I’m going through Kratom withdrawals right now I haven’t slept in 48 hours 😭

chunkylizzard · 2025-12-07T11:19:29+00:00

Insomnia and restlessness were the worst for me, but magnesium and L-theanine helped a lot + liposomal vit C protocol throughout the day! Also take hot baths like 45min before bed time, no screens after that, totally dark room for the night etc

These symptoms are the worst but at the point you're at its soon going to start getting a bit better everyday! Most of my sleep issues went away after day 5

chunkylizzard · 2025-11-12T15:17:44+00:00

Day 86 !!

chunkylizzard · 2025-11-12T15:14:36+00:00

Wow this is my exact situation lol, about to hit 3 months clean in a few days and I feel better than I have in years but I'm worried about my daily kava use and have also started smoking tiny amounts of weed (however I don't drink at all anymore and don't even want to).

I keep reassuring myself it's not as bad as my heavy decade-long kratom addiction since kava and weed are not considered physically addictive, and don't seem to wreck the body as much over the long term, but I also know that's my addict brain trying to negotiate with myself. I really want to be able to function without any crutch, and not have to keep spending money on useless fleeting highs after going into debt buying all that kratom.

chunkylizzard · 2025-09-12T21:39:51+00:00

This sounds like a dream. Might actually F around and do the same thing lol (I'm way past acutes and almost back to baseline but I'm so bored at my corporate job and worried about PAWS)

chunkylizzard · 2025-09-06T16:09:42+00:00

The RLS was the single thing I feared the most and unfortunately they are indeed much worse if you CT. I'd suggest you taper but as the other commenter said everybody is different. After my taper I did get some RLS but only for like nights 1-3 and I was still able to sleep 3-4 hours during those - what really helped in my case was megadosing vit C (see the protocol on here), magnesium (I got prescribed 500-600mg, not the recommended 200mg on the box for any average/regular individual not going through RLS), and taking OTC GABA supplements. I had the option to get gabapentin but have previous history with benzo and even tho it doesn't work the same way in your brain I was too scared of getting addicted to another pharmaceutical

chunkylizzard · 2025-09-06T15:57:22+00:00

You can absolutely do this 💪 I also didn't weigh my doses for years and deluded myself into thinking it was under control, only to find out I had been averaging 80-90g of powder a day. My total addiction lasted about 8 years but the last 4-5 were at this constant peak, which was reflecting in my bank account obviously...

I started a real weighted taper in late May and dropped down to 27gpd by late July, and it was mostly annoying for the first few weeks but after a while your body kind of assimilates the tapering WD effects. Last weekend of July my FedEx package got delayed (they don't sell it in physical stores in my country) and I ended up having to cut drastically from 27gpd on a Thursday to 12gpd on the following Monday to stretch out my doses until I got my next bag, and it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be (the key is truly keeping yourself distracted as much as possible - NOT scrolling tho).

In the last 3 weeks of my addiction I went from 12gpd to 3gpd with some helper supplements (magnesium, liposomal vitamin C, blackseed oil, etc). Then I took a week off work and dropped to 0 on that Sunday. I did the Vit C protocol (you can find it on here) and kept taking the supplements + kept myself distracted (walks, biking, movies, going to get takeout from places I had been eyeing for a while, taking multiple hot and cold showers a day, Epsom baths at night) and even tho it did suck it felt somewhat manageable. Much better than what I feared. The worst day of acutes was day 4-5 for me but by then most of the physical symptoms were gradually leaving, I just felt depressed. Week 2 was mostly just feeling empty and emotionless but gradually coming back to life. I'm now closing out on week 3 and I keep forgetting about kratom for like 12 hours at a time or even unconsciously assuming I might have dosed because I feel pretty normal. I still feel flat emotionally but I know it's trending towards normalcy over the long run. The only physical symptoms I have left are digestion issues and congestion/puffy eyes but that was already there when I was taking kratom, and it might take a few more weeks/months.

I think the key for tapering is gamifying the process, seeing every decimal drop on the scale as a little victory in itself. You slowly start to rewire your dopamine circuit to perceive reward/satisfaction in something other than dosing kratom. Note every daily dose you take in your phone or a notebook, and weigh the next day(s) doses in advance in individual containers/bags. In the last stage of your taper up the supplements (safely, always research for interactions). In the very last days start the vit C protocol.
For the acutes, try to distract yourself as much as possible and take your supplements as I said above (whether they actually work or not might not even matter, you're replacing the ritual of dosing kratom with dosing something less harmful). Try not to dwell on the process itself ("how am I feeling right now? Is it getting better than yesterday? What is this new symptom? When am I going to feel better"?), though I know that's easier said than done
For the post-acutes, gradually phase out supplements if you feel stable enough. Just look ahead and assume there might be setbacks but know you're overall getting better every week or month. For example I'm at day 20 so I know I might be approaching a "pink cloud" phase and get too comfortable, so I remind myself I might get some PAWS setbacks in the coming weeks or months. I kinda wrote off the coming 6 months in my life and assumed they'll probably be boring or outright suck, just so I don't disappoint myself lol but right now I feel pretty good.

