Just reading everyones posts as im presently coming off suboxone / 3mg per day, down from 32 (max in australia). I reduced from 12 to 3 in four weeks in order to reach my target date (plane ticket) & leave my husband & children for three weeks to be alone whilst withdrawing. Have to say....not feeling it much at all. Im a bit tired & unable to sleep without knocking myself out (no meds during the day) - Before i go on, i should mention that i was a fairly hardcore heroin user for 15 - 20 years & had tried withdrawing many many times. Wont go into that nonsense suffice to say that one of those times i used crystal meth to get off methadone, then coke to get off the meth. Overrode my naltrexone implant with smack just to get some sleep - yep, can be done. Anyway the point of my post here is that i thought maybe id unwittingly done something different this time that has made it easier - so heres what i did in the weeks leading up - i hope it may be of help to someone else.
-Firstly, I was ready - most important.
-Lots of vitamin B & C, cod liver oil, vit E: --- 2 multi B vits, 2000mg vit C, 1 - 2 cod liver oil caps & 1 vit E cap per day.
-Now the hippie part....i bought 'purple plates' - electromagnetic deflectors (find on google) for my family & we all have them around our necks & in absolute seriousness i can promise that my 13 year old son who has had a constant & VERY bad, seemingly incurable (oh we've tried everything) cough for five years, stopped coughing completely within hours of putting it on. SO im thinking perhaps this may also have something to do with the inexplicable energy i have on day four of my withdrawals.
-Lastly, I spent a great deal of energy back home fighting to keep my positivity in the face of those who tried to 'bring me back to reality' with their helpful comments about not getting my hopes up that id actually be ok this time. The one person i did listen to (& am going to thank her later) was a pharmacist who told me 'you're on such a low dose you'll be fine' whereas last time when i was on an even lower dose a different pharmacist said 'oooh i wouldn't jump off 2mg, you'll have a terrible time.' Well he was right........But so was the lady pharmacist.
I guess what im trying to impart here is prepare yourself, think and hear only positivity, & make sure you KNOW that you're ready to be drug free because HOPE does not work in this situation - i know this from 10 years of hopeless hoping.
-Firstly, I was ready - most important.
-Lots of vitamin B & C, cod liver oil, vit E: --- 2 multi B vits, 2000mg vit C, 1 - 2 cod liver oil caps & 1 vit E cap per day.
-Now the hippie part....i bought 'purple plates' - electromagnetic deflectors (find on google) for my family & we all have them around our necks & in absolute seriousness i can promise that my 13 year old son who has had a constant & VERY bad, seemingly incurable (oh we've tried everything) cough for five years, stopped coughing completely within hours of putting it on. SO im thinking perhaps this may also have something to do with the inexplicable energy i have on day four of my withdrawals.
-Lastly, I spent a great deal of energy back home fighting to keep my positivity in the face of those who tried to 'bring me back to reality' with their helpful comments about not getting my hopes up that id actually be ok this time. The one person i did listen to (& am going to thank her later) was a pharmacist who told me 'you're on such a low dose you'll be fine' whereas last time when i was on an even lower dose a different pharmacist said 'oooh i wouldn't jump off 2mg, you'll have a terrible time.' Well he was right........But so was the lady pharmacist.
I guess what im trying to impart here is prepare yourself, think and hear only positivity, & make sure you KNOW that you're ready to be drug free because HOPE does not work in this situation - i know this from 10 years of hopeless hoping.
IMPORTANT--- PLEASE READ THIS IF YOU ARE TRYING TO GET OFF OF SUBOXONE
(buprenorphine:naloxone 4:1 preparation)
I made a great discovery for all of us trying to get off of Suboxone--You can mix it with water and then decrease your dose by dilution.
All opioids should be tapered by cutting a relative amount, like 25%, over a given time period, like a week (an exponential taper).
Tapering is even more important with Suboxone, because the buprenorphine in suboxone has a 20-90 hour half-life. This is the longest half-life of any opioid. It is more than 10 times the half-life of dilaudid (hydromorphone). So if it takes about a week to feel normal from quitting dilaudid, then it will take at least 10 weeks to fell this way coming off of suboxone.
