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  • BDD Moderators: Keif’ Richards

Suboxone Withdrawal Day...18?!

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opifuktard

Greenlighter
Joined
Feb 10, 2011
Messages
4
hey just wondering if anyone has quit 8mg of suboxone/day CT who has been on it for at least a year and been successful...I jumped off 17 days ago at 8mg/day CT and have been in hell ever since...I have done this a couple times and never gotten past day 10. But this time I made it and it was pretty much the basic lethargy, sweats, insomnia, etc. but once I hit day 12 i took a turn for the worse...restless legs/everything, diarrhea, stomach cramps, sneezing up a storm...I thought this was supposed to get better not worse!! seriously, two and a half weeks and I'm getting worse day by day instead of better...can't deal. i didn't want to take sub again and start all over so I got a little oxy to ease the pain for a day or two so I can at least get my house clean and cats fed...a little break from the hell so i can at least get to a different place mentally. I know, justification/rationalization is the surest way back into the whole mess, but after years and years of opioid abuse including a year on methadone and years on and off of suboxone with other shorter-acting opiates in between, I have to get through this and the choice between getting sucked back into the sub hell and a shorter-acting pill to take the edge off was a decision i weighed carefully and for a few days before deciding. I am not in a position financially to keep up the oxy and I knew if I got even one sub it would be back to the grind, so i did it. I am just wondering how much longer this acute withdrawal can go on from the sub...I was so totally not prepared to be getting worse in my third week...I kept hanging on thinking by week 3 I would be feeling some improvement, so to have it go so totally opposite I just didn't know how to react and it seems most people are worse the first week and gradually improve afterwards with bad/good days along the way. Am I permanently broken? :( Was it because I jumped off at such a high dose and it took a while for all of the sub to leave my body and when it finally did, the acute WD began? When I switched from methadone to sub my doc tested me every week and after six weeks the methadone was still showing up in my system even though I was only taking the sub, so maybe my body just holds onto it longer or something. I just need some sort of encouragement here to see a light at the end of the tunnel. I really, really want to stay away from the sub because it turned me into a zombie in so many ways, not to mention the horrible water retention...I have lost nearly 20 pounds in two weeks, on sub my feet/legs would get so swollen I couldn't even fit them into my SLIPPERS!! but now they are half that size and normal again. Is the water retention normal?! Anyway, if anybody has had experience with getting off high doses of sub, please let me know how long it took. I was on it at that dose for a little over a year this time, with two other failed quitting attempts of 10 days last year.
 
Unfortunately I didn't read your whole thread in detail. Paragraphs are your friend. But my suggest would be that you MUST taper your dose down, before jumping off. Most people prefer to taper down to 1mg a day, sometimes even less than that like 0.5mg per day. I suggest seeing your doctor, and setting up a regimented taper plan and getting back on low dose bupe for the time being. Just take 1-2 mg a day then work your way down from there.

The half life is incredibly long, which is probably why it took that long for the apex of the withdrawals to hit. Subs, and methadone as well, have some llooooong drawn out shitty withdrawals. I'm on MMT currently, and am dreading getting off it it. Boo.

Good luck though brother.
 
Thanks for the reply. I can't really afford to get back on sub with the doctor's fees and no insurance etc. Plus I feel like since I have come this far, it would be a waste of two and a half weeks of hell. Maybe it's the self-loathing masochist in me who wants my suffering to count for something...

How long were you on sub before you quit?

Sorry about the lack of paragraphs in my post...I get carried away when I write and tend to go on and on without consideration for the reader.

I also apologize if I marked my gender wrong somewhere in registering; I'm a girl...though admittedly I have no female friends and have never really understood the complex mess that is a woman's mind, especially my own :)
 
Haha oh sorry about that Sister :) I personally never used subs for maintenance. The times I had used them were just for small breaks here and there during my IV heroin days. Methadone is the only long term maintenance drug I have experience with.

I know what you mean about not wanting to get back on them, and essentially just wiping away all the progress you already made.

In your case, i would honestly just try and stick it out. 18 days is a real long time to make it, and I want to congratulate you. I'm proud of you, and I don't even know you, haha. :) I know how much it sucks having no insurance. But I would suggest going to your doctor and explaining him your situation, and ask him to prescribe a few comfort meds. Like clonidine, something for sleep, etc, etc. Also, the over the counter drug Immodium (contains loperamide) does wonders for practically eliminating withdrawal symptoms. It's crazy.

I now have medicaid that I was lucky enough to get through my county. But back when I had no insurance, my doctor would always charge me the minimum he could (like $40) for the visit. There are also prescription discount plans/cards you can get, on the internet, and from the doctors. Also ask for free samples. Also check around and see if there are any kind of free clinics or places that are geared towards low income individuals.

