Aa
I will be detoxing from longterm suboxone use and would like to extend an invite for others to join me so that we can help support each other
I am about to emabark on a detox I have planned for about a year now. I have been on suboxone now for almost three years and I am finally paying heed to the downside. First, on the good side. Suboxone has helped me to stabilize my life along with AA and therapy. I have gone to school, become a drug counselor(I graduate this friday May 9th) become involved in a loving relationship, drastically improved my relationship with my family and stopped most of the negative behaviors associated with addiction. On the flip side however, suboxone is taking it's toll on me. The last time I was free of all drugs, was July of 05' after a protracted and painful detox from suboxone and methadone, which I had been on prior to the suboxone. I want to be completely sober again. Suboxone has ruined my sleep patterns, my creativity and robbed me of much of my enthusiasm for life. Since I no longer get natural highs, except from sex, I am ready to go through the arduous and drawn out detox that is a suboxone detox. I have been through many short term detoxes using suboxone and buprenex some as early as 95-96. I would like to share what will be my final detox with this community as I am actually going through it. In fact, I would like to invite others to detox with me at the same time. I will be done with school and have finished my last internship as a drug counselor and have set aside about 3 weeks to get through the worst of it. I am planning on using benzos during the first week and would like all the feedback possible. In exchange, I have a wealth of information about so many drugs. I have lived in 5 different countries and have been in more than 25 programs. The longest I have been in recovery is 21 months(current). While I have progressed in my life on suboxone I believe I have reached the point where it's effects are more harmful than helpful. Recovery is all about self-honesty and I know that to fully spread my wings in life, I must get off the suboxone. So, my detox starts on May 26th at which time I hope to be down to 2 mgs or less. Right now I am at 5mgs and I have been as high as 32mgs daily. I found that it is so much easier to taper when you split the dose into three or four administrations. A couple of months ago I got down to about two mgs a day but when it got tough at the end I decided to put the rdetox on hold until after my semester ended. So talk to me, I am originally from the NY/NJ area but have lived in the SF/ east bay area for the last five years.
I am of the belief that a person with a history of chemical use/abuse/addiction/other addictions/whatever AND a chronic pain issue would be doing themselves a HUGE SERVICE to work closely with a reputable addiction-aware pain specialist (certified pain specialist MD + ASAM certified would be ideal).
The stakes are too high to do this half-assed. Good luck.
The stakes are too high to do this half-assed. Good luck.
Has anyone ever used methadone to come off subutex/suboxone. i am chronic pain patient and my doc gave me strong opiod painkillers to come off it, but then I went back on it. Obviously for people who has an addiction problem with opiods, this is not the right way, but what about pain management. I have been on it for 10 months for fibro pain, but my pain is under control.
as to the "how do you know if what you experiencing is the drug or not the drug"?? I don't think one will know until they are free from it and I completely support your decision to do so..and I agree with worried..I am not one that likes to be controlled either, especially by a drug that you have to take in order to function "normally". I think the biggest thing you have going for you in this fight is your resolve to do so...
Just want to offer my support...i have never taken suboxone but i do know i dont want to take anything that "controls" me.....I am not one that likes to be controlled and I completely understand why you would want to shed the sub....u sound like a very intelligent person who wants to live life to the fullest...life is so very short....enjoyed ur post
I don't really believe that drugs really save a drug addicts life, except in rare cases. People and God do in my opinion. I am not against sub and think it's a great detox aid and good for longer periods for methadone addiction. I think some docs keep people on sub way too long and may do it to milk fees as another doc alluded to here on another sub thread. Some people hate me for saying this but I say it again, maybe better this time; We are drug oriented people and we often look for drug solutions to many problems including drug addiction. Drugs can help but they are usually not the answer or the savior. All the best
Hi again - funny thing just happened - while I was re-writing your name in the "TO" box, I reflected on your choice of names. Now, maybe I am just being analytical (surprise, surprise), but calling yourself a "suboxoneaddict" implies abuse of suboxone - not the person using suboxone as a tool to move forward in recovery. For example, one would not usually say "Zoloftaddict" or "Depakoteaddict" or "insulinaddict". This might parallel the stigma/shame thing I mentioned. Hmm...
