Opioids Why isn't Suboxone helping?

[tara1986]

Why isn't suboxone helping?
Hey all. I have used Bluelight for years, every time I have questions about my sobriety, and it is a really comfortable place. So many many thanks to all of you.
This is my first post, so here goes..
I fell off the wagon after 3 years of sobriety (always on a maintenance dose of Suboxone via a doctor) I moved from Texas to Ohio and find it so much harder to get a good sub doctor, and opiates were much easier to come by..
46 hours ago I took my last perc, and started loperamide at a 50 mg dose (25 2-mg pills) and I knew I couldn't start on my subs for at least 24 hours because precipated wd's are the devil. I waited the whole 24 hours and took 4mg sub yesterday at 24-miserable hours in. Nothing happened. No better, no worse. Just the same. I waited 2 more hours and took 4 mg more Sub. Still nothing. Just getting by on the loperamide, which if anyone wanders if it works. It does.
Very groggy, depressed, sluggish, no energy whatsoever feeling, but I can sleep. So now at 46 hours into WD, I have taken 48 mg Sub. Still nothing. No better, no worse. I honestly think the loperamide is still holding me off of complete misery. It's the 4th of July, and I just want to feel human.
Advice? Sub worked WONDERS for me before, so I know what it can do. .
Using opiates is not an option. This time I fell off the wagon, I was spending $300+/day and refuse to go that route, although it's seeming more and more tempting.... I know lope doesn't cross the BBB, SO, WHY IS THE SUB NOT WORKING???? HELLLLPPPP.

 

[Slow_Mobius]

I've moved this into your own thread.

You're taking way too much lope. At those doses, it's probably crossing the BBB. You're also probably taking so much bupe that it's overkill. With bupe, there's a ceiling effect at higher doses. I would skip the lope altogether at this point, or if you do need it, use it at therapeutic doses (like 10mg or less) to just alleviate physical symptoms

 

[keeping]

I fell off the wagon after 3 years of sobriety (always on a maintenance dose of Suboxone via a doctor)

do you mean you were on subs for those 3 years? so no clean time aka time without subs at all?
i wouldn't say that's exactly 'sober', but wjatever works for you. ༼ ༎ຶ ෴ ༎ຶ༽

sorry if you mentioned it but i don;'t think i came across it - how much suboxone do you take a day? ༼ ༎ຶ ෴ ༎ຶ༽

 

[Jabberwocky]

Labeling time on Suboxone as somehow inherently disqualifying someone from sobriety or saying they aren't clean simply because they are using a medication like this is highly misleading. I know you know this, but it's worth mentioning. Sure, a lot of people on buprenorphine or methadone wouldn't say they are and might not be sober or clean, but at least as many folks using the medication properly are in fact and feel very much like they are clean and sober.

 

[keeping]

Labeling time on Suboxone as somehow inherently disqualifying someone from sobriety or saying they aren't clean simply because they are using a medication like this is highly misleading. I know you know this, but it's worth mentioning. Sure, a lot of people on buprenorphine or methadone wouldn't say they are and might not be sober or clean, but at least as many folks using the medication properly are in fact and feel very much like they are clean and sober.

i think the word clean here is a bit of a unfair description; implying that someone is somehow filthy or lesser in some sense. i merely meant it in the sense that one is entirely without an opiate in their system. in no way would i call someone who requires drugs, be they prescription or otherwise, somehow unclean or something.

i thought it might be worth mentioning as OP is having issues with subs, perhaps those three years of use - then their sudden cessation due to OPs relapse = could be related to the ineffectiveness of subs now.

tl;dr sorry op if i came off a dick i'm just a bit socially inept

 

[tara1986]

i think the word clean here is a bit of a unfair description; implying that someone is somehow filthy or lesser in some sense. i merely meant it in the sense that one is entirely without an opiate in their system. in no way would i call someone who requires drugs, be they prescription or otherwise, somehow unclean or something.

i thought it might be worth mentioning as OP is having issues with subs, perhaps those three years of use - then their sudden cessation due to OPs relapse = could be related to the ineffectiveness of subs now.

tl;dr sorry op if i came off a dick i'm just a bit socially inept

Only slightly offended...
I see what you mean by me being on Sub not technically meaning sober. However, it made me feel like myself again after 5 miserable years of Oxy use at 200+ mg/day. It's the same old song and dance with my Oxy use, prescribed by my doctor and it turned into a need to function everyday and carry on a "normal" life.
I didn't know that Suboxone was considered an opiate to most though.. hmm. That's interesting. It's saved my life more than once.
I DO in fact count my 3 years on Sub as clean time. Maybe not by "the book", but still my way.
To answer your question, I went straight from 5 years of heavy opiate use to 3 years of Suboxone use by my physician who I met with monthly and he didn't consider me ready to taper.. yes, it could be because he was trying to line his pocket, or, I'm just that fucked up. Either way, I wouldn't expect to be judged.
I see now I shouldn't be posting on the clean living thread I suppose. Noted.
Thanks for replying however, and I too want to be completely independent from all medications. One day.
Happy Independence day ??

 

[tara1986]

i think the word clean here is a bit of a unfair description; implying that someone is somehow filthy or lesser in some sense. i merely meant it in the sense that one is entirely without an opiate in their system. in no way would i call someone who requires drugs, be they prescription or otherwise, somehow unclean or something.

i thought it might be worth mentioning as OP is having issues with subs, perhaps those three years of use - then their sudden cessation due to OPs relapse = could be related to the ineffectiveness of subs now.

tl;dr sorry op if i came off a dick i'm just a bit socially inept

do you mean you were on subs for those 3 years? so no clean time aka time without subs at all?
i wouldn't say that's exactly 'sober', but wjatever works for you. ༼ ༎ຶ ෴ ༎ຶ༽

sorry if you mentioned it but i don;'t think i came across it - how much suboxone do you take a day? ༼ ༎ຶ ෴ ༎ຶ༽

For the last 72 hours I've been taking about 2/8-mg strips per day. I have completely stopped loperamide as someone suggested, and, I'm getting some withdrawal symptoms back as of the last 8 hours. Runny nose and anxious. I had no idea lope crossed the BBB, even at 40-50 mg.
I think once the lope had completely worn off, I'm going to start induction again at 2-4 mg Suboxone. Any thoughts?
I panic because my demanding job doesn't allow me to chill out and wait out the wd.

 

[tara1986]

i think the word clean here is a bit of a unfair description; implying that someone is somehow filthy or lesser in some sense. i merely meant it in the sense that one is entirely without an opiate in their system. in no way would i call someone who requires drugs, be they prescription or otherwise, somehow unclean or something.

i thought it might be worth mentioning as OP is having issues with subs, perhaps those three years of use - then their sudden cessation due to OPs relapse = could be related to the ineffectiveness of subs now.

tl;dr sorry op if i came off a dick i'm just a bit socially inept

I've moved this into your own thread.

You're taking way too much lope. At those doses, it's probably crossing the BBB. You're also probably taking so much bupe that it's overkill. With bupe, there's a ceiling effect at higher doses. I would skip the lope altogether at this point, or if you do need it, use it at therapeutic doses (like 10mg or less) to just alleviate physical symptoms

Thanks for your quick response. I haven't taken lope for 20 hours and I think it's almost completely gone, which would allow the Sub to do it's job. I had no clue lope crossed the BBB even at 40-50 mg.