Aa
Can a pregnant woman be detoxed from methadone?
I am thirty years old and have been trying desperately to change my life over the past few years. I have been using on and off for seventeen years, and have been through eight inpatient treatments and many other outpatient and detox facilitys. I've always wanted to stop but it's been a difficult road. My addiction progressed to herion and I ended up on the methadone maintenence program about four years ago. The first two years were rough but thanks to the grace of God and my family I have been clean now for over a year and a half. My husband and my son have been my anchor to reality and responsibility. My husband does not smoke, drink or use drugs and never has(how we ended up together is a mystery). Also through a stroke of luck I got pregnant with my first son during a time in my life that I was clean, so there where no problems with him at birth. The only problems we have with him is the horrible separation anxiety he suffers from because of my past behavior. I have been to many detoxes during his life and he did not understand why mommy had to be gone and also while I was using I wasn't home much, so that didn't help. Anyway I have been coming down on my methadone dose since last July and I am down to 40mgs. I recently found out I was pregnant. I really wanted to be off the methadone before this happened, but that is not how things have worked out. My husband and I are happy about the baby, we are just worried. I don't want my baby to go through withdrawls because of my problems. I have a big problem with that! The bad part is everone including the clinic I go to says I could miscarry if I detox, but I have read otherwise from mothers that were in the same boat as me. I am so confused. I acually went down at least 10mgs possibly 15mgs before I found out I was pregnant, so I really want to detox if I can. Any information I could get regarding this matter I would be very grateful for. Thank you in advance. Wendylee
Go to he hospital, tell them you are pregnant and on methadone. Then get off it.
There are some situations that have lots of shades of grey that allow room for error, experimententaion, rationalization, and delay....
Pregnancy is not one of those.
Baby first. Possibly detoxing would harm the baby-but continuing to use will also harm the baby.
Have you ever seen an infant withdraw from drugs?
I rest my case.
ps-I say go to the hospital because they won't detox you in a way that would harm the fetus.
Pixie
There are some situations that have lots of shades of grey that allow room for error, experimententaion, rationalization, and delay....
Pregnancy is not one of those.
Baby first. Possibly detoxing would harm the baby-but continuing to use will also harm the baby.
Have you ever seen an infant withdraw from drugs?
I rest my case.
ps-I say go to the hospital because they won't detox you in a way that would harm the fetus.
Pixie
I have a 6 page Document all about Methadone detox and Pregnancy,esp during the 3`rd Trimester etc,etc.At the moment I am too upset that you allowed yourself to get pregnant while on Methadone,if I can calm down ,I may post,for now I will go and have a cry.
3 Comments
wow do you even know this person's situation? cause im reading these post for the same reason im on methadone and just found out im pregnant only I did not intend on becoming pregnant . I was raped ! yes it's sad baby going threw withdraw , but it's even worse when u have people judging you not even knowing the circumstances.
Hi there raerae. I am so SO very sorry to hear about your being raped. There are really no words for that kind of experience but know that I feel you and am just sorry. And everyone's circumstances are their life. No one should ever judge. This is an older post though and sometimes people do know each other better than you think. This forum is a great place to develop friendships and relationships. I don't know if spook knew them or not. But, either way, spook posted this in 2001----- lONG time ago. We can support YOU now. Start your own thread and we will. I'm here for you. We're all here for you and sorry about your baby going through withdrawal. Let us know how you are doing and please now we CARE!
Raerae, I am in a similar situation although I was not raped I had been told I was menopausal and was not producing eggs. I am taking methadone for pain connected to chronic leukaemia. People judge before they know an individuals circumstance and it sickens me. How about all those people who 'allowed' themselves to become pregnant whilst drinking? Alcohol use has far long-reaching implications for a child than methadone does. Methadone during pregnancy will have no long term effects on the baby and they can be safely reduced from it after birth. The last thing anyone should do is just stop taking their medication x
When I was pregnant with my daughter 8 years ago and forced to go to Hospital "X", I had been clean for several months. But, "X" forced me to detox to a VERY low dose (it was all BLIND dosing). I couldn't handle the detox. I began buying "street" methadone, and when that got too expensive, I started buying heroin. Hospital "X" doesn't seem to care if the women can't deal with the detox and start using again! They just keep on dropping that dose, claiming its best for the baby. How can it be better for the baby if the mother starts using heroin again!?
