Is there a Set schedule to STOP taking Suboxone?

[ChelleBeau]

I've been trying to do this on my own, and it's really, really tough. Need to talk with others who are going through the same to try to gain insight.

[nic0ledanielle]

I started taking suboxone on Friday, I started with a full 8mg strip (half when I woke up and half before bed) then 3/4 of a strip sat & sun and today just a half. Tomorrow I plan on doing the other half then quarters from there using one strip.  I feel great and am really hoping this taper works for me.  I had bad headaches the past 3 days but regular Advil & an anti-inflammatory helped that. I had been addicted to painkillers for over 2 years and I was just sick of being broke and chasing a high that I didn't even feel anymore...I would take the pills just to feel "normal" well now I really do feel normal and I still have money in my wallet!!! This would have never been the case just last week. Anyway, as I said I hope this taper works for me, I know it's a lot of mental too and this is what I want. I hope everyone who is having problems getting/staying clean gets thru it!! A strong mindset is more effective then you might think....good luck everyone!

[ariley13]

Hi there! This is a very old thread and these people are no longer around. If you would like to start your own thread or ask a question please go out to the main page and hit the 'post a question' link.

[ntalon]

To gitpen. The name alone gives one a clue of the intelligence. I can't tell you how wrong you are about Suboxone, gitpen. Suboxone saves lives and to tell someone to get back on the drug that can kill them is sick. Also, Suboxone is NOT 50 times more stronger than morphine. Buprenorphine is an opioid medication. Buprenorphine is similar to other opioids such as morphine, codeine, and heroin however, it produces less euphoric ("high") and therefore not 50 times as strong as morphine. If Suboxone was 50 times stronger than morphine anyone who took their first dose of Suboxone would be dead within seconds from respiratory depression!!!

[val8669]

Hi, I had been on an extended release morphine and norcos for over 6 years. Trying different things of and on to see what worked better for back pain. In the end loosing 60lbs. is what helped... I decided on March 15th 2011 that I was no longer going to be a slave to pain medicine, prescribed or not. I went to the Dr. after researching all of the different blogs and such and told him what I wanted to do. I was not leaving there without a suboxone prescription. He gave me a script, I took it to the nearest Walgreen's and an hour later was back in his office to take my first dose. He gave me a script for two 8mg doses taken once a day (two pill at a time) melted under your tongue.(not the most pleasant tasting, but when your in with-drawls who gives a ****) He had me take one pill at first to see if i could get by with one. No such luck, so I took the second one shortly after the first. It worked just fine and I felt great.
  The first and second night were the worst. I had really bad leg cramps and had a really hard time sleeping. Then the next few nights I couldn't sleep at all (side effect, got some house cleaning done). At the one week mark I lowered myself down to one 8mg pill per day. Some days were better than others and sometimes i would break up my doses to one every twelve hours, but at a week and a half I was down to one pill a day. At two weeks I tried Half a pill a day with sometimes taking a whole one or taking every twelve hrs like before. It is now April 7th,at 4:42am less than one month out. I have not taken a pill since 7pm on the 5th. over 33hrs since my last half pill dose. I feel a little better than the first night on suboxone. I think this will be the day I can say I am drug free. I feel pretty good. I think If I stay busy I can beat it. Wish me Luck.......

[gnarly_1]

HI,,,,,it takes a good 90 days for your brain to produce it own endorphins again
thats why N/A says to do 90 meetings in 90 days....the brain will heal itself I broke a 16 1/2 yr addiction and mine did and the last 6 1/2 yrs where on methadone my recovery was slow it was a good 90 days b/4 I started to get well and around 6 mo that I started to feel normal
as I said the brain well heal what wont is our thinking as addicts we need to change the very way we think to get well at best we can live in recovery but it takes work getting clean is ez its staying clean that takes the work...when your ready to come off get plugged into a N/A program
do it now b/4 you come off and start to lean what it going to take to live clean and sober
there are some amino acids listed in the health pages to the lower right of the screen look them up its brain food but 2/3 of this is attitude and the ability to learn new ways good luck and God bless....Gnarly

[angie510]