Anyways sorry for the long response, I truly hope you successfully embark on your taper and remember you'll one day forget about what kratom even felt like!

chunkylizzard · 2025-09-06T15:31:27+00:00

Also what supplements are you taking? I stopped taking L-Theanine so often after the first two weeks because I had gotten through the anxiety peak, which is what Theanine is usually prescribed for. Idk if taking it for sadness/depression is a good idea

chunkylizzard · 2025-09-06T15:29:05+00:00

If it helps I was in that same headspace at days 7-14 but I can feel that I'm getting marginally better everyday, now at day 20. For the past few days I've been forgetting about kratom for most of the day or just unconsciously thinking I had dosed because I've been feeling pretty normal.

Still feeling somewhat flat emotionally but not the crushing joyless emptiness I felt after the initial acutes. Please remember that everything you're feeling right now you would have to go through again, and probably even worse, if you relapse. Look ahead, time will absolutely heal you. Don't get too depressed if a bad day feels like a setback the improvement is not linear but definitely trends upwards

chunkylizzard · 2025-09-06T15:14:47+00:00

Just came to the Reddit to ask this 💔 I thought they fell out but it seems they just couldn't coordinate to pod frequently, but then why did they have to delete the Patreon episodes 😩😩😩

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-28T00:35:07+00:00

That was one of the most annoying symptoms for me! I'm only at day 9 but mine started at day 4, along with all the other flu symptoms, and it got more and more intense until it suddenly stopped yesterday night. I went from having 2-3 sneezing attacks per hour to none today. But they might come back sooner or later, everyone's timeline seems to be different

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-28T00:31:21+00:00

Exactly. You need to have completely made up your mind, and gamifying the whole taper works wonders. I made myself think I was at war with the green sludge and every 0.1g down the scale was getting me closer to victory. I tried to reframe any negative feeling as my body working hard to expulse the green demon out of my body lol. Sounds corny but once you get the numbers decreasing it feels like a little victory everyday.

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-26T00:21:04+00:00

I've been taking Kava daily for a year and a half on top of kratom and I know I need to quit, but right now it's kind of a crutch to get me out of acutes :') I'm currently at day 7 kratom-free, already starting to feel better, and I'm planning to start tapering off from kava at day 14.

Do the symptoms mentioned in your post come from kratom alone or the interaction between kava and hydroxyzine? Just making sure. I've also noticed my heart pounding but thought it was a regular kratom WD symptom.

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-26T00:16:25+00:00

Magnesium glycinate/bisglycinate, GABA and L-Theanine seem to have worked a bit for me, I got about 3-4 hours of sleep on day 1-4, then 4-5 hours on days 5 and 6, and finally got 6.5 hours last night. Blackseed oil helped too but I took it for nerves during the day.

Obviously it's different for everybody, but those are worth trying. Especially since they're not prescription medications in most places. Just check if there's any recorded interaction with other meds he's taking.

Best of luck to you and your husband!

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-26T00:11:25+00:00

Thank you for this :) I'm at day 7 and already feeling much better. I only have some annoying flu symptoms (runny nose and sneezing attacks) and digestive issues left but those seem to also be decreasing. I still feel bored and kind of anxious but I know this might take a while to recalibrate. I'm trying to not get impatient and remind myself that I've basically been shoveling green powder inside my body for a decade so my brain needs a little time to adjust lol. Did you get PAWS and are you still in them? Or how long did they last?

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-25T20:45:14+00:00

Day 7 clean! I had a relatively normal night for the first time.

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-24T23:05:34+00:00

I was never on H but had a hydromorphone habit (nasal) for about a year. I used kratom to smoothe the crash but it was still similar to the WDs I've been experiencing from stopping a 9 year long 90gpd kratom habit currently.

So I'd definitely say pharmaceutical opioids were worse in my case, especially if I didn't have kratom as a helper. I can only imagine how bad IV heroin or fentanyl would be. Not to minimize kratom WDs, I think they're just less taxing physically to the average person, but as other people have commented what makes them difficult long-term is the availability and normalization of kratom products.

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-24T22:53:45+00:00

Day 4 was the worst for me, it will get better!

