(Clonidine) dosing for opioid withdrawal

[ArmyMP_Vet1986]

Okay Airforce I'm going assume when you said that "SWIM" thing is a bad idea and the doctors could asks to see my scars then what that you're talking to me.

Well first off the "SWIM" thing is simply an Acronym for Someone Who Isn't Me - SWIM.

As for the doctor asking to see my scars thats fine cause I have a bullet hole in my knee, chest, and a 16" by 3" scar going up my right abdomen with TONS of tiny little holes around it and up my right side of my body because I DIDN'T FUCKING lie about my time in the Sanbox! I saved my soldier which is the only reason i was injuried because as a MP we are at the IP stations and doing check points causing us to be a daily target for ambushes. So seems how you're in the Chairforce and want to talk shit how many of the Airforce's whole 6 month deployments did you do? How many Combat Action Badges do you have for actually engaging in Real Fuckin Combat? I got 5 (the max) in the 2 weeks of my first month! Seems how my ONE deployment is as long as 2 of yours and my second deployment was 15 months cause of Bush's extension making my 2 tours equal to 4 & 1/2 of your branch so please don't talk shit cause you chose the Chairforce so you DIDN'T have to go to war. I'd bet you're a bitch who went in for the college only so this in turn explaining the bitch move of joining the Chairforce. So next time you try calling someone a liar especially someone who was in a REAL military branch make sure you know what you're saying cause I'll let my Purple Heart & Silver Star do the talking for me! Email me if you want to see a copy of my SERVICE CONNECTED VA Id Card, Copy of my DD214, my Indef Military ID Card or my award lettera for both PH and SS. michaelmspivey (at) gmail.

I didn't come on here to talk crap but to simply help people who may be suffering from w/d like me when i decieded enough was enough with my prescriptions for pain meds. That is TRULY what I did cause the doctor felt bad I wanted to get off the meds and couldn't cause I had been taking them for so long I developed a dependency he said. So those are what he prescribed me and that is how I took them to get off without any symptoms besides a little cravings. So now I'm going because I have to head to Charleston VA for my Oncology appointment.

 

[Deleted member 80237]

when i went through one of the aforementioned "fancy detoxes," i was given the patch AND pills. i believe it was 0.1mg 2 or 3x/day, though i always had to check my blood pressure before taking it. this was in addition to a million other meds.

when i detoxed in the mental hospital, i was given 0.2mg 3x/day.

 

[Limpet_Chicken]

Yes do taper off clonidine, unless its only being used for a few days. Neglecting to do this can result in a nasty sympathetic rebound, including shaking, anxiety, lack of ability to sleep, and an increase in both BP and HR, as well as sweating.

Great stuff though, and not just for opioid WD. I take it daily to prevent overloading (I'm autie), and I find it makes for a great sleep aid too.

I couldn't imagine taking an antipsychotic for opiate withdrawal though, I can only see it making it a whole lot worse. Low DA levels are well known to be responsible for akathisia and restless leg syndrome to begin with, and of course, coming off pain meds or gear is going to leave one with already low DA levels.

 

[Deleted member 80237]

^i was prescribed 5mg of zyprexa daily during that fancy detox as part of the overall cocktail. provided excellent sedation, which was certainly helpful.

 

[Speedymedsrx]

How groggy does Clonodine make you after you wake up from it after it knocks you out?

If you have never taken Clonidine, 0,2mg will sedate you a lot (which is what you want during withdrawal).
At one point, it'll stop putting you to sleep, but it will still help a lot.

Here it only comes in 0,15mg dosage, I find it's a perfect dosage for everything...

If you need to increase your dose, because of tolerance: Just try not to take more than 1mg/day and no more than 0,3mg at once (and that's when you're really used to it, and you're gonna need to taper the clonidine once it' finished at that point)

Remember that Clonidine is a substance that needs to be tapered down once you stop using it, or you can get nasty rebound hypertension...

 

[SaosinEngaged]

You don't have to feel like ass during WD, but you need to get yourself Kratom.

I went from a 300mg of Oxy/day habit for 8 months to nothing with the aid of Kratom. At that time, I'd brew 30g strength tea of premium Bali OR use 5g of UEI swallowed and either one would eliminate 85% of the WD and put me in a half decent mood.

