Opioids Oxy or Suboxone?

i'm looking for advice on a very important issue, and it's a decision i have to make VERY soon.

i'm prescribed 4 15mg IR oxycodone per day.
i'd been supplementing this with used 150mcg fentanyl patches; these were changed every 48 hours. i cut them into slices and make them last about 24 hours and use the oxy only every OTHER day, when i don't have the fent.
Of course, this makes it to where i have twice the oxy (8 pills instead of 4.)

The person who gave me the used patches will no longer be receiving fentanyl in 3 weeks.

So no more fent, but i will still have 60mg of oxy a day.

I told this story in another thread originally posted to TDS wherein i was seeking general advice and support, and i goddamn sure don't mean to make a nuisance of myself, but i desperately need opinions of people who can compare oxycodone to buprenorphine (from experience.)

Here is the big question: should i go to a suboxone clinic and tell them i'm coming off of fentanyl and oxycodone?
Would you prefer 60mg of IR Oxy, or, say, 8-12mg of bupe?

As for me, i find the round the clock aspect of buprenorphine VERY attractive.
I was on it for a couple of years and did GREAT: it was a great antidepressant and just seriously enhanced my life in general.
I was able to stop drinking, became VERY successful at my job, got a lovely apartment, and didn't use any illegal drugs.
Basically, i was sated, all the time. I didn't crave much of anything and always had a mild euphoria.
it WAS the magic pill for me, along with AA.

THAT BEING SAID, this was back when they were putting everyone on suboxone. i was in rehab for ALCOHOL 4 times in one year. the fourth time, i mentioned that i occasionally ate a handful of vicodin, and they put me on 16mg of sub. so basically i didn't have much of a tolerance at all in those days. obviously, now i do: i've been eating the used fentanyl patches steadily for about six years, along with the occasional new one, and have been taking the oxy for 3. So it damn sure may not be as euphoric as it was in 06.

Thank you guys SO much in advance.

TL;DR/long story short

Which would you rather have if you were seeking happiness and balance/the proverbial "slightest correction," rather than a nod:
60 mg of IR oxycodone daily, or 8-12 mg of suboxone?

So if im getting this correctly, you are trying to take either of these medicines (Oxycodone or Suboxone), to "seek happiness and balance/the proverbial "slightest correction," rather than a nod" Correct?

This is a subjective question in my opinion. Some people might get happiness from Oxycodone or some people might get it from Suboxone.

From what you said "I find the round the clock aspect of buprenorphine VERY attractive.
I was on it for a couple of years and did GREAT: it was a great antidepressant and just seriously enhanced my life in general."

Im guessing that you will probably get it from the Suboxone...If it worked before, im sure it will work again. Id personally take the Oxycodone any day of the week though.

Chris42393 said:

So if im getting this correctly, you are trying to take either of these medicines (Oxycodone or Suboxone), to "seek happiness and balance/the proverbial "slightest correction," rather than a nod" Correct?

This is a subjective question in my opinion. Some people might get happiness from Oxycodone or some people might get it from Suboxone.

From what you said "I find the round the clock aspect of buprenorphine VERY attractive.
I was on it for a couple of years and did GREAT: it was a great antidepressant and just seriously enhanced my life in general."

Im guessing that you will probably get it from the Suboxone...If it worked before, im sure it will work again. Id personally take the Oxycodone any day of the week though.

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Right (regarding your first paragraph.)
And don't get me wrong: I LOVE to get high.
But feeling "ok" or "better" 24 hours a day does more for me than being able to MAYBE catch a little buzz for about 90 minutes (and it means taking all of my medicine for the day in one dose.) I'm at the point where I eat, idk, 60 to 150mg of oxy and am like "I THINk I feel something !"
Tolerance is a motherfucker.

But yeah, like I said: I didn't have an opiate habit when I was first prescribed suboxone, so I think it hit me a lot harder.
I'm not so sure I'd get the same feeling jumping from oxy+fentanyl to sub.

I just don't know: maybe the sub would work better, or maybe 15mg of oxy every 3 hours or so.

yeah, I just need a little euphoria to be happy. That's the main thing I want out of opiates/opioids.

At any rate, thank you so much for your input.

I'm no doctor, but I honestly think that when you lose the fentanyl patches that you will be in strong withdrawal and 15mgs of oxy 4 times a day won't help at all. Fentanyl is crazy strong.
You need to get on subs or Methadone before those patches are gone or it's not going to be pleasant.
What you are taking right now is 60mgs of oxy and maybe 50mcgs of Fentanyl a day, right? You will not be able to immediately drop to only 60mgs of oxy a day. Please don't try. Just get on Suboxone...and soon.

I've been on fentanyl, opana, hydromorphone, morphine, methadone, oxycodone, Vicodin, etc. I think my doctor used every medicine on the market on me. I used to go thru withdrawal at about 48 hours when I was on Fentanyl with oxycodone for breakthrough pain. The thought of having fentanyl
ripped away and only having breakthrough meds freaks me out. Be safe. Get on Suboxone now.

Chronicpain54 said:

I'm no doctor, but I honestly think that when you lose the fentanyl patches that you will be in strong withdrawal and 15mgs of oxy 4 times a day won't help at all. Fentanyl is crazy strong.
You need to get on subs or Methadone before those patches are gone or it's not going to be pleasant.
What you are taking right now is 60mgs of oxy and maybe 50mcgs of Fentanyl a day, right? You will not be able to immediately drop to only 60mgs of oxy a day. Please don't try. Just get on Suboxone...and soon.