Anyway, I definitely hear where you stand. I understand the desire to just want to move on and get past something. That's cool. However, you still haven't answered my main question, which was that I wanted to understand just how you know for sure that what you are experiencing is a result of the suboxone itself - and not the experience of a long time user who may have limited experience in life with long clean time + dealing with feelings + dealing with relationships + dealing with life. Also, have you had depression and, if so, has it been treated? I am trying to gain insight on this - I have not spoken to people on suboxone who have relayed this experience - so, I would like to explore it more.
Re: stigma/shame/AA Judgementalism/Rigidity?
I definitely feel the same on this aspect of AA. I am wondering if this is a throwback to an earlier time when there weren't many pharmaceutical options for treatment adjunct. Then, there valium came on the market - ended up being a big drug of abuse. So, now when new treatments/pharmaceuticals come up, there is an immediate aversion to the idea. Perhaps this is born out of ignoranace? Fear that somehow this will change AA? I have found that there is a faction of old-timers in AA culture that still get crazy when "druggies" talk about drug use at meetings ("please limit your sharing to discussion of your problems related to your alcohol use"). So, when a person talks about suboxone or anti-depressant, there is this backlash. "Those darn druggies are takin' over". What many of them don't realize is the underlying disease concept and that the day of the "pure alcoholic" is fading. For many reasons, I'm sure. Sometimes there can be a thin line between therapeutics and unhealthy dependence on a treatment. That's a reason why having support when in recovery and being open-minded to what your well-functioning recovering associates have to say is so important. You know what they say: "left to our own devices..."
On the other hand, if something saves your life and you revere it, you are fierce about protecting it, which in AA translates into protecting the traditions - you don't want it to change or get watered down. That position is deeply embedded in the AA Traditions. And I do tend to agree that if AA had jumped on every bandwagon over the years, the Big Book would have been re-written a hundred times over by now! I love reading AA history literature - I find it absolutely fascinating!
Stay well. Let me know how you are doing.
:)
Anyway, I definitely hear where you stand. I understand the desire to just want to move on and get past something. That's cool. However, you still haven't answered my main question, which was that I wanted to understand just how you know for sure that what you are experiencing is a result of the suboxone itself - and not the experience of a long time user who may have limited experience in life with long clean time + dealing with feelings + dealing with relationships + dealing with life. Also, have you had depression and, if so, has it been treated? I am trying to gain insight on this - I have not spoken to people on suboxone who have relayed this experience - so, I would like to explore it more.
Re: stigma/shame/AA Judgementalism/Rigidity?
I definitely feel the same on this aspect of AA. I am wondering if this is a throwback to an earlier time when there weren't many pharmaceutical options for treatment adjunct. Then, there valium came on the market - ended up being a big drug of abuse. So, now when new treatments/pharmaceuticals come up, there is an immediate aversion to the idea. Perhaps this is born out of ignoranace? Fear that somehow this will change AA? I have found that there is a faction of old-timers in AA culture that still get crazy when "druggies" talk about drug use at meetings ("please limit your sharing to discussion of your problems related to your alcohol use"). So, when a person talks about suboxone or anti-depressant, there is this backlash. "Those darn druggies are takin' over". What many of them don't realize is the underlying disease concept and that the day of the "pure alcoholic" is fading. For many reasons, I'm sure. Sometimes there can be a thin line between therapeutics and unhealthy dependence on a treatment. That's a reason why having support when in recovery and being open-minded to what your well-functioning recovering associates have to say is so important. You know what they say: "left to our own devices..."
On the other hand, if something saves your life and you revere it, you are fierce about protecting it, which in AA translates into protecting the traditions - you don't want it to change or get watered down. That position is deeply embedded in the AA Traditions. And I do tend to agree that if AA had jumped on every bandwagon over the years, the Big Book would have been re-written a hundred times over by now! I love reading AA history literature - I find it absolutely fascinating!
Stay well. Let me know how you are doing.
:)
You are reading content posted in the Addiction: Substance Abuse Community
Is treating glaucoma with marijuana all hype, or can hemp actually help?
If you think marijuana has no ill effects on your health, this article from Missouri Medicine may make you think again.
Julia Aharonov, DO, reveals the quickest way to beat drug withdrawal.
Tricks to help you quit for good.
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
