If/when you get of suboxone and stay off it and any other opiod for a couple of weeks and the acute withdrawals from sub have ended then you can come back and re-read this story and claim a success. Right now you are still tapering and still on buprenorphine - so no dice!

Wait till you get off and stay off without protracted acute withdrawals followed by unknown months of PAWS. I was also on bupe for 7 months. And it's been 1+ month since I jumped off and I am still having acute withdrawals. I hope your bupe detox goes fast and smooth without any protracted acute crap.

good luck

--ed
Northern VA
USA

Note from Spring; I cleaned up this thread, edited out the nasty remarks and harsh attacks and decided to put it back up because I feel it's an important topic. Skinny started this thread wanting to hear from people who have used Suboxone for either detox or maintanance, got off it and stayed clean afterwards for at least a year

How many here have done sub whether for 10 days or 2 years and in the end, no matter how low the dose, quit and stayed clean at least one year?

Please reply if you have done sub in any way, quit, and have been clean 1 year or longer.
SKINNY

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edited by - Skinny on Apr 04 2007 1:49:33 PM

I won't say i was "clean" because that choice of word implies an antonym of "dirty" which seems abhorrent to me, but to answer the question: YES! It's been a long time since posting here, but my last posts described how I was struggling to quit Suboxone after facing unbearable depression when the daily dose got below 1 mg.

Although some here (like Micimo) were fearful of my approach of going back to low doses of codeine (and some Darvon) in order to quit taking Suboxone: IT WORKED! For my "final taper" after several years of over 100 mg/day of hydrocodone equivalent, I was unable to get to zero by tapering Suboxone. So i switched to weak opiates/oids and had no problems tapering THOSE to zero.

I was definitely opiate-free for more than year, maybe a full 18 months, when an injury resulted in severe pain that made me unable to walk. I wanted pain relief but it was hard to find even a local doctor who would give me just 150 mg/day of tramadol (unless they were doing procedures on me), which, even in combination with 2400 mg of ibuprofen, did not even touch the chronic pain. So i did what i had to do. And, while i'm not opiate-free at this time, i was able (several years ago and described in posts here) to come down from 100 mg/day of hydrocodone ... to 12 mg/day of Suboxone ... and then to ZERO for more than a year.

My intervening injury has now healed and, to make a long story short, I am currently taking 1-2 mg/day of Suboxone, because it is relieving my depression and it's in the cabinet and i'm unwilling to throw it away. It's been years since I was taking the "standard" 12-16 mg/day of Suboxone and had such great difficulties in trying to quit it.

I'm not that concerned about what will happen if i run out of the Suboxone from the low doses i'm taking this time because i've learned that, for me at least, it's easier to quit taking a weak opioid than it is to quit taking Suboxone. If i run out of Suboxone or decide to throw it away, i'm not averse to taking a few tramadol tabs a day if that is what it takes to help me become opiate-free again.

Wishdoctor,

2 questions:

Could you describe your length of time on sub, how much, how long, and what kind of taper.

then

How much and for how long did you take the low dose opiates in order to taper off them without the sub wd/paws?

Thanks

i'd rather not recap all that info, because my memory is fuzzy and it was all described accurately and in excruciating detail in posts here under this username. It was a very difficult period of my life that i don't want to remember in great detail and post it all twice.

However, you ask valid questions. Maybe someone else could post the links ...

WD

Fair enough, I will go have a look. I also have periods of my life I do not care to re-visit. Best of luck.

Hi everyone. I just had a question. My boyfriend has been struggling with a heroine addiction. To make a long story short, he went to 2 rehabs and then left, but has made progress recently. He is now in a rehab and has been clean for 17 days. The detox process is done and over with, and he is doing fine in the rehab. He will be there at least another 35 days or so. However, we were worried about what will happen when he returns home. He mentioned that maybe he should start taking suboxone when he comes home, just to prevent any future urges he may have to use again. I want him to get better and never use heroine again, but at the same time, I do not want to see him on another drug. I don't want to have to see him high every day again, whether it be from heroine or suboxone.I don't know if he should attempt to stay clean 100% on his own and possibly fail, or if Suboxone is a good idea? Any opinions would be greatly appreciated. Please email me at mandie827@yahoo.com with your replys!!! THANKS SO MUCH!!

