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Opioids 17 Days free of Methadone (How long to feel normal?)

EatClenTrenHard

Bluelighter
Joined
Feb 8, 2014
Messages
93
Sup everyone. 23/m. This is probably the first- or one of very few graphs/diaries of documented methadone withdrawal you'll find. I've searched hours and hours on how long it would take, using many different search phrases and realised VERY, VERY few people make it through the withdrawals.

(UPDATE) So far, i've made it 49 days, with only one use of dope. So read on, and good luck everyone.

Just looking to hear about how long it took other people to feel normal after stopping methadone. I've done hours of research but it's surprisingly hard to find many answers, but most have said 2-12 months. Hoping to hear about people who felt great after a month.

I'm on day 49 of no Methadone. Went from 30mg, to 40, down to 10, then to 30, relapsed, then raised and capped at 75mg for a couple months until I was told because of my past dirty UA's at the clinic I would either face paying $22/day, or go to outpatient treatment 3 nights a week for 3 hours a night. F* that I said. Was already driving to the clinic 530am mon-sat before work. I was enraged because I got myself clean a month before being told this. So I said F* you, put me on their taper, which was -4mg/day. Didn't feel the slightest discomfort until the morning of no done.

Days 1-2 - not that bad.
Days 3-14 - F*ing sucked. All the normal w/d symptoms, though not near as bad as Heroin, but still miserable nonetheless. Lessening of fatigue only noticeable change throughout the days.
Days 15-16 - slight improvement in all symptoms.
Day 17 - slight improvement I suppose, but still sucks a**. Sleeping has sucked every night (1-17). Waking constantly in a panic. 4-7 hours of sleep/night.
Day 27 - gradual improvement, stomache discomfort better, but slightly annoying still. Hunger and energy are returning! Sleep has improved a little, but I still wake up at 7am unable to sleep longer. Still have to smoke weed right upon waking to feel decent and curb the insane chills. Hormones are returning, happier, laughing more, anxiety is improving, taking showers now rather than bathes because i have the energy to stand, and happiness is returning. Still though, it sucks when the weed wears off.
Day 38 - overnight the withdrawawls lessened by about %15. Relief. I was losing hope.
Day 40 - finally woke up in the morning without an extreme flood of adrenaline forcing me up and out of bed, but still haven't slept past 7am. I still don't get how i managed to once sleep in til 9am one morning between weeks 1 and 2... Oh well..

wwhqgy.jpg

:: NOTE :: Graph is only up to date as far as day 44, i estimated the remainder.

FYI new-comers to this thread, I literally could NOT have made it this far without 2-3 Hot baths/showers per day, and LOTS of pot. Clonidine seemed to help me sleep and calmed the restless legs and goose feeling slightly, but don't expect too much. Weed is the ONLY thing that drastically helps withdrawals. Day by day... Hang in there


Tags: methadone withdrawal withdrawl detox diary journal log timeline time line how long until feel better normal heroin suboxone oxy opiate oxycontin oxycodone
 
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First of all, we don't use the whole "my jellyfish" or "my pet"/swim nonsense. It doesn't protect you legally and is annoying to read. Just use "I".

Anyway, the real downside of methadone is that the withdrawals last a long while. Acute symptoms alone take weeks to go away, and then you can expect another few months of PAWS.
So, all together.. you'll probably be feeling like shit for a good few months.
 
First of all, we don't use the whole "my jellyfish" or "my pet"/swim nonsense. It doesn't protect you legally and is annoying to read. Just use "I".

Anyway, the real downside of methadone is that the withdrawals last a long while. Acute symptoms alone take weeks to go away, and then you can expect another few months of PAWS.
So, all together.. you'll probably be feeling like shit for a good few months.

Awesome, i agree It's extremely irritating to read SWIM and etc
 
Hey Eat.. welcome to Bluelight. I came off high dose methadone. the first couple weeks were strong. Over the next couple months its got a sliver better every day until right before the fifth month when the opiate receptors finally shut down. The pain doctor I spoke with about this estimated a time of seven and a half months. I think there is a big diffrence to be had by promoting recovery through exercise, good sleep, nutrition, and changing ones cognition.

Here is some strong information on paws. Hang in there is get better... it really does.