Hi I have been on suboxone for 2 years and 4 months now I started by a indiction which is stopping your pain killers cold turkey and going into full blown withdrawel then i was put on suboxone and given 2 mg pills and was told to take 1 2 mg tablet every 20 min until i feel normal, and that will become your daily dose.  My daily dose is now 16 mg a day 2 8 mg pills a day. i break the pill in half and take halfs 4 times a day.  I am intrested in coming off this medicine, i do believe that I am in a much better place now that i no longer have the obession and complusion to get high.  This is my issue, I have done research and spoke to so many who lead me to believe that suboxone makes chemicals for your brain which make us who take suboxone feel "normal" when decreasing or getting off our bodies do suffer the physical withdrawel but we also can suffer from PAWS which is our brain fighting to make the chemicals suboxone did on its own again. Sometimes, depending on your brain , the brain gets so used to suboxone making our chemicals level for us that it takes a very long time for the brain to re make the chemicals needed.  After all for us to even become addicted ito pain killers or herion in the first place our brain was lacking some sort of chemical to begin with that pain killers or herion gave us.  Our brain loved what opiates gave us, and there is how u get a addiction, I believe for anyone to successfully come off suboxone you need to have your brain chemicals observed and analazed to see what your lacking, when coming off suboxone your brain can start eventually to "look again" for something your already lacking.  I believe addiction is alot deeper than just a bad upbringing i believe its a chemical im balance. and someone who suffered from this type of a addiction will need some sort of anti depressant for possibly the rest of their lives.  I would love to come off of suboxone myself. I have been weaning off because i would like to get pregnant with my 2nd child soon, but i wont until my body is cleansed.  In reading about suboxone i see alot who want to be free of it, And i agree we all should be able to live life without a substance, but i feel we need to look at this from a different perspective here, You became addicted to some sort of pain killer or heiron at one time, whos to say ten years from now a difficult siutaion may come up again and your brain lacking something its always lacked may not draw you back in again. And we know this disease happens silently.  I just want people to know its alot more than just a physical addiction here to suboxone, you go the 10 days and u go through the withdrawels but after that you could still be in danger....which could lead you to a possible relapse if your not correcting the underlying problem at hand.  Have your brain chemicals checked out first before going off!!!  :)

[Brent45]

PS. I signed him up for this forum so he can come on here to gain support/gudience from people who has gone through it.

[Brent45]

My husband has been on suboxone for about three years he started taking one 8mg a day then its gradually gone up to 3 8mg a day. He missed his last doctors appt. because he started a new job and couldn't get off work so it's been out of meds since thursday (today is monday) he goes to the doctor this thursday but i despertly want him to quit the suboxone all together. So far his withdraws are mild, he complains of backs aches but not much else. I'm not sure if I've got him on board with continuing to not take the medicine or not, but when thursday comes I pray he can be strong enough not to give in.
Does anyone have a suggestions to help him come off or any words of wisdom?

[drebby]

I have taken sub 8mg for a lil over a year started on 3 a day and was on that much till about a month ago but now i am suppose to take 2 a day but i no longer take the pills they come in quick dissolve strips and i cut little strips off there i really want to stop to make a long story short im suppose to take two full strips a day and i have made 10 strips last over three weeks by cutting little strips off the whole my biggest challenge is making myself believe that i dont need them to get goin in the morning im almost there common people mind over matter

[G00b]

Guys. No wonder you're having trouble. Jumping off at doses between 2 mg and 32 mg is WAAAY to high. You have to remember that even though Suboxone is a partial agnoist/antagonist, it is still about 100 times stronger than morphine. Jumping off at 2 mg of suboxone is like quitting 300 mg of morphine a day habit. Slow is the key. Slow taper. When you get down to 2 mg, you then need to start crushing up your pill and taking little bitty pieces. Try to get down to taking 1 mg pieces then switch to the liquid taper method. Just look it up on your favorite search engine. The liquid suboxone taper.

[G00b]

Guys. No wonder you're having trouble. Jumping off at doses between 2 mg and 32 mg is WAAAY to high. You have to remember that even though Suboxone is a partial agnoist/antagonist, it is still about 100 times stronger than morphine. Jumping off at 2 mg of suboxone is like quitting 300 mg of morphine a day habit. Slow is the key. Slow taper. When you get down to 2 mg, you then need to start crushing up your pill and taking little bitty pieces. Try to get down to taking 1 mg pieces then switch to the liquid taper method. Just look it up on your favorite search engine. The liquid suboxone taper.

[kickinhydro]

I feel the same, I want off BAD I've been on for 8 months. Started @ 24 mgs per day now down to 12 mgs per day. About a month ago I tried to stop c/t I made it for 4 full days & then caved my w/d's were so severe it was awful! I feel stuck on this med. I'm a single mother of a very active 4 year old & have a full time job, there is no way I could handle the intense w/d to get off the sub right now. I'm own my own & no family to help with my daughter if I'm sick for a week or two, that is the only reason I stay on sub @ this point. If there is something to help with w/d I would get off now if I could
Jessica

[jennydg681]

I have been taking suboxone for 3 years now. I'm dying to get off it but when I try I get sick like a dog. I'm on 2 8 mg a day. I don't know what to do. I want to stop but what do I doz? What else can I take so I won't feel so sick? Please help.  