For this reason, you may have not taken the easiest path by taking suboxone. If you are on it, it is too late now!
Tapering off of the pills is fine until you get around to 1/6 of a 8mg pill--
The 8mg suboxone pills have a hexagonal shape. You can get 1/6 splits using a pill splitter by first splitting the pill in half along the center line. Next place the half so that the middle flat edge is against one of the side guides of the pill splitter and split off 1/3 of the half pill. Rotate the 2/3 of a half pill piece so the middle flat edge is against the pill splitter guide on the other side and cut this in half giving three equal (relatively) pieces. Each piece is about a 1.33mg dose (8 divided by 6=1.33).
The 8mg pills are extremely hard to spilt accurately below a sixth of a pill. Once I got to a 1/6 of a pill dose, I started trying to spilt them further and became frustrated.
Then I saw that buprenorphine, the main component in suboxone, comes in a liquid form. So I tried making my own liquid preparations of suboxone. It works great.
========================
Liquid preparation of suboxone--
Use a pill crusher to crush the pill. You can get one at most pharmacies.
Next create a slurry in the bottom of the crusher using water and put the mixture into a container.
Shake well with each use.
========================
I started out by mixing 8cc of water with each 8mg pill, taking a 1cc dose of the liquid preparation. Each week, I dilute the mixture further by adding 25% more water. I'm now at 28cc of water per 8mg pill. That means I'm taking a .29mg dose presently (8mg divided by 28 doses=.29 mg/dose).
You can use this method as long as you need to to get your dosage down to whatever the level is that you can tolerate quitting from.
I am still having withdrawal symptoms this way. You are not going to get yourself out of opioid HELL for free. My symptoms are tolerable, though. And, yes, they are all of the typical flu-like symptoms reported above, but not so bad that I would ever think of relapse.
Expect each change in your dosage to take at least a week for you to get through the worst symptoms caused by the change. Actually, you should expect 10 weeks or so to completely get to normal for a given dose, but who can wait on the scale of a year feeling crappy the whole time to complete the withdrawal process? I've taken seven months to go from 24mg of suboxone to less than 1 mg. To be honest, it's going to take me about a year at this rate, anyway, despite my extreme desire to be free of opioids.
Suboxone is a powerful drug. Be careful. Take your time. Be easy on yourself rather than relapse.
Good luck. I hope this helps.
(buprenorphine:naloxone 4:1 preparation)
I made a great discovery for all of us trying to get off of Suboxone--You can mix it with water and then decrease your dose by dilution.
All opioids should be tapered by cutting a relative amount, like 25%, over a given time period, like a week (an exponential taper).
Tapering is even more important with Suboxone, because the buprenorphine in suboxone has a 20-90 hour half-life. This is the longest half-life of any opioid. It is more than 10 times the half-life of dilaudid (hydromorphone). So if it takes about a week to feel normal from quitting dilaudid, then it will take at least 10 weeks to fell this way coming off of suboxone.
For this reason, you may have not taken the easiest path by taking suboxone. If you are on it, it is too late now!
Tapering off of the pills is fine until you get around to 1/6 of a 8mg pill--
The 8mg suboxone pills have a hexagonal shape. You can get 1/6 splits using a pill splitter by first splitting the pill in half along the center line. Next place the half so that the middle flat edge is against one of the side guides of the pill splitter and split off 1/3 of the half pill. Rotate the 2/3 of a half pill piece so the middle flat edge is against the pill splitter guide on the other side and cut this in half giving three equal (relatively) pieces. Each piece is about a 1.33mg dose (8 divided by 6=1.33).
The 8mg pills are extremely hard to spilt accurately below a sixth of a pill. Once I got to a 1/6 of a pill dose, I started trying to spilt them further and became frustrated.
Then I saw that buprenorphine, the main component in suboxone, comes in a liquid form. So I tried making my own liquid preparations of suboxone. It works great.
========================
Liquid preparation of suboxone--
Use a pill crusher to crush the pill. You can get one at most pharmacies.
