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Ugh
Hydrocodone
Citation:   Senseless. "Ugh: An Experience with Hydrocodone (exp37317)". Erowid.org. Feb 1, 2008. erowid.org/exp/37317

 
DOSE:
T+ 0:00
5.0 mg oral Hydrocodone (pill / tablet)
  T+ 2:00 5.0 mg oral Hydrocodone (pill / tablet)
BODY WEIGHT: 148 lb
Yesterday I had to have a couple of biopsies done. One of them was on my toe and they had to take a nice big chunk out of it so they gave me a prescription for 20 5/500 Vicodin (5mg hydrocodone/500mg Acetomenophen). Before I even left the surgery room the local anesthetic began wearing off and the nurse gave me one of the vicodin. It was at 3:30, on an empty stomach. The pain was intense already.

20 minutes later I got off the table and was immediately dizzy. This was an unpleasant kind of dizzy, as if I had vertigo. I took a few minutes to steady myself and left. My wife drove me to the pharmacy to fill the prescription. I was feeling rather lightheaded and kind of slow. The slowness was kind of like the slowness I get with THC, a mild confusion coupled with easy distraction. There was also an element of mental fogginess similar to a high dose of diphenhydramine (dramamine) where sound seemed slightly startling. I still felt pain, but it was somewhat muted. Then the nausea started. It wasn't intense nausea, as if I were about to throw up any second, but it was enough to make me want to be still. It went away after about 20 more minutes.

By 5:30, 2 hours after the first dose, I felt the pain coming back. I still had some mental effects like mild relaxation and lightheadedness, but the confusion was clearing a bit. The pain was intense again. Despite the fact that the doctor instructed me to take the Vicodin every 4 hours, I dosed another 5mg. Within 20 minutes after the second dose, I felt nausea again, this time more intense. It came in waves, and a few times it felt as if I actually might throw up. I had to lie still without moving my head. This lasted about 40 minutes. Turning my head made me feel more nausea, so I kept very still. During this period the pain was completely knocked out. As a matter of fact, I had trouble feeling anything (except nausea). My limbs were numb. I couldn't feel it when I scratched my face.

My mind was foggy again, and this time it was more intense. It wasn't a pleasant high. It was more of a confused, groggy high very similar to dramamine. I couldn't focus on anything. My mouth went dry. I kept slipping into a hypnogogic state. I don't know why anyone would want to use Vicodin recreationally. It's not a 'happy pill' like Triazolam or Diazepam. It's more like stoned car-sickness, decidedly unpleasant. I decided I would only take this stuff when the pain got too intense and even then, no more than 5 mg. The euphoria described by others never arrived for me.

The nausea phase ended and some of the pain killing went with it about 1 hour later. I could move around without thinking I was going to barf. For the next 4 hours I remained more relaxed than at baseline and kind of drowsy. I still felt pain, but only in waves. Sometimes I couldn't feel ANYTHING in the toe, other times it was as if I had never take the Vicodin at all. I decided to go to bed. I thought I would be able to sleep easily, but I laid in bed in a half-sleep state for two hours. I only got a few hours of sleep before the pain woke me up.

In closing, I can only say that Vicodin is over-rated. It's pain-killing properties are effective but VERY short lived. I might get 90 minutes of relief before the pain comes back. The nausea was managable at 5mg but very unpleasant at 10mg. Not worth the high, but in my case it was better than the pain. The 'high' is not a fun high. It's confused and foggy, and not in a good way like Weed. Worse, this drug is an addictive opiate with a high abuse potential and a low effectiveness. I understand that tolerance is built up quickly and nausea goes away for experienced users most of the time.

Exp Year: 2004ExpID: 37317
Gender: Male 
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Feb 1, 2008Views: 28,416
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Hydrocodone (111) : Medical Use (47), Difficult Experiences (5), Various (28)

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