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445312 tn?1205376479

Im a addict starting the methadone clinic soon

I been addicted to opiets for 5 years now i have always like then every since i took my first one when i was 13. And I am starting the methadone clinic in 2 weeks. i was suppost to start today the 11 but the clinic called 2 days ago and moved my appt ahead for 2 weeks. I have waited 4 months now and i was so close and they took it away from me. Im tired of living like a junkie. But anyways just wondering about the long term effect of Methadone cause i know i am going to be on it for a long time but my life is far from the norm right now i feel that is the only way i will be able to live a productive life. Ive tried to quit and i just cant do it. it is a demon and it has got ahold of me bad. Ive been told so different things about Methadone and i know it is trading one for the other but I know I have to have it one way or another and my tolerance is so high it scares me sometimes and the clinic will have the doctors to monitor it for me  thanks so much for a minute of your time
16 Responses
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Avatar universal
Hello my name is melissa and I also have been in your position not wanting to live the junkie life and having to make the hard decision of, do I quit cold turkey, ,do I get on suboxone or methadone? Personaly I couldn't do cold turkey, I have 2 young children and no family that couldve taken care of them for the month it would of taken me to withdrawal completly. So instead I chose suboxone (the first time) I was on it for 3 yrs but honestly towards the end I was craving not sure why and the state I was living in was passing a law that said the medicaid or mainecare was only gonna cover suboxone for 2 yrs so when the 2 yrs was over I made the switch over to methadone... now going to a "clinic" everyday does suck the closest one to me was 1hr away!!  But we've all spent many days and nights driving around looking to score...  anyway lucky for me I got in 2 days later thank goodness... and make sure on the day you go in for intake you don't pee dirty for zanax or clonipin because a lot of clinics won't dose you because they are worried abt how the methadone will interact wirh it now that doesn't mean if you are prescribed it that some clinics can probably will figure out a way for you to be onit but that's up to the doctor at the clinic to monitor.... also if you hqve suboxone in your system
some clinics will wait the 3 days but if to u tell them you havent done it in 3 days you shuld be good.... these are just couple tips cause all clinics are different!!! I recently just moved to alabama and I have to go to Georgia for my methadone (it was the closest) and honestly I hate it!! They seem to be more abt the $$ they don't really enforce groups just the whole thing is like a legal drug dealer as another person worded it nand I'm sure a lot of people wuld love that lol but I'm truly trying to get my life together ill never be truly clean and sober I'm an ADDICT for the rest of my life but I can try to not be on the hunt everyday and wonder what I'm gonna pawn and put my bills off"again" cause ill pay them later blablablabla... beimg on my methadone I'm not hunting alllllday long I have things nice things I pay all my bills I can buy my kids a toy wen we go to the store.. but just like everything else in this world you make your own decision if this seems right to you try it !!!! I'm not gonna sit here and preach as to which drugs have worse withdrawals (they all make you feel like you wanna die) I'm not gonna say to not make "friends" with  people at the clinic I met my now fiamce and father to my 2 beautiful children .. I guess just listen to your heart and gut take in what everyone is saying but don't base anything on it, lol.. Good luck ;)
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
my son has been on the methadone for a little over 2 years. He left the clinic one morning and stopped by a girlfriends house and spent a hour there and then headed home. He was about 35 minutes from home. A police officer in this small town he lives in stopped him. He was riding his motorcycle. The officer said he was weaving. He was not. He asked him if he had been drinking and he said no. They did a breath test on him and it showed it showed 00. They asked where he had come from and he told them.He  was told by the clinic that it was federaly funded and that it did not impair his motor skills or reaction times. They arrested him for dui and would not accept letter from the clinic or doctor stating that it did not impair him. He now has a dui on his record because of this and thought patients were protected who went there because of it being federal funded. People who go to the clinics are from all walks of life and if it was illegal would not the police be there to arrest everyone who left there.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