Next create a slurry in the bottom of the crusher using water and put the mixture into a container.
Shake well with each use.
========================
I started out by mixing 8cc of water with each 8mg pill, taking a 1cc dose of the liquid preparation. Each week, I dilute the mixture further by adding 25% more water. I'm now at 28cc of water per 8mg pill. That means I'm taking a .29mg dose presently (8mg divided by 28 doses=.29 mg/dose).
You can use this method as long as you need to to get your dosage down to whatever the level is that you can tolerate quitting from.
I am still having withdrawal symptoms this way. You are not going to get yourself out of opioid HELL for free. My symptoms are tolerable, though. And, yes, they are all of the typical flu-like symptoms reported above, but not so bad that I would ever think of relapse.
Expect each change in your dosage to take at least a week for you to get through the worst symptoms caused by the change. Actually, you should expect 10 weeks or so to completely get to normal for a given dose, but who can wait on the scale of a year feeling crappy the whole time to complete the withdrawal process? I've taken seven months to go from 24mg of suboxone to less than 1 mg. To be honest, it's going to take me about a year at this rate, anyway, despite my extreme desire to be free of opioids.
Suboxone is a powerful drug. Be careful. Take your time. Be easy on yourself rather than relapse.
Good luck. I hope this helps.
Day 7... hahahahaha I can laugh... I get goosebumps... I feel happy. I honestly think I was more depressed on the stuff than off the stuff. I have not slept well at all, 15 hours in 6 days if that but I have all this crazy energy and its freaking awesome. Once you feel yourself getting better it makes it all worth it. I snorted 2mg a day for over a year. I am 26/m 135lbs. I took flexeril days 2-5 but don't feel like I need it anymore haha doc gave me 40! and a refill. I can honestly say that my body and my head can reach their own high now AND IT FEELS ***edited by moderator*** ** inappropriate posting** GREAT. I did what everyone else is doing, I read everything I could possibly read and I was scared ***edited by moderator*** ** inappropriate posting**, if you are honestly ready to do this IT'S NOT GUNA BE AS BAD AS YOU THINK! Talk to your doc, you don't wana hurt yourself, I went in on day 2 so he could check my BP and heartbeat and they were normal. I never lost my appetite, YOU MUST EAT! If you do not eat you WILL FEEL LIKE c**p! Some stomach problems set in today but oh well it's not that bad... and yea I won't sleep well tonight but oh well! I took 2months unpaid leave from work cause of all the c**p I read on here... Im in a whole nother state now and I will be going in and seeing about a transfer here very soon. I am just as stressed as the next person with debt, relationships, baby momma drama! But ohhh beating this sh*t that has controlled me ruined my credit ruined numerous relationships, well beating it feels pretty damn good. Worry about the other ***edited by moderator*** ** inappropriate posting** later. Put yourself somewhere with as little stress as possible, TELL PEOPLE, especially your family. Eat, exercise, keep yourself moving, there were a couple days 3-5 that I felt like I couldn't get up, but I did. Do things that make you happy! ***edited by moderator*** ** inappropriate posting** trick your brain. Music helps alot! Movies that make you feel good, for sure. Hot bathes and showers, go sit in ur car with a waterbottle and sweat, that s**t really helped. Im not saying I feel 100% that might take months, but this is pretty freaking awesome that day 7 I feel like I am getting my life back. SMOKE WEED!!!!!! medicinal purposes wink wink. That'll be the next to go lol... maybe.
I was on Suboxone for 4 years, started at 24mg a day and weened down to 1mg a day. I was on 320mg oxy+ a day, mixing with any opiate I could get. I can't count how many times I made it this low to relapse and ween back down. Always some kind of excuse - some might be considered legit - like surgery, but nonetheless, it kept me on suboxone for a long time. I'm now on day 7 of NO suboxone and I have to agree with the Guest that posted above on Day 7. Music is a blessing. I turn on old music and I feel better instantly. It's like I've been aneasthitized all these years and I lost my love for music. I forgot how much it makes me feel better and it is now helping me get through this. THAT and working out every morning. It's baby steps. My legs feel like they weigh 100 pounds each, but I manage to play DDR for 40 minutes now and it's helping my endorphins flow again. That's really what withdrawal is about. It's that over years, your body stops producing it's own natural painkillers because we stuff our receptors with opiates - a perfect fit. The quicker you can get those endorphins going again, the better. Sex even helps... and I can't tell you how happy I am to have that drive back too. Day 7 - I feel that the worst is over. I hope it's true.
