Suboxone Treatment

[smiledeb]

My husband has been using lortabs, etc (street drugs) for the past year due to a old back injury that flared up.  He is sick and tired of chasing down street drugs and wants to come off without too much discomfort.  I have read up on the suboxone and have this question - is that a drug you have to continue taking for life like the methadone treatments?  He doesn't necessarily want to be dependent on pills the rest of his life...and no where do I read how long you have to take suboxone.  I am encouraged by the number of drs. in my area that offer this medication and want him to pursue and he is ready, but not ready to be dependent long term on medication.  Any help is greatly appreciated.

[Neutron321]

I've been on suboxone for 3 years. It literally has saved my life. But for me I've started to taper and I've actually been feeling better. Started on 12mgs day now on 4-6 mgs. Plus I'm on testosterone patch because suboxone had an effect on my t levels lowering them just a bit to much. But I will say this , if you take a strong opiate agonist like OxyContin or morphine THEN take suboxone you're gonna be sick. If you take suboxone first then the opiate agonist you won't feel anything unless you take a shitload of it.

[smiledeb]

I've got another question - after reviewing the professionals that administer sub in our area, it ranges from family practice to internal specialists to psychiatrists - what has been the groups' experience - what type of dr. do you recommend setting up an appt with?  I appreciate all positive and constructive comments...

[smiledeb]

Thanks guys for the support and great information!  I want him to understand that this is a treatment plan, not a substitution as many people seem to think.  I have check out Dr. Junig briefly and will definitely read up more on sub before we make a decision.  There are a number of drs. in our area on the list and I suggested we make an appt. to talk with one of them.  I will keep you posted.  Thanks again.

[BQ77]

Thanks for that post.  It's nice to see people who have had success with Suboxone post and help those who are thinking of taking that route.  

Smiledeb....if Suboxone is the route you guys choose, please keep us posted if you can on your husband's progress.  You sound like you support him very much and that is awesome.  Take care.

Barry

[Dawg0521]

Definitely check out Dr. Junigs stuff. You don't have to be on it for the rest of your life. Suboxone helped me and I am certain it could help him too. Help him understand that it is more successful as a long term treatment. There is less relapse and the numbers support that. So know that going in. Many of us have gone on suboxone with the mindset that we were just trading one addiction for another. Try to help him realize that isn't the case. It is a treatment. And it allows you to be able to function on a daily basis. The post above mentioned Dr. Junigs' pro stance on suboxone. Just wanted to say that its from experience. Its not just from his education and such, he is one of us and has used suboxone to get off of opiates. Check out suboxonetalkzone and educate yourselves as much as possible. Good luck.

[BQ77]

I'm am on Suboxone.  But, I am not "all for" someone using Suboxone like suboxone.com.  But, it can definately be a life saver.  It has helped more people than it has hurt, but the chance of becoming dependant on it is a risk you have to seriously think about taking.

I really have never understood why any doctor would ever tell a patient that they may need to take Suboxone for a real long time, yet alone for life.  Maybe for someone who was on a horrible herion addiction or maybe a really heavy oxycontin addiction, but for lortabs there should absolutely be no reason he would need to take Suboxone for very long.  Everyone is different otherwise though and honestly you really wouldn't know how long he would need to take it until he started it.  

Quiting cold turkey seems to be the most popular method.  And that comes from all former addict....most will say that is the best method and that makes sense because the human body is an amazing thing and knows how to heal itself pretty well.  The next best method would be to taper the current drug of choice slowly down to nothing.  Now this won't get of all the withdrawl symptoms, but will help them subside....even quite a bit in some cases.  

If neither of those seems to work, then yes, Suboxone can be a good option.  One good thing about Suboxone when someone decides to go that route is that you'll know if it works for you literally right away.  From what I've seen, if he doesn't react well with it immediately, then it's probably best to give it up right away and try a different method.  If it works well, since he only has an issue with lortabs, then I would think within a couple weeks when he's feeling real good he can come up with a taper plan.  Another unfortunate thing is that Subxone must be tapered very slow.  Meaning tapering 1 or 2mg at a time for about 3-7 days each taper.  Even then, once you get through that then you still may have some withdrawl symptoms, but again it will subside a great deal of the withdrawls and it will be much more tolerable.  

So, as you can see Suboxone can be a good way to go, but there is no clear cut way to go without either some risks or still having to deal with withdrawl symptoms and in a way I think that is good.  If there was a sure fire way of quitting without having withdrawl issues then most of us would still be using because then we would know it is easy to quit.  Know what I mean?

Just educate yourself on all the options and along with him, decide on what you think the best way is and pick one you know he will stick with and be able to stick it out the whole way.  Another helpful thing is aftercare...like aa/na if possible.  Aftercare can sometimes be the difference between staying clean and relapsing.  But, if he has an overall good support system, that is a huge help as well.  Plus we will be here for both of you anytime you need someone.  I wish you luck in getting this done.  Take care.

Barry

[122 Tactical Fighter Group]

You might even want to check out - the suboxonetalkzone - - Doc named Jeff Junig runs that one...  He has experience. But he is also a strong sub proponent... keep that in mind.

I am personally not a big fan of replacement therapy.... either methadone or sub... I prefer to suck it up and get it over with. Something that i will never have to do again.

[smiledeb]

This is his 2nd attempt at coming off and the last time we did the Thomas method talked about on this board and he got quite sick - I think it was too much for his body.  I know there will be days of discomfort and he and I fully expect and have dealt with that on previous attempts.  I went online and viewed the videos at suboxone.com which helped but it's always nice to hear from people who have done the treatment and get their experiences.  Thanks for the good info.

[122 Tactical Fighter Group]

Controversial topic still ..... some say that you should be on sub like high blood pressure meds or insulin for life.  Others say that you should use for not more than three weeks. some schools of thought are in the middle.  Lot of people here have gotten off the methadone. Not necessarily a lifetime type of drug if you dont want it to be.  Without too much discomfort?  That may not be a rational view ........ there will most likely be some discomfort involved. Thats just the nature of the beast. Time to get strong and straight... Best of luck to both of you -