Aa
What is the deal with all this suboxone?
I thought this drug was used to get people off of other drugs.I never even heard of this stuff til I moved to the mountains of east kentucky. Are the doctors as scared to prescribe the other meds in other places of the country as they are here?Heck I consider myself lucky to get the norco 10/325 here..
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Suboxone is a partial agonist- so it is kind of like an almost-opiate. I read an article someone posted, and it was explained like this.
Agonists, like morphine, or hydrocodone, etc, fully activate the opiate receptor. They are like a key that opens the lock.
Antagonists, like naltrexone, are like a key that fits in the lock but doesn't open it. They keep the agonists from getting into the opiate receptors and activating it, so if you take Naltrexone you get no result from later taking an opiate. There is some research on low dose naltrexone, but it's another effect, not an opiate effect.
Suboxone is a partial agonist. It opens the lock, but only up to a certain dose, then the effect levels off. So some people think it's a way to get pain control without the tolerance, etc. and some claim it can help with withdrawals as well. The benefit is that people have no incentive to increase their dosage. Also, if you give it to a person who has an addiction, it gives some opiate effect (ameliorating w/d symptoms) but not a full activation, so some people report feeling "normal."
At least that's what I remember about the different types. Does that help?
Agonists, like morphine, or hydrocodone, etc, fully activate the opiate receptor. They are like a key that opens the lock.
Antagonists, like naltrexone, are like a key that fits in the lock but doesn't open it. They keep the agonists from getting into the opiate receptors and activating it, so if you take Naltrexone you get no result from later taking an opiate. There is some research on low dose naltrexone, but it's another effect, not an opiate effect.
Suboxone is a partial agonist. It opens the lock, but only up to a certain dose, then the effect levels off. So some people think it's a way to get pain control without the tolerance, etc. and some claim it can help with withdrawals as well. The benefit is that people have no incentive to increase their dosage. Also, if you give it to a person who has an addiction, it gives some opiate effect (ameliorating w/d symptoms) but not a full activation, so some people report feeling "normal."
At least that's what I remember about the different types. Does that help?
well mam you sure seem like you know what you are talking about but,take a glance at how many people in the forum are getting put on suboxone solely for pain management and if i remember correctly there was a couple that was taking it in combination with other opiates. sometimes i would like a longer term opiate than norcos but i have no health insurance until 10/2012 so i have to stick with cheap meds...i think that oxycontin would be perfect but i have seen that they have changed the formulation of it and people are screaming bloody murder because they say it dont pack the punch anymore.so i will probably stick with my norco at least until 10/2012.
robert, I would be scared of them too because no matter how low of a dose of an opiate you take, if you take it for a long period of time there will be withdrawal and dependence of it. Even if you do take it as prescribed. And you're correct Suboxone is used only for the purpose of detoxing from long term opiate use. This is because it is not really for pain management as it is only a partial opiate agonist. This means it only partially stimulates the MU 2 receptor in the brain to change the way the brain perceives pain, like mpace6983 mentioned opiates and opiate like chemicals do. It also has another component that will not let other opiates absorb into the brain and will make you sick if you do so, so Suboxone cannot be combined with any other opiate drugs.
yes norco does take the edge off but very short term..i am actually a little scared of the longer term meds............
That should read any opiate that will STIMULATE the u2 neuro receptor will reduce pain. sorry
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Apparently there is some new research out there about Naltrexalone in very low doses being good for pain and at very low doses some doctors are adding a BT med.
You are going to have dependence issues with any opiate taken long term, even the short acting ones. It's just that the long-acting meds can be harder than short-acting to come off.
Realistically, though, where there's a will, there's a way and tapering can be done with the help of a good PM when the time is right. Although, some people will have moderate to severe chronic pain all of their lives requiring an opiate to live a funcitonal life. In that case a long-acting med is great for a number of reasons. MSContin and Fentanyl are two good ones.
I took methadone for pain for months and it really got the pain under control. It had some side effects though that were difficult to live with. It is also really inexpensive which is why it is so widely used for substance abuse. I have thought about going back on it as it was so great for pain relief, but I have some other reasons that it's not an option right now.
I hope that you're able to keep your pain under control until 10/2012. It's really difficult to have to plan our health problems and solutions around health insurance and our paychecks.