What to expect jumping off suboxone

[ariesgirl69]

I have been prescribed suboxone 4 about 6mths now. I started on 32mgs & am now on 2mgs. I am REALLY wanting to jump off & want to hear from anyone who has done it successfully what to expect. I have in the past gone cold turkey from a large heroin habit & have jumped off 2mls of methadone successfully. Is coming off suboxone as bad as methadone or heroin? How long does it last etc?

[Enuffisenough]

To hope, I think we will be fine. We want this !

[hope6hope]

It's ok. I never thought of it that way but you guys are right!! If things go smoothly then no one would seek out help. Well if mine goes well I'm going to shout it out to the world lol. I think I don't know cuz I'm new at subs. But maybe it has to do with if they got to a doctor and are prescribed and the doctor works with them to taper verses getting it off the street??? Again idk but its just a guess?? My doctor said he has never had one patient call and say they couldn't handle it the way her tapers. So I just hope he's right and I do ok. I figure if I got thru the fentanyl hell to get on subs I should be ok. I hope anyways.

[Enuffisenough]

Have u tried .5 less? We're you taking them for wring reasons ? Or treatment for something else???

[421tristan]

hay whats up i seen your coment i have yet to come off subs myself  and i ben on for 5 years and herd that its the shitest one to over come but i cant even go a single day with a lower dose but i beleve what you say is there a lot of depreson thanks  i just want so try at least i take 5 8s a day 5 years straight and i dont have a script but get them off the street but thay are getting scers to get now so i relly want off them

[Enuffisenough]

Ur the best. Scares me a little Too : the stories.....not gonna lie. And its so true, people post more when help is needed or neg. such a great point. But I hope ur around when I wean :)

[kdeen96]

I'm so SORRY to scare you.  That wasn't my intent at all.  I got so wrapped up in reading peoples stories that I just typed mine.  You CAN do this,,,,I don't want my struggle to stray you.....Sorry again :(

[jmidz88]

Like mentioned above, you will more likely hear the bad over the good but thats not what im here to say. I sucessfully jumped off suboxone at 2mg per day and I am 5 weeks clean and feeling MUCH better. The first 2 weeks were tough but if you really have the motive to quit like I did you will beast through it. Emotional stress will come out and you will think about going back but you won't let yourself if you have your eyes on the prize. Every day you are clean you will cherish and feel accomplished. Before you know it, it will be 1 week, then 2 then 3 and you will start to feel much better. Wishing you the best of luck if you have any questions, im not a professional but I have been there and im more than happy to offer my personal advice,

[nursegirl6572]

There is no shortage of horror stories when it comes to this stuff on the web.  You have to remember that the people who had GOOD stories are far less likely to seek out an online forum to randomly post their success stories on.  People with negative stories want to tell the world...that's true with ANY topic...from meds to product reviews,  to vacation experiences.

When a sub taper is done right, isn't rushed, and a person weans down as low as possible, it IS absolutely doable.  That doesn't mean it will be 100% discomfort FREE, but it can be managed.

I've seen many people successfully wean off subs with little issue.  I've also seen people struggle.  Try not to psych yourself out about it ahead of time.  Whatever your preconceived notion is going in will affect your experience.  If you have a positive attitude, and tell yourself you will do fine, you will probably do better.  If you read all kinds of horror stories and scare yourself silly, you may do worse.  Don't underestimate the power of the mind!

One day at a time!

[hope6hope]

This post scares me :(

[kdeen96]

I agree with everyone here on getting down as low as you can go.  I am curr ently subutex free for the last 7 days and had stopped on a .5mg dose.  I am still experiencing many withdrawl symptoms.  The RLS, hot/cold flashes, NO sleep and extreme weakness.  My head is clearer now,,,and as I"m looking back the symptoms are getting less.  I tried to quit at the 2mg dose a yr ago and that didn't work at all....The experience was too intense for me.  My hardship now is that I want to take any opiate I can to make these feeling go away for a day....Just to get my housework done and play with my kids for the day......and it scares the hell out of me that my brain is trying to justify this as okay......MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A SUPPORT GROUP......I don't,,,and just found this forum lastnight......Good luck

[ariesgirl69]

thanks to all who replied to my question. I will take the advice & wean down to a lower dose before the big leap. I do have a good support system in place (counsellor & family) plus I have alot of resolve. Shall keep u posted on my progress.

[maria920]

hi . i agree with nursegirl , try to get as low as u can!! .. the lower you go the better you will feel. 2mg is a lot to jump at. take the time to taper lower so you can b sucessful and not feel like he!! doing it.

[frjs85]

want to add, that i see u successfully quite methadone. From what I've heard is that methadone is harder to come off than suboxone. You can do this.

[frjs85]

I just wanted to back up what nursegirl said. Its not as bad as you think if you get weened off the right way. I treid weening myself down on my own many times and couldnt do it. I got detoxed at a rehab over 10 days. I was addicted to vicodin, percs, oxy and a few others for 14 months. With a strong support system and the strength of loved ones I got through it. You have a lot of strength deep down inside of you, we are resilient beings. And once we deadlock ourselves to something, nothing can stop us!!!!! Post back here and pour your thoughts out there, lots of people will help. Hang tough.

[nursegirl6572]

Detox from subs doesn't have to be as horrible as the stories you'll hear.  Most people who have had a bad experience tried coming off on too high of a dose.  I worked at a sub clinic and the doc I worked with recommended not jumping off until a person was weaned down to at least 0.5 mg a day.  So, my personal opinion would be to try to get yourself a little lower before jumping.  While 2mg doesn't SEEM like a lot of Sub, it's a substantial dose.  The lower you can get yourself before jumping, the better.

You can expect typical w/d symptoms, which can be managed by using items in the thomas recipe (found here).

Best of luck...take your time, drop down a bit more if you can, and I think you'll do just fine.  If you're doing this with a sub doc (I hope)...keep the lines of communication open with him/her.  Also, what have you done as far as aftercare goes?  Meetings? Therapy?  You need to really make sure you have a solid aftercare plan in place in order to reduce the chance of relapse, as you'll be at higher risk for that after you're off the subs.

[Chelsie23m]

I was on suboxone films for 8 months 24 mg a day. I messed up and the dr kicked me off . I withdrew for 4 months and eventually went back to opiates. I am now back  on suboxone for the second month. The withdrawal from suboxone is 10x worse than Oxys, heroin etc. so make sure you do it right have your dr ween you off and still help you through the withdraw... If not you will be back on the opiates. Suboxone withdraw is the worst I've ever felt in my life