Can i go cold turkey off methadone?

[buggy2525]

i used to be on pills really bad..I started taking 1 a day, then 2, then it got to 3-5 oxy's or roxy's a day.  I took them for about a year, but went cold turkey twice and finally got off of them. It was really hard for me because nobody knows about my addiction, so I had to do this on my own, which made it even harder. The second time i detoxed myself, my friend (who went through the same thing) said that if I took 1 methadone a day for 4-5 days, that it would help with the withdrawals and getting off the pills completely.  I want to be done completely with EVERYTHING! I am so tired of living like this every day of my life! I am tired and ready to be done with it!! I started taking more methadones than she told me to take, and now I take 1-2 every day, for about a month now. I don't feel ANYTHING when I take the methadones, I think it just keeps me from feeling like crap! I get angry at myself because I don't know why I even take them if I don't even feel the high and the goodness from them. But I also know that this is all mentally hard as well. Is it dangerous to go cold turkey off the methadones, even though I don't take that many?  Will the withdrawals be really bad like when i got off the roxy's/oxy's?  I don't really care about the withdrawl symptoms, I'll just have to deal with that,i just read online that it was dangerous(causes seizures, ect.) to go cold turkey off methadones, but i really want to do this, and do this on my own!! I don't want to have to go to the doctor and go on another prescription to get off pills, when i know i can do it on my own to get off ALL pills for good!! Since I went cold turkey off the roxy's and oxy's and I was fine after about a week or so, I just want to be sure it's safe for me to go cold turkey off the methadones. I know i can get through this and eventually live a normal and happy life some day. Anyone have any suggestions?

[Audgemebaby]

Methadone maintenence saved my life. I got on to a blocking dose and promised myself to start tapering down right away. I knew that the only way I was gonna go through any amount of withdrawal wether from heroin or meth was if I had hope. When I joined the meth clinic I had no hope. Because of meth I was able to get a job right away, my license, a car, fix my teeth, gain weight, quit weed, quit cigarettes, finish my court dates, and get my family to trust me. Once that was all done and I was feeling spectacular about myself I decided to taper off the meth and that's what I did. There was no stopping me 'cause I had a taste of having money and having a great life. No way could I have went into a detox center for a week and get clean of heroin feeling worthless and disgusting. Methadone let me get my life together and because of that I was able to get off the methadone pretty easily. I was determined to keep the life I made for myself and finish off the last thing on my "change my life" list which was getting off the meth. I hit 2 years clean on Sept 18th and my life is amazing. If it wasn't for methadone maintenance who knows where I'd be.

[iamaloser5320]

me and my wife did oxys for about 4 years, then heroin for about a year.. we started the clinic and went up to 110 mg each.. we were on that dose for almost a year and some crazy **** happened and we both just wanted to try to get sober as fast as possible.. we were really ready when we started the clinic... just scared of the pain.. boy was that a mistake.. oxy and heroin withdrawl is like a kitty and methedone is like a tiger.. in my own humble opinion. we went cold turkey off the 110. made it 5 days.. 5 days of zero sleep zero food and somehow lots of puke and diharrea(spelling) which i dont know where the last 2 would have even came from.  after the 2nd day the symptoms start and the sleep stops.. the 4th night i took 3 trazadone 100mgs and about 10 .25 xanax and felt retarded and aweful but not sleepy.   we made it 5 days then took a few old blackberrys and an old alien ware computer i had and traded it for a quarter of some weed and an 80. which really was a mistake because it didnt help ****... we had to split the 80 which 40 mg of oxy isnt **** compared to 110mg of mdone. we did the same for 3 more days.. as far as gettin an 80 a day. it would make the daytime a little easier but the nights were still terrible.  our parents found out we relapsed on the oxys and had a shitfit/intervention made us move back home, took the car keys, ect and said that we would be on the street if we didnt get into a program. so my wife went to a 7 day detox and i went and stayed with her crazy mom cause couples couldnt be in there at the same time.  i didnt get but maybe a catnap of sleep for the next 10 days. she slept good in detox because she was gettin ambien there. when she got out she stopped taking it and stopped sleeping too.. this is day  19 since that last oxy and about 27 or so from the last methedone dose. im starting to feel better aside from life being a dull mother when your sober. still going to sleep at 3 am and gettin up around 6 or 7. but atleast i get a few solid hours of sleep.

