The scourge of methadone use

[stupotmc]

After trying to give up methadone after long term use I've come to the conclusion that the 'liquid handcuffs' are. true. A scheme by lawmakers to keep eyes on former illegal drug users. The lack of resources to stop methadone and bupe etc are massively less than that dedicated to putting people on so called maintenance.
Methadone maintenance makes it impossible to have a free life, you're unable to travel , your in a data base for life in my country. Making it impossible to be prescribed any pain relief contains opiates. I broke my arm and was give Lyrica ffs. If you ever give up heroin in Australia buy your methadone or the street or self medicate because it is hell to withdraw from. A lot worse and longer than heroin. Unfortunately the best way to kick is to lose contact with all friends who use. Which for me was was heartbreaking.Stu. Take care.

 

[Keif' Richards]

It's not perfect, but for most it is the best thing they have.

I know plenty of people who share your opinion. I am not calling you wrong. Let me share my opinion thougb:

Blaming the clinic or methadone or even. Drugs in general is not a good place from which to start. We are to blame for our decisions, only us.

The clinic can be a great aid or it can be just another anchor to weigh you down. If you enroll in a clinic you can't just sit and wait for the methadone to fix your behavior.

Methadone is there to keep you straight enough to pursue a path to happiness. That is to say, it takes Methadone and hard, constant work to get yourself better.

For me personally, it took methadone a d daily AA meetings for months/years before I started getting better.

Don't ever enroll in the clinic if you aren't also ready to change everything else.

 

[snmfmy]

It's not perfect, but for most it is the best thing they have.

I know plenty of people who share your opinion. I am not calling you wrong. Let me share my opinion thougb:

Blaming the clinic or methadone or even. Drugs in general is not a good place from which to start. We are to blame for our decisions, only us.

The clinic can be a great aid or it can be just another anchor to weigh you down. If you enroll in a clinic you can't just sit and wait for the methadone to fix your behavior.

Methadone is there to keep you straight enough to pursue a path to happiness. That is to say, it takes Methadone and hard, constant work to get yourself better.

For me personally, it took methadone a d daily AA meetings for months/years before I started getting better.

Don't ever enroll in the clinic if you aren't also ready to change everything else.

This experience is from the United States:

My mother-in-law was on methadone maintenance and she had take homes for the week if she wanted (Actually she qualified for up to a month but not every program would give a month of take homes, and the ones that did. She didn't want the methadone sitting around because of our small children).

She had been stable for multiple years and federal guidelines allow you to have a month of take homes if you're stable for more than 2 years.

If you remain stable for a year you get 14 take homes. I don't know anybody that can't take a vacation in 14 days. It is 100% legal for you to have your methadone maintenance medication on an airplane or take it with you when you're traveling.

When she was on methadone maintenance and stable, she was the most wonderful, sweet, kind person that you would ever meet in the world. Genuinely, I loved my mother in-law.

If she relapsed and started using, she would disappear for days at a time, things would start to go missing as would money not from us cuz we wouldn't let her be around when she was using, but from other family members.

It took a huge toll on my wife but it had been her life since she was a child.

But she ended up being successful in her bid to finally quit dope, and was completely clean at the end of her life. She died clean of any opiate.

 

[sadboi]

After trying to give up methadone after long term use I've come to the conclusion that the 'liquid handcuffs' are. true. A scheme by lawmakers to keep eyes on former illegal drug users. The lack of resources to stop methadone and bupe etc are massively less than that dedicated to putting people on so called maintenance.
Methadone maintenance makes it impossible to have a free life, you're unable to travel , your in a data base for life in my country. Making it impossible to be prescribed any pain relief contains opiates. I broke my arm and was give Lyrica ffs. If you ever give up heroin in Australia buy your methadone or the street or self medicate because it is hell to withdraw from. A lot worse and longer than heroin. Unfortunately the best way to kick is to lose contact with all friends who use. Which for me was was heartbreaking.Stu. Take care.

I just went on a week long ski trip as i get 2 weeks of take homes and told the clinic i was going to be gone out of state in case they called for a bottle check. I been on 2 weeks of take homes for months and only one bottle check. So the liquid handcuff is true for the first year or so but i was gettin take homes for the weekend within the first month. And then 3 days a week for a while the. 2 days then weekly. It takes a while and i passed all drug tests too.

