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Addicted to Xanax & pain killers

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Hi.

I'm going to start by giving some background. I grew up in a wealthy suburb of San Diego. I started abusing xanax/norcos in 11th grade and haven't stopped. I would use these every night. I would use them until I could barely open my eyes. Despite this addiction, I never did pills during school. School was always first. My GPA was a 4.15 in HS (because AP courses are weighted more), I am a champion level horse back rider...placed second out of everyone in San Diego County. I rode horses 3 times a week (Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday). I volunteered with a day care that consisted of hispanic kids 1 hour a day, 5 days a week. I played on a rec. soccer team all four years during high school. I also was a second degree brown belt, just below black.

I ended up on the honor roll every quarter in HS (among other awards), got a 2140 on my SAT, got a $10,000 scholarship each year to a prestigious college.

Sounds like every parent's dream kid right? My parents had NO clue, because I love to socialize with parents and one of my other addictions is success and having others (my parents and their friends are doctors and other very wealthy/successful people). I look like a perfect kid. I'm clean, well dressed, polite, very well informed in politics, but at dinner parties I would look immaculate, but i would always take 4Mg xanax ( ALOT) or 3 Norcos (6 vicodin). I would be "messed up" but not to the point of complete intoxication. It was fun for me. Cocaine is okay, not nearly as fun as xanax, but it's fun just to do it at parties with parents....go into the bathroom...blow a couple of lines and go talk and talk and talk.

But I really was not a happy person. Everyone thought I was. I hated the idea of going to college and I would literally cry myself to sleep every night.

I'm a sophomore at this great university, doing well, going to intern with my congressman in DC this summer and I have two others as back up. I still abuse drugs. I can't get my hands on pain killers, so I stick to Xanax and Ambien. LIke now, I'm on 4 mg of xanax typing this.

But, unlike in HS, I am happier. I don't feel the depression that I did in HS. But I am a drug addict....a highly functioning one at that. I LOVE Xanax, it just makes me feel so relaxed and I love the feeling of going to sleep on it.

Although most people (I've heard it) say what a great person I am, but there's two sides to every coin. If they knew what I was doing, they would never believe it.

Basically, I realized that my drug use isn't good. I can function quite fine, but this isn't a way to live.

What should I do?

Thanks!
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replied March 20th, 2009
What should you do?
Well, I think the obvious thing to do, and what you know you should do is withdraw from Xanax.

A safe way of doing this is by 0.25mg every two weeks. For example, if you are taking 4mg a day now, start taking 3.75mg a day for two weeks, and then after two weeks, 3.5mg and so forth.

Avoid other drugs. They are not to the answer to anything in your life, if you're not happy about something in it, you need to take a course of action to fix it.
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replied February 21st, 2010
i dont do xanax but i do vics. and man do i love it. it makes me feel like super mom i can do what i have to do and not feel tired. the thing is that i want to quite cuase man does it get expensive i called my local treatment centers and they where so rude to me some even hung up I NEED HELP AS WELL AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO OR GO TO.... and winging off of them belive me it does not help.... we both need rehab. now it sounds like u come from money i don't so the treatment centers i called are free and they where just so rude so rude they made me feel little i just want help and i hope u find it to.... good luck
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replied August 26th, 2010
ii take atleast 4 every night before ii go to sleep.
Every single day.
for like 9 months. i cant stopp... is tht addiction or abuse? =/
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replied December 19th, 2010
think
hi my name is daniel i have a addiction i take a bout 30 1mg tabs a day its not to late 4 all you to get help pls get help dont end up like me
i went to rehab i cant stop thay tried i have bad seziures every time i take less thin 15mg a day
i stated taking at 13 im now 21 this is bad
you guys are at the top so stop before its to late do it for your friends and famley
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replied December 21st, 2010
Xanex addiction is increasing among people at an alarming rate. Steps must be taken to stop it. This form of pharmaceutical addiction is one of the most common forms of addiction practiced nowadays. The young generations are the worst victims of this type of addiction. Like the painkillers, xanax is easily available in the medical stores. Most people know about the effects of addiction to this kind of drugs, but once they get addicted to xanax or painkillers, they do fear about its aftermath. Many teenagers get addicted to this kind of opiates just because of the fun they tried to have ones or twice. Some even try to show their smartness in front of others by taking these prescription drugs and get addicted after few days of use.
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