i would not reccommend anyone quittin the clinic cold turkey... as i would not reccomend anyone going to a methedone program to begin with.
im not sure about others but the one i went to they took you to 60mg befor they even asked if you were starting to feel better.. and of course being the addict i was i said no up to 110mg and i drug my wife along with me.they council you at that clinic but they do nothing to regulate your dose except you have to see the dr if you want to go over 120mg.
they never asked me if i was ready to start dosing down, they never said hey 110mg is alot to be on.. they let me stay at that level for a
LONG time.     bottom line, its easier to get off the street drugs, i dont care about your habit .. at my peak i was doin  around a gram of heroin a day with a rig.  that might not seem like alot but it was good smack and i was to the point where i wouldnt even fade out when i was puttin it in.  it only took me about 50 to 60mg of methedone until i was totally not sick anymore. but yet they make it SOOO easy to lie that i went to 110.  if i clinic is not running at full capacity meaning if the state allows a clinic to have 400 patients and they have only 350 ... they will NEVER try Actually get you dosed down and out of the place because thats less money for them.

I would suggest anyone coming off drugs to find a free detox center atleast.  there are alot of them. my big bro went to same detox as my wife and got referred to a 6 month rehab which he is still in and it was all free.. the only stuff he has to pay for is ciggarettes and the trazadone and depression meds they have him on..  they are going to set him up with a job and help him get a place.

he was in a different methedone clinic for 7 years.. and he was always the one that told me not to go there.. i should have listened.
if anyone wants to know anything else about my experiences with methedone email ***@****

[darlenedaisy]

Oh, I should also mention, I tapered from over 100mg down to 25mg, then went to detox to come off cold turkey at 25mg.

Also, my ex and I once came off of 95mg at home on our own, and it was rough, but we made it that time for a couple months.

I am clean now, and so glad to be off drugs, life gets so much better, and so does health. You can get clean too. Hang in there.
Hugs

[darlenedaisy]

Hi Buggy,

I came off methadone 4 years ago, so you can do it !
Alot of people escape it's grip.

I was on it for 5 years.

I have never heard of withdrawal from methadone being dangerous.  Best to check with your doc though.

Danger is in the chance of OD if you take too much, now THAT has happened to many.  

The withdrawal was similar to opiate withdrawal, and because I was on it for years, took awhile to get out of my body completely.

Since you have been on it for months, it would be a great time to get off it, before you get saturated with the darn stuff !

I am pulling for you, hugs from Darlene - in Vancouver, B.C. Canada

[gnarly_1]

HI welcome to the forum....well your on a low dose of done for only a month so the withdrawals shouldn't be that bad over all but all narcotic withdrawal su#ks...methadone is notorious for a hard withdrawal so I would try to minimize it as much as possible by tapering down some...I dont think most people really understand just how potent methadone really is even in small doses ..if you need help with a taper plan p/m me
or just ask and I will p/m you directly ...we no longer post taper plans in the open forum
because of the number of bogus ones posted....I tapered off 150ml of the stuff and no how hard it can be in the lower doses so I will help you if need be....jumping at 20mg is not unheard of but most people wouldn't recommend it ...it would be better to jump off at 5mg ....ILL check back later to see if you respond to my post ...good luck and God bless ....Gnarly  

[refusingbondage]

I have known people who went c/t off methadone.  Ive not heard of it being dangerous.. Just very hard..  What is your dosage on each pill?  You've been on the methadone for a month?  I know methadone is certainly not an easy detox, but many before you have done it.  I think you will be ok after only using it for a month.  But there are some members here who have more knowledge of methadone than me.  I do know for sure that a large, long standing methadone habit is a lot worse of a withdrawal than an oxy habit.  Also, Methadone is dangerous when not monitored.  

You CAN see a doctor to get some help -- non narcotic help.  Like clonidine (a BP med that helps with withdrawal) and something to help you relax.  Always important to have a doctor help you through (a good doctor.. )..

Lastly, find some aftercare.  Aftercare is key and you will need some in place to KEEP you off drugs.. NA, therapy, both.. whatever.  Its very important.  Good luck and God bless.