 

[sadboi]

This experience is from the United States:

My mother-in-law was on methadone maintenance and she had take homes for the week if she wanted (Actually she qualified for up to a month but not every program would give a month of take homes, and the ones that did. She didn't want the methadone sitting around because of our small children).

She had been stable for multiple years and federal guidelines allow you to have a month of take homes if you're stable for more than 2 years.

If you remain stable for a year you get 14 take homes. I don't know anybody that can't take a vacation in 14 days. It is 100% legal for you to have your methadone maintenance medication on an airplane or take it with you when you're traveling.

When she was on methadone maintenance and stable, she was the most wonderful, sweet, kind person that you would ever meet in the world. Genuinely, I loved my mother in-law.

If she relapsed and started using, she would disappear for days at a time, things would start to go missing as would money not from us cuz we wouldn't let her be around when she was using, but from other family members.

It took a huge toll on my wife but it had been her life since she was a child.

But she ended up being successful in her bid to finally quit dope, and was completely clean at the end of her life. She died clean of any opiate.

U beat me to this reply about the take homes not sure why everyone thinks u gotta go everyday.

 

[snmfmy]

U beat me to this reply about the take homes not sure why everyone thinks u gotta go everyday.

Cuz they always pee dirty.

The people bitching and moaning about how methadone is liquid handcuffs are the ones that can't stop taking other opiates.

The ones that really want to quit dope, stay clean, don't miss their days, and end up being able to have take homes in the first couple months.

Before I get flamed on, let me say something

I REALLY DON'T CARE IF YOU DO DOPE ALL DAY LONG AND STAY IN A COMA!

BUT WHEN YOU ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT TO STAY CLEAN AND SHOW UP EVERY DAY, YOU HAVE TO DO IT AND YOU CAN'T BITCH AND MOAN WHEN YOU DON'T!

And it wasn't all puppies and cookies and rainbows and flowers. It was a multi-year struggle multi decade struggle for my mother-in-law but she finally kept at it and got completely clean. She even got off the methadone. Completely clean when she died.

 

[sadboi]

Cuz they always pee dirty.

The people bitching and moaning about how methadone is liquid handcuffs are the ones that can't stop taking other opiates.

The ones that really want to quit dope, stay clean, don't miss their days, and end up being able to have take homes in the first couple months.

Before I get flamed on, let me say something

I REALLY DON'T CARE IF YOU DO DOPE ALL DAY LONG AND STAY IN A COMA!

BUT WHEN YOU ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT TO STAY CLEAN AND SHOW UP EVERY DAY, YOU HAVE TO DO IT AND YOU CAN'T BITCH AND MOAN WHEN YOU DON'T!

And it wasn't all puppies and cookies and rainbows and flowers. It was a multi-year struggle multi decade struggle for my mother-in-law but she finally kept at it and got completely clean. She even got off the methadone. Completely clean when she died.

Thats true love this reply and proud of your mother in law. Not easy to be clean and people who take it seriously should be commended and recognized.

 

[DesertHarp]

After trying to give up methadone after long term use I've come to the conclusion that the 'liquid handcuffs' are. true. A scheme by lawmakers to keep eyes on former illegal drug users. The lack of resources to stop methadone and bupe etc are massively less than that dedicated to putting people on so called maintenance.
Methadone maintenance makes it impossible to have a free life, you're unable to travel , your in a data base for life in my country. Making it impossible to be prescribed any pain relief contains opiates. I broke my arm and was give Lyrica ffs. If you ever give up heroin in Australia buy your methadone or the street or self medicate because it is hell to withdraw from. A lot worse and longer than heroin. Unfortunately the best way to kick is to lose contact with all friends who use. Which for me was was heartbreaking.Stu. Take care.

In the U.S., if you get arrested and go to jail, you do not get your Methadone, even though you've been getting it prescibed and legal, which they can verify. The only detainees at a jail who get Methadone are pregnant women. It's brought in special for them.

I hadn't thought about how being a legit methadone client keeps you tied to the matrix. It's like supervised parole. I have heard that methadone is worse to withdraw from than heroin. That's brutal about not getting opioid pain med when really needing it.

 

[ItsAFunThing]

This sounds wild to me... Have you tried not going to jail if you have to take an opioid medication?

 

[snmfmy]

In the U.S., if you get arrested and go to jail, you do not get your Methadone, even though you've been getting it prescibed and legal, which they can verify. The only detainees at a jail who get Methadone are pregnant women. It's brought in special for them.

