Does methadone cause weight gain and/or slow down metabolism?

I have been boney most of my life and really never even filled out at all until after children. When I was 35 I probably weighed around 105 and within about 3 or 4 months I was 156 pds. Never in my life have I had this issue. The  Methadone clinic I used to go to I noticed all the people I started with the year before had all gotten fat and it started in the middle. Another thing we all had in commen was constipation. When I decided I didn't need the med's anymore, all of a sudden without trying (infact sometimes I tried to gain) I was down to a size 1 or 3. At 42 I am back on Methadone and for the second time in my life I'm overweight. I am 5'2" tall and 145pds. YES, METHADONE MAKES ME FAT ANYWAY. I guess better a little heavy than strung out or having to by off the streets or go thru withdrawel again. I'm like you and wan't to know why it makes you gain weight and how to exercise and eat right and loose the weight instead of doing it all in vain. Good luck to you and your sister...

 

 PS; I thought at first it was because I was eating more (at first you do get real hungry) and living a better lifestyle, but after a while your body gets used to the Methadone and for me it was so obvious what was causing it.

 

                                                                                                                               Sincerely,

                                                                                                                          "The Bean" (short for STRINGBEAN)

I know that its been over a year so I m hopeful that someone has already told you, but methadone is very high in sugar an therefor causes not only weight gain but also slow your metabolism down which again causes weight gain, but for those worried about gaining weight using methadone there is now a non suger liquid which is widely available.

Very Good post here !!! Thank you

i AM SO SAD TO HEAR THIS AND HOPE IT'S NOT THE CASE FOR I WAS PUT ON MORPHINE AND AGAINST WHAT WAS TOLD TO ME i GAINED 35 POUNDS. NOW i AM ON METHADONE AND iVE ALREADY LOST 5 POUNDS IN A WEEK. i THINK THE KEY FOR ME IS CINSTIPATION. i WAS SO BLOWN UP FROM NOT HAVING BOWEL MOVEMENTS THJAT i LOOKED LIKE A BLOWN UP COW. nOW IM TRYING TO KEEP IT FLOWING SHOULKD i SAY AND I SEEM TO BE OKbEST OFLUCK TO YOU WRITE ANYTIMEI will try to help. sarina

So your on Methadone and started the HCG drops and they work do u have to eat certain foods or don't have sugar or anything.,,I am wanting to try them cause I way more now than I ever had and it's cause of the Methadone,,

Same here..I have been on 10 mgs for about 5 years now and have gone from 155 to as of now 144..not sure why but I do alot of walking and dont eat more than maybe twice a day if that,Try eating fruit when u crave food or salads.Makes a huge difference.

i cant believe what im reading, after almost 3 years on methadone and over 60 pounds later i have begun to feel so depressed and alone. i knew it was the methadone, but its been either i get fat or go back to drugs. only one of those are out of the question, i cant go back to drugs.. reading this has given me hope. im going to try some suggested options... and if at all possible i can get out of this rut that ive fallen into

Hi Im on methadone and Im startting the hcg diet today. You are on a very strick diet a 500 calorie a day diet which is really low and the menu is very selective its more then just no sugar its pretty much no anything even the slimfast diet is a 1,200 cal a day diet plan. Try googling "accepted hcg diet foods" I warn you though its not much but it does work My next door neighbor is on it and she has lost 20 lbs in 21 days ***though she is NOT on methadone***

