getting off of suboxone?

[kensley123]

I have been on suboxone for about four years now. Before taking suboxone I WAS NOT an addict, I never took pill or any other drug but either way here I am. I got addicted to suboxone then started using heroine & other drugs I did it all backwards but whatever like i said here I am. I'm off of the other drugs & only using suboxone about 3-4mg a day. I have a 1 year old daughter & I want to be totally sober not only for myself but for her. I am extremely motivated but extremely horrified about the withdrawal. I am 23 & I have no help when it comes to taking care of my daughter her dad works full time(also on subs) & yes he helps with her after work but I have to make it through 8-12 hours a day on my own. I need to find a way to make this manageable but at the same time I just want to get this over with. Any suggestions? I would like to stop taking the suboxone completely & immediately but I've tried & failed many times in the past. Help

[dominosarah]

I wouldnt waste my money on the Withdrawal Ease.  You can find  supplements at Walmart, Walgreens etc.  Tapering down on the Sub is very important,  Also cutting ties with anyone who is using is very important also.  Many of us had to change our phone numbers.  Knowledge is power with this addiction so do whatever it takes to set yourself up for success.  You can do this!

[Smalltownmom]

I was on sub for a year at 16 mgs a day. Over nine months a tapered down to .5mgs when I stopped. It wasn't pleasant by any means but it was better than stopping at a higher dose. I agree with above about a slow taper and if you are like me you will need someone to monitor your doses. Towards the end it seemed like I would withdraw every time I dropped. It paid off in the end. I'm just about 6 months out. You can do it. I understand about your child. I have two young ones to keep up after as their dad worked all day too. I found my nights to be worse for me. I had bad RLS and sleeplessness. I took magnesium and potassium which helped a lot. Then used a lot of icy hot and wrapped my legs in a heating wrap. It only lasted for a couple days then poof! it was gone. I still had no energy and felt bored all the time. I know everyones says to go to meetings for after care but i'd get severe panic attacks the minute I pulled into the parking lot. I now do online classes and have an addiction counselor come to my house twice a week. It helps so much. So I would definitely look at the different aftercare options. As far as your husband I hope he can understand why you need to do this for you! His time will come when he is ready. Just ask him not to use them around you and not keep them where you have access. I hope this helped. Good luck and keep us posted

[jlannspr]

Yes I am completely off. I did not take them for more than a month at a time, and only used a Max of 4Mg/day. I would just hydros to come off the subs, oh and then use subs to come off the hydros.....See my cycle :)

If he is prescribed the meds and using as prescribed and his doctor knows how to taper him when he is ready, you can at least ask him to keep them locked away or in his vehicle or something.

I've had to do that with family members where I had acccess to pain pills. It seems I would be more anxious knowing I had access.

Just do a simple google search of Suboxone withdrawal timeline, you'll see some success stories and learn some tips to coping with the wd's. It's a great decision to want your life back, go for it full force.

But do remember....You will join your using friends in using, before they join you in sobriety.

[kensley123]

No I don't think that he is ready to quit yet & if he isn't ready I don't want to push him into a situation where he is tempted to get high. I understand your concern I am concerned about the same thing. Last night when I told him my decision to get off of the suboxone one way or the other he got upset it seemed like I am leaving him stuck because getting offf of the subs is something he doesn't feel is possible for himself at the moment because he works full time & is financially responsible for taking care of the house & my daughter & I. I have been looking into something called withdrawl ease to maybe make this not so bad. I haven't taken a suboxoe yet today & I don't plan to until I can't handle the wd symptoms. Like I mentioned in my first post I have never really had to experience withdrawl because I've always had something to fall back on well I'm tired of falling back & I'm going to do this one way or the other. Have you gotten off suboxone? I just want to know what I'm getting myself into & if its possible to do at home or if I need to go to rehab. Rehab is something in trying to avoid because I don't really have anyone to take care of my daughter

[atthebeach]

Stopping abruptly at 3 or 4 mgs is not a great idea. Just take less today, stay at that dose for a week and then Drop your dose again. Do that until you are down to nothing.If you stop cold turkey you will more than likely relapse because you won't feel good.
Make a taper plan and stick to it.

[jlannspr]

suboxone is a newly-emerging monster I feel like. I had only used pain pills until subs. I would switch between subs and pills for a year or so. I did some reading and found out that subs have a long half life and have a longer withdrawal period. The quicker you decide to taper, the better.Does your boyfriend plan to quit. Coming from a previous marriage where we both used; relapse is almost inevitable if you have ANY access to your drug. You'll start to convince yourself that one piece is okay....It's not okay, at that point you have told your brain that it wins and you'll be using again and probably more. Trust us, I've been back and forth since 2012 and wish that I would have stopped when I made the initial decision. Best of luck and keep us posted.

[vicki595]

Atthebeach hit on it! Unlike other opiates that can be stopped abruptly, Suboxone needs to be tapered for numerous reasons. You're not on a huge dose so just cut back a little over time and the wds won't be as severe as what you've experienced.  Good luck!

[jifmoc]

Hi, there. Yes, subs wds are no fun. Even worse than hydro or oxy from what I've heard. (hydro was my drug of choice.) In any case, I'm sorry, you will have to go through this. Look up the Thomas recipe on here to get things to help w/ wds. More importantly, anyone can detox, it's the STAYING clean that you need to focus on.  I would get into meetings asap, NA or AA. They are only an hour and everyone in there will understand and support you. None of us can do this alone. If we could have, we would have already. Right?

I can't impress upon you enough how vital aftercare is. It's the difference between coming back here again in 3 months still struggling and living life clean and sane.

Hang tight, others will be on here too:)

[atthebeach]

It's best to do a slow taper.

[kensley123]

& when it comes to support I don't have much. My grandmother was my main support & she passed away in August of last year. My family tries to be supportive but they have never been in this situation so they don't understand it. They think its as simple as just stop taking it & that should be that.

[kensley123]

When I originally got hooked on them I was getting them from my boyfriend. I didn't think i would get addicted but after about a week or two of taking them I stopped well about 24 hours later I started to feel sick curious as to why. The next day I got another piece of suboxone and boom no more sickness & that's when I knew I was now physically dependent. I dabbled with heroine using for a few days then going bad to the suboxone. I really have been on suboxone the entire 4 years because I never really stopped taking it even when I was using. My daughter is now 1 & its been strictly subutex/suboxone ever sense. I'm still getting them from my bf because he is perscribed & when he doesn't have any to spare I buy them off the streets. I was previously perscribed the suboxone but haven't been sense 6weeks after my daughter was born which was march 8th of 2015. I know some amount of withdraw is inevitable but I need to make this bareable so I can still care for my daughter. If you dot mind me asking have you ever been through suboxone withdraw & how awful is it because from what I've read its a month or more of hell. I've never really been through withdrawl so idk what to expect. I started using at 19 I'm now 22 turning 23 in April I want my life back

[ang_811]

Where are you getting the suboxone? How long have you been on the sub this time? I'm glad to hear ur doing this for you because it wont work if we try and do it for anyone else. There's no way around the withdrawals. But the good news is you only have to go through the withdrawals once and that's it. Is there any meetings you can get to? Any support around you?