I hadn't thought about how being a legit methadone client keeps you tied to the matrix. It's like supervised parole. I have heard that methadone is worse to withdraw from than heroin. That's brutal about not getting opioid pain med when really needing it.

If you follow the program rules, don't pee dirty ever, you get take homes starting in the first month and within the first year you can get a week Take-home at a time.

The people complaining about methadone being liquid handcuffs are the ones that can't uphold their obligations with respect to agreements that they enter into. Namely they pee dirty which means they've been using instead of just getting by as they taper down off the methadone. Or they try and score extra methadone so they can get high instead of trying to taper off their dope habit. Or they don't show up, or they can't pay for it certain days. But they can buy heroin or oxys.

If you don't really want to be clean then don't get on a methadone maintenance program and definitely don't complain about it being liquid handcuffs because it's only liquid handcuffs for people that can't follow the damn program.

 

[phoenixk9]

After trying to give up methadon

e after long term use I've come to the conclusion that the 'liquid handcuffs' are. true. A scheme by lawmakers to keep eyes on former illegal drug users. The lack of resources to stop methadone and bupe etc are massively less than that dedicated to putting people on so called maintenance.
Methadone maintenance makes it impossible to have a free life, you're unable to travel , your in a data base for life in my country. Making it impossible to be prescribed any pain relief contains opiates. I broke my arm and was give Lyrica ffs. If you ever give up heroin in Australia buy your methadone or the street or self medicate because it is hell to withdraw from. A lot worse and longer than heroin. Unfortunately the best way to kick is to lose contact with all friends who use. Which for me was was heartbreaking.Stu. Take care.

It doesnt have to be that way,I became hooked on oxy after an injury in the military and they said "it wasnt addictive" lol.
I maneuvered myself to an outpatient deal where I get medicine for weeks and I can travel to whatever country I wish for the most part..its pretty much at the level of a Insuline shot daily for me in terms of inconvinience.
I live in Europe(Scandinavia) and live a productive active life,I also take a mild benzo for my PTSD at times.

 

[phoenixk9]

In the U.S., if you get arrested and go to jail, you do not get your Methadone, even though you've been getting it prescibed and legal, which they can verify. The only detainees at a jail who get Methadone are pregnant women. It's brought in special for them.

I hadn't thought about how being a legit methadone client keeps you tied to the matrix. It's like supervised parole. I have heard that methadone is worse to withdraw from than heroin. That's brutal about not getting opioid pain med when really needing it.

That just sounds insanely vindictive and frankly sadistic,how are anyone supposed to become rehabilitated this way?
I moved to the Nordics as a kid from NYC and the way they do it here is really something.
I never been to prison anywhere,only like Jail for a couple of days/day and a court date and then community service and you are spot free after 7 years in the eyes of the law.
The thing is it really seems to work too,which is frustrating when I know people are suffering in cages back stateside or other places worse.

 

[DesertHarp]

That just sounds insanely vindictive and frankly sadistic,how are anyone supposed to become rehabilitated this way?
I moved to the Nordics as a kid from NYC and the way they do it here is really something.
I never been to prison anywhere,only like Jail for a couple of days/day and a court date and then community service and you are spot free after 7 years in the eyes of the law.
The thing is it really seems to work too,which is frustrating when I know people are suffering in cages back stateside or other places worse.

I would love to know more about the medical care for the incarcerated in other countries, compared to here in the U.S. America locks up more of its citizens than any other nation. You could die here from a dental infection before most jails will let you see a dentist.

 

[kongoman]

I would love to know more about the medical care for the incarcerated in other countries, compared to here in the U.S. America locks up more of its citizens than any other nation. You could die here from a dental infection before most jails will let you see a dentist.

IN SPain you get methadone, benzos, AP, metilphenidate if you need. Very easy to have it prescribed in prison. I know very well cause my brother is in. And you can have H, coke, hash but the prices are very very high. And of course you see a dentist when you need, and very cheap to put new tooth.

BAsically you can have all kind of downers to keep people calmed. Its not silly.

Cant understand why in US you cant get methadone in prison. What a bitches of politicians you have!

 

[Just a little pinprick]

In the U.S., if you get arrested and go to jail, you do not get your Methadone, even though you've been getting it prescibed and legal, which they can verify. The only detainees at a jail who get Methadone are pregnant women. It's brought in special for them.