So yes, there is a "way around" withdrawal.

I've never even needed clonidine.

People that tell you Kratom doesn't do that much or enough during bad WD's simply don't take enough, or they do it via the wrong method of ingestion (swallowing). Eating that much plant matter will make you sick, no two ways about it. That's why making good, strong tea kills two birds with one stone. You can dose as high as you need to without any ceiling nausea.

 

[Nutso]

If you are unemployed and have zero income, you may be able to check in at state funded detox centers at zero cost to you. After detox you can receive an assessment and attend in/outpatient, follow ups, counseling, etc. Anything to those who are committed helps right? This is all free for zero income earners.

Clonidine - most of the things said in this thread are legit, but if you really want to self detox you just have to be honest with your doctor. The Hippa act or whatever, your information is private. Just man up and say you did this or that.

I was honest with my doctor and I told him I did this and how much. Though he is a doctor, he still was naive in that sense wondering where I got it and how much it cost.

Either way, I asked for clonidine and some sort of anti anxiety med or sleep. I got clonidine and trazodone te first time.

I said I hope I don't have to come again otherwise it'll mean I was using.

So here I was there again askin for more clonidine and this time Xanax.

Doctor visit cost 90 (no insurance) and about 15 total for generic meds from wal mart. Wal mart has very good deals $4 scripts.

Take care ad god bless. I'm on day two. But I'm going on the 2 suboxone and detox route. I have 5 clonidine and 5 Xanax left for when te sub runs outs. I get the chills and can't sleep except 5 hours so far but th suboxone is helping plenty. Clonidine for a day or two after the sub depending if I'm feeling the sub withdrawals or DOC withdrawals. And Xanax o help with anxiety and to sleep of course.

Clonidine makes you drowsy. Make sure you stock up on Gatorade and food. Good luck. Message or email me if you'd like. I have some experience but I'm no doctor.

 

[clarkgrizwald]

You don't have to feel like ass during WD, but you need to get yourself Kratom.

I went from a 300mg of Oxy/day habit for 8 months to nothing with the aid of Kratom. At that time, I'd brew 30g strength tea of premium Bali OR use 5g of UEI swallowed and either one would eliminate 85% of the WD and put me in a half decent mood.

So yes, there is a "way around" withdrawal.

I've never even needed clonidine.

People that tell you Kratom doesn't do that much or enough during bad WD's simply don't take enough, or they do it via the wrong method of ingestion (swallowing). Eating that much plant matter will make you sick, no two ways about it. That's why making good, strong tea kills two birds with one stone. You can dose as high as you need to without any ceiling nausea.

Where did you purchase the Kratom? Internet?

 

[Nurse1968]

I have read a lot of these comments and am seeing something that is completely false in re to meds......you CAN take clonidine and benzo's at the same time. You just can't take too much of one if taking too much of the other....IE: if you are already on a higher dose of benzo's then keep the clonidine to the smallest dose possible. Better yet.....ask your doctor. I we t through the rapid detox program last August.....and, no, that is not the easy way out but it was better than spending months in the withdrawl symptoms I only had for about 10 hours.....(restless arms & legs) they were the worst! Anyway, I was given clonidine 0.1 mg twice a day and Valium 10mg I think 3 times a day for 2months. They both helped with sleeping.
All in all, just be aware of the amounts of the meds you are taking......AND, it is NEVER a good idea to just stop clonidine......after 4 days, ok, but most people are on it longer than that.....it is a BP med which means your BP can skyrocket if med is stopped abruptly.

 

[Nurse1968]

I can't see why anyone would prescribe that for anxiety! There are better, nonaddicting meds out there for that. My doc told me it would help w anxiety when going thru wds but it doesn't.