Luckily, my daughter was born healthy, although she was one month premature and only weighed 4 lbs. I think it's a miracle, since I was using heroin EVERY day in my 7th & 8th months. I HAD TO, doctor, because I was so sick from withdrawals, I just couldn't stand it! I hope you understand.
Over the past 20 years I have been an addict, I have had many girlfriends and known other women who were pregnant and hid it from their clinics as long as they could because they were absolutely TERRIFIED about going to "Hospital X!" After buying a subscription to Methadone Today, I learned that addictionologists, including the ones who write the TIP and TAP books, recommend completely the opposite of what "Hospital X" is doing to women. Can't someone make them stop!? Or why can't the other methadone clinics in the Detroit area give pregnant patients a choice whether to stay at their clinic or to go to "X"? - A Very Worried Patient (With Not Much Time Left Before I Start Showing)
Dear Worried:
The mistreatment which you suffered eight years ago that resulted in your child's low birth weight and premature birth is now subject to a claim of malpractice due to the clinical research and practice guidelines that attest to the following:
Methadone should be increased, commonly as much as 30 percent, during pregnancy. Failure to medicate adequately increases fetal distress, prematurity and spontaneous abortion. Methadone maintenance, when adequate to suppress the need for illicit drug abuse, results in healthier, higher birth weight newborns compared with mothers who continue to use heroin. Infants born to methadone-maintained mothers do not over time differ significantly from those born to non-dependent mothers in ways that can be attributed to methadone.
Management of neonatal opioid withdrawal is a safe procedure and not to be feared, especially compared to the risks of underdosing pregnant patients who relapse as a result. Many of the infants of methadone maintained mothers may not require much in the way of management of neonatal abstinence, but it is almost impossible to predict for an individual case (at CAP clinics, there was at least one infant whose mother delivered at a maintenance dose of 180 mg/d whose abstinence syndrome was easily managed).
"Blind" dosage should never be practiced when not requested by the patient. It is demeaning, unsafe, anxiety provoking, and encourages diversion among nursing staff. It is a sign of a punitive and non-medically oriented program where administration has little understanding of the disease of addiction and even less empathy for the patients whom they serve. Run, do not walk, from such a facility.
I have no idea why pregnant patients should be banned from MMT programs and will not comment on this bizarre practice, which you describe, of herding them all into a single clinic. It is not done anywhere else in the world in my experience.
There are guidelines about monitoring prenatal care that all clinics must observe in the federal regulations. This implies that pregnant women should be served. Depriving women of the option of attending the clinic of their choice should be addressed with the State of Michigan or with the agencies who license or fund these no-service clinics.
Providing care to pregnant women should be a primary requirement for licensing or funding in my opinion. It is one of the truly critical health care interventions that MMT clinics can do better than any other facility. The federal rule regarding admission criteria for pregnant addicts is minimal compared with those for others and reflects the government's expectation that licensed clinics should serve this population ahead of everyone else and certainly not have the option of excluding it.
Luckily, my daughter was born healthy, although she was one month premature and only weighed 4 lbs. I think it's a miracle, since I was using heroin EVERY day in my 7th & 8th months. I HAD TO, doctor, because I was so sick from withdrawals, I just couldn't stand it! I hope you understand.
Over the past 20 years I have been an addict, I have had many girlfriends and known other women who were pregnant and hid it from their clinics as long as they could because they were absolutely TERRIFIED about going to "Hospital X!" After buying a subscription to Methadone Today, I learned that addictionologists, including the ones who write the TIP and TAP books, recommend completely the opposite of what "Hospital X" is doing to women. Can't someone make them stop!? Or why can't the other methadone clinics in the Detroit area give pregnant patients a choice whether to stay at their clinic or to go to "X"? - A Very Worried Patient (With Not Much Time Left Before I Start Showing)
Dear Worried:
The mistreatment which you suffered eight years ago that resulted in your child's low birth weight and premature birth is now subject to a claim of malpractice due to the clinical research and practice guidelines that attest to the following:
Methadone should be increased, commonly as much as 30 percent, during pregnancy. Failure to medicate adequately increases fetal distress, prematurity and spontaneous abortion. Methadone maintenance, when adequate to suppress the need for illicit drug abuse, results in healthier, higher birth weight newborns compared with mothers who continue to use heroin. Infants born to methadone-maintained mothers do not over time differ significantly from those born to non-dependent mothers in ways that can be attributed to methadone.