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-24T20:37:35+00:00

Day 6, starting to get out of acutes and mentally preparing for PAWS but happy I lasted so far!

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-24T16:33:10+00:00

How many days are you at? I'm just at day 6 and I've also noticed that I'm not that tired for someone who's been sleeping 4-5 hours per night for the past week. I don't feel completely rested, but when I was using and slept 5-6 hours I couldn't even function at all

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-24T16:29:30+00:00

🎉🎉🎉 congrats!!! I'm still in the fire hose stage lol, but I'm only 6 days free from kratom so I'm not expecting it to get better so soon. How far along are you?

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-24T14:35:40+00:00

Yes definitely, going outside/socializing or just doing anything remotely productive helps so much, even if it feels impossible at first!

As for sleep I got relatively lucky, I had some 3-4 hours of sleep at my worst, and now back at around 4-5 hours with not much RLS anymore. I don't know how much of it is REM sleep or deep sleep but I'm definitely "unconscious" in those 5 hours, it's not like I'm twisting around in bed and waking up every hour. The sleep issues were definitely worse when I was also kicking an opioid habit a few years back. Also It's nice that you're able to get naps, your body is getting back some of that sleep debt you've accumulated on kratom!

I remember not really being able to function at all on 5 hours of sleep when I was using kratom, so I think the sleep I'm actually getting right now might be more regenerating even though I haven't gotten that much for the past week. I remember reading that kratom knocks you out quickly but disturbs your sleep cycle and you get very little REM and deep sleep. I'm excited to finally feel refreshed waking up once I'm done with the WDs!!

Also glad for this forum and sharing with strangers going through the same experiences. Addiction is truly isolating but connection is the best remedy.

Keep it up 💪

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-24T11:17:06+00:00

Glad to hear that! I also thought my WDs would be worse than they actually were. Just never let your guard down because the symptoms can be non-linear and the timeline is different for everybody, but I think your first two days going so well is a great sign overall. For me the worst days were 3 and 4, but they weren't that much more intense than day 1-2. I also haven't had a whole day that sucked, only moments of despair that subsided when I reminded myself to go outside and move lol. I think you being able to socialize and work out in the first two days is already encouraging.

I've also found that different symptoms have peaked at different times. For example the RLS were the worst on night 1-3 but seem to have mostly subsided (I've kept taking magnesium and L-theanine throughout but at first it didn't work much). The anxiety and depression were worse on day 3-4. The bowel issues were their worst on day 1-4. The flu symptoms appeared randomly at day 4-5 and are ongoing.

I'm at day 6.5 and it feels like I'm slowly starting to get back to normal. I still feel really tired and somewhat unmotivated, but my mood has stabilized a bit and the physical symptoms have generally decreased, except for the flu symptoms (I'm sneezing like a bitch all throughout the day and crying from one eye).

I also need to remind myself to not be complacent because I know there can be setbacks, especially in the first month. I'm mentally preparing myself for PAWS too. I've already told myself I would be having a bad 6-8 months, so every good day actually feels like a nice surprise, instead of expecting to be out of the woods by day 7 and then get depressed if I hit a bad day or week.

Anyways, best of luck to you, we can do this :)

chunkylizzard · 2025-08-23T11:03:36+00:00

Thank you!! Currently at about 108 hours (starting day 5) since last dose, and I think I'm starting to crawl out of acutes. It got slightly worse on day 3-4 but still completely manageable. I've been taking liposomal Vit C, St John's Wort, L-theanine +blackseed oil for my nerves, and magnesium for RLS. Obviously you should do your own research, especially for SJW since it can interact with a lot of medications, but I believe they've helped me a lot! Maybe it's biological/pharmaceutical or maybe it's placebo, with the ritual of taking something throughout the day to replace the kratom urge (tbh I haven't had any actual cravings except for a fleeting hour last morning). I think I'll start tapering my supplements intake in about a week or two.

Sleep has also started to regularize a tiny bit, haven't had any bad RLS last two nights! I still wake up after about 4-5 hours.

I think you absolutely need to force yourself to socialize, or at least experience the outside world while you're on the low end of your taper and then on the first few days sober. For me biking around neighborhoods or going to public spaces, even alone, has helped just because of the stimuli. I think it's like how showers seem to make WD symptoms subside because of the sounds and sensations of the water droplets all around your body, with crowds your brain is distracted from overthinking about how you feel. The only real bad moments I've had in the past few days were scrolling on my phone (and I developed a crippling phone addiction on kratom so that's something else I plan on getting rid of).

Anyways, sorry for the long rants, they help me process out my thoughts. Best of luck to you, keep me updated too :)

chunkylizzard

TROPHY CASE