I've been on fentanyl, opana, hydromorphone, morphine, methadone, oxycodone, Vicodin, etc. I think my doctor used every medicine on the market on me. I used to go thru withdrawal at about 48 hours when I was on Fentanyl with oxycodone for breakthrough pain. The thought of having fentanyl
ripped away and only having breakthrough meds freaks me out. Be safe. Get on Suboxone now.

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well it's actually more like about 50mcg of fent every other day and 60mg of oxy on the off days.
I know it's not going to be pleasant.

I thought you said in your original thread that you took 8 of your 15 mg OxyIRs on the day you weren't using the fentanyl patches so I was trying to find an even ground of what you were taking daily.
Please forgive me if I got it wrong because it's been a week or so since your first thread and I didn't re-read it.

All I'm trying to convey is that without the fentanyl from your mom you'll find that the 60 mgs of oxy won't hold you. It's a big jump to go from using fentanyl for 6 years to...nothing. It's going to hurt and I didn't want you to think that quitting fentanyl overnight and just taking your 60 mgs of oxy would work.

Good luck and I hope you figure out the best course for you.

Chronicpain54 said:

I thought you said in your original thread that you took 8 of your 15 mg OxyIRs on the day you weren't using the fentanyl patches so I was trying to find an even ground of what you were taking daily.
Please forgive me if I got it wrong because it's been a week or so since your first thread and I didn't re-read it.

All I'm trying to convey is that without the fentanyl from your mom you'll find that the 60 mgs of oxy won't hold you. It's a big jump to go from using fentanyl for 6 years to...nothing. It's going to hurt and I didn't want you to think that quitting fentanyl overnight and just taking your 60 mgs of oxy would work.

Good luck and I hope you figure out the best course for you.

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I very much appreciate it. Most of the time I eat up all the oxy at the beginning of the month: all but the four a day.

The problem with going to a Sub doctor is that he needs to know about your oxy script which poses a question in my mind..Would he contact the doctor that gives you the oxy to let him know you are now on Subs? I think it's important they know because other medications prescribed in the future could have interactions. Are you just going to quit the oxys completely and use subs instead?
I truly do hope you get it all worked out. I hate taking all these meds and I'm sure my anxiety is partly over the constant doctor visits and getting scripts filled.

If I thought Suboxone would fix my pain I'd get rid of all these scripts and take it. But I've talked with many people over the last 7 or 8 years who say they tried sub and had to go back to their pain medicine after it didn't help.

Some people have said it took care of their pain but I had to filter out comments from those taking large doses of pain meds for fun vs. those that have a body that is deteriorating like mine.

Oh wait. You can't take them at the same time. It would cause precipitated withdrawal. Nevermind.

50 ug might not be too bad to get off. It definitely won't be comfortable during the transition, but you just be ok in a week.

I'd say if you can get onto methadone without losing the oxy that would likely work, but I don't see you keeping your oxy if you go to a methadone clinic.

Kratom could be another option to replace the fentanyl. I highly recommend looking into kratom as that likely would be the best option to keep the oxy while stopping the fent without discomfort.

You know, Kratom must have changed a lot since I tried it about 10 years ago. I bought the ones that everyone said would be best.

It always made me feel yucky, at any dose, and didn't help with withdrawal. I had stomach aches and couldn't sleep and I felt like I weighed 200 lbs!

The taste was horrible with the powders but the capsules were huge.
I should check into them in case I ever need them. They must have perfected something over the years since the forum seems to consistently say to get some.

Did you buy it from smoke shops or from web suppliers? Usually the smoke shop stuff is junk. I never liked the effect as it was really stimulating even nodding where it was more like bobbing where as soon as my head dropped it would immediately bounce back up. Still it was definitely effective and I think if you find a balanced daily regimen with 30 mg oxy and the kratom you might be able to get the effect you need. Definitely try to find a replacement before you lose the fentanyl if you can as it would be best to be prepared rather than scrambling at the last minute to find a solution as that's how one usually ends up starting heroin.

Tacodude, I'm not the OP but did ask the Kratom question. I bought mine online, I didn't even know what a smoke shop was until my niece got a tattoo 5 or 6 years ago and they had Kratom capsules there. Like I said, Kratom was a horrible experience for me and I hope it has improved over the years.

I do worry about the OP since s/he said they used most of their oxy script immediately and used the fentanyl patches every other day. The strength was 150 mcgs so it's impossible to know exactly how much fentanyl they got out of the patch after 48 hours. Methadone would be best but going to a clinic every morning isn't possible for many people. I know it's scary to them but if they are prepared ahead of time they will be fine. If I lost my doctor and prescriptions in one month I would be worried too.

To the OP, if you can't get into a Sub program within 3 weeks and can't go to a Methadone clinic every day please check the threads on opiate withdrawal and try to get Kratom, some type of Benzo and other comfort meds until your system clears itself of the Fentanyl. Good luck. You got this.

I would say Suboxone or Methadone would be the way to go, you'd most likely lose your Oxy script going those routes though. Not sure what you are prescribed the Oxy for, but I see no mention of any chronic painful conditions from you in this thread (not to say you don't need the Oxy script, I'm sure it was prescribed for a good reason). So that make me think your situation leans more towards opiate abuse than than intended use. That's why I am recommending subs or done over keeping the oxy script, the benefits are twofold. You not only will get a more powerful opiate (subs or done) that will hold the fent wd at bay better than oxys, you also get the benefit of long acting drugs that can hold you all day which will help to break your abuse patterns. Hope you can get something figured out before the fent gets cut out, good luck man!