Management of neonatal opioid withdrawal is a safe procedure and not to be feared, especially compared to the risks of underdosing pregnant patients who relapse as a result. Many of the infants of methadone maintained mothers may not require much in the way of management of neonatal abstinence, but it is almost impossible to predict for an individual case (at CAP clinics, there was at least one infant whose mother delivered at a maintenance dose of 180 mg/d whose abstinence syndrome was easily managed).
"Blind" dosage should never be practiced when not requested by the patient. It is demeaning, unsafe, anxiety provoking, and encourages diversion among nursing staff. It is a sign of a punitive and non-medically oriented program where administration has little understanding of the disease of addiction and even less empathy for the patients whom they serve. Run, do not walk, from such a facility.
I have no idea why pregnant patients should be banned from MMT programs and will not comment on this bizarre practice, which you describe, of herding them all into a single clinic. It is not done anywhere else in the world in my experience.
There are guidelines about monitoring prenatal care that all clinics must observe in the federal regulations. This implies that pregnant women should be served. Depriving women of the option of attending the clinic of their choice should be addressed with the State of Michigan or with the agencies who license or fund these no-service clinics.
Providing care to pregnant women should be a primary requirement for licensing or funding in my opinion. It is one of the truly critical health care interventions that MMT clinics can do better than any other facility. The federal rule regarding admission criteria for pregnant addicts is minimal compared with those for others and reflects the government's expectation that licensed clinics should serve this population ahead of everyone else and certainly not have the option of excluding it.
The last comment really bothers me. Saying that methadone is worse than heroin is irresponsible and WRONG. Some people who get off of methadone think it was the worst thing in the world, and that nobody should ever be on it, but their opinion is based only on their personal experience and ignorance. For MOST people with the metabolic disorder of addiction, the BEST thing they can do is get on methadone. They may want to detox quickly if they haven't been an addict for a long time, but most people stabilize on methadone for a period of time before trying to detox off of it. The FACT is that many people who have the metabolic disorder of addiction need to be on methadone the rest of their lives, because their brains no longer manufacture enough endorphins. In general, the longer one has been an addict the longer one needs to be on methadone. The main problem with methadone is that its primarily available at clinics, and methadone CLINICS are the biggest problem for people on methadone. Fortunately, doctors are beginning to prescribe methadone to give people freedom from the bondage of methadone clinics. The "authorities" are talking about issuing a "license" to doctors which allows them to prescribe methadone, but that is total nonsense designed to continue the stigma. All it does is continue to stigmatize addiction patients, and they would still be subjected to urinalysis and random inspection of their medication. Granted it would be a bit better than going to a clinic, but not much better, and it would cost a lot for doctors to do meet all the requirements listed in the "proposed physician guidelines" for prescribing methadone. Having responsibility for my own supply of methadone is part of my recovery, and I've reduced my dose considerably since I got out of the clinic system last year. Clinics treat us like we can't be trusted with our own medication, and that is WRONG. One of the most important benefits of getting methadone from my doctor is that I can take split-doses now. Split dosing is MUCH better than taking the whole dose at once each day. When you dose all at once you have to take much more than you need at the time in order for it to hold you 24-hours. I take just one 10mg. tablet every 6-8 hours now (3-4 a day), but if I take the whole dose at once each day I'd need twice as much to hold me for 24-hours, and that one big dose causes negative side-effects like drowsiness, constipation, depression, sleep disturbance, etc. Getting back to pregnant methadone patients: it is especially important for pregnant MMT patients to take split doses, because they may metabolize/excreet their methadone much faster than normal, especially during the trimester. Even some clinics are allowing split-dosing for pregnant patients now. Pregnant patients are much better served by their own physician, and they shouldn't be required to attend methadone clinics. People with other health problems like being HCV+ are also better treated by their doctors, and almost everyone on methadone is HCV+. Methadone clinics are good for nobody except those few who profit off of them. I no longer have to attend a clinic for methadone, but I STILL devote a lot of time and energy trying to help people get out of clinics, because I know how evil they can be. There will always be a need for "comprehensive" drug treatment clinics that also dispense methadone, but most people on MMT should be getting their methadone presribed from their doctors. Doctors CAN prescribe methadone to treat "pain", so ask your doctor to treat the pain caused by your addiction (leg and joint pain, etc.) - they can do that without being persecuted by the DEA, and after you educate them they'll want to help you if they're good doctors. All they can do is say no, and then you need a new doctor anyway!