You hit the nail on the head. I had managed to be on suboxone for three years after eleven years of opiate abuse. I got cut off cold turkey. I can't f-ing sleep anymore. I do smoke buds which helps a little but i've been barely functional since I've quit suboxone. I get tabs when I can and those are good days. I feel normal again so I try to get to do as much as I can before the tabs run out because your right...it is a hellish existance. So, symptons, three months into withdrawl, still can't sleep, depression, and pretty much feeling like I'm going to lose my mind, and hating being this way. I've been waiting to feel normal for three months so, like you, I just try and stay stoned and hope this day passes quickly.
1) taper it down to 0 and whatever you do or feel. no matter what your head says or your "body" tells you. Dont take another drug.
If you do. your not ready to quit. Modify your behavior yourself. you have the power. you just dont believe in yourself yet. How bad do you want it for yourself, your wife, child? You dont need an organization or a cult to modify your behavior. At a 5% success rate you better off doing it yourself. Just do the right thing.
bigtime333
If you do. your not ready to quit. Modify your behavior yourself. you have the power. you just dont believe in yourself yet. How bad do you want it for yourself, your wife, child? You dont need an organization or a cult to modify your behavior. At a 5% success rate you better off doing it yourself. Just do the right thing.
bigtime333
I just started Suboxone 4 days ago. Should I try to just stay on for the 14 week prescription I was given and then try to stop? I've been down the Methadone road and definitely don't want to be on anything "long-term". I was just wondering if this method I'm going to try is practical or possible. And if I stop after 14 days, will I go through withdrawals? Please e-mail responses if possible. ***this post is edited by moderator *** *** private e-mails not allowed **
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RE: Suboxone
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RE: Suboxone
hello iam new 2 this and very ashammed of myself that i will allow myself 2 be like this. i was with a man that i loved very much and he was an addict of herion and i would complain 2 him and argue and fight, too kicking him out of the house because of his addiction. we'll he went on the meth program n did well, 2 make a long story short, my 1st love was murdered by some1 he was trying 2 buy herion from 2 feel better because he tried 2 detox himself from the meth. my life shattered and i had 2 continue life without him and raise our son. well i started using sleeping medication 2 go 2 sleep or i would staY up all night n it really got bad after he was murdered. years later i had surgery and was prescribed percocets and i like them because they knocked me out. well i took them here n there before he died and he once said 2 me " you are letting a demon out" and i didnt pay him no mind because i was the strong minded 1 always has myself established. now its 5 years after his death and i feel like the biggest hipocrite and never realized what he was going through and i showed him the toughest love like i was supposed 2 but i love him 2 death. i think iam being paid back 4 being like that 2 him. he always said you dont understand how bad it feels when u r withdrawaling and i didnt. i started taking perks on a regular basis 2 years ago and when i realized i was experiencing w/d some1 told me about suboxone so i took them. i have been on n off of perks 2 subs but 4 the last past 8 months i have realize i cannot do this 2 me or my son. what if i od than my child would have no mother either? this really makes me 2 decide that taking pills has 2 stop. i have decided 2 stop. iam on day 3 with nothing and its a bit irritating, cant sleep,cant eat,sweating. omg i feel like ima die. the biggest thing is i have noooooo energy 2 do nothing and its killing me 2 have my son see me in bed constantly. i havent told any1 that iam detoxing besides a close friend. i never knew what my man was going through until just recent and truthfully i will never know the extend of pain he went through detoxing but i dont think mine is as bad as his was. can any1 help with the way iam feeling? is there any home rememdies i can do 2 help me get through? please
