to my mouth but I could not say them right. With a last effort I pointed to the pill bottle and they quickly noticed the bottle of brandy standing right next to it. I was immediately rushed to the hospital.

Note to self: Opiate drugs, including Tramadol, codeine or hydrocodone should never be mixed with alcohol. The consequences of such actions can be devastating, even life-threatening and it is not worth it to go through these experiences. I am fine now, training just once a week and discovering other things to occupy my time with. And I have to admit that I am healthier than I’ve been in a long time.