im sure u can slowly with doctors advice very slowly of course.!!!! i agree with the other guy methadone sucks !!!!! is disgusting and replacing one habbit with another.. imho..get of that stuff.. its poison... what good is it when ur still addicted mode?.learn new ways and become a new person goodluck u will be agreath mother.
You are doing the right thing by being on methadone. Dont let anyone tell you any different. I tried detoxing while pregnant and at 10mg and 8months I couldnt go any lower I tried 7mg and couldnt make it throught the night. But everyone is different, before you try talk to your doctor and your clinic counseler. But remember your being responsible and taking care of your baby and yourself by being on the methadone!
i just found out i was pregnant 2 day 12-14-07 i am taking methadone but being detoxed i really dont know 2 much and i am very worried not to mention i am also a high risk iam currently on 14 mg what will the clinic do will they hold me on that or will i still have to detox the cinic iam currently at is understanding in no way shape or form all they care about is getting their $88.00a wk.any feed back from any mothers who gave birth while on the methadone would greatly help thanks much......a worried mom
I am currnetly on 70 mgs of methadone and I am also 7 weeks pregnant. I have been on methadone for almost 2 years. I stayed at 50 mgs for a year then I started to come down but when I did that I felt terrible. I couldnt sleep or anything. So then I went back up and now I continue going up. I was on 65 mgs when I found out I was pregnant and the doctor justmoved me up 5 mgs. My OBGYN told me that if I detox or stop taking the methadone I would lose my baby. When I asked the doctor at the methadone clinic about it he said that my OBGYN would know more then he does.
I am so glad that you are here on this forum welcome! You should know that this post is from 2001. It is hard to see but if you look close it says 04/20/01.
We do want to hear from you so start a new post. Click the green Post A Question button and post away. :-)
We do want to hear from you so start a new post. Click the green Post A Question button and post away. :-)
my name is angela, i too am pregnant, i am 16 weeks along and i wanted to stop takeing my dose at the clinic. but i talked with my doctor and did a lot of self reaserch and found that it IS better for the baby not to stop my dose. my current dose is 63mg. i dont intend to go up on my dose if i can help it. after having the baby i am then going to try to get off of the dose cuz ever since i started my dosing i have experianced some acne on my face, i hate it, i have never before had an acne problem. but anyway i hope this has helped your decison. GOOD LUCK ang.
Today is January 28, 2009. I have been married to a heroin addict who has been on methadone programs off and on many times over the years.
My own mother was put on methadone pills for chronic pain before she passed away. And now, my son's girlfriend, who is due to have their son May 22, 2009 has been put on it because of abusing oxycontin AND heroin. She's not even showing yet and you can't tell she's pregnant at all.
Her mother had to sneak behind her father's back to get her on it and her father forced her off of it last week with no time to detox whatsoever.
He has no idea or does not care what effects this can and will have on the baby. She told my ex-husband this past Monday that she hadn't felt the baby move in two days and, since I live 500 miles away and can't go to her, I sent a text message asking if everything were alright.
Her father intercepted the text and basically told me that now is the time for me and my family to leave her alone and get on with our lives. I told him he'd lost his mind if he thought for one minute I'd turn my back on my grandson, IF he survives after what he's done to his daughter, who, btw, is 21 and totally dependent on him financially.
My son also got into a methadone clinic, but has since checked himself into the hospital and they are detoxing him with Seboxin (sp) and he has now moved on to rehab.
Her father hates my son, but this isn't about her father OR my son OR her, for that matter.