 

[Nurse1968]

@Airforce1S.....not many docs will prescribe the combo you just gave. Clonidine and a benzo, be it Valium, Ativan, whatever, is the most widely used in wd management. Docs are getting paranoid about prescribing ANY controlled substance these days, and they won't give them for long if they do. It's crazy! The medical field, of which I am part of but am going to say this anyway, is a large part of the narcotic problem......first they give some, then more, then all of a sudden you can't find a damn doc that will take on a pain management patient! They treat you like YOU did something wrong. Granted, there are people who want the narcs to sell, get high on, whatever, but the docs don't know how to control it! Some meds should have never been made to be taken outside of a hospital anyway, yet here they are and now they are all taken away! It's a crazy thing! What's next? Before I went off narcs, I checked out a pain management clinic and they charged $1000 a week......YES, A WEEK! My WC wouldn't pay for it so I had to find a doc over an hour away to take me on as a chronic pain patient.

 

[blacktar]

For anyone who is serious about kicking dope I found Clonidine to be quite helpful along with a cocktail of other non-narcs. Other than doing a 1 week Suboxone taper (or 2-3 if coming of Methadone and dope) here is the list of the drugs the doctor prescribed me. Along with the Suboxone, they got me through some of the worse H/methadone w/d's I've ever personally experienced after doing it for years and years straight.

Clonidine 0.1-0.2 mg 4 times a day as needed (space them out every 4 hours)
Gabapentin (Neurontin) 300mg CAP 3 times a day (for nerve pains IE:restless legs)
Baclofen 20 mg 4 times a day OR Methocarbam (Robaxin) 750 mg 4 times a day (for pain)
Dicyclomine (Bentyl) 20 mg 4 times a day (for stomach cramps)
Trazodone 100-200 mg at bedtime OR Doxepin 50-150 mg at bedtime (for sleep)
Imodium (for diarrhea obviously)
Also look into the Vivitrol Shot (Extended Naltrexone Release) if you don't feel like you have the will power to stay clean initially.

If you prefer a more natural way for the sleep aids and are trying to stay away from them I would personally suggest two things. Either taking a combination of Melatonin, Valarian Root, and Passion Flower (mix and match to your own liking...I personally like all three). Also I've had many people swear by a tea that they drink right before going to bed " Yogi - Bedtime " I guess it has a lot of good natural sleep aids in it.
Hope I could be of help and good luck kicking this shit... it's a fucking bitch

 

[neversickanymore]

Clonidine 0.1-0.2 mg 4 times a day as needed (space them out every 4 hours)

+1 for sure.

 

[~QuirKyNai~]

I have a slight warning for.clonodine..even if u are in withdrawl.I had clonodine,ativan and some dicyclomide given to me by the hospital as prescriptions to fill after I got home after going thru hours of crazy ass precip withdrawal from taking suboxone too soon after weeks of being on methadone....anyway I've taken clonodine before but for some reason this time,I was getting some pain in my heart.at least it felt like it was my heart.. But just a small area.like a pin size are but still.
I just wantedo say to be careful and.mindful of if u have naturally low blood pressure, maybe clonodine be have.to be taken in just .1 or .01 doses and probably not four times a day.2 or 3 times a day maybe

 

[Nuclear_Pharmacist]

Just a comment on several members posts about clonidine, and to a lesser extent trazodone being addictive. Multiple studies, both pre-marketing and post marketing surveillance have found that neither of these substances substitute for known addictive substances, nor do they induce psychological dependency. It's possible in the persons who frequent this message board that their placebo response is dysfunctional or overly sensitive, but if clonidine was abusable, then similar drugs like Hytrin, even Amidate would be scheduled. Same with Trazodone, if it was a problematic drug, nefazodone would likewise be scheduled. Perhaps the people who made these comments would care to elaborate further as to why they believe these meds to be addictive?

NP

 

[Keif' Richards]

The amount of Clonidine required to mitigate your Opioid/ate withdrawal symptoms is going to depend largely upon the dosage and frequency of your use and to a lesser extent on your body's unique physiology.

Those with a heavy habit (my experience included, both with heroin and high dose methadone withdrawal) can benefit from .9-1.2mg per day spread out into 3 or even 4 doses dependent upon how severe your insomnia is (dosing the 4th time in the middle of the night etc). I've read from some online sources that a potential side effect of clonidine is insomnia, although I've yet to meet anyone with this problem in "real life". Although people with lesser habits won't require doses in this range.

