suboxone success stories anyone?

[throwindatowl]

Im not speaking on this subject because people bite my head off. Please, I want to hear all your stories the good the bad and the ugly. Im interested in the responce so keep um comming and everyone on here that are either consider taking them or getting off them. Oh if nobody knows suboxone is an opiate. My bestfriend of 15 years is starting subs tomorrow and Ill let you know  his process. Have a blessed day everyone and know one thing. THROWINDATOWL IS HERE FOR SUPPORT. AND THANK EVERYONE HERE THATS HELPED ME, GOTTEN MAD AT ME AND ALL IN BETWEEN. YOU ALL HAVE HELPED ALOT!

[dominosarah]

The pharmaceutical company that made oxycontin was fined MANY millions as they knew it was so addictive but they knew there was a huge profit to be made so they proceeded.  It's all about the money here...sad but true.

[hellc@mst]

I guess the dillemma for me is that i am trying to apply NZ logic and my NZ experiences in an American forum and they dont really apply in the US context. For example we dont really have a prescription painkiller problem. Oxycontin, percocet,vicodin,opana,dilaudid and xanax are all narcotics that are rarely if ever prescribed here.

WE certainly have an opioid addiction problem. Mostly morphine  sourced illicitly through chemist burglaries, fake prescriptions, elderly cancer patients desperate to supplement their  pensions OR Homebake( homemade heroin made from OTC codeine tablets or illicit morphine)

I also see a lot of suspicion of doctors fleecing their patients out of their hard earned cash and promoting addictive medicines on behalf of apparently conscienceless pharmaceutical companies. Again this is foreign to me as we dont have methadone or suboxone doctors driving expensive sports cars or building beautiful houses on the misery of drug addicted patients. Methadone is free and suboxone is partially subsidised. This removes the suspicion of being exploited and eliminates the desire to "get your moneys worth"by consuming higher and higher doses.

We do not have Methadone clinics,which appear to be a cash cows in the US. All people on methadone in NZ are routed through a regional methadone base( i suppose you could call it a clinic) but people are only stabilised there, then farmed off to their own GP and collect their methadone from their closest pharmacy. This is in accordance with the disease model. You wouldnt expect someone suffering from any other disease to have to drive many kilometres to a designated clinic to collect their medicine on a daily basis .Many doctors who work for the methadone "clinic"work on a voluntary basis donating a day a week. Of course there are doctors who are employed on  a fulltime basis but they are salaried and their income is not dependant on the number of people they have addicted to methadone.

Detoxing off methadone and Suboxone is client led. That is, no matter how outrageously quick or slow someone wants to come off they( the doctors) are obliged to accomodate this. They are welcome to express their concerns but ultimately the final decision is with the "client". People who are incarcerated while on methadone will have their methadone treatment continue for the duration of their imprisonment

. This is the context upon which i have made many of my seemingly pro Suboxone/ pro methadone comments. I never had the negative experiences i have seen reported here so often and feel obliged to post a perspective that is contrary to the one that dominates this forum. I am not a maintenance apologist nor am i promoting these medications as mothers milk.

Anyways. Kind Regards Jeremy

[dominosarah]

We need to send our people to see your people~~~~~

[hellc@mst]

Yes. I guess an analogy is the alcoholic who drinks whiskey being amazed when vodka has the same effect. So i dont understand how doctors over there are promoting suboxone as non addictive and withdrawal free. I think common sense needs to prevail  and for all those people who fell for that line, somewhere a village is missing their idiot.

Buprenorphine in the form of Temgesic tablets and injections have been successfully employed here and in many European countries for the express purpose of treating pain for 30 years plus.  It is not suprising that doctors in the US are begining to do the same.

Thanks for the information about how newly approved medications work in the US. I really had no idea. Prescribing a medicine for anything other than what it is intended is seriously frowned upon here in NZ and very few doctors have the courage to do so unless it is shown by empirical studies to have positive outcomes.

[ashleyd123]

@jaybay i agree with everything you said. Getting off of sub is no walk in the park-i know all about it. Ive called suboxone hotlines and contacted so many people about the effects of this drug.. Its still out there though and here to stay

[Jaybay]

Just an FYI - once the US FDA approves a drug, it can be prescribed by any doctor for any reason, in any amount, for any length of time.  Here in the US, pain management doctors are now prescribing Suboxone long-term for pain.  If it is prescribed for detox, the doctor must take an 8-hour Federal seminar to be "educated" about the use of Suboxone.  If a doctor writes "for pain" on the prescription, they don't have to take the seminar.  Pain docs tell their patients that Sub is non-addictive.  Wrong!  You can't grind it, snort it, or shoot it without activating the naloxone but you CAN get high on it and you WILL become physically dependent.  I wish everyone the best of luck kicking sub.  Long-term use doesn't seem to do anyone any good.

