methadone and zanax

[maninthebox]

I have have been on methadone & zanax for 7yrs  40mg  methadone & 31/2 mg zanax and slowly tappering off the methadone 5mg a week to reach 30mg to get on bupenorphen for 1to2 months so i can get off methadone because of  longer w/d so i have heard i would appriciate any info thanks

[Sunnyd210]

Im sorry I dont really know too much, but there are others who know much more and they should be along soon. I used methadone to get off norco but the highest dose was 15 mg. What is bupenorphen?? That taper sounds good though?? Good luck how are u feeling now??

[seeksolice]

If i were you, I would taper off the methadone completely before you start tapering the Xanax.

Benzos can be dangerous to WD from. I know of a drug called Lyrica that makes Benzo withdrawal painless. Its a non narcotic nerve pain reliever, given to shingles patients. Shingles is a painful virus caused from chicken pox. It causes nerve pain.

I would take it slow, as the drugs you are on are heavy duty. Give yourself a time frame, say 30 days, to taper completely off the methadone, then give yourself another 30 days to taper off the Xanax with the help of Lyrica or some other non narcotic drug.

If you are taking Xanax for anxiety, you will of course need a plan in place to battle your anxiety free of meds. Thats #1.  Also, get a bi-weekly treatment plan going, like NA or Smart Recovery- you cant get chemically sober then expect everything else to be peachy. Recovery is a life long process that takes time and effort.

Good luck with your taper.

[maninthebox]

Thanks for the info i will certantly look into lyrica  takecare.

[maninthebox]

Hello SUNNYD i am feeling better than earler had to take zanax started to get chills aches bupenorphen is the same as suboxon they say it dont take as long to get off like methadone

[Sunnyd210]

Im glad u are feeling better. My pain dr put me on methadone for 1 month started and 5 mg 3 3x a day and went down by 1 pill a week. Worked great for me now my reg dr wasnt happy with that way and she sent me to a sub dr, she thought I needed something long term. The sub psych didnt agree with my reg dr and told me to stay on the methadone I was doing very well on that, the funny part about the whole thing is the sub dr couldnt understand why I wanted to get off narcotics to begin with. I think the problem with the sub is that the drs arent prescribing it the way its supposed to be the same thing with methadone it gets such a bad rap and if it was prescribed the way it should be it would work much better and people wouldnt be hooked on it even though I had a good experience I have heard horror stories.