HELLO. I JUST READ YOUR STORY AND I CAN TELL YOU HOW LONG AND HOW BAD! I AM NOW ON DAY 45, AND STILL SWEAT AND HAVE NO ENERGY. I WAS ON DAY 18 AND ALMOST GAVE UP. I WAS ON SUB AND XANAX FOR 3YRS. I RECOMMEND THIS DRUG TO NO ONE!!!!! THEY SHOULD PULL IT. SORRY 2 SAY BUT IT GETS 10 TIMES WORST! YOU WILL HAVE: KNOTS IN YOUR STOMACH, CHARLIE HORSES IN YOUR FEET AND LEGS, HORRIBLE VOMITING, HOT AND COLD SWEATS, NO ENERGY, BODY ACHES AND YOU WILL FEEL LIKE GIVING UP.....BUT DONT. I DIDNT THINK I COULD DO IT BUT I DID. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN TAKE 2 HELP? I WISHH I COULD SAY YES BUT I CANT. I STAYED IN A BALL FOR ABOUT A MONTH AN THEN IT STARTED SLOWLY EASING UP. IM SORRY. I WISH I HAD BETTER NEWS. BUT IF U NEED TO TALK IM HERE. GOOD LUCK AND DONT GIVE IN.....IM PROOF THAT IT CAN BE DONE. WHEN I STARTED MY DETOX NO ONE HAD A SUCCESS STORY WHICH SCARED ME. SO I MADE MY OWN. TAMMY
I have. Been on 4 8 mills daily until I got fed up these are worse than oxys so. Suggest deal with the oxy withdrarwl, I haven't taken one in a week and I still feel like death, but just do it and don't listen to people who have never had to deal with this, subs are evil and the expect you to be on them for the rest of your life. Don't do it
i am currently coming off of suboxone too. i was on it for a yr and a half after almost 6 yrs of heavy opiate abuse and other substances. i started at 16mg and ended at one after a tapering process of 2 mos. at first i was supposed to end at 2 mg, but the withdrawals got really really bad...i ended up not sleeping for 3 days straight, was plagued with restless legs, body aches, gastrointestional symptoms, everything. i was put back on a slower taper for the next 2 weeks and then perscribed clonodine and gabapentin for the lingering withdrawals. it helps with the insomnia and antsy legs, but makes me quite dizzy and tired and dulls my motor skills significantly. Im on day three and sick as a dog. I barely have enough energy to get out of bed and the stomach aches and diharea make me weak and shaky. I just started a new semester in college and ended up having to call in today due to the medication and withdrawal effects. It sucks...im an artist and i need my motor skills to do what i do and the withdrawals and meds make it impossible. Im depressed and feel hopeless. The withdrawals remind me of how much i screwed myself over by using opiates in the first place. I started self medicating via cutting at age nine and at the age of fourteen i began to use uppers, heroin, perscription opiates, and benzos. At my current age of twenty, i fear that i have messed up my development thru unhealthy coping skills and that Im too far gone to be fixed. Im afraid of the withdrawals but even more frightened without the suboxone holding me back....since a young age i have relied on destructive behavior to get me thru the day...some people have religion,community, etc. to acheive their highs and i fear that the only way for me to feel good again is to turn to substances. i go thru periods of semi sobriety only to become addicted again, like my subconcious is attracting me to that lifestyle even though a huge part of me desperatly wants to stop. i dont think i can even remember what its like to be completly sober and my mind cant even get away from the drugs- they infect my thoughts, my dreams so intensly to the point where i can taste and smell them even when theyre not there. I have not had a relapse in over a year, and want to keep it that way as to turn to drugs again would probably do me in , but life without chemicals is daunting. I remind myself that the euphoria and wellbeing i had when i was high was just a lie that was hurting everyone I loved as well as myself, but the desire to instantly feel normal has me wanting it again. I feel extremly guilty for having these thoughts after hurting my family so much. For an athiest like me the idea of having faith may sound like a joke but i have to have faith that this will end and there will be a light at the end of the tunnel. Ten days may sound like a long time but i think i can sacrifice a few days of discomfort to feel better for the rest of the year without the stress of the addiction lifestyle. It just feels endless now...
