How to lose weight while tapering of Methadone

[meg045]

I am tapering off methadone right now. Started at 120mg I'm now at 50mg. When I got on the clinic four years ago I weighed 120pounds I got up to 225 in a year. Well now I'm coming off the clinic by choice but I've lost some weight now that I've come down some but not as much as I was hoping to have lost so far. Does anyone have any advice on losing weight while tapering? Or experience with this. Thank you

[gnarly_1]

Hi Meg....well the 3 in 1 vitamins help a lot I only wish I had found it sooner.....as for the withdrawals it is  not so much the severity as it is the long recovery .....it took me a good 90 days to see improvement the hardest part for me was the ''energy crash'' and the lack of sleep witch made my anxiety much worst.....I wish there was a ezer softer way to get off this crap but there is not....I have helped a lot of our members do this and will help you also  you not in this alone any more....try not to let fear into the equation  it is always worst in our heads then it turns out to be....at the clinic they wanted me to slow taper for 2yrs....I had 2 week take homes and a nurse friend gave me a syringe and showed me how to measure it and I did most of my detox on my own  it is why it only took me 8 1/2 months  it also saved me a boat load of money I saved all the methadone from my taper and had enough for 12 weeks at the end and did not need to go to the clinic any more + I was able to reduce dose every 36 hours rather then 2 weeks like the clinic said to  just know you can do this and we can help...ask all the questions you have and keep posting for support..............Gnarly

[Katieorth9]

THANK YOU! You just saved me. My clinic made me stop my taper because I admitted that I had a craving...um yeah. Didn't mean I was going to run out and use. I am so sick of being huge. I have been on methadone twice. The last time was when I was in my 20s and I lost the weight easily. This time I am 33 years old, have been suffering from chronic migraines and chronic fatigue. I have next to no energy for even the most basic of activities, let alone exercise. It is a miracle I can get through a 40 hour work week. That alone is exhausting. I want SO badly to start tapering again and would love to just do it on my own. I just have no idea how to accurately measure. Could you explain how you used a syringe to measure the methadone to remove for your taper and what kind of syringe to purchase?

[Sara_MHModerator]

Hi there.  Sometimes asking your own question will get more responses.  It is always best to to get guidance from a health care professional.  It's unfortunate that your practice makes you feel like you can't be honest. I would like to think that they are most concerned about your well being to prevent you from relapsing. We have several very experienced members in this community that will like to help you.  Please come back and consider starting your own thread for support.  

[meg045]

Thank you for all the information! I am going tonight to get the vitamin you said will help me. I just don't want this process to be dragged out to a crazy amount of time. I mean there telling me it will take close to a year and half possibly. :-( methadone has a three day half life i dont know what Suboxens half life is but I no methadones is long and they say methadone withdrawals are like ten times worse then heroin withdraw. I dont know it Will all depend on my body I suppose. I can't wait to see if the vitamins help me though. I pretty much am in a constant withdrawal except half my day. I can deal though I'm tough but it would be nice to lesson the effects some. Sence I have a three year old I take care of 24 hours a day. Any advice for when I get down tords the lower milligrams like after 20? Next Friday I'll be going down another 5mg so I'll be at 45mg. I just wish this weight would start coming off more again. I guess in time

[gnarly_1]

Hi Meg......well tapering off methadone can be a ruff road ...I opitid for as quick of detox that I could do  went from 150 to 0 in 8 1/2 months....now the real thing here is how much discomfort your willing to tolerate .....go to slow and your at it for literately years go to fast and your sorta in a constant state of withdrawal  the key here is to find that happy medium....the best thing to do is let your body be the final judge in when to taper  I drooped dose every 36hours but there where times I had to slow down...if your feeling bad withdrawals give it a few days to stabilize this is a race one by the tortus not the hare....what it all boils down to is your blood serum level ...you need time for your body to adjust to the lower dose b/4 dropping dose  rather then just dropping by the number of milagrams it is more about the % of drop   for instance in the higher doses you can drop much faster but as you get lower the % of drop is greater...it is ezer to go from 100 to 30 then it is to go from 20 to 0  the last part is the hardest...we can help you along the way keep posting for support we will walk you threw the whole process we all look forward to helping you recover................Gnarly

[meg045]

Thanks for your reply! Ok I started tapering in July at 120mg and I'm now at 50mg. They want me to taper down to 20mg then switch to suboxen and finish my taper off that. I do not no what is the better way to come off methadone whether it's to come straight off the methadone or do the switch to the suboxen and come off that at the end. So with my weight issue even when I was smaller I had self esteem issues but now there thru the roof! I have my wedding in 2018 on a cruise and I just really want to be comfertable in my own body. I dont know what I'm supposed to be eating right Now because I've never had to watch watch I've eaten before :-( and I don't really no what's the best workouts to do at the gym when I go either. Also how fast should I be coming off? Or really how fast is to fast? Thank you!!

[KC617]

i myself am going through a suboxone tapper down to get off but it isnt easy.  i dont think switching is going to make it any easier. i would stay with what you are comfortable with.  it seems to me that after about 10days to 2 weeks after my next step down i start to feel the effects.  suboxone has a longer half life which means it stays in your system longer so you dont truly know how you are going to feel which each step for awhile.  i dont know if i like that very much because then it takes my mind back to do i need to go back up to where i was before.  when in all actuality it only prolongs my tapper down.  i dont know how methadone works if it is the same or not but just giving you what suboxone has done to my mind set.  it in all is a scary process for me but i am determined to get off because i also have gained alot of weight while on suboxone.  i am in an exercise program and trying to eat right but it is also a battle.  all i know is when i get off track is to jump back into it and not let too much time go by.  life in it self can deter you from your own goals just need to keep a strong mind and support system.  i also use to keep alot from family and friends now they are all aware of what i am going through and they help in pushing me forward.  subtle questions like did you go to the gym today? how is your change of life going? keep your head up, you are looking better! although sometimes i am not feeling better I am just stuck and have to push forward.  i really hate when i dont see any weight loss when i know i have been doing my best, but i also know that i am not always going to see it on the scale.  I wish you the best and need a good support system to keep you going.  I perfer AA meetings over NA just because i see longer sobriety and that is where it all started with me.  i have also been to FA meetings to teach me how to eat right but they are really strict! they know what it is like and what to do, they lose their weight in just what they eat without exercise but i have found exercise to help in my overall mood!  keep going on the right path!

[gnarly_1]

Hi Meg welcome to the forum....I was on methadone for almost 7 rys at 150mg and also packed on the weight....I tapered in 8 1/2 months and the weight came off as I tapered....how long have you been tapering????  the real key here is to change your eating habits lean protein like baked chicken breast and fish  low carbs and very little sugar's this will help a lot  we have a lot of members who have gotten off this drug and others will chime in.... most people do fine with a slow taper till they hit around 20mg  then it gets hard....I do recamend you get up to walmart and pick up a 3 in 1 vitamin  calcium/magnesum/zinc  start taking 4 with breakfast and 4 with dinner  methadone robs your body of these minerals and without them the withdrawal is much worst... just know there is life after methadone and we can help and support your detox  keep posting for support.............................Gnarly............................