Amanda

I got out of detox about six days ago and they gave me suboxone while I was there. I experienced zero withdrawals. The Dr. there wrote me a prescription for a taper and I have been following it by the letter. I should take my last 1/2 tab. this coming Friday, I think that's 1mg.

I know I can expect to feel somewhat icky but after reading all of this I am nervous. I am prepared to feel "not well" the Dr. told me that 50% of people feel mild withdrawal symptoms after thier last dose.

I have Imodium, etc. just in case. I will let you know how it goes. I did't want to do maintenance as that would just drag the whole thing out for me, I want to be free of all drugs. I know it's a replacement but if this taper works I can't help but recommend it.

We'll see how I feel next Saturday.

Amanda

mayb naltraxone be better option if he clean already? i've heard its a non adictive blocker to prevent relapse you can get em daily pills or 6 month implanted in uk not sure about in US?

joanzie1962 ru set for stopping off your taper? Hope it goes smoothly for you!

redsun


<center> <h6>“Every Junkies Like a Setting Sun" </h6> </center> <div align="right"> Neil Young </div id="right">

amanda, i totally agree with redsun, if your bf will have 52 days clean, there is no need for sub--the naltrexone would make alot more sense, and why start a different opiate?

robin

I DISLIKE PEOPLE WHO USE CAPITAL LETTERS ALL THE TIME BUT THIS IS IMPORTANT!!! ok i am a heroin addict sniffing for 2 yrs, i used subutex to try to titrate but i could never jump off. ttons and tons of crying alone. i have used the $6500 ten day comfy detox but always relapsed. i believe they get you clean but no meetings are required and they let you take it from there like a shivering red baby. nevermind that. i went to the hospital after one relapse, hoping for some good drugs and help. they gave me more subutex, i used it for 30 days or so, could not jump. misery like a wound that was having rock salt ground in daily, in the same place day after day. i felt like i was torturing myself. AAAAAAAGHHH! i went back to comfy detox, this time i stayed for a month. by now ive thrown enough money at this than i care to remember. bye-bye inheritence. it was terrible. now i am back at home earnestly trying to titrate heroin, very scared of subs. everyone i talk to says use subs for like 5-15 days starting off with plenty to feel well then quickly stepping to crumbs. they say heroin just cannot be done this way. it has to be subutex. should i do it? i have all the accompanying vitamins down to [u]5htp</u>. (for those who dont know-- that stuff with aminos actually helps dopamine levels normalize suprisingly quick, greatly decreasing PAWS.) im going to try. i bought 12 of the big stop sign sublingual subutex and i am preparing to giver hell. does anyone see why i should not use the sub again in this way? its all that i have unless i go back and spend another years rent. can anyone help? also i wanted to mention that they make an orange sublingual melotonin that helps great to sleep well. sort of fools my tongue into thinking its a 'tex. i love you people. thank you in advance for your help. so again the question, quick subutex titrate..or back to traveling out of $tate for 'comfy' detox? or...something else short of giving up.

billy you might want to start a new topic so ppl better equipped than i can answer you questions. not many will see your post on this thread. but i guarantee if you start a new thread you will get the help and advice you are looking for.

i can tell you what i did tho. i dont know about heroin, my DOC was oxycontin which i thought to have a longer wd period than heroin. but what do i know. i used almost as long as you, a yr and a half, and my habit was huge. i used suboxone for 8 days to get by the acute crap and cravings of the first week. my dosing went something like this. 1st day 16mg(although that was too much) 2nd day 8mgs, 3rd day 4mgs, 4th day 2mgs, 5th day 1 mg, 6th day .5mgs, 7th day .25 mgs, 8th day .25. then stopped. there is going to be a bit of discomfort and sleepless nights but its not that hard if you want it bad enough. i know everyone is different, for me i just had to make the right decision for myself and with that conviction came clarity of purpose. i was a loser and im not the loser type. nor are you or any of us. im finally loving myself again. there is freedom in that.

good luck billy, i wish you the best. start a new topic and you will get better advice, i only know what is working for me.

