switching to methadone

Kaelynn

Hi,
I have just come off methadone in september. I understand what you are saying about not being able to afford the pills you are on anymore but i think you should really consider this switch to methadone carefully before you do it... it is really bad for you, i didnt have my periods the whole time i was on it, it seeps into your bones and ***** up your marrow, and there are other side effects too, like when i was on it i was sweating all the time and had pains in my joints and it is very very very hard to come off.
I have never been on the pills you are taking, i dont even know if they are available where i am (ireland) but i was really in bits coming off methadone,and when i came off it i was also got very depressed, im now on anti-depressants.
Im not trying to turn you off it but im just telling you all the things i wish someone had told me before i went on it. Ok it was good because it got me off gear but it really does have ALOT of down sides too, so please bear that it mind.
In relation to the assesment to get on a methadone programme, well i dont know what country you are in so it could be different for me than it is for you but here you have to go to the methadone clinic and see the doc ,just for a quick chat about how much heroin your using, how frequently, wheather you are injecting or smoking and what other drugs you are using like benzo's (valium etc) crack etc etc, then you have to give 3 dirty urine samples(supervised) to the clinic so they know your actually using then thats it your on the clinic. As for the dose well i started on 40mls a day but i was such a heavy user (my habit was about €200 per day at the time) that the 40mls just wasnt enough for me so i ended up on 100mls a day. Also i have to say at this point that i probably did not need 100mls per day but i was still in a really addictive state of mind and was just not able to cope with reality at the time, although i didnt want to use heroin, so i got my dose of methadone high enough so that i would sleep alot of the time...so i guess that answers your other question - yes you do get a bit of a buzz of methadone in the beginning, like even the first tiime i took it and that was only a 40ml dose i was a bit light headed and tired, but you wouldnt actually be stoned, you can still go about your business. It does give you the pinned pupil look that heroin does aswell but not quite as bad though.

Good luck whatever you decided to do and i hope it all works out for you, and like i say i am not trying to turn you off methadone because it did save me in alot of ways but i wish i had of had all the facts about it before i started on it because i really did think it was a 'quick-fix' for all my problems and it was not.

56789

methadone is harder to get off than heroin . you might want to think about not swithching one or another . an come back to reality . good luck to you staying on any drug can cause a bad cycle . an alot of harm . i have heard of heroin addicts that like it better . programs are available if you want it

supron

okay first I've been clean off heroin and painkillers for 2 1/2 yrs now. I've been on suboxone this whole time. I just know me and if I am not on anything to supress my cravings I will use again. I really do believe in opiate replacement therapy. As for methadone being harder to get off, that is just one of the "myths" about it. People only say that cause the withdrawal is longer so all you have to do is wean down slowly. The same goes for suboxone technically that should be harder to get off than heroin because it's a long acting opiate too. I've been on sub for over 2 yrs and it's too expensive and it really does not help my cravings anymore, plus what happens if i break my arm and need pain meds. They won't work cause of the suboxone. Now I hear that methadone is a pain reliever too so that would be better and it's a hell of a lot cheaper. I already accept the fact that I might be on opiate replacement for maybe the rest of my life and im only 26. I'd rather be on something like that than risk a relapse because with my history I've been a chronic relapser. As far as the clinic wanting dirty urines I'm not using heroin just suboxne but the guy at the clinic said I shouldn't have sub or methadone in my system when it's time to get on. He said I have to have 3 failed attempts at recovery. So i was at a detox in 04 an iop in 07 and suboxne since 06 so I guess thats 3. I live in the states by the way ohio cleveland. I think the person below me thinks I'm still using or something I'm just wanting too switch because of price issues. thank you.

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Ron

56789

personal opion i think your to young to accept that you may be on methadone for the rest of your life . all we have is today. do what you have to do but never say never. the myth is not a myth . all these meds are bad for us sooner or later. oh sure they help us like a god send. but for alot of us theres the darkside .if you think it will help you i say go for it . one day you may make a diffrent choice. as methodone will wear on you just like the suboxone . set a goal for your self oh say 6 months a year an stick to it . i have met people in the program that relapsed 100 times before they made it good luck to you my fellow addict scottoh i dont think your using i have been told this by my friend kevin about it being very hard to get off methadone . an remember a drug ia drug is drug. one could lead to the other

supron

Yeah your right about being on it for the rest of my life. I'm sure I'll want to get off of everything when I get older and am ready for it. right now my life is not intact at all and I believe I need these meds for now. Ya your right about the sub wearing and then the methadone wearing, like i said before i been of subs almost 2 1/2 yrs and it really does hold my cravings and what happens if I break a bone or need pain meds. The pain meds won't work over the sub. I would just rather be on the cheaper methadone. Today is the 5th day I jumped off subs at 16 mg. I feel itchy and couldn't sleep last night but thats about it. I have clonidine so that helps a little. I just wanted to see what the "sickness" of subs felt like. But I know when the time comes to wean off whichever drug I'm on I'm strong enough to do it. I used to wean myself off of heroin and oxy's all the time and I would have friends saying "man i would just do what you got and get high". Well there was no more getting high that's why I just assumed wean down but I always went back sooner or later. But yeah thanks for the support and info, I appreciate it.

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Ron

amed225

you can / will get high from methadone. not from suboxine. they are both tough to get off of. not sure if one is worse than the other. if you really want to get off drugs and not get high, stay on the sub and taper yourself off it, unless you can do it CT. you will for sure get high from the methadone then you will be back where you started. good luck, amed

56789

sounds like you have a positive a outlook . your welcome keep us posted on your progess. work with you md to set goals scott