methadone program

[franticmom56]

My daughter has been on methadone for several years but also has borderline personality disorder.  Because she has sleeping issue and is late alot, and because she has ibs and has had to be dosed in the car or go in after an accident, she is being kicked off the program.  She is on 120mg and will be detoxed in 30 days.  I am not saying that she was not in the wrong about things but this is very sudden.  She has no income--I have been trying to pay her  insurance and methadone fees myself as she cannot work and has exhausted short term disability benefits. There don't seem to be any affordable programs here.  Any of you know if there is any financial aid or anything for her? I am going broke fast.

[kolo13]

Oh my god, what a bundle of problems you have. This is one of the fundamental problems with the methadone system we have. It is primarily designed to give authorities a way to control addicts. I was once put on a 7-day detox for punishment because I disagreed with a counselor. I wrote letters to everyone above her in the system. It turned out there was an appeal process I didn't know about and the decision was rescinded. I would hope that there is someone in power there - try to get to someone titled director or doctor - who would listen to your story and work something out. A forced 30 day detox is not the way to deal with your problem and you might be able to get someone who can do something about it to realize it. I didn't even understand about all her health problems, but have you considered getting the ball rolling for SSI? If she can't work she should be eligible. There are subsidized programs where I live for suboxone and methadone but they are still pretty expensive even with the subsidies. I wish you luck.

[Holliee]

hello i sent you a private message that may help you out check your inbox and message me back when you get chance.  Holliee

[TysonRed]

Yeah try and talk to the highest ranking person at her clinic and explain the whole situation and if nothing else see if they can extend the time of the detox. As far as state benefits Im not sure what state your in, although I dont know much about state assistance anyways but my friend who lives with family gets almost $200/month food card, medi-cal pays for his presicriptions and I think a few other things. I know thats nothing like disability or un-employment but any sort of assistance is helpful these days. On another note Kolo is right if she is physically or mentally uncapable of working she should be able to get SSI, assuming you can get a doctors okay. Keep posting about the situation this forum is an absolute gold mine to help all of us learn and share our experiences. I wish you and your daughter all the best, I went many stints with oxy's and methadone, been clean just over a year and I can actually enjoy life without drugs. Anyways take care and good luck.

[franticmom56]

We live in California and right now all services are being cut including the methadone program.  Think when they combined the offices they are just overwhelmed with the number of patients. But some of the counselors, especially the one she has, can be really harsh and not very understanding of physical and mental issues aside from drugs.
My daughter has been an addict since age 11.  It is very  hard for her to function as the drugs did alot of damage early on. She is highly intelligent and if you see her outside of that element you might never guess what's going on--except for the track marks all over her body. We are going to try to move her to suboxone clinic--anyone  have experience with that?

[gnarly_1]

wow your plate is full....my heart goes out to you ..one of my daughters turned into
a crack and methamphetamine addict at age12...was shear he11 till she was 16
and almost got killed in an auto accident she got strait after serving her time in juv/dention  till she was 18....sorry im rambling...back to your problem...well to detox in one month form 110mg is absolutely insane....it took me 8 1/2 mo to get off 150mg
and it was ruff in the end..im 10 days clean but still feel its hooks in me....my advise
go to another clinic and start a proper taper...sub is an option but is more expensive
and is just as hard to get off of...I was givin a doable taper from a neo/natal nurse that brings babys off heroin...if it safe for a baby its safe for us and it worked well for me
it goes like this.....10% drop every 72 hr ..some go faster at first like 10mg at a time but once you hit around 40mg its time to stick to the formula ...and it is considered by most to be a fast taper...encourage your daughter to at least taper down most
addicts can maintain a good life at 40mg and she will seam alot more focused
also try to get her to come to this forum it is HUGE when your trying to get clean
she will not be judged weather she continues to be on methadone or decided to
get free of the liquid handcuffs tell her there are lots of people here that have been in her shoes and many are methadone free also..we will all try to help both of you threw this struggle....keep posting  and god bless you  and your family      

[kolo13]

I have never understood why so many of these methadone counselors are ex-addicts with no compassion. They seem to be working out their own personal problems by abusing the clients in their care. I think in your daughters situation suboxone might be a better way to go. I would never recommend it for people who are popping pills, but for those of us who have done serious damage to our receptor systems I think it has a number of advantages over methadone.  For one thing you will be dealing with a doctor in a regular doctors office. Now I know that some of these suboxone clinics are just money mills but there are also some wonderful addiction specialists prescribing suboxone ( you need to look for a suboxone doctor rather than a suboxone clinic). My doctor is an angel. I see her every 60 days and get a regular prescription with a refill - no crazy counselors. Suboxone is a partial agonist so for most people there is very little "high" and it's possible to take it and feel cleaner than taking methadone. Also because it is a partial agonist it is possible to begin to slowly heal your receptor systems in a way that is impossible with methadone. I also believe from my own experience that it is easier to taper down your dose than it is with methadone. On the negative side it can be difficult to make the switch from a full agonist to a partial agonist. It is not as bad and doesn't last as long as total withdrawal but it is no picnic and should be done with medical supervision. It is also expensive. My insurance pays for 80% and still I pay $150 every month. That's a tenth of what I was spending on dope but still it is a lot of money. I have to run but I will be happy to pick this back up when I get home. Send me a message I can reply to ( I still haven't figured out the system). Good luck. <3 <3 <3

[TysonRed]

Yeah in this case I have to agree that some sort of suboxone treatment could be the best option at this point. I only used it once, switched over from methadone, but all things said in the end it worked pretty good. Im not sure about any suboxone clinics that function like methadone clinics, its usually a private doctor that is certified to prescribe suboxone/subutex. If you have to pay all out of pocket than suboxone is very expensive in most cases, but in my own humble opinion if your going to be on replacement therapy suboxone is much better than methadone. Keep posting and looking around for all of your available options, best of luck to you.

[franticmom56]

Thanks for the response guys.  I have to admit I have a hard time believing the stories I was getting from my daughter as of course she has lied to me many times, but after her couselor falsely accused her of using illegal stuff and had to call back and say ok that was a metabolite of your presription drug I started believing.  There was no apology or anything and this wasn't the first time it happened.  We are looking now for an independent doctor who can prescribe the suboxone and seeing if we can get her some assistance.  Appreciate the support.

[Holliee]

NOW I USUALLY DON;T SAY THIS AND YOU ALL KNOW IT BUT DUE TO YOUR DAUGHTERS ADDICTION AND AGE SHE STARTED I AGREE SHE WOULD PROB DO BETTER ON SUBOXONE ALSO. NOW YOU KNOW TO SWITCH FROM METHADONE TO SUBOXONE SHE HAS BE AT LEAST DOWN TO 20MG AND THEN IN W/D FOR 48 HRS THAT WILL BE THE VERY HARD PART FOR HER. I ALSO WOULD NOT GO TO A SUB CLINIC BUT A DOC THAT SPECIALLIZE IN SUBOXONE. THIS WILL BE HIGHER THAN METHADONE AND NO HELP FOR IT B/C SUBOXONE STILL HAS PATIENT ON THEM AND THEY WILL FOR ANOTHER 3 YRS BEFORE PRICE WILL LOWER. I WISH YOU AND HER THE BEST. KEEP POSTING AND LET US KNOW HOW THINGS ARE GOING.

[mr.lucky66]

Methadone clinics or MMT is very controling and can be a very punitive system. I would not suggest that she go to sub maintenence and it sounds like she has many more problems than you or any methadone clinic can deal with. all the best