suboxone withdrawal: how long is this going to last...I'm mi

Day 3 for me. It's very tolerable so far compared to other withdraws I've gone thru. This site scares me and makes me feel like I haven't even started. Don't get me wrong... I can't eat or sleep so hopefully I'm well into it. I asked my doc for something for strength and he gave me nuvigil. It's something for old people but maybe that's why things are not so bad. I've got clonidine also but I'm saving it, anticipating things getting worse.

Another thing that helped me, and this is crazy...

It started when my equipment would not work with this bomb shell. I went to doc and he gave me some testosterone gel. At that time (about a month ago), I was on 8mg. As soon as I used the testosterone, I was immediately able to cut to 2mg. I've been off the 2mg for three days. Whenever I start loosing my mind, I rub some testosterone on me and it seems to help.

Now I'm going to have to withdraw from testosterone gel lol

But if you feel better and things are lot easier maybe you will be able to withdraw from testosteron gel easier.
What did you doctor said about withdrawal from the gel?
How are you feeling today?

Day 4... not too bad. The GI issues are starting to show up. I only slept 4 hours last night so I've been up since 11PM.

I was kind of joking about withdrawing from testosterone. I know when I stop taking it, I'll be weak until by body starts making it's own but I'd rather deal with that after the other issues are resolved.

I have been reading many of the posts on this site and I think the most important thing for anyone asking the "when will this end" question is to remember that everyone's body is different and will react differently. This has been my second time on Suboxone and I have been on it for the better part of the past two years, but not at some of the high doses that others have been on, only one 2mg a day. I have been prescribed Adderall since college (27 yrs old now) and while it may work great for attention, it has some nasty side effects on your stomach and opiates seemed to be the only thing that would counteract those side effects. Stupid to mix uppers/downers I know, but it was the best compromise I could come up with.

This past Christmas Eve I drove 4 hours to my parents and like an id**t FORGOT MY SUBOXONE. Needless to say I panicked when I realized but I wasn't about to ruin Xmas Day by having to make a 6-8 hour round trip to get it. My Mother had recently had surgery and had some 7.5 Hydrocodone and agreed that if things really got bad I could take some to tide me over until I got home. To my surprise I really didn't get bad withdrawal symptoms at all for the first 48 hours after my last dose. I am now 5 full days without Suboxone and I only took two 7.5 hydros driving home on Saturday night so I would c**p in my pants while in the car. I've had the restless leg thing (that's usually the symptom I feel the most when going through WD) but not anything I have not been able to manage. I have been taking Xanax at night if I have trouble sleeping or Ambien, and smoking weed helps a little too. BUT, I will caution anyone who decides to use weed: sometimes (depending on what kind of weed you smoke) it can heighten your senses and make you MORE aware of the discomfort you are feeling so if you decide to do it I would recommend taking a Xanax as well so you don't bug out. ALSO: I am not a Dr., I'm just telling you what's worked for me.

But the point I'm trying to make here is that I've been through WDs several times before, both cold turkey from OC's, Percs, etc. as well as a long taper down from Suboxone my first time (to the point I was taking a quarter of a 2mg every 2 days) and it was MUCH worse than this. For some reason, jumping off from 1 2mg Suboxone a day has not been nearly as bad this time. Past WD's i've gone through have been TORTURE and there were times when no amount of Xanax or Ambien would allow me a good night's sleep. Why have I "gotten off easy" (SO FAR) this time? I have no idea. But I will say this: I read on some other sites that since Suboxone stays in your system for so long that if you take a regular dose at the same time, the drug will keep building up in your system. For example, if it takes a full 37 hours for Subox to get out of your system (I've heard that, not sure if it's true) and you take a dose every 24 hours it will build up in your system. Maybe since I was only on one 2mg a day for so long it's been easier this time? So for those trying to taper down, do it VERY slowly or you may be defeating the purpose.

And finally, stay strong. We all know WD blows, but think about it like this: you will have to endure one, maybe two weeks of extreme discomfort, but you'll get to spend the REST OF YOUR LIFE free from this stuff. Relatively speaking, that's not much to ask of yourself.