Just some suggestions, best of luck and keep your head up and stay strong my dear!
 
Thank you for the suggestions! I totally forgot about Immodium...I used to take it all the time to help with Norco WD and it did help so much. How could I have forgotten that?!

Thank you for the support, too...I have been doing this all on my own and trying to keep my family afloat and it has been really tough with nobody to talk to or even have an adult conversation with. I really appreciate it! :)
 
Anytime, glad I was of some help. If you need someone to talk to who knows what the hell of opiate dependence/addiction/withdrawal is like, don't hesitate to PM me.
 
If you have access to light mg benzos one at a time could really help, but 18 days, daaamn.......just stick without the sub for as long as you can
 
My withdrawals subsided after about 7 days. I tapered very slowly. 8mg to 4mg first month, 4mg to 2mg second month, 2mg to 1mg third month and 1mg to nothing fourth month. I started to feel withdrawals once I got down to 1mg, they were minimal and sort of mild but it was once I got down to nothing when I started to feel the full withdrawals, mostly insomnia, anxiety, muscle pains/aches, chills/sweating, RLS. They were tolerable but still not fun. They started to go away at about day 7 but then I relapsed. I've been on Suboxone for 2 years.
 
KEEP UP THE AWESOME WORK!!! DO NOT LOOK BACK....KEEP ON!!! You are almost out of the woods, and that is a VERY high dose to jump at! Do not be discouraged, at least you have gotten this far, that is REALLY amazing. Forget tapering now, you have gone too long cold turkey. YES IMMODIUM IS WONDERFUL. It will really help that empty pit in your tummy. Do it up.....Motrin too if you havent been taking ibuprofen, do it! Also 5HTP suppliments, and TRY, REALLY TRY to exercise....get that oxygen to your brain to help it heal quicker.....You will see a light at the end of the tunnel before you know it, you are NOT broken, you are just in the woods....Its scary but you can do it, and you will feel SO MUCH BETTER, Promise!
 
Oh, go get the amino acid capsules L-TYROSINE and have them with a B COMPLEX vitamin to help absorption. Have it in the Morning. This will help your lethargy. Try 1000 mg to start, up to 2000 mg a day to fight the tireds. If you get jittery, cut the dose.

KEEP DRINKING WATER. Flush!

AND, last but not least, ENJOY YOUR NEWFOUND LIBIDO! :)
 
opifuktard said:
Thanks for the reply. I can't really afford to get back on sub with the doctor's fees and no insurance etc. Plus I feel like since I have come this far, it would be a waste of two and a half weeks of hell. Maybe it's the self-loathing masochist in me who wants my suffering to count for something...

How long were you on sub before you quit?

Sorry about the lack of paragraphs in my post...I get carried away when I write and tend to go on and on without consideration for the reader.

I also apologize if I marked my gender wrong somewhere in registering; I'm a girl...though admittedly I have no female friends and have never really understood the complex mess that is a woman's mind, especially my own :)
Click to expand...

I was on Suboxone and Subutex to get off heroin and on maintenance for over two years and I got off of them by tapering down and actually doing meth as it took the edge off.

Good luck!
 
opifuktard said:
hey just wondering if anyone has quit 8mg of suboxone/day CT who has been on it for at least a year and been successful...I jumped off 17 days ago at 8mg/day CT and have been in hell ever since...I have done this a couple times and never gotten past day 10. But this time I made it and it was pretty much the basic lethargy, sweats, insomnia, etc. but once I hit day 12 i took a turn for the worse...restless legs/everything, diarrhea, stomach cramps, sneezing up a storm..
Click to expand...
My fiance reacted the same way around day 11/12, third attempt coming off 16mg, longest we'd made it was 9 or 10 days previously. She had a huge smack habit years ago though. I just didn't know what to do for her at that stage. We relapsed, have been back on 4mg then 16mg for about two weeks. :(
 
To the OP, please use breaks in between your paragraphs. Posts like this will be closed automatically from now on if there are no breaks in between paragraphs.
 
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go get yourself a gabapentin script. they are ez as fuck to get dude and they help soo much with W/D's like no joke....they are seriously a life saver when you have to w/d....lyrica is an all around better drug than gabapentin and if your insurance will cover it i recommend getting those over gabapentin...weed helps too, come to think of it, weed helps any hangover/comedown better, and it should be legalized because it has so many medicinal uses
 
I have to agree, pregabalin is an incredible drug for opiate withdrawal. It calms you down and boosts your mood, also helps with some of the pain. Its highly effective for nerve pain but doesn't just work for that sort of pain. Will sort of alleviate the pain from that annoying restless leg and good for the muscle pain in your back.
 
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