I am 22 years old and I have been addicted to opiates for about 2 years and its been hell.
It started off when i had knee surgery, I got a bunch of pain pills and I loved the way they made me feel. I never knew what i was in for.
Ive always been weird about drugs. Until i was about 17 or 18, i had never done anything drug wise. I started drinking and smoking pot but thats not the problem.
I finally broke down and asked for help because i cant do it alone. I have tried cold turkey and i just cant do it. The W/D of this crap can realllllly break a person down. I dont feel like doin anything when i dont have pills, and i cant stand it.
Sometimes i have to smoke weed just to try and keep my W/D in control.
I have an appointmet with a DR tomorrow for suboxone treatment and to be honest with you im excited because im so tired and so done of walking down this road.
I'm kinda scared too, because i dont know what's ahead of me.
Could anyone give me some information on what I have ahead of me??
I know it wont be easy but im willing to do it cus i want my life back.
You said something that gives me a lot of optimism for you --- you said "I have an appointmet with a DR tomorrow for suboxone treatment and to be honest with you im excited ..."
Many have trouble just making the phone call to the doctor. Having a plan does make things look positive, doesn't it? Keep telling yourself that you're addressing this before it gets much, much worse.
As a dad old enough to be yours - I would add 1 more things - as you meet friends who think opiates are a great high - remind them of your lows.
Hi Mitch,
Hey, congratulations on making a good decision. Sub is a great tool if used properly....many people report feeling like they have been "lifted from a fog" when getting onto sub.
My best advice is to start at as low a dose as possible, because even though it doesn't feel like it, sub is a super powerful opiate. The lower dose you start at, the less weaning you have to do.
My next best advice is to get into counseling, which any good sub doctor will insist you do anyways. Use this time on sub to learn how to deal with your emotions better, and how to deal with the things that trigger you to use.
You have a good chance to recover fully. you are young, you haven't been on opiates for decades, and you sound like you a re intelligent and motivated.
I'm sure others will chime in with more, but welcome and best regards.
Oh, and I have been on sub for over a year and am just about done, and my life has done a complete turn around for the better.
It's so nice not having to be taking pills or whatever every few hours, and to have a clear head on your shoulders. It takes a few weeks to adjust to but it is so much easier than trying to do it cold turkey.
I have my appointment at 2 o clock so i have to leave in about an hour and head over there.
YEah it wasnt easy admitting I had a problem but i knew to have my quality of life back that im used to and want then i have to do something about it.
I have tried cold turkey numberous times over the past 2 years.
THe only reason i take the opiates is to make me feel just normal, not even high. So this suboxen treatment hopefully wont be a stretch.
I occasionally smoke pot too, does anyone in here think i should wait until I have my addicting under control before i try to quit smoking?
I feel like if i dont want to put too much weight on my shoulders.
Im just tired of feeling tired, if that makes any sense..
I really apreciate everyones help, It's not always easy admitting your weak and that you need help, especially me.. I was such a strong willed person i never thought i would be in the position im in now. Im just ready for this rollercoaster to stop..
I am 22 years old and I have been addicted to opiates for about 2 years and its been hell.
It started off when i had knee surgery, I got a bunch of pain pills and I loved the way they made me feel. I never knew what i was in for.
Ive always been weird about drugs. Until i was about 17 or 18, i had never done anything drug wise. I started drinking and smoking pot but thats not the problem.
I finally broke down and asked for help because i cant do it alone. I have tried cold turkey and i just cant do it. The W/D of this crap can realllllly break a person down. I dont feel like doin anything when i dont have pills, and i cant stand it.
Sometimes i have to smoke weed just to try and keep my W/D in control.
I have an appointmet with a DR tomorrow for suboxone treatment and to be honest with you im excited because im so tired and so done of walking down this road.
I'm kinda scared too, because i dont know what's ahead of me.
Could anyone give me some information on what I have ahead of me??
I know it wont be easy but im willing to do it cus i want my life back.
Hi I am 32 yrs old I have been abusing viocodin, tylenol 4's, somas and sometime xantax for over 4 years. I was introduced stricktly as a recreational high, so I never had pain for the medicine to help in my body so each time I took these drugs is was pushing me futher into addiction. I first begab taking 2 vicoden at atime and enjoyed the euphoric feeling or underwater feeling I got. I tend to speak fast and have a more hyper personality but this feeling gave me energy yet calmed me down.
Allowing me to use the excuse of needing it to do my job. For the past year and a half I have reached a point in my addiction where I knew I had to stop because the drug consumed my thinking and controlled my conversation and stopped me from being productive as I would like. This is the Cousin to Heroin and its side affects and w/d are much like its relative. Deep abdominal pain, anxiety (clonipin helps). I got up to taking 15 vics and 4 or 5 somas a day I developed MVP which is the fluttering of the heart so many users experience because of the relaxation of the heart caused by the pills. I never knew me feeling like my head was exploding was a anixiety attack untill today on one of the recovery quotes. Any ways suboxone saved my sanity I was so afraid of the w/d until the soboxone. its gives you hope. I also agree to start off low even with the level of vics I was taking 8mg is fairly small and one tablet last me all day, so you have less work on tapering but no more being consumed with this thing. I am happy to find a site to discuss this stuff openly with people who under stand you. Thanks.
I can really identify with how hard it is to get through early recovery from Opiates. I had a pretty severe addiction to Oxycontin which I let go on for about a year before getting to my breaking point.
I just wanted to let you guys know that January 26th will mark one year of me being opiate free. I feel like if I can do it...you can do it too. Good Luck
as for giving up weed - thats a toughy! as it may help you sleep - though i smoked it for 20years on a daily basis and found that if i was withdrawing - then it really went for those 'dark places' in my mind - the kind of thing you dont really need. i would say - i you feel like quitting - then quit (do you smoke cigs? if so just keep smoking cigs till you are over the W/D's). Though - if all your mates are stoners then its gonna be a difficult for you.
i hope your Docs appointment went well mate.
keep on keepin on
yoss
__________________
yoss
"All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain."
I just wanted to throw my 2 cents in... I was on suboxone for about 3 years. First off, I agree that you should use as little as low a dose as possible. Take the SMALLEST amount that will stop you withdrawal symptoms. As said earlier, this is a VERY powerful opiate even though you do not get high. When you stop taking it, the withdrawals can be worse and longer in duration depending how low your final dose is and the duration of taking it. Ideally, this drug should NOT be used as a long term answer unless you are prepared to detox later for a longer period of time. The key to the detox of sub vs. any opiate is the longer half life of it. Regular opiates have a half life that varies between an hour to 4 or 6 hours. Sub has a half life that is 36 hours. That is a LONG half life. Sub is a great drug. It really helped me quit taking pills but I wish I didn't stay on it for so long. Also, initially, I was taking 4mg a day and it worked at stopping the wd's but like an idiot, I up-ed it to 8mg for absolutely no reason other than that is what was recommended. The lower the dose and faster you are off, the easier it will be to quit sub.
I am not trying to scare anyone but I wanted people to learn from my experience. This drug can be a bad thing if not used correctly. I just feel that the "maintenance" recommendation that comes from many doctors should be avoided if at all possible. But then again vision is always 20-20 in hindsight.