[kickinhydro]

Hi, I'm still on sub rt now have been since March 2010. I'm on my 2nd sub doctor my 1st doc. Started me on 24 mgs I missed 1 apt. & he would not c me again. Needless 2 say I ran out of subs b4 I could get in with my new doc. I was off C/T 4 5 days, went from 24 mgs 2 0 mgs. Day 1 & 2 were bearable day 3-5 were by far THE WORST days of my life!!! My new doc cut my dose down 2 12 mgs & its been a month & I'm scared sh@@less 2 go any lower right now. I thank God 4 sub but wish I would of started @ a lower dose & mabye should of done a short term program. I'm really not sure when I'll b off I know 4 me it will have 2 b a very SLOW taper. I'm not tring 2 scare anyone cause everyone is different, what works 4 me may not work 4 someone else. I really would not have made it this far W/O the sub & my AA meetings & the wonderful people on medhelp, I don't post a lot but I read everyday & u guys r all GREAT here!

[hellc@mst]

Im amazed to learn that the FDA only approved suboxone for short term detox. I dont understand the wholesale prescibing of suboxone for maintenance purposes in the US when little is known of it longterm effects. This is how it is predominantly prescribed here in NZ with very few people being on suboxone maintenance in spite of its ready availibility and subsidised cost.

Temgesics(Buprenorphine) have been presribed "off label' by sympathetic doctors for nearly 3 decades here as a way of minimising the worst of the withdrawal symptoms so its unique properties are not novel revelation to many knowledgable doctors.My wife who is from South Africa also did a 3 week subutex detox to get off of heroin and she too found it helped immensely and greatly reduced the severity of her withdrawal symptoms

. I underwent a 3 week detox off of methadone over 3 years ago using suboxone and i have to say that the experience was entirely positive. In fact i was only medicated with suboxone for 2 weeks but spent an extra week in the detox unit for good measure. I did have to gradually reduce my methadone dose at home in order for the suboxone to be able to effectively cover the methadone dose i was on. I would say that this period was far more uncomfortable than anything i experienced tapering off of suboxone. I was amazed that the final suboxone assisted push off of the remaining dose of methadone i was on(22.5mgs) was comparatively easy.

In the right circumstances and with the correct administration, this drug can be an invaluable resource for opioid addicted people to finally commit to long term sobriety. Alas, there will inevitably be those who resist following the doctors instructions or poorly trained doctors will continue to prescibe suboxone maintenance where it is not required, or people will source their suboxone illicitly then vociferously denounce suboxone as the devils concoction, when it doesnt work , in spite of the fact that they had no idea what they were doing in the first place. Lets not throw the baby out with the bath water.

Anyways. Kind Regards Jeremy.

[Jaybay]

I love the topic of this thread and wish more people would respond.  Look in the archives and you'll find plenty of stories about Sub being the Devil or the best thing since sliced bread.  I like the idea of having individual experiences all in one place and have to say I'm a bit disappointed at the lack of response.

I'll answer for my husband.  Suboxone/ Subutex is Satan himself.   I'm speaking for a man who detoxed from a combination of methadone AND heroin that would have put most people in the grave long before detox even began.  The physical detox from Sub is far worse than from a full-agonist opiate, and from what I read here, elsewhere and from my husband, the emotional detox is horrific.

For any casual readers, the FDA only approved Suboxone for a short-term, 21-day detox from opiates.  Long-term consequences from using Suboxone/ Subutex as a maintenance drug have not yet been formally studied, but plenty of people on this forum can testify to the adverse effects.  Generally speaking, the longer you're on it, the longer and more horrific your detox experience will be.  

Sub is not a magic pill that will get you through detoxing from your drug of choice pain-free.  At some point, you gotta pay the Piper, and the Sub Piper can be pretty dam expensive in inexperienced and unknowledgeable hands.

There are no free rides in life.  Detox from your drug of choice is only the beginning of recovery no matter what route you choose, but it can be the beginning of a life that you can't even imagine right now.  For the love of God (and yourself!) don't let anyone, doctor or otherwise, talk you into using Suboxone/ Subutex as maintenance.  Do the mental work.  Don't avoid it, but embrace it and you'll amaze yourself with what you can accomplish.

[ashleyd123]

My experience with Suboxone was awful. I would advise reading up on it first. Ill tell you about my experience:
In May I started Suboxone, it seemed like a miracle...my doctor didnt mention the bad parts though.
I was in the middle of finishing up my nursing degree and couldnt make it to my appt. The doctor said he couldnt call it in, which meant cold turkey for me in July...It was Hell on earth for me,,,I lost out on almost 2 weeks of my life because I was so incoherent. It took about a month for me to be myself physically but emotionally much longer.. Its November and I still get depressed sometimes but I keep going. With support that is, its the most important thing to have. I prayed so much and it helped me, plus, my family helped me and understood. Its hard though. If you want it bad enough- you will do it! Blessings to you :)

[throwindatowl]

THANKYOU! some real advise. Finally. You rock. You will help alot of people with that post. Good job.

[ang_811]

i had a positive sub experience.. i was on methadone to get off the pills that i was doing for a few years...i was on methaodne for 2 years. during the tappering process i just couldnt get down to a low enough dose to jump from. the withdrawls for me were aweful. so my doctor put me on suboxone to get me off the methadone. great choice!! i was on the sub for 3 months and during my tapper from it i didnt experience ne wds. even when i made the jump from the sub my wds were very doable... nothing like i had experieced from the pills and methadone....i think the key to having a positive sub experience is to not get on a high dose and to not be on it for long term. only short term...i htink thats what really helped me...... <3 Ang