new to Suboxone

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katlovesdogs

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I have been a long term opiate user for Chronic Pain. I was getting my meRAB legal since I was presribed. I was in HEAVEN:angel:. I got 120 percs a month and 60 LA morphine. I would take 90 mg of the MS Contin a day and then 90 mg of the percocets. I started counting my pills to see if I would have any left before next appointment with PM to make sure I wouldn't run out. Finally, I realized I have a problem. A friend told me about Suboxone and Friday was my 1st day.My Dr just basically said "sure lets try it, take this ( half of 8 mg ,,watched me for a while and off I went ) I had already started a taper off my other meRAB a few weeks before 1st dose I did fine.. I got a little high feeling ( 4 mg ) but felt good. 2nd dose the next day gave me a head ache and had me vomiting all afternoon but I think it was because I took it too soon after the 1st.(not quite a full day ) Today took 3mg and feel right.I am not high feeling, don't have any cravings, nausea, . I feel normal like I haven't felt in YEARS. Even though I am on Sub,, will I have the other side effects of WD's like the diarrhea,Insomnia,sweats etc from my other opiate meRAB ?. And if I DO need pain medications say for an injury, how long after my dosage of Sub would it even WORK ? Friday I did have some relief from my pain but I have heard for some Suboxone doesn't work as a pain med.
I have heard about coming off Sub and have read posts on each person's journey. How long should I be on the Sub before I develop a problem as far as needing to taper to get off completely ? OR should I say,, how long should I be on the Sub before I start a taper program. I feel so good right now I want to be normal again without worrying about taking a pill to make me normal. There have been many home intrusions in my neigrabroadorhood the past few months where the goal was prescriptions. I keep this locked up in my safe but still dream of a normal life again without drugs of any sort and having to even use a safe. Have I simply traded one addiction for another ? Will Suboxone one day be "discovered" to be a problem
 
Hi Kat,

Pleased to meet you :)

Regarding WD's from the other opiates, the answer is no. You will not have withdrawals from the other meRAB so long as you are on the right dose of Suboxone. That's why doctor's pay close attention in the beginning of Suboxone therapy. If you are experiencing ANY WD's/cravings, then he/she will increase your dose of Sub.

Suboxone is a partial opiate so you will have pain relief however I've heard it isn't as great as methadone. On the contrary, Suboxone was created to eventually eliminate Methadone. There are so many things "wrong" with methadone, so the creators hope to fix all those things with Suboxone. Also, if you had an injury, you'd have to take something alot stronger then a percocet to help with the pain. It's a drawback, however much worth it considering the alternative (a life of abusing pills, secrets/lies, guilt and shame). I'm not saying you will have to suffer through pain if something happened to you, You'd just have to have something strong like fentanyl or OxyContin. So be sure to mention that you are on Sub if (God forbid) anything ever happened.

It is up to you and your doctor how long to stay on Sub. Some people use it only temporary (4-5 days) just to get off of pain meRAB, some use it for years, some stay on it for life. It depenRAB on your situation, moreso your lifestyle. I abused percocet/OxyContin for four years before I went to Rehab. I was clean from high amounts of OxyContin for six months, then relapsed a few times when something tragic happened in my life so I was labeled a chronic relapser (not a bad thing, just a name for it) so my doctor and I decided Sub was a good choice for me. I plan to stay on it for a long time, perhaps the rest of my life. There are many people who have had a very rough time tapering from Sub, however I've read that if you choose a long taper, it is much easier :) When and if I decide to come off, I'll taper as slow as possible.

Every "new" drug that comes out is always labeled "a miracle drug" cause the creators want people to have faith in it. Regarding Suboxone, I'm sure people will discover that Sub has it's problems, however only time and research will give us that answer.

I'm glad to hear you are doing well on the Sub. I hope things continue to get better for you, cause my life is wonderful now and I owe it all to Suboxone :)

If you have any other questions, I'd be happy to help.

Good luck,
emsmom
 
Yep.. I think tomorrow a slight increase may be warranted.We will see what Doc says. Had a few mouth watering thoughts and cravings today but not too bad. I just don't want to deal with an afternoon of hugging the can like yesterday. I took my dose today the same time I did yesterday and for the most part I have been doing OK. Hopefully this will be a short term thing for me as part of the reason I chose to go this route was the pill cycle... watching clock for time to take next pill, "borrowing " from the next days allotment for an extra dose etc....I have been taking these meRAB for over 3 years for chronic pain due to back , hip and joint pain with sciatica but I want off the marry go round. If I need to stay on longer, then so be it.
 
Hey Kat,

An increase should take away the diarrhea for sure. When you reach the right dose for you, you won't even have a small craving, let alone a mouth-watering one :)

I've been free of cravings since the day I started Suboxone.

Good luck :)

emsmom
 
Thanks so much for the encouragement. So far I have been impressed myself with how the sub is working. I won't be too quick to get off if it will keep me "normal".. I even had a normal evening with the hubby without biting his head off. The hell I am sure I put him through with the emotional roller coast of my pill popping. Heres to Happy Days Ahead. Not to mention the times that some young punk in the neigrabroadorhood helped himself to my meRAB to sell to support HIS addiction. Had to buy a safe etc to keep my meRAB safe. That is just one example of how the pills were dictating my life
 
Good morning Kat,

How did it go at the doctors? I'm glad to hear you are impressed with the Sub. It's amazing eh? (insert laugh here, I'm Canadian).

I did not have faith that a pill could make me feel the way I feel today. I thought about pills 24/7, no joke. I started off just like you...counting the pills to make them last, having to take less one day cause I took way too much the day before, getting worried that I'll run out before my next refill etc. Four years later, I was spending $200 - $300 a day on Oxycontin. My life revolved around pills. I decided to give Suboxone a try cause I'd exhausted all my recources and still relapsed whenever anything went wrong in my life. I was astounded at how I felt the very first day on Sub. The next day, I was out with my daughters (ages three and six) at the park, in our backyard, taking nature walks etc., something I hadn't done in over two years. I felt great!!!

It doesn't get much better than this :) Read my thread titled "Jolo and Suboxone" (post #7). I gave Jolo and Captnanny some suggestions regarding recovery (they are both on Suboxone as well). You have to work for your recovery, change your lifestyle and habits. I'm doing a day program/Rehab right now and wrote down some tools I'd learned recently. I hope you're able to benefit from my suggestions, they really helped me understand how important it is to work on my recovery every day :)

Have a great day,
emsmom
 
A little tweak up and I am doing fine today.....6mg is about what I can tolerate without being sick or getting "too much" effect....I guess my little self taper off the opiates last week worked in some regard. I would have thought I would need more than the doase I am taking but if it works,,,, I don't care..
 
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