Side effects of taking dosages in this range might and probably will include increased sleepiness. The only thing that you really want to watch out for is exaggerated hypotension, as this could cause you to lose your feet/pass out upon rising from a sitting or prone position. It goes without saying that an allergic reaction is something that you want to watch out for when taking any medicine for the first time.

 

[funky crosstitute]

You shouldnt take clonodine if you already have low bp or you gonna be passed out on the floor. Idon't know what the cut off point is, but I'm sure it wouldnt be hard to find out. Generally I would say if you've been told you got a low bop don't do it! And when I had it a fancy detox I was supposed to buy a bo monitor which of course I did not do, just got the girlfriend to have a pulse check anagain!AlsoIcannot see what the negative interactions of benzos and clonodine would be apart from further lowering of BP , I had 50mg of diazepam a day, several rohypnol( a really strong benzo , the date rape drug in the UK, fine if you into necrophilia, cos unless you hardcore or wding you gonna be unconscious after one of those) and a horrid psychatric hypnotic sedative called merroril which I think is no longer available here. I made a fuss about this, bit that's a fraggle drug I piped up. My doctor just said, well sleep is sleep! Which is absolutely correct because the worst part of ewd is the inability to kip. You can't get these home detoxes. So here anymore as some twat got a double order on the downer's, ate the lot and died. As a consequence some cool Drs ok they was making some on this but it was the only option here, well they ended up struck off. Pathetic!. Is not like they didn't warn you and at the time the only alternative was do this in their hospital which was about 7xk. And yup it did work although I had to do this several times, then move, then couldn't cope and got a a day tiny 0.4 x 2 bupe script for a few months which I was in control of ie not a drugs agency breathing down my neck, they would have given me loads of it , probably 16 mg and no way on earth would I ever ever got off that. Yes, I would say clonodine about the best single thing for wd although the other stuff I'm talking about really helped it not be torture. And yes it does make you unpleasantly lethargic , I got over this by taking some hardcore contemporary dance lessons while I was doing all these drugs for a week to come off monumentously huge h habits. I did wonder if I'd get a heart attack so I asked( afterwards!) at the local helpful drug agency, not crap like where I'm living now and they said fine. Anyway you more likely die of drug related accidents or top yourself from sheer misery of junkiedom than die trying to give up. Good Luck peeps!!

 

[Boat_guy21]

Where did you purchase the Kratom? Internet?

Kratom does work wonders but to me that stuff is just as addictive as opioids, I went 6 years after my army injures going back and forth from methadone and Oxy. Then was recommended to take Kratom to get off and ended up with a 2 year addiction to Kratom.. The effects to me feel just like a opioid yet it's legal to posses and you can buy it at any head shop or online where I live and taking it longer than a month gives you WD symptoms just like any opioid (which is what we all here are trying to avoid right!) . Then I took the clonidine road to finally help get rid of all the demons. Good luck

 

[Bkbanger]

I tried clonidine for the first time today and have to say it really helps. I've been doing pretty good ny dope for 5+ years, peaking around 3 bundles a day (30 bags... Roughly equivalent to 30 Roxys ime...). As of late my funds are low (what else is new) and I've been forced to reduce to one bundle a day for th last month or so. So, quitting now seems like an opportune time. I made an appointment with a sub doc tomorrow, and last used just 5 bags last night. Today I started feeling shitty pretty quick, and so I took .5 mg sub and 1.5mg clonidine and I feel relatively ok. I know based on years of experience with self dosing subs that at my level, that dose alone would not have left me feeling this "comfortable". I'm an advocate for low dosing subs- I can't imagine on what world someone needs 16-24mg to survive... Whatever. Either way, the clonidine seemed to really alleviate some of my least favorite aspects of wD- hot cold flashes, sweats, and I generally feel just "better". I hope my appointment tomorrow goes well and I get what I need. I'm beyond done with this lifestyle.

 

[Bryant73]

Clonidine is potent. .1 is usually enough for most people to start with. .2 or .3 in worst cases of w-ds can be used if side effects aren't too bad and hypotension and bradacardia don't develop. It really helps with sweating restlessness and that shivering feeling. Using it with a benzo and an anti-inflammatory for a few days really helps. A muscle relaxor really helps too. Hope this helps someone and best of luck.