[ang_811]

I woke up Monday and decided I'm going to go without my sub today. Well 1 day went into another and here I am on day 3! I felt the same way u do now. I never knew how I was going to stop. But I did and Im happy I'm here now!!!! Good luck to u

[Trappedinacircle]

I have been on Suboxone for a little over 3 years now. I started at 16mg and am now down to 4mg ( though some days i do take 8mg still). I've tried a couple of times to stop completely... mistake!! The first day or two I was fine, and thought it would be easy.. wrong!! On the 3rd day w/d hit me quick! No sleep, restless body feeling (not just legs). If I tried to just lay still and fall asleep it felt as if I would just explode! Just creepy crawlies ALL day. The last time this happened, I had just recently moved and between doctors had run out of medication for about a week. It was pure Hell!! I was taking 30mg roxicodone pills (anywhere from 4 to 10 a day) before I started suboxone. I will say that suboxone works... but it simply is still replacing one pill with another. I honestly believe that I am addicted to suboxone. If I completely stop, I do believe I will use roxy's or perc's again. Simply to "feel normal" (whatever that is). I've heard some say you should only be on suboxone for a year, some only a few weeks!! I suppose there truly is no "set" time limit. Everyone is different. I'd like to be "pill free".. but, I see myself on a low dose of suboxone forever. The scary thing is... I did stop suboxone for a couple of weeks and used roxicodone (waiting 3 days after my last dose of suboxone)..... It did not get me "high", just kept me feeling "right". Before Suboxone, I used to love the way roxicodone made me feel. I believe that my brain now (being on suboxone for 3+ years, longer than I was using roxi.. only about a year maybe 2) simply "needs" some form of opiate period. Honestly I can't say for sure if I think suboxone is a blessing or not. I do get a perscription for it every month (no insurance so it cost about $6 a pill plus a $175 doc visit)... where as roxi I have to find on the streets usually at $10 to $15 a pill (sometimes easy, sometimes not so easy to find). Either way I ultimately am addicted .... One of my drug dealers is legal, with many degrees... the other ..........

Is there a set schedule to stop taking suboxone? How can there be? Just because it may work that way for some... it WILL NOT work that way for ALL. And as long as there is money to be made (legally) off of those of us who have opiate addiction problems...... I would favor the opinions of "us" over "them"...... depending on the person, I guess anywhere from a month to.......................... forever.

[HMGC]

I read your comments and I agree with what your saying. I have been on suboxone for 2yrs & 4months and started at 3 (8mg) suboxone pills a day and now am down to a qrtr. of 1 (8mg) suboxone pill a day. I have been slowly weening myself down for the past 6-8 months now and am kinda at a stand still. I have slight withdrawal symptoms everyday and am just for the most part very lethargic. I guess I am scared to take the plunge and completely stop taking that qrtr. piece everyday but really how much more can I withdrawal off a qrtr. piece ?? Yes, that is a loaded question !! I want to stop taking suboxone and not be dependent on anything in my system. I have been a drug addict for 15yrs. and did every drug possible and rounded out my career with IV heroine, cocaine, & crack-cocaine use. I was using on a good day a couple grams of heroine intravenously for 2-3 yrs until I quite October 30th, 2008 and started my suboxone program. I can say that suboxone helped me get off the needle and gave me a chance @ a normal life and have been healing slowly ever since with the help of suboxone everyday. I know it's a vicious cycle and suboxone is still very addictive but to me suboxone was the lesser of 2 evils...

[TysonRed]

From what ive heard alot depends on the person, people give different accounts of how severe the w/ds are even when they've followed the same schedule, so alot of it is mental. My friend successfully completed suboxone and said it was alot easier than methadone, and Ive come off methadone and had those w/d's so that gave me confindence. This drug is definetely something you dont want to take any longer than absolutely needed, the w/d's for most are moderate to severe and depending on how long youve taken it, decides how long the w/d's last. I to believe people who are addicted to short acting opioids should just try and taper or go cold turkey because those w/d's would likely be milder than with buprenorphine. Its a very strong drug, some people dont realize how strong, they think because you dont get high from it well it cant be that strong, but its the fact its only a partial agonist that you dont get high, not that it isnt potent. Where are you at in your tapering schedule, how much are you taking currently and how long have you been on? Post some of your info so that people can make a more understanding advice on what could benefit you. I also am on sub, day 62 (4mgs) gonna try and be off within next 40-60 days, my actual plan is for longer but I feel like I will be able to be off much sooner than I originally planned. So if you have any questions for a fellow person on sub feel free to send me a message and I will try my best to answer them for you. Best wishes and good luck, whatever happens you can get off sub, just remain positive and keep your eye on the end result and how happy you will be when you accomplish the objective. You can do it !!!

[sadinmichigan]

how much are you on? and for how long? I have not taken sub,however I did cold turkey methadone so I know how bad the w/ds are and if sub is even similar..then it's a b!tch to do but not impossible..if you don't have to work or take care of little ones then I sau go cold turkey and get through it. then your done. ..you were better off going c/t from vicodin..but I am sure you know that now..there are alot of people on sub here,but not too many that are off. there is a few..just not many..same for methadone. I am lucky enough to be one of those people..good luck.

[gitpen]

Suboxone is 50 times stronger than morphine. It is a "maintenance drug" just like Methadone.
What you need to do is -
1) taper down asap. Do this by taking it only before bed (sleep is very important ... much more important than feeling like **** in the day time).
2) follow the Amino Acid protocol found at the bottom of the page.

Get off the stuff asap.  Even if you need to get back on Vicodin or whatever you were on before.  Suboxone is no answer.