Suboxone or Cold Turkey?

[Mattyg37]

Hi Guys,

I have been a heavy oxycodone addict for the past year or so. It started off like I'm sure most of you started off - I'll sniff one pill every once in a while and never get addicted. And for a while I was able to use occasionally and not get addicted. Well.....needless to say that didn't last. I have become a full blown oxycodone addict worse than I ever could have immgined. For the past 6 months I would say in average I take anywhere between 90-120 mg's of Oxy a day. I'm not going to elaborate on what happened but shit hit the fan in my life and it is time to get clean. I have gone a day or two at most without using over the past year and I am so scarred.

I was able to get a suboxone prescription to help get me off the oxy. I am now on my second day without any oxy with the help of 8 MG of suboxone. My question is am I better off just doing this cold turkey or doing it with the subs? I am afraid of the suboxone withdrawals I read about but am also terrified of oxy withdrawals. Please help and give me your best advice.

Thanks,
MattyG

 

[Cdkman]

I would use the subs but a much lower dose..maybe 2 mg in morn and 2mg in evening for a week and then 2mg a day taper for a week to zero..taking 8mg a day is a little much for your habit imo..as a fellow oxy sub user..don't be afraid to stay at a low dose for more time if u feel the need but sub wd is worse then oxy imo

 

[David Wooderson]

I can empathize with you Matty I've been in similar circumstances.

First off, congrats that you've come to this point on your own accord.

Don't get ahead of yourself, suboxone is deceptively strong and you will have much better chances of success in finally getting off oxy for life vs if you fuck around and try to do thing too fast.

If your suboxone is prescribed I would work with your doctor 100% and let them know how much you want off opiates.

Otherwise I would try and do the slowest possible taper possible, it will give you a long time away from oxy, it will help prevent slips as you can't really use and not get precipitated withdrawals.

I wouldn't split the doses if its not necessary because if you can get by with taking it in the morning it will make getting off easier as you wont be messing with sleep in the end.

From experience weaning that nightly dose is very hard, especially if you have responsibilities.

You are much worse off the oxy withdrawals IMO, ppl bitch of about subs because I think ppl on subs just want their lives back and they aren't getting high anymore, so the addiction is more of a pain in the ass vs when you're still actively getting high.

Best advice I can give is realize now that you're addicted for life with opiates, you cant "just take one", because it's just going to send you back to the point you're at now.

 

[ShroomySatori]

I really wish you well and I'm struggling immensely with this. At 6 months or even 18 months it wasn't nearly as bad as it is now so honestly it's probably going to be rough, but get out while you can because it only progresses over time and you're already at a pretty hefty dose.

There are plenty of supplements, vitamins, and even other meds that could help if the physical symptoms turn out to be horrible for you. Also, make sure to stay hydrated and eat as healthy as you can while recovering. I'd suggest magnesium supplementation for muscle aches (it's a natural muscle relaxer), and potassium from food sources like bananas (I think this helps your heart rate which may become high, anyways it's an electrolyte that will help you feel better). You could also have turmeric and pineapple for the aches and pains. Ginger for the nausea. I'd suggest chamomile and valerian, two natural herbs, to help you sleep, and melatonin - a chemical that you can buy as a supplement, that exists in your brain already and will really knock you out - if those are not enough. The chamomile and valerian will also help with anxiety. I'd suggest green tea during the day and also inulin (a fiber supplement), oh and just regular old oats, all to help you get back to having normal bowel movements since you might go back and forth between constipation and diarrhea.

I'd suggest 5-htp (another supplement) for the depression if you encounter it, and you can also use a benzo like valium for the first week (but only the first week, no longer than that) to relax your body and mind since you seem so fearful (which is totally understandable). Vitamin B complex will help with your energy levels and getting your metabolism going. Your testosterone levels might be out of whack for a while (you get crazy horny one day, have no sex drive at all the next, this can go on and on for a while as your hormone levels adjust, lasting up to 3 months) - I would suggest maca root powder for this, and also just getting off will help you because it encourages natural endorphin production and will temporarily relieve symptoms. Just remember to keep hydrated it's really important, ideally with lemon water (yeahhh squeeze some fresh lemons in there too!) and get some light exercise as soon as you can - especially larger muscles like the legs, this will speed things up even if it's just a walk around the block, it will make you feel better than laying in bed. Coconut water will be great for you, and tasty. Protein is really important too for you right now, so if you can't eat properly (you may have appetite suppression) you could get a general protein supplement that like a weightlifter would use and then it will be easier to consume than a typical protein source.

If you've been taking percocet or any formula of oxycodone that has APAP (paracetamol) in it, you can take milk thistle to detox your liver. If you are experiencing multiple symptoms that I mentioned, like pick and choose these things based on your worst symptoms, but take them at different times of the day if you can.

Sorry if that was jumbled, but there are a lot of things you can take available at any health food store that will help your recovery and also make you feel better in withdrawal. Best of luck and never go back!

 

[Burnt Offerings]

Short-term suboxone taper. 1-2 weeks, 8-16 mgs total. Makes opiate WD basically painless, if we're talking about the physical WD.

Long-term it's just another chemical shackle.

 

[Mike93]

I personally did mine cold turkey. However I used loperamide​, and gabapentin and clonidine to make them bearable. And Xanax to sleep the first few days.

 

[Dixietrix]

16 years of hydrocodone addiction of 200-500mg a day.. on day 3 of wd.. how long does the stomach cramping last.. this is horrible..

 

[GreenGnome]

Short-term suboxone taper. 1-2 weeks, 8-16 mgs total. Makes opiate WD basically painless, if we're talking about the physical WD.

Long-term it's just another chemical shackle.

have you done a 1-2 week taper before to put a little logic behind that? ive done suboxone tapers countless times, and a super short term taper was always very attractive to me. but there isnt too much info on it in forums, a few success stories here and there, but nothing really convincing that it is an actual thing that works 100%. ive personally tried and dont think its possible.

​

but if you have done it. please tell me, cause i would love to give it another whirl. i just started subs again

 

[mybestfriend]

Matty,

From years of experience on this topic this is what I can personally recommend, as it is was the one method that truly worked for me. After countless failed attempts to get clean, (i.e going onto suboxone and then relapsing), I fully recommend going on subs for short term (up to two weeks max, slowly tapering down) and then going to KRATOM before you're body gets too dependent on the subs. I might get a lot of slack on here from people saying that kratom won't do shit for withdrawals, but trust me it works and it is a miracle, you just have to taper down to a low enough dose (this is coming from an ex IV heroin user). The first few days you going are to need a high dose of subs to beat the withdrawal system, but the subs are very strong and truly after a few days you should be able to taper down to a dose of easily less than 1 mg while making the WD symptoms manageable. Keep tapering down until you are only taking small slivers, and then switch to kratom. I recommend any red strain, but red bali from a reputable vendor will do. I know its super scary making the jump, but I promise you this stuff works. After the subs I was taking kratom multiple times a day for a few months, slowly tapering that down also, but truly after about 3-4 months total I was able to be 100% substance free with minimal withdrawals. Trust me if I was able to do it, so can you (I am the biggest wimp when it comes to WD's). Feel free to message me if you have any further questions. This is just what personally worked for me (I was IV'ing roughly an equal amount of H to what you are using in oxys a day before I jumped off). It won't be easy, and you'll still have some symptoms, but it will be infinitely easier than jumping cold turkey IMO.