Hi Mymichelle Im hopeing that you still check back to this since its been so long since you first posted it. I have been on methadone for 2 years next month and I have gained appox 60 lbs. I started at 120lbs (Im 5ft tall) and by the summer of that year I was up to 150 lbs. Right now I weight 182 lbs and I flux between 180 and 190 but it never goes below 180. As I already suffer from depression this weight gain has caused my depression to sprial out of control. Oh and Im not sure if dosage matters but Im at 170 right now my highest being 180(kinda ironic) Im slowly lowering my dose and my bf and counselor fear I will relapse because Im not gonna lie the weight gain is a main reason for me wanting to come of the methadone, though not the only one. I never intended to be on methadone forever 5 years is my limit and at one point I considered trying to get myself kicked out of my clinic so they would detox me; they do it in 2 weeks; and then just biting the bullet and dealing with the sickness but I chickened out. I have always been thicker then most for my height but I was never really fat. My counselor at the methadone clinic tries to tell me that my eatting habits have changed and that Im basically substituting drugs for sugar but I think that bs especially when I read these stories from ppl who are on methadone for other things and they gained weight as well not to mention that I hadnt changed my diet that much and when i started gaining weight I started watching what I ate and still do, I have taken diet pills, exercised non stop and nothing has worked. Im trying the hcg diet now, my neighbor is on it and has already lost 20 lbs in 21 days though she isnt on methadone so Im getting my hopes too high for myself Ive started to believe the only way this weight will come off is by getting off methadone. It would be nice to have others to talk to that have gone or are going though this as well.

Hello all, I have een on methadone for almost 5 years now and i have gained60 pounds. It absolutely causes weight gain. I used to be 140 lbs so i was thin before the meth. My doctor tested my metabolism and it is underactive. It wAs alwAys regular before the methadone. If at ALL possible, stay away from this drug. I wish everyone the best of luck.

My whole life Ive never been a lb. over 110. While using, I was ridiculously thin but when I was clean and healthy and after having first baby was still a tiny 110-115 and I go on Methadone during second pregnancy for IV Dilaudid/Heroin and in one year since babies birth I have ballooned to a truly shocking 210!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ahhhh!!!! Freak the f**k out right? So the answer is SUBOXONE!! I spoke with my doctor today and threatened to just go off Meth. or friggin kill myself and hes weaning me down from 100mils to 30mils and then I will make the switch over to Suboxone.

I dont eat sh*t! Im working at the gym almost everyday and I juice... I eat my veggies... All that. Drink the water ect. ect. AS LONG AS WE ARE ON THIS c**p WE WILL CONTINUE TO BE FAT! THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO BUT GET OFF OF IT!

If we are clean now the Methadone has fufilled its purpose in getting u to stop using and put this incredible amount of weight on us and it isnt fair! Nice trade off!! They should have told us! The doctors... the clinics. WE HAD A RIGHT TO KNOW! Man this makes me mad!

Talk to your docs about Suboxone. Ive seen it work with maybe 8 or 10 girls I know that had this happen to them and they started dropping almost immediatly! Dont continue to feel stuck in a fat suit because you have an as****e Dr. that either doesnt care or doesnt have time just tell them where its at or find a new Dr. if possible. Good luck girls.

no caffeine it spikes blood sugar level inturn causing insulin levels to spike and insulin causes weight gain

how old are you,after you hit 30 you really have to watch everything that you eat.

After nearly 20 years of climbing the opiate ladder because of spinal injury and disease, I was placed on methadone.  Within a year I had lost 75 lbs. My condition worsened and even methadone didn't help, so I was placed on opana while awaiting surgery.  After the surgery, my fourth overall, I had significant improvement and was able to wean myself off of the methadone and all narcotics. I began to gain weight, putting back about 30 of the 75 lbs I had lost.  Because of ongoing neurological problems that only the methadone seemed to control (restless leg syndrome was out of control), I went back on it at a low dose.  I have since lost 15 lbs of the 30 I regained.  The only reason I can propose to explain my experience is that I was found to have low testosterone caused by the decades of opiod treatment, by the same doc who moved me to methadone. At the same time as I started the methadone treatment I began testosterone replacement.  Low T can cause a slow metabolism and a higher proportion of fat vs. muscle, so it's not surprising that it affected my weight.  However, long after my T level stabilized I continued to lose weight and I was still on T replacement when I gained the 30 lbs, as I am now having lost the 15 lbs.  It's baffling, but biochemistry is complex and well beyond my limited education in the field.

Listen half the docs i.e Drug worker's know sh*t about what we are taking! I was on subutex for about 5 year and my wait was well under what i wanted it to be now iv started taking meth only because i find life easier on it than i did the subies ! Iv put on more wait than i ever have before and also got the 'oooow you look really well' just because im not a rake.well im sick off this and seriously thinking of kicking the meth and going back to subutex.