It's about the unborn baby and the withdraw he's going through due to her father's inaction to help his daughter kick her habit. She was just at someone's house days ago begging for pills because she was "sick". It could also cost us all the life of that precious and innocent baby.
I have to say that I totally agree with some comments made above. Methadone is a very nasty synthetic form of opium and is much, much harder to kick than heroin. It destroys your bones, causes you to lose your teeth, and many other side effects aside from the fact that it's extremely addictive. Even more so than heroin.
That's not to say I'm telling anyone to get off of it and go back to illegal drugs, but there ARE other alternatives out there now that are less stressful and less harmful to you AND your unborn child and it would be in your best interest to discuss this with your OBGYN as soon as humanly possible.
Methadone is no miracle drug. It's just a plain old drug. Period. And way too many rely on it to keep them off the streets and it, too, is abused. While that may be good for some, I don't agree that it should be the case with anyone who is pregnant.
No baby deserves to come into this world having to fight an addiction to anything. The world is cruel and hard enough without the added stress of addiction.....on both baby and mother.
My own mother was put on methadone pills for chronic pain before she passed away. And now, my son's girlfriend, who is due to have their son May 22, 2009 has been put on it because of abusing oxycontin AND heroin. She's not even showing yet and you can't tell she's pregnant at all.
Her mother had to sneak behind her father's back to get her on it and her father forced her off of it last week with no time to detox whatsoever.
He has no idea or does not care what effects this can and will have on the baby. She told my ex-husband this past Monday that she hadn't felt the baby move in two days and, since I live 500 miles away and can't go to her, I sent a text message asking if everything were alright.
Her father intercepted the text and basically told me that now is the time for me and my family to leave her alone and get on with our lives. I told him he'd lost his mind if he thought for one minute I'd turn my back on my grandson, IF he survives after what he's done to his daughter, who, btw, is 21 and totally dependent on him financially.
My son also got into a methadone clinic, but has since checked himself into the hospital and they are detoxing him with Seboxin (sp) and he has now moved on to rehab.
Her father hates my son, but this isn't about her father OR my son OR her, for that matter.
It's about the unborn baby and the withdraw he's going through due to her father's inaction to help his daughter kick her habit. She was just at someone's house days ago begging for pills because she was "sick". It could also cost us all the life of that precious and innocent baby.
I have to say that I totally agree with some comments made above. Methadone is a very nasty synthetic form of opium and is much, much harder to kick than heroin. It destroys your bones, causes you to lose your teeth, and many other side effects aside from the fact that it's extremely addictive. Even more so than heroin.
That's not to say I'm telling anyone to get off of it and go back to illegal drugs, but there ARE other alternatives out there now that are less stressful and less harmful to you AND your unborn child and it would be in your best interest to discuss this with your OBGYN as soon as humanly possible.
Methadone is no miracle drug. It's just a plain old drug. Period. And way too many rely on it to keep them off the streets and it, too, is abused. While that may be good for some, I don't agree that it should be the case with anyone who is pregnant.
No baby deserves to come into this world having to fight an addiction to anything. The world is cruel and hard enough without the added stress of addiction.....on both baby and mother.
I am currently pregnant and in a methadone treatment program.
First let me start off by mentioning that in New York City, and most of the US, the standard practice is NOT to taper pregnant women off methadone. Tapering off too quickly has been shown to lead to miscarriage, low birth weight, and premature birth in many cases. Usually when a woman is pregnant a doctor will not only advise her to stay on the maintenance dose throughout the pregnancy, but to also possibly increase her dose as she gains more body weight later on. The reasoning is that doctors cannot treat a fetus in withdrawal but can effectively treat a baby once it has been born.
That said I was taking a split dose of 96mg a day when I found out I was pregnant (48mg at the clinic in the morning and 48mg given to me as a take-home bottle for the evening.) I have always been on a split dose, which is necessary for some people who metabolize methadone very quickly -- this sometimes occurs in younger, more active patients.
When I found out I was pregnant my first reaction was to get myself off the methadone as I did not want the baby to be born addicted. However I found out that the medical community was very much against this, saying they did not want me to possibly have a miscarriage. After much discussion and getting many many opinions from many different medical professionals in a variety of different fields (addictions medicine, ob/gyn, pediatrics, etc.) I decided to very slowly initiate a taper during the second month of the pregnancy.