PAWS LINKS
Why We Don’t Get Better Immediately: Post-acute Withdrawal Syndrome (PAWS)
Post Acute Withdrawal (PAW) Excerpted From “Staying Sober” By: Terence T. Gorski
Post-acute-withdrawal syndrome Wiki
http://www.clairedorotik.com/NLWC-EXERCISE_AND_MOOD.htm

ADD take http://www.bluelight.ru/vb/threads/673580-Hey-I-thought-the-grey-matter-of-ADD-could-chew-on-this
Managing depressive thinking

it is a powerful thing to keep our thoughts possitive and here are some threads many of us use to help us do this.
Good things about being off drugs/getting sober
Share something POSITIVE from your day!
Today I Am Thankful For... Ver. 3: Earth, Wind and Fire!

You also may want to add in
one of either
>NEURONTIN< >HERE< >HERE<
OR >Lyrica<
OR >phenibut<

as these can really make a tone of difference..

Also have you had your testosterone levels checked if you are a male.. this is ofthen really low and you could experience a huge positive switch if you decide TRT is right for you.
 
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Actually, i ran a cycle right before stopping methadone. Was on 500mg/test a week and now im only at 100mg/week (TRT dose). Thanks for replying btw!
 
Well done on getting clean! It ain't easy.

How did the Clonidine help the withdrawals?

Good job about the Test as opiates can cause hypogonadism.

Life can only get better from here on in - the insomnia is a bitch but stick with it, it does get better.
 
My own experience with getting off methadone was actually terrible. It wasn't as intense as withdrawal from morphine or heroin, but I was getting paranoid at times and had suicidal thoughts. It was definitely more depressive in general and restless legs were worse than during withdrawal from morphine. Perhaps some additional pharmacological effects of methadone make the withdrawal different. I know I used a lot of weed too, sometimes I smoked as soon as the effects started wearing off, I could go for days like that. When I started relapsing with codeine i.m., my doctor prescribed me 400 mg of tramadol a day. Honestly 150 mg of codeine does more than that, just lasts much shorter. So I was like a ghost, all sweaty and nauseous, cursing that tramadol which I knew then where the doc can shove it up to ;), . Eventually after around 2 months I got on Suboxone, I guess for the first time the doc realized this has been hardly a game for me for a long time now as I can remember how he refused to take me on methadone numerous times. Anyway, now I'm glad that he helped me with taking me on Suboxone and helping me get off clonazepam.

I was on methadone for ~2.5 years, generally 40 mg - 80 mg/d, if more, then not for long. I tapered off in one month from 40 mg, it wasn't pain-free, I was uncomfortable at doses below 10 mg, but I also had to dose it twice a day, otherwise I would feel bad in the evening, so perhaps my body clears it faster. But it was lasting and lasting. I'm not writing this to upset you, but I think it's better to know what to expect.
 
Months. Not sure how high your dose was, but when I quit 195mg/day after a 5 year stint I went cold turkey for 4 days before switching to Suboxone. Those 4 days are a hellish blur. I think I ate 100mg Ativan and smoked countless bowls, but nothing seemed to help. Day 5 started on 32mg Suboxone. It took a week for the Bupe to kick in. After 2 months (even with the Bupe) my body was still hurting. About month 3 the body aches left. Took about 6 months for the insomnia to go away, again even with Bupe (though I am constantly lowering my Bupe intake, I'm down to 10mg a day after a year). I no longer hurt anymore. Now it's just the depression and boredom. I doubt it'll ever leave.

[EDIT]: I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with one of the previous posters. I think that Kratom is a wonderful aid when quitting Opiate/oid addiction. Some Kratom + Canna completely killed my withdrawls for a solid 6-8 hours, for which I was extremely thankful. And to an Opiate addict Kratom isn't exactly recreational--only at doses so high you may as well be using your Opiate of choice. If you decide to try Kratom (I recommend keeping it around for those really hard/bad days PAWS) do your research and get the good stuff at the right price. Legally of course.
 
Months. Not sure how high your dose was, but when I quit 195mg/day after a 5 year stint I went cold turkey for 4 days before switching to Suboxone. Those 4 days are a hellish blur. I think I ate 100mg Ativan and smoked countless bowls, but nothing seemed to help. Day 5 started on 32mg Suboxone. It took a week for the Bupe to kick in. After 2 months (even with the Bupe) my body was still hurting. About month 3 the body aches left. Took about 6 months for the insomnia to go away, again even with Bupe (though I am constantly lowering my Bupe intake, I'm down to 10mg a day after a year). I no longer hurt anymore. Now it's just the depression and boredom. I doubt it'll ever leave.