Good luck to all.

man wolf------ How are you feeling now sorry i didn't respond sooner. Day 4 for me was a really bad drag.. I literally slept all day if i couldn't sleep i would sit and stare it was pretty bad. even taking a shower i had to sit down then getting dressed took an hour cause i would sit on the floor in the closet trying to get up then i would eventually lay down in my closet lol not funny at the time and i would just stare i was so tired i couldnt do anything i couldn't eat anything i couldn't do anything i thought i would be the worst day but i got worse as days went on. the tiredness turns to insomnia in about 3 to 4 more days then i couldn't sleep at all the restless leg the back aches the anxiety it was bad I hope and pray your not going through this and maybe you will bypass it all let me know how you feel

Day 5 - I think I'm getting better. last night, I got some appetite back but was too tired to get some food. Today, I'll try to get some. The worst thing is the insomnia. I've been up since 1am. Yesterday, I went to the doc's and they gave me a B12 shot. Seems to have helped.

Day 6 - Doing great. I think this will be my last post. My experience was very different from many of the other post I've read. I'm sure I have weeks / months to go to get really healthy but the worst is behind me and I'm functioning. I don't feel the need to take any medications today. I think the nuvigil was very helpful for energy and the testosterone gel was good to keep my emotions in check. The worst part was the insomnia and then not having the ability to do anything. Sick of these walls!

For an accurate perspective, I should say I was on 8mg for 1 year. My testosterone levels went low and my unit stopped working so I made the decision to stop. Great motivation. The past two months, I've been toying with lower doses. Nothing was consistent. 8mg one day, 2mg the next...

One more trick that I think helped me... Suboxone definitely gave me a buzz. It was hard to cut my doses because I always wanted that feeling. To be able to get that feeling at a lower dosage, I would go 1 or 2 days with nothing - not enough for full withdraw but enough that you would not want to be around me. Then, I would be able to take a much lower dosage and still get the feeling I was chasing.

Best of luck to everyone trying to kick this habbit. Don't get freaked out by all the horror stories. It's bad but it's nothing like heroin withdraws. At least, that was the case for me. Also, the subhelper seems to have a great plan if you can be disciplined.

Day 24: i gotta say that the first two days weren't sh*t compared to days 3-10..especially 7-10. On day 11, i began to fell a little looser. i began to yawn a little less. i began to WANT TO leave the house, rather than feeling like I SHOULD leave the house. my legs started shaking less, sleep became more comfortable, food went down easier, the NEED for suboxone/opiates/anything slightly subsided..and all these things got better and better as i went along. for all who are going through these withdrawal symptoms, i urge you to keep at it. there is a bright light at the end of the tunnel. especially after day 16.

I haven't taken sub since Nov. 23. I am still not taking them I doing great. like the person above me I totally agree with you.... And wolf pack I had the same thing after the extreme sleepiness went away i i still could't do anytihng during the day but i couldn't sleep at night the worst thing is to lay in bed and try to make your self sleep it gave me panic attacks cause i would sit there for so long hours.... I also had restless leg syndrome. I lost weight.

worst things

I think in the begining the worst thing is extreme fatigue

few days later insomnia and restless leg syndrome

few days later is a mix of them

later depression lack of motivation

best of all is the over all feeling of DOOM literally i thought it would never end

BUt is does it really does im fine now except for cravings

First of all I would like to praise each and every one of you who have made the decision to end this false way of living and begin to harvest the true fruits of life. My addiction started about 3.5 years ago. Sneaking a few vicodins from moms prescription to take at school to cruise through the day with an invincible demeanor. This slowly progressed to taking nearly the entire bottle to ensure a good supply since I had no way of obtaining any opiate at the time. After graduating high school nearly half a year later, I slowly gathered fairly unreliable suppliers of various pain pills being oxycodone, hydromorphone, vicodin, ms contins, methadones, yadda yadda so on and so forth. The fact that the supply was rare is what kept me away from physical withdrawals. Slowly I gathered more reliable connections and could obtain substantial amounts of pills, yet at a price fit only for a king. Enraged at the amount I was shelling out every time for a weeks supply, I soon looked for other options. I had been acquainted with a friend of my sister who was a heavy heroin user, which was a bingo for me. I could get thoroughly smashed for a fraction of the price I was paying for pills. Naturally snorting the heroin lost its effect and turned into slamming it. While I had only been slamming for 2 months at most, that is when I decided my life was slipping through my fingers. Lost my job, my friends, and forsook my family. I attempted to quit many times but you all know how agonizing that is from a gram a day habit. I was lucky enough to stumble upon info about suboxone and immediately got on the program. Starting at 24mg initially in January of 2009 and tapering down to .5mg by early December. I was sick and tired of still being dependent on a chemical substance so I flushed the pills Sunday morning, and it is now day 4 for me. I must say this has been the easiest experience I have ever had quitting cold turkey. The symptoms are FAR much more milder than coming off anything else, and I already feel about 60% back to normal although it is tough to remember what normal is anymore after 3 years, . I am able to completely function out in society as long as I eat well. That is the biggest thing I have noticed if you wish to find some sort of relief. If you have to force yourself, do it. I am lucky to not experience any vomiting during any of my withdrawals but I still lack an appetite. All of these horror stories you guys hear about 1 month long withdrawals are from people who did not let their bodies adapt to their dose before tapering again. The symptoms are decreasing quite quickly, semi stools, increasing energy, yet sleep is still difficult. Still slight restlessness but nothing that is causing any issues. I will continue to update daily if possible.