Good luck to everyone on here. I have been suboxone free for 2 and a half months now. It was one of the hardest things i have ever done but i finally have my life back. I was on vicodins for a year and then suboxone for the next year. I quit cold turkey from 8 mgs and did not taper at all. The worst time is probally day 4 through 7. Once you get through those days it gets easier and easier. I finally feel back to normal and I really forgot who I was. My friends can definately see a difference in me and it feels good to look people in the eyes now and not have to look away because im scared that they know I am high. Its a tough fight but it is well worth it in the end. Good luck to everyone and feel free to email me if you have any questions. ***this post is edited by moderator *** *** private e-mails not allowed **
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coming off suboxone is hard, but after 10 days ull feel amazing. I HIGHLY SUGGEST GOING TO NA (NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS) MEETINGS. I KICKED SUBS DOPE AND OXYS ABOUT 8 MONTHS AGO AND BECAUSE OF NA I AM SOBER 8 MONTHS. LOOK IT UP IN YOUR PHONE BOOK OR ASK AROUND AT CHURCHS.
NA WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE!
NA WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE!
I am glad I chanced upon these threads. Its so incredibly deceptive when people are told that subs withdrawal is mild. I have been on the subs for about 2 months and to subs credit it helped me kick gear. I was taking one 8mg a day but only had a certain amount so the last two days I took 4mg. Jumping off from this amount has, I have to say, been pretty hellish. I am now in day 4 of withdrawal and the thing is the symptoms do not seem to have eased. withdrawing from Brown is certainly more intense but it does not seem to last as long as subutex/ suboxone withdrawal. Its mainly the aching deep in the bones (espicially legs), restlessness and insomnia that are weighing me down and they are now causing me the added pain of depression. I guess I have a harsh week coming up and I only prey it gets better after that because its hard to face feeling this useless and fatigued. I'm not being beaten again though and I urge anyone else doing it to hold on and perhaps do as I am going to do and go to a meeting in their area. Cheers.
I FOUND THE ANSWER TO SLEEP DURING SUBOXONE WITHDRAWL!!!!!!!!! and its everything you can find at a health food store and/or GNC, it is day 12 and ive felt pretty dam good for the past three or four days still some crampness no rls !!!!!finding the cure for suboxone sleeplessness wasnt easy or cheap but it was money well spent im posting this so someone else dont have to spend that money and will be able to sleep
1: L-tryptophan 500mg ( healthfood store)
2: melatonin 5 mg(where ever can be found [both GNC and health food store has it)
3: rescue sleep by bach its an oral spray ( from GNC)
4: sleep formula (from GNC)
5: sleepy time non caffinated tea(health food store)
take two of each pill and use the spray it will take away 90% of the symptoms that cause the sleeplessness
i know with me that was the worst part once i took care of that i could deal with everything else
it took a while and about $200 for me to find the right combination of the right pills but i did
so good luck let me no if it helps and share this information to everyone who can use it
na meetings help and since i havent gotten high from this i consider my recovery still in tact
but i to agree that unisoms and benidryl is a bad idea they just make you feel like depressed and groggy on top of the depression and groggyness you are already feeling
1: L-tryptophan 500mg ( healthfood store)
2: melatonin 5 mg(where ever can be found [both GNC and health food store has it)
3: rescue sleep by bach its an oral spray ( from GNC)
4: sleep formula (from GNC)
5: sleepy time non caffinated tea(health food store)
take two of each pill and use the spray it will take away 90% of the symptoms that cause the sleeplessness
i know with me that was the worst part once i took care of that i could deal with everything else
it took a while and about $200 for me to find the right combination of the right pills but i did
so good luck let me no if it helps and share this information to everyone who can use it
na meetings help and since i havent gotten high from this i consider my recovery still in tact
but i to agree that unisoms and benidryl is a bad idea they just make you feel like depressed and groggy on top of the depression and groggyness you are already feeling