[EDIT]: I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with one of the previous posters. I think that Kratom is a wonderful aid when quitting Opiate/oid addiction. Some Kratom + Canna completely killed my withdrawls for a solid 6-8 hours, for which I was extremely thankful. And to an Opiate addict Kratom isn't exactly recreational--only at doses so high you may as well be using your Opiate of choice. If you decide to try Kratom (I recommend keeping it around for those really hard/bad days PAWS) do your research and get the good stuff at the right price. Legally of course.


I SERIOUSLY had ZERO intention of posting in this topic, just for the fact I was only interested in it and had not taken or been on methadone before. I didn't want to give any information about Suboxone or anything else to help the OP.

But you, wow. I know how an addict/drug addicted person for years thinks about themselves . They think they should be somewhere else, and kicking a HEROIN or METHADONE addiction isn't a huge deal since they never should have been in this spot at all. Maybe I am wrong, but that's how I feel in a way.

But took the time to sign in, and make this ong message to seriously commend you and praise you for how seriously fucking STRONG you are. On THAT much Methadone for 5 YEARS.. then having 32mg ( ceiling dose?) NOT work for a WEEK!? and even then, barely helping too much. I mean you went from methadone to suboxone, and a very high suboxone dose and you STILL had insomnia and other withdrawal/paws symptoms that are terrible or 6 MONTHS!

I can't even think of how strong you are to achieve such a feat, none the less make it through positive and still positive without going back to drugs... I mean when I stopped doing opiates (which i did for binges then stopped for a while and did it again ) , I at least had Suboxone. If I didn't want suboxone , I had Kratom and never had to deal with withdrawals that much. Then even when I am not withdrawing physically and am doing fine on Suboxone or Kratom.. I still feel a bit depressed and slightly anxious and I hate it so much that USUALLY, in the past, I have ended up using something again.. just because some days I couldn't take it and wanted something. That was only a MONTH or LESS and you are dealing with very strong withdrawal feelings and paws, but for 6 months you were able to get through each day, despite the withdrawal, and stay strong to keep going each day and stay clean.

I have drank a little bit tonight so I am a little scattered, but I hope my got my point across that you are, or at least should be, an INSPIRATION to anyone with serious addictions or even slight addictions. You are basically saying, no matter how excruciating the withdrawal, how long, anyone is able to get through it and see the light and the end of the tunnel.. even if that tunnel is miles long, there is a light and you will get there.


Seriously, I cannot praise your actions or willpower enough. I can't commend you enough for what you have done, I can't imagine it, yet you seem to have done just as well as I have from having suboxone and kratom and not withdrawing.. yet you are.


I don't know man, you are just an incredibly strong person (and i consider myself to be very strong). Keep it up man, you are doing amazing, you should be 10000% proud of what you did and are doing.


On the Kratom situation... Kratom for me helped me. I never withdrew while on Kratom. I was on Suboxone (8mg at first) and went down to 1-2mg after a year. From that point I went off suboxone cold turkey and hope Kratom would help. For the firs few days i felt a bit shitty, but not nearly as bad as I should have. Then after that, I had no withdrawal and felt good. But, I wasn't on a high dose or suboxone or methadone. So it helped me, but I don't know how well it will help with people who have a much larger tolerance than I have, but I would HIGHLY suggest trying it to get out of the shitty situation you may be in, OP, if you can. It is better than nothing, I don't see why not try something that could potentially make you feel even SLIGHTLY better!

But congrats OP, you can do it.. It is hard, but just remember.. when you feel hopeless, that isn't you that is the neurological/chemical imbalances talking. You will eventually get past it all and be happy you went through such a shitty time so you can appreciate life and know that nothing else in life can be as hard to go through and accomplish as addiction
 
What is Kratom? Lutopia. Have chronic pain legit. Went pain mgmt. on Opana 20 MHz 2x day with breakthrough meds : Percocet up to 3xday. Been having these symptoms. Of hot cold flashes. Driving me crazy. Please some one help. I'm desperate . Thanks you all. Peace be c you . Lutopia
 
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I know how an addict/drug addicted person for years thinks about themselves . They think they should be somewhere else, and kicking a HEROIN or METHADONE addiction isn't a huge deal since they never should have been in this spot at all. Maybe I am wrong, but that's how I feel in a way.