We all have demons to overcome, two weeks is not as long as you have waited already.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
another side effect of methadone, is forget having any type of sex life...no libido at all whatsoever...nothingness...UGH!  
Helpful - 0
228936 tn?1249094248
Methadone is looked at by professionals as "harn redution therapy" or the lessor of two evils. I'm not entirerly against it even though I spent far too many years on it at many different clinics. It can be  helpfull  more for short term or for life if a person is hopeless. It is not effective in people who are poly drug abusers or drink. It can be good for people who only abuse opiates. The worst drwalbacks are the side effects like intense sweating, severe constipation, depression and lethargy, nodding and more. It takes a lot longer to detox from methadone than other narcotics and this has to do more with time on it than dose. The worst thing for me about clinics are the people. Don't make friends there like I did. They are not the cream of the crop and there are many criminals there.  I seen it work for some but most people abuse the methadone system as I did. "Methadone, there's no future in it" all the best
Helpful - 0
401095 tn?1351391770
I agree.....methadone is better than illegal drug use and buying on the streets...my son worked in a methadone clinic....I guess if you dont plan on quitting it one day then u r ok...I have been reading this forum and listening to the methodone folks and sub folks....I know it is awful WD-ing from methadaone...I think suboxone is supposed to be milder and some WD from methadone using suboxone...gosh..what a cycle to finally quit...aftercare is so important...do u go to  NA?
Helpful - 0
445312 tn?1205376479
By the way I am the sister of the girl whos picture you see. She is joining the methadone clinic because she has seen how my life has improved. I have set back and watched her suffer through jonsing and hunting for anything and she sees me not suffering anymore and i know this will be the best thing for her and her son. When she starts we will be going together and we are in it together. I cant wait for her life to start!
Helpful - 0
445312 tn?1205376479
I know it seems like trading one illegal drug for a legal one, but i have been in a methadone clinic for 95 days now and my life has changed for the better. I dont get high from it now that my body has adjusted to it on a regular basis. I was scared to start because I didnt want to be addicted to it because i heard how hard it was to get off. But now im not in the bathrooms everywhere snorting anything i can get my hands on im actually living life. They say it is a disease well think about it Diabetes is a disease would you take their medicine away? I think methadone was the best thing that has happened to me. I was slowly dying but now Im living for the sake of my son and we have a great relationship now. If anyone was thinking about starting a methadone clinic do your homework and surely its better than what your doing to yourself now.I dont disagree with people who are against it because everyone is intitalled to their own opinion but some people need help no matter what is the solution.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Dear Lady:
My name is Donald aka rezdog69 and I have been on the meth for about 7&1/2 years now and got up to over 200mgs. Please consider an alternative because this meth deal is not a sulution but a trade from an ilegal dealer to a legal one. I think if I knew then what I know now about the meth program I would have gon off of the heroin cold turkey or with the help of a good detox program as a mater of fact they did detox me @ the Vancouver detox center safely, I had a ten year heroin habit and befor that it was morphine t's and r's and what ever other opiate I could use. The meth is the most hardest type of opiate to detox from I'm down to 55mgs a day and I tried to go cold tukey this weekend and I tell you I had to get my dad to come and drive me to the drug store to get my meth carries, I was a stupid fool and flushed my weekend doses because I thought I was strong enough to shake the monkey. Big mistake, God bless you for your desire to end your run with the dragon but try another approach.

