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Posted: July 25, 2015, 6:05 PM
Iam planning on switching too subxone from methadone I have been taking methadone for about 10 years now!! I have cut down my methadone dose myself to 40 mg sometimes 30mg a day! My question is how long should I quit taking methadone before starting subxone?? I have tried going cold Turkey on the methadone and I go Thur such badd withdraw! This last time I couldn't even talk right! Plz help
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Posted: July 26, 2015, 9:43 AM
I myself did the same thing.
I was on the methadone for 13 yrs. down to 5mg I think. they didn't offer anything lower on this particular type of methadone liquid. I had been wanting to get off of it way before but was always afraid of what I heard about the withdrawals. so when they were forced the clinic down from the owners of the property they were renting on, all patients had to get off swiftly or relocate many many miles away to another city. a lot of people died these two yrs of over dosing because they had no way to get to the other clinic and the mayor of the town where they were going to open a new one brought it to court and fought having it in their town. she now has a lot of blood on her hands. I told myself that I was going to remain positive and strong and get thru this. while going through the withdrawals at home which I"m not going to sugar coat it, it was uncomfortable and I would advise if you can do a detox in patient, do it. because they can give you meds' to help you. I got those little power vitamin drinks by the dozen, my psych dr. gave me clonadean, which I didn't like, I took o.t.c. sleeping meds, yet I still couldn't make it. so I called a facility that's a couple towns away to see if someone could help me there. I found out they were JUST starting to prescribe suboxone to their patients. normally they were just an out pt. facility for group meetings. I detoxed off the methadone a week before I got on the suboxone because of the delay in pre authorization from insurance company and it was all new to the clinic to get this started. so it was delayed. I remember calling begging for them to hurry the process up. I was told I had to have the methadone out of my system for so many days before taking the sub. meanwhile, I was also told by a dr. to take my pain med prescription that I was on for my arthritis and fibro, even though methadone blocked me from getting high, It still worked to take away my pain. which I was getting from my primary. he knew I was on the lowest dosage of methadone. anyway, I was told to take some of the percocetts for the withdrawals, only one or two the most before I was able to get into the sub clinic. otherwise i'd have to pay for my actions physically. it worked. I didn't want to go through that withdrawal syndrome you get if your on opioids and get on suboxone. it sucks everything out of you super fast and you suffer. I advise you speak to a professional to tell you how many hours or days it should be before you stop the methadone. it's been two years for me already that i started the sub and I can't recall the amount of days you need to have it out. time goes by very swiftly for me. what seems only a year that I've been at this sub place is now TWO YEARS. OH, I also advice which the sub DON'T tell you is that you should only be on the suboxone a short time. PLEASE take my advice,otherwise you'll be physically addicted to the suboxone then. don't stay on it two years. My reason and only reason to get on the sub was to get thru the withdrawals of the horrible methadone. but I made a big mistake now and fear getting off the sub because of what I went thru coming off the methadone in such a high dosage. but I've done research and the withdrawls are nothing compared to methadone. you just have to be mentally ready with no chaos going on in your life. but the pills taste horrible. that's why they made the strips. I wld only suggest people who are serious about their recovery get on the suboxone because they can just stop it and use when they want or sell them to get other drugs if they're not serious about recovery. I wdl think that you're ready now after being on the methadone for ten years and I'm proud of your strength. plus you won't have the ball and chain around your ankle of having to go a couple days a week to the clinic compare to only having to go every 2 weeks for the suboxone or once a month. depending on your doctor's choice. It's ok to be frightened. because who likes to suffer withdrawals? it's just that the sub drs do not tell you when to get off, they let the patient do it when they're ready. so biggest mistake I made was to stay on the sub two years. I can KICK myself in the butt for this now. please keep us updated on your progress and how you went about doing it. I'm very interested in the out come. good luck to you and I wish you the best. | ||
Posts: 206
Joined: July 27, 2015
Posted: July 27, 2015, 9:47 PM
That's a hard question. It's different for everyone and it depends on several factors. I also did the same thing. I was on Methadone for 5yrs. I was an addict before I got cancer, they used the methadone to control my pain and keep me away from short acting opiates.
I gained a tremendous amount of weight on Chemo, Steroids and Methadone. I'd been a thin woman all my life until cancer treatment. I became the FAT walking dead on Methadone. It hangs out in your fat cells once you stop taking it. Factor in your weight. If you have stayed thin on Methadone ( many folks do ) and are an active person, you'll get rid of the Methadone faster than a person with a slower Metabolism. If you have become slow and bloated on Methadone, the way I did, you will go into precipitated withdrawals if you start the suboxone too soon. Usually they will start you off on SUBUTEX, if they are unsure where you are at in withdrawing. It doesn't have the Naloxone in it, which is what throws you into withdrawal. Hind sight is 20/20... I had NO idea how Methadone detox worked. I was assisted medically ( given Morphine ) for an at home detox. The Morphine was for the first 10 days off the Methadone... When I finished the Morphine, I still wasn't in full blown withdrawal yet, 11 days after stopping Methadone, I was switched to Suboxone. It threw me into the worst precipitated withdrawal. For 3 days, I'd take a dose and still no better. They brought me back in and switched me back to the Morphine. At 18 days off the Methadone, I was still testing positive for it in my urine. Be careful, switching from Methadone to Suboxone is individualized. There isn't going to be a painless transition. Unless you find a good doc, who subscribes to the Subutex FIRST, before the Suboxone, be very careful. Be willing to be uncomfortable, to be sure you're in to bad withdrawals ( Not cravings ). If you switch too soon, you're in for a rough patch. It's worth it. Methadone was hell and Suboxone was only a little better. It's still a prison. I'm finally free of it all, one day at a time. -------------------- " Many times I sought the lighthouse The familiar beam in the dark Looking for the comfort Radiating from its spark; Today I turn that inward No longer am I the seeker I am not just the lighthouse I am the light - And lighthouse keeper. " | ||
Posts: 1906
Joined: October 23, 2011
Posted: July 27, 2015, 10:09 PM
How did you become finally free from it all?
-------------------- Serenity Prayer God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, The courage to change the things I can, And the wisdom to know the difference. Free copy of AA's Big Book on-line: http://www.aa.org/pages/en_US/alcoh...olics-anonymous Free copy of NA's Big Book on-line: Copy & Paste coastalcarolinaarea.org/literature/books/b_t.pdf AA's HOW IT WORKS: Copy & paste www.aa.org/assets/en_US/p-10_howitworks.pdf NA's HOW IT WORKS: http://www.na.org/admin/include/spa...0it%20Works.pdf ---------------------------------------------------------------- --- driven by a hundred forms of fear, self-delusion, self-seeking, and self-pity. ---there are those too who suffer from grave emotional and mental disorders but many of them do recover if they have the capacity to be honest. ... I need AA more than it needs me. --- I fight recovery tooth and nail.... I'm not used to being sane, it just doesn't seem natural. ...... According to the great spiritual teachers, ignorance does not result from what we don’t know; ignorance results from what we think we do know. ---Some think that 2+2=5 and believe it. Some know that 2+2=4 and can't stand it. --- I didn't have a very happy childhood but I sure am having a long one ! ---Dry since 1989 working daily on getting/staying SOBER. ---If you want to drink, that's your business ...If you want to quit, that's AA's business. ... Tell me, I'll forget; ... Show me, I'll remember; ... Engage me, I'll understand. ---Most problems are psychological. Most solutions are spiritual . "If we try to change our ego with the help of our ego, we only have a better-disguised ego." --Richard Rohr WWBWD (What Would Bill W. Do) | ||
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