At first I began by taking away 6mg (3mg from each bottle) every 7 days. After getting down to about 70mg I slowed the taper to go down 4mg (2mg out of each bottle) every 7 days. After I went down to about 50mg I slowed the taper down even further to go down 4mg (2mg from each bottle) every 9 days.
I had to sign a number of papers for the doctor including a statement saying that the taper is against medical advice. I also told the doctor that I would report to him immediately if I was feeling any signs of withdrawal, at which point I would consider discontinuing going down on the taper for that week. Furthermore, I found an ob/gyn who is monitoring the pregnancy who specializes in high risk pregnancies, particularly for women with substance abuse issues and women in methadone treatment. She is making me get a sonogram every 3 weeks to monitor the growth of the fetus because she says a methadone taper during pregnancy can result in slow fetal growth. If she tells me that the baby is not properly growing, I will either slow or stop my taper.
So far everything has luckily been going fairly well, but I believe it is important to pay very very close attention as to what's going on while pregnant. If you want to get off methadone while you are pregnant, make sure you have a good set of doctors backing you up. Make sure you speak to both an addictions specialist (shouldn't be difficult if you are part of a methadone program), as well as choosing an ob/gyn that has plenty of experience with pregnant women on methadone. Make sure the taper is done very slowly. Remember that if you are, for example, taking 100mg and reduce that by 10mg, you are taking out a tenth of your dose, but if you are taking 20mg and take out 10mg, you're taking away half the dose! You'll obviously want to go slower and slower as your dose gets lower. You will, however be constrained by the length of the pregnancy, so if you only have a couple of months left in your pregnancy, I would not recommend initiating a taper unless you are already on a fairly low dosage of methadone, as it could lead to fetal distress and potentially much more serious issues such as miscarriage. However, if it is still pretty early on in your pregnancy, I definitely would not discourage trying a very slow, highly supervised methadone taper.
Best of luck to you. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have.
First let me start off by mentioning that in New York City, and most of the US, the standard practice is NOT to taper pregnant women off methadone. Tapering off too quickly has been shown to lead to miscarriage, low birth weight, and premature birth in many cases. Usually when a woman is pregnant a doctor will not only advise her to stay on the maintenance dose throughout the pregnancy, but to also possibly increase her dose as she gains more body weight later on. The reasoning is that doctors cannot treat a fetus in withdrawal but can effectively treat a baby once it has been born.
That said I was taking a split dose of 96mg a day when I found out I was pregnant (48mg at the clinic in the morning and 48mg given to me as a take-home bottle for the evening.) I have always been on a split dose, which is necessary for some people who metabolize methadone very quickly -- this sometimes occurs in younger, more active patients.
When I found out I was pregnant my first reaction was to get myself off the methadone as I did not want the baby to be born addicted. However I found out that the medical community was very much against this, saying they did not want me to possibly have a miscarriage. After much discussion and getting many many opinions from many different medical professionals in a variety of different fields (addictions medicine, ob/gyn, pediatrics, etc.) I decided to very slowly initiate a taper during the second month of the pregnancy.
At first I began by taking away 6mg (3mg from each bottle) every 7 days. After getting down to about 70mg I slowed the taper to go down 4mg (2mg out of each bottle) every 7 days. After I went down to about 50mg I slowed the taper down even further to go down 4mg (2mg from each bottle) every 9 days.
I had to sign a number of papers for the doctor including a statement saying that the taper is against medical advice. I also told the doctor that I would report to him immediately if I was feeling any signs of withdrawal, at which point I would consider discontinuing going down on the taper for that week. Furthermore, I found an ob/gyn who is monitoring the pregnancy who specializes in high risk pregnancies, particularly for women with substance abuse issues and women in methadone treatment. She is making me get a sonogram every 3 weeks to monitor the growth of the fetus because she says a methadone taper during pregnancy can result in slow fetal growth. If she tells me that the baby is not properly growing, I will either slow or stop my taper.