I hadn't thought about how being a legit methadone client keeps you tied to the matrix. It's like supervised parole. I have heard that methadone is worse to withdraw from than heroin. That's brutal about not getting opioid pain med when really needing it.

That’s not true,I’m in Hudson County and if you were on the program before getting arrested you will be dosed every day in jail,the problem is for people who self pay because you would need someone on the outside to keep paying the clinic and if that doesn’t happen they will then cut you off,if you had insurance you’d be ok and be dosed daily…

One day while I was in line to get my dose they brought in two prisoners in full shackles to get their dose,I don’t know the reason but I assumed they were recently arrested and their doses weren’t delivered to the jail that day…

 

[Jnowhere]

IN SPain you get methadone, benzos, AP, metilphenidate if you need. Very easy to have it prescribed in prison. I know very well cause my brother is in. And you can have H, coke, hash but the prices are very very high. And of course you see a dentist when you need, and very cheap to put new tooth.

BAsically you can have all kind of downers to keep people calmed. Its not silly.

Cant understand why in US you cant get methadone in prison. What a bitches of politicians you have!

Our politicians are not even close to being bitches. They would have to greatly improve themselves to rise up to the level of bitches. Bitches would be offended at being compared to American politicians.

 

[DesertHarp]

That’s not true,I’m in Hudson County and if you were on the program before getting arrested you will be dosed every day in jail,the problem is for people who self pay because you would need someone on the outside to keep paying the clinic and if that doesn’t happen they will then cut you off,if you had insurance you’d be ok and be dosed daily…

One day while I was in line to get my dose they brought in two prisoners in full shackles to get their dose,I don’t know the reason but I assumed they were recently arrested and their doses weren’t delivered to the jail that day…

I'm glad to hear that Hudson County is more enlightened than where I live. It's a long while, since I worked in the jail here. When I did, it was only pregnant women who could get methadone. Everyone else was left to withdraw. I would see them pacing around at night, unable to sleep.

 

[DesertHarp]

IN SPain you get methadone, benzos, AP, metilphenidate if you need. Very easy to have it prescribed in prison. I know very well cause my brother is in. And you can have H, coke, hash but the prices are very very high. And of course you see a dentist when you need, and very cheap to put new tooth.

BAsically you can have all kind of downers to keep people calmed. Its not silly.

Cant understand why in US you cant get methadone in prison. What a bitches of politicians you have!

Jail is different from prison here in the USA. I've worked in both. Medical follow up is better in prison than in jail. But I never saw anyone, except pregnant women, getting methadone in either type of correctional facility. We used to give out Ativan (a benzo) to individuals experiencing unusual stress (like the death of a close family member,) but very few were given any benzo on a regular basis. Haldol and other antipsychotics are used a lot here in both jails and prisons.

 

[DesertHarp]

This sounds wild to me... Have you tried not going to jail if you have to take an opioid medication?

In my case, I was employed at the jail.

 

[Keif' Richards]

In the U.S., if you get arrested and go to jail, you do not get your Methadone, even though you've been getting it prescibed and legal, which they can verify. The only detainees at a jail who get Methadone are pregnant women. It's brought in special for them.

I hadn't thought about how being a legit methadone client keeps you tied to the matrix. It's like supervised parole. I have heard that methadone is worse to withdraw from than heroin. That's brutal about not getting opioid pain med when really needing it.

This is a pretty important point of discussion.

This is a constantly changing situation regarding receiving medication during incarceration. I say medication, as in general, there is little guarantee of receiving any medication prescribed to you on the outside once you are incarcerated either at the jail (less than one year) or prison (felony convictions lasting more than one year) level (this describes the general system in the United States).

For instance, here in Vermont, not only will you receive Methadone/Buprenorphine if you received it on the outside, they will actually initiate Medication Assisted Treatment after the fact if you ask for it. Massachusetts, where I am from will also continue maintenance medications, though I'm unsure about initiating treatment.

As drug users, it becomes really clear the political divisions in this country. They have a huge effect on the course of our lives as addicts. For instance, I doubt Texas is going to medicate you. Here in Vermont, possession is still a crime, but in practice, there is hardly any enforcement at the ground level regarding simple possession on the part of addicts. I work with addicts every day and the only people I ever hear of having trouble with the law are folks stealing cars, committing burglaries or shoplifting in the high, high amounts.

It's that typical "living in the Northeast, the West Coast or Colorado" effect.