lots of love  and support to another addict.

A friend
Helpful - 0
425312 tn?1279966179
Please think about this.....here are some truths about Methadone....
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|   THE TRUTH ABOUT METHADONE WITHDRAWALS!!
Mar 03, 2008 06:10PM - 1 comments


IF YOU DON'T WANT IT TO BE BLUNT DON'T READ!

THE REAL TRUTH ABOUT METHADONE WITHDRAWALS:
#1 BE READY TO SIT OR LAY ON THE COUCH FOR AT LEAST 2 1/2 -3 WEEKS.
NOW THE PHYSICAL PART:
SWEATING,,HOT/COLD CHILLS,,FEVER,,RLS,,CREEPY CRAWLY SKIN,,DIARREAH,,YAWNING,,SNEEZ ING,,VOMITING,,SLEEPLESSNESS,, SHAKES,,ANXIETY,,DID I MENTION NO SLEEP.
NOW THE MENTAL PART:
FEELING OF DYING (YOU'RE NOT DYING) BUT YOU FEEL LIKE IT,,WORTHLESSNESS,,NO "GETUPANGO",,UMPH,,
SO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A VERY SUPPORTIVE SPOUSE,SIGN. OTHER AND FAMILY TO HELP YOU FOR THE NEXT 3 WEEEKS. AT LEAST FOR ME THE FIRST 2 WEEKS ARE/WERE HELL. NO HOUSE WORK NONE NADA ZILCH. BUT YOU HAVE TO MAKE YOURSELF GET UP AND GET YOUR MIND OFF OF THINGS,,,THAT WILL GET YOU BETTER QUICKER.
FOR THE SYMPTOMS:
HOT BATHS HOT BATHS HOT BATHS....& VITAMINS VITAMINS VITAMINS
ONE A DAY OR CENTRUM
ST JOHNS WORT (MOOD SUPPORT)
EAT BANANAS (FOR RLS)
MELATONIN (TO SLEEP TAKE RIGHT BEFORE BED)TAKE THEN DIRECTLY TO BED!! IT WORKS BETTER IN THE DARK
SUPER MILK THISTLE TO DETOX YOUR LIVER
POTASSIUM (BE CAREFUL WITH THIS READ THE LABEL)
AMINO ACIDS
CLONIDINE (IF YOU CAN FOR SLEEP)
DRINK WATER NO CAFFEINE TRY NOT TO SMOKE THAT MUCH STAY AWAY FROM SWEETS DRINK BOOST OR BREEZE OR ENSURE TO REPLENISH THE VITAMINS THAT THE METHADONE HAS TAKEN.....BELIEVE ME THIS STUFF WORKS IT HELPED ME..
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
This is your decision & trust me when I say, its a choice that you really should think about as methadone isnt somthing to just jump onto without doing your homework, this drug has saved many lives, & has given hope to even the worst of the worst addicts, you dont even realize just how powerful it is untill you start to detox off it, I now understand why so many people fear getting off it, as it takes work & dedication, Im finally at 3mgs & Im taking this all the way down to the last mg, Im gonna do everything in my power to make this detox as gentle on my body as possible. You do whats best for you! You are the one who knows whats best for you, Im merely sugesting to understand what your getting into, as I was so drugged up when I first came to my methadone clinic, that I just didnt care about anything but replacing one opiate with another. Penelope
Helpful - 0
412194 tn?1233621532
Hii and keep posting.  I know it's hard.  We all feel like junkies is one reason we get clean we are "addicts"  to me that is a better term and you can do this.  I know you can.  So hang in there my prayers go out to you.  All the angels here will help and encourage you as they did me this forum is the best thing that happened to me and you can just feel the love.
Hugzzzzzzzz stay strong.
swtbreezie
Helpful - 0
417564 tn?1287982827
Oh, I remember we had to wait almost 3 weeks for our first dose...it was brutal.
Helpful - 0
417564 tn?1287982827
My fiance and I started the clininc in April last year...we had reached a very low point...opiates are debilitating so it is easy to understand where you are coming from.  Today is day#4 off methadone.  We are certainly not advocates of that drug, but it did provide us with one essential element of a productive life...structure.  
By no means are we advocates of methadone, but it is an option you have.  We feel the most important thing about methadone is to get off of it quickly.
Please continue posting and best of luck regardless of what you do!  My journal has some info that might help if you would like to check it out.
Peace & love
steven & murphy
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
suboxone is definatley a better option...no doubt about it...
i sent you a private message also...
Helpful - 0
434975 tn?1205290735
i used to go toa clinic in huntsville alabama and here u jus go really early well i did and got prossessed in that mornin and got my dose but it was a methadone clinic there are 2 like within 10 miles of each other in huntsville.....long term it rough welll for me it was i got up to 130 mgs a day and sometimes more when i could get it off the street...went to rehab and felt normal after abt 3 months  did a quick suboxone detox...u shoudl see if tere are any subuxone docs around u ..u can get on a maintence and ling term plan of it as well....hope i could help good luck
Helpful - 0
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