So far everything has luckily been going fairly well, but I believe it is important to pay very very close attention as to what's going on while pregnant. If you want to get off methadone while you are pregnant, make sure you have a good set of doctors backing you up. Make sure you speak to both an addictions specialist (shouldn't be difficult if you are part of a methadone program), as well as choosing an ob/gyn that has plenty of experience with pregnant women on methadone. Make sure the taper is done very slowly. Remember that if you are, for example, taking 100mg and reduce that by 10mg, you are taking out a tenth of your dose, but if you are taking 20mg and take out 10mg, you're taking away half the dose! You'll obviously want to go slower and slower as your dose gets lower. You will, however be constrained by the length of the pregnancy, so if you only have a couple of months left in your pregnancy, I would not recommend initiating a taper unless you are already on a fairly low dosage of methadone, as it could lead to fetal distress and potentially much more serious issues such as miscarriage. However, if it is still pretty early on in your pregnancy, I definitely would not discourage trying a very slow, highly supervised methadone taper.
Best of luck to you. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have.
please i am beggigng i just found out i am pregnant and i have been on methadone sence august of 08.i have two daughters the youngest is eight.i smoked some pot and may have ha a drink or two with both pregancies,but only until i found out i was pregnant .so i am terrifyed . I have been doing tons of research for the last week and Irelize how terribly irresponsible iwas for getting pregnant but it is done.I take 150mgs a day and my first reaction was to go cold turkey.i am farely new to the methadone but not addiction.my piont i guess is i dont want my infant to have horrible painful withdrawl symtoms.Actually iwas also taking a benzo and sleep medication but i stopped it.So i also asked my ob and clinic doc about detox and a taper and was advised by both to continue as iam .i dont think my docs were brutily honest they almost lied as far as whether or not the baby would detox.Know I have been searching the web and my understanding is babies have nasty withdrawl.witch was my first feeling.someone help what do I do?
ya your baby will go through severe withdrawls and anyone who tells you different is lieing for some reason. You say your new to methadone so you probably havn't kicked it before but let me tell you..its the worst thing in the world to do cold turkey...don't do it you will kill your baby and really really hurt yourself. I went from bangin' more than a gram of heroin a day to 55 miligrams of methadone. People at the clinic were I have been a herion addict for the past 7 years and been on methadone and kicked it numerous times. I was a hard core addict for sure. And let me tell you a lot of your kicking is in your head. You can detox from methadone while pregnant. I just did it and my baby is 100% healthy. I started at 55 mlgrams 5 1/2 months ago and i've been off for 12 days now. I went down 2 every other day and kept head strong knowing that i DO NOT want my precious little baby going through anything so horrible. you are on a little bit higher of a dose but i'm gonna say that some of that dose is in your head. decrease what you think right away, like 10 or 15 or even 20...and be strong! you'll be amazed how not bad you feel. the whole time i was crusin down with my dose, i was amazed that i was just fine. try goin down 3 every other day until you get to around 20 or so....trust me it's sooooo much in your head. rest when you need to and relax more than u used to. 12 days of a methadone free life, so far.. is wonderful :) i got cold chills right now when a couple minutes ago i was sweatin' with pit stains... my back hurts so bad, but damn i would much rather keep on crusin and gettin better than ever go back to the life i used to have as a addict. life as an addict sucked. keep on goin girl, and good luck. if you have any questions hit me up i've been doing this whole detox thing a looong time.
I am kinda disguisted that women are so rude and judgemental of other women trying to do whats right. If you have cancer, you take medication. Addiction IS a disease. I know I am also a addict, on methadone coming off. I have been on birth control since my last child was born and it failed me. No everyone ALLOWS themself to get pregnant but it happens and I have seen a baby withdrawl and that pushes me even more to finish the last weeks of my detox. I have been off illegal drugs for 8 yrs, after the first 3 I relapsed with pain pills, found out I was pregnant and had to go back on methadone. I have great support from my OB, the head nurse at my clinic and others. We would be putting our littleones at harm more by using streetdrugs. At least with methadone the doctors know what is in its system.
