I experienced a severe back injury and 33% of my body had 3rd degree burns. This was 14 years ago and my doctor prescribed fentanyl (Duragesic) patches starting with 50mcg/hr and kept raising the dose to 400mcg/hr. I managed to cut it down from 400 to 50 (and just now to 37.5) but I can't seem to get off the remaining 50. There's no 37.5mcg/hr patch so I just this week started cutting off 1/3 of each patch and flushing the extra. But the lower I go the worse the withdrawal, particularly akathesia which for me is the worst symptom. After I cut it down from 400 to 50 (with no help from my doctor or anyone else) everyone I know said that was impossible, I couldn't possibly have done that over the course of a summer. It's good that no one told me that before or I probably wouldn't have tried. But I did and it worked.

Now I need to get from 37.5 to zero. I haven't been able to exercise or do PT and OT or even something as simple as taking a bath, I have to be careful I don't sweat off the patch or get it wet or it comes off and it's not like they give you extras. We were going to switch it from fentanyl to XR morphine but my insurance requires a formulary exception and they don't feel that I have a legitimate reason for an exception.

I'm also taking 10mg oxycodone tablets for breakthrough pain; I'm prescribed enough that I could take up to and including 6 tablets a day but the way the prescription is written there's a little leeway - I can take up to 8 a day as long as I keep track and don't take too many and get to a point where I run out. I don't have an issue with the oxycodone, I can go days without it. 

Other meds include Adderall XR (105mg,) diazepam (Valium) 3x 10mg tablets a day, temazepam (Restoril) 2x 30mg capsules HS. And some other meds that aren't scheduled.

I want to get off the fentanyl. Everything else is ok, I don't overuse any of it. I just need to be able to go to PT so maybe I don't need pain meds anymore.

But as I 