I am starting a detox program tomorrow. I took my last pill 5 mins ago since a 24 hour withdrawal was suggested by my doctor. He seems to be pushing towards keeping me on a long term maintenance program, which to me is not that appealing. However, I do suppose if longer term use of Bupe will keep me off of my DOC until I am strong and stabilized, with a good recovery program working it would be a good thing. I have been playing doctor long enough, I think it is time to listen to a professional.

hey guys, i made it to detox, i leave here thursday. it has been ok, thanks to a previous detox from subutex. i will never be caught using that crap again. i still cry sometimes as my child (opiates) leaves. ill miss him but never have to suffer the pain that goes with it again. i hate that feeling and plan on keeping the misery fresh in my mind as time continues, it was never fun no matter what my sick mind tries to tell me. thanks you guys for support, ill keep you informed of my recovery, God willing and the river dont rise..

To Sub or not to Sub, that is the question. Well a brief history here, i was on Sub since the end of Aug. 2006 till may 31, 2008. I tried so many times to quit H, detoxed CT 5-6 times, always ended back in, maybe not enough suffering. Being a H detox is what, about 5 days really bad? So what option did i have? The miracle cure[:x)].

Now we have 2 schools of thought in Sub dosing, a quick 21-30 day taper or go on a maintainance dosage for how long? That is the route i went and feel i needed to.

Why?
Because i needed to distance myself from fellow users, contacts, the habit of scoring, all that goes into the addiction. I don't believe this can be done in a matter of weeks.

Downside is a prolonged detox with prolonged PAWS at least in most cases. Sooner or later the sub doesn't make you feel the way it once did. For me i lost ambition, was depressed, just not me. But again this is what i needed to do. I also had a hell of a time tapering on it. I couldn't get below 4-5mgs, so i jumped from there 2 weeks ago.

IF your going to go the Sub route, its not a miracle cure. It will buy you time to restructure your life and gain some stability. But i kid you not, sooner or later you will have to face that dreaded detox. But you'll be wiser and more determined, ready for the detox when your time comes.

Is it for everyone? I don't know, i went through a OXY/perc detox after a spinal fusion. Workmans comp. ceased paying the doc and he cut me off, no taper no nothing, and i know that devil. Now i had no contacts for opiates, so i just suffered through it. If this is the case for some i think just plain old detox is a better route. after 6 months you'll be 100% vs sucking on a sub tab first thing in the morning. The detox is no worse, rough yes, but you'll live. I Think sub is for those who actively search out opiates, can't stop using even though they've detoxed a few times, but always return to the search of opiates. These people are lost like i was. Jobless, wifes/husbands lost all the YETs to happen.[;^)]

Now i see alot of finger pointing at the Doctors, and its true to some extent. The first clinic of 2 i went to. Only prescribed for maintainance, no detox.0 success rate of opiate free clients. I consider places like this drug dealing directors, which after all is the people running the show. My shrink quit after some issues i brought up with the program and its director. Due to me being behind a $1000 on payments. The guy cancelled my appointment and i had to come up with $750 so i could see my doc. The Doc disapperared after that. Leave of absence [^] I relayed my position to the Doc and he told me had i come in he would have written the script. Second Doc (clinic0 was a good one, ethical.

Now the truth of the matter, its we who got ourselves into this mess. No matter what you read there is no easy way out. Sub can help you, yes with a but. You gotta ask yourself can you stop seeking opiates? Say adios to all user friends no matter how much you care for them? Throw away all phone numbers for contacts? I've been looking in the mirror and blame me, sure i never thought i'd be a junkie, never used IV but still a junkie in my eyes.

Who knows maybe in a month if i'm still feeling that sub depression/fatigue i'll change my mind, for now i think it was hte right thing for me. Weigh your options and decide for yourself.