But took the time to sign in, and make this ong message to seriously commend you and praise you for how seriously fucking STRONG you are. On THAT much Methadone for 5 YEARS.. then having 32mg ( ceiling dose?) NOT work for a WEEK!? and even then, barely helping too much. I mean you went from methadone to suboxone, and a very high suboxone dose and you STILL had insomnia and other withdrawal/paws symptoms that are terrible or 6 MONTHS!
Thanks for the kind words amigo, much appreciated, but I owe it to you to admit that I stumbled many times along the way, and likely will again. More times than I'd like to admit I gave in to the anxiety/panic (long after the physical pain had left) and overdid it with the benzos--you know, xanax, klonopin, Ativan--people can do it, but they gotta be prepared.

Drugs should only be a tool in your toolbox when used to end an addiction; one among many, a support system is most important. Substitution/maintenance drugs should always be feared and respected as another substance that would so love to replace the very DOC you're trying to kick. It is a never-ending battle.

As junkies we tend to fear the sickness of WDs, but in reality that is the easy part. The hard part is months down the line when there's money in your bank account, your family/friends/girlfriend/boyfriend/wife/whatever trusts you, you have free time and you just ate 10 pounds of hammered shit in a 9 pound bag for breakfast.

Addiction is a war you'll fight until you die, but it can be contained with great success. (I've seen it happen and hope to show others it's possible...someday).
 
I "tappered" from 7 years methadone 120mg+/d to zero in ten days. It was harsh for the body and mind. But after two month i felt kind of ok again. Sleep and bowel problems lasted longer. I also had an insanely strong anxiety lasting for month. After a long and strong physical and psychological addiction, you have to change your life a lot to stay away from addiction.
 
Day 19 - feeling decent finally, in that the most uncomfortable symptom for me has disappeared completely for the first day.

Which was the anxiety sweats underneath my legs and crotch that made me feel like taking 3 showers a day to regulate my temp and make me feel better.

Also, diarrhea is gone finally thankfully
 
Hi there! Congratulations on getting clean from methadone.. the ole liquid handcuffs! I have a lot of experience with methadone..and unfortunately, coming off of it. The last time I came off of methadone was forced cold turkey-due to 6 month incarceration. I honestly felt like I was going to DIE. I was using heroin on top of my methadone and also had a pretty big xanax habit. I literally did not sleep for the first month straight that I was locked up. I have no idea how that is possible, but I am here to tell you that it is. After about 35 days, I think I started sleeping one to three hours a night. For about two months, my skin felt very odd.. like oily, and no matter how much I showered, I noticed a strange odor coming out of my pores. The joint aches and pains lasted until about month three. About month 4, I began to feel about 75% human again and by month 6, physically I felt fine. It was just the PAWS were pretty rough up until about a year and a half, but I managed those by attending 12 step meetings pretty vigorously after my release.

Coming off of methadone was by far the hardest kick I have ever had to do. You are on day 19.. DONT GIVE UP! You are doing great!!!!!! Seriously, keep going! After this is all done, you will look back at this and be so glad you did it.

I remained clean for 2 years after that. And I always said that if I ever relapsed back on heroin, I would NOT go back to a methadone clinic. Well, I relapsed, but I did not go back to a methadone clinic, and I refuse to. I am currently in the process of trying to get clean again. I wish you the best of luck, and my hat is off to you for making it this far! Keep it up! We are here for you :) <3



Edit: I just remembered that this doctor at one of these medical detox things I used to go to all the time, once told me that I should be fine after three days! It was a three day detox for heroin/alcohol/benzos/whatever, and I told her that I was on methadone and would need to be detoxed and medicated and monitored much longer than three days. She told my parents that the methadone would be out of my system after my 3 day hospital stay and that I was just trying to get more medication! LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL. Hi bitch, have you ever heard of a HALF LIFE?! omg, I swear, some people should NOT be working in addiction medicine, or healthcare at all for that matter. That bitch was off the chain. I just remembered that and sat here chuckling and had to share with you guys.
 
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Hey thanks for taking the time to reply a nice long message. My hat goes off to you for surviving through that many months man.. Holy F.. and here I am bitching about day 20... fuck...

Also, If i heard that lady say that like it was the truth it would take every bit of willpower not to sock her in her jaw lmfao
 
Day 19 - feeling decent finally, in that the most uncomfortable symptom for me has disappeared completely for the first day.

Which was the anxiety sweats underneath my legs and crotch that made me feel like taking 3 showers a day to regulate my temp and make me feel better.

Also, diarrhea is gone finally thankfully

Nice. Keep it going, man. You'll be feeling much better physically in another couple weeks.
 
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