tl;dr Tapering SLOW and LOW is the key to cake walk withdrawals from suboxone. Push yourself a little bit to be somewhat active and force yourself to eat, and you'll be surprised at just how easy it can be. Good luck my comrades

I'm here to help quell the many fears you folks have about the withdrawal from suboxone. Before I entered a suboxone treatment program exactly one year ago, I had been a regular opiate user for 3 years. First it started with snagging a pill or two from moms perscription to take to school and cruise through the day, which progressed to snatching nearly the entire bottle to assure I had some for the coming days. Sparse Vicodins soon progressed to obtainable oxys, morphine, and methadone. After oxy 80's started to induce nothing more than a baseline feeling for a not so baseline price, heroin came running into the picture. I used heavily daily, beginning with just snorting it, which then progressed to injecting a gram daily. I started my suboxone dose at 24mg and for the last month I was down to .5mg. I am currently on day 6 of stopping cold turkey, and I must say I have never EVER had an easier experience with withdrawal. Aside from manageable aches and pains coupled with an inability to sleep when I want to, I feel 95% normal. All of the initial symptoms
were extremely mild, I was able to function in society if I pushed myself just a little bit. Eating was the number 1 thing that made symptoms subside, even if food had to be forced down. I have no idea why doc's put people on 28 day treatments with suboxone, as it does nothing but prolong your initial withdrawal. The key is to taper slow and low, let your body adjust to the taper completely before reducing the dose again. The symptoms were all manageable, and easier than a regular old flu, and it wasn't a 2 week ordeal like some of you guys are experiencing. Just eat, stay active, and be smart with your taper and you'll be surprised at just how easy it really is.

First, I, as well as most Docs would agree that 24mgs is too much. The hot line on the Suboxone website told me that 16mgs was max & that no greater effects were rarely seen above 16mg. I was on 16mg then tapered to 2mg for a month, then 1mg for a week. It would've been a longer taper, but my stupid Doc went over her 100 patient limit. I'm 4 days in wd's & I'm doing ok. The point is that I was a prisoner to Hydros, Oxys, Darvos, Codeine, Percs, (Methadone for 1 yr & that was the WORST wd's EVER) I was on Subs nearly 3 years, so if you count that time, I was a prisoner to all of this sh*t for 15 years of my life. Imagine losing 15 years, from 25 to 40 as I have? Try to get serious and save your life. I should've been married & maybe even have kids, but NO, I HAD MOTHERFUCKING PAIN PILLS WHICH HAS RUINED MUCH OF MY LIFE! Oh yeah, the best thing I ever did was also disassociate myself with many friends, and that too is very hard. Good luck!

Tomorrow is day #25 without Suboxone. I am still detoxing. It still feels like the flu and aches and pains. mostly I get them in the later part of the day now, in my exrtemeties, arms and legs, and my back has been bothering me, which is why I started pain medication 4 years ago. Back Pain. Low Back pain. Vicodin got me. But I have to say this is way worse than kicking the vicodin ever was, at least for me. The ONLY saving grace is I have had NO physical craving for an opiate of ANY sort whatsoever. That IS THE ONLY saving grace. so Dat # 25 coming up. when is this sh*t supposed to be done? Damn I am getting nutty over feeling like I have the flu ever day.

It is day 44 off of subutex and I feel fine physically. My problem now is that i feel so normal and sensitive and i miss the feeling of being invincable and numb. I just have to keep going and getting used to having a normal opiate free life. Its just so hard the cravings are unbelievable. I actually have not taken an opiate since August, but I was on Sub's so its like i never stopped the opiates in the first place so basically I have only been on opiates for 44 days. I think I am a little depressed I am not sure if it has to do with PAWS That i hear of all the time. Can anyone tell if thats whats happening