TO: all on meth and pregnant,
If you follow the plan, and only take the meth, good for you. you are trying to do whats right and there are people out here that have your back. Love ya all
TO: all on meth and pregnant,
If you follow the plan, and only take the meth, good for you. you are trying to do whats right and there are people out here that have your back. Love ya all
I am 7 weeks pregnant and on methadone.i get my take homes and am currently on 60mgs, i was on 150 and have detoxed 10-15 sometimes 20mgs a week. The reason that i am doing this is not because i want to mainly because i am being forced to by in-laws who are sending my husband and i to rehab. but the catch is that at this rehab you have to already be detoxed before entering. Its not that I dont want to go because I do but I also want to do whats best for my baby. What really scares me is that i have had 2 miscarriages before.what also scares me is that we have a bed now at the rehab which means that we leave in one week which also means that i will have to detox cold turkey! I AM SOOOOO SCARED.
please help
sincerely,
desperate
please help
sincerely,
desperate
hey. I think you are in an impossible situation. You can not safely detox off your dose in only 1 week. You said you want to do whats best for the baby. I can assure you that such a rapid detox is of no long or short term benefit to either you or the baby. You must seek proffesional guidance from a doctor. I m confident that no responsible doctor is going to endorse your cold turkey plan. Please reconsider your plan
All the best. Regards Jeremy
All the best. Regards Jeremy
HI Nikki ...first off there is no way to detox of 60mg of methadone in a weeks time regardless if your pregnant or not...your withdrawals will last for weeks not days from that high of dose....second and more importantly it would be DANGEROUS to even try and go cold turkey will pregnant so this CANNOT BE AN OPTION for you and your baby
many obgyn will keep you on it thew your whole pregnancy..if not they will have you do a very slow taper off to avoid fetal distress ...PLEASE contact your doctor b/4 doing anything you dont want a miscarriage...good luck and God bless.....Gnarly
many obgyn will keep you on it thew your whole pregnancy..if not they will have you do a very slow taper off to avoid fetal distress ...PLEASE contact your doctor b/4 doing anything you dont want a miscarriage...good luck and God bless.....Gnarly
NO....IT IS DANGEROUS!!!! THE BABY WILL GO THROUGH WITHDRAWL IT IS SAFER THAN HEROIN~!~
Hey its nikki again. Thank you guys so much for your help and comments.i dont want to detox off of the methadone if anything i feel that i should be going up slightly on my dose. But its my mother-in-law who is pushing this whole issue. But its like she wont listen and she has rehab on the brain. I really do eventually want to come off of it and go to rehab but i feel that while pregnant is definately not the right time.She just wont listen.Im really scared and i dont want a dead or distressed baby. Please help me to find the right words to say to help educate her before its too late.
sincerely,
Nikki
sincerely,
Nikki
HI you need to sit down with your mother/in /law and explain to here that you have done the research and it would be dangerous to just stop the methadone cold turkey for the baby...and express that you do want to get off of it but it is a slow weening process that takes months to do...its nothing you can do overnight also tell her that the baby will be fine they know how to deal with this sort of thing when you deliver ...you might appease her if you talk to your obgyn and discuss tapering off b/4 you deliver but dont do anything without talking to your dr...also make your dr aware that your on methadone if you haven't already they will know what to do...good luck with your whole situation and God bless
.......Gnarly
.......Gnarly
Hi um 25 weeks pregnant and I have been on subutex for my addiction and I too have a year and a half clean I just recently found out that I have to havey gallbladder removed And I was in alot of pain and was unable to get out of bed to take care of my 7 year old so they put me on vicoden and I took 2 5 mg pills every 5 to 6 hours then the obgyn was all the sudden like we are not going to supply u the medication I said that that could put me thru withdraw and into preterm labor and the np said I know like she didn't even care so I contacted a methadone clinic and I see them on Monday i'm really upset can anyone give me an idea on what my baby is going to go thru when he is born anyone that has experanced this please email me Ty ***@**** Ty once agian
Have an Answer?
You are reading content posted in the Addiction: Substance Abuse Community
Is treating glaucoma with marijuana all hype, or can hemp actually help?
If you think marijuana has no ill effects on your health, this article from Missouri Medicine may make you think again.
Julia Aharonov, DO, reveals the quickest way to beat drug withdrawal.
Tricks to help you quit for good.
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
