ill start off by saying im a 23 yr old male and have been dependent (yes, dependent) on opiates since i was 15. A botched surgery at the age of 13 left me in constant pain, but all the drs in my area treated me as if i was just trying to get high. i dont know many 13 year olds looking to get strong pain killers to abuse. I was prescribed vikes and percs for a couple years and then put on 20mg oc at the age of 15. the dr pulled me off of them 6 months later and i was left to fend for myself, as the dr put a note in my medical record stating im an opiate addict. from that point on i used oc, morphs, dilaudid, opana, and even heroin if nothing else could be found. it eventually led to an all out heroin addiction for a little over 2 years (never iv, always snorted). 9 months ago i started sub maintenance (16mg/day), and it seemed to be a lifesaver for 4-5 months.
after those amazing few months, everything went back downhill. Ive only had 2 relapses in those 9 months, and both were because i couldnt make it to the doctor because i cant drive and its an hour and a half from where i live (execuses, execuses....i know).
What i mean by "downhill" is ive had HORRIBLE mood swings, been in a total depression (ive had depression issues since childhood, and from what i understand, long term naloxone use worsens depression), and an overall shitty feeling. Not to mention i cant seem to keep any food down and have been steady losing weight over the past few weeks. Ive tried to taper my dose slowly 3 times now, and for some reason it just doesnt work. if i take even just a speck less than normal, i get sick. Ive tried taking 15mg and waited 12 hrs and was still sick.
now a close friend of mine (whose been on sub for almost 3 years now) suggested a new idea and this is where i need input...she posed the idea of stopping my sub until i get into withdrawls, and then using a different opiate (my primary care physician will prescribe me 2 weeks worth if i ask him too, weve already had this discussion) for 2 weeks or so(long enough for the bupe to be out of my system), then starting sub again, but at a MUCH lower dose (2-4mg/day)...does this seem to make sense to anyone else?
i feel like the sub drs are waaaaaaay over-prescribing subs. even 8mg/day is a relatively large dose of bupe. i wholeheartedly believe if he had prescribed 4mg/day it wouldve worked just as well as 16. 16mg of bupe roughly equals 600+mg of morphine, and thats a little excessive in my opinion. i wish i had known as much as i do about bupe now when i first went to the dr.
any input would be MUCH appreciated, but please, i can do without judging or telling me what ive done wrong. i thank you all in advance.
after those amazing few months, everything went back downhill. Ive only had 2 relapses in those 9 months, and both were because i couldnt make it to the doctor because i cant drive and its an hour and a half from where i live (execuses, execuses....i know).
What i mean by "downhill" is ive had HORRIBLE mood swings, been in a total depression (ive had depression issues since childhood, and from what i understand, long term naloxone use worsens depression), and an overall shitty feeling. Not to mention i cant seem to keep any food down and have been steady losing weight over the past few weeks. Ive tried to taper my dose slowly 3 times now, and for some reason it just doesnt work. if i take even just a speck less than normal, i get sick. Ive tried taking 15mg and waited 12 hrs and was still sick.
now a close friend of mine (whose been on sub for almost 3 years now) suggested a new idea and this is where i need input...she posed the idea of stopping my sub until i get into withdrawls, and then using a different opiate (my primary care physician will prescribe me 2 weeks worth if i ask him too, weve already had this discussion) for 2 weeks or so(long enough for the bupe to be out of my system), then starting sub again, but at a MUCH lower dose (2-4mg/day)...does this seem to make sense to anyone else?
i feel like the sub drs are waaaaaaay over-prescribing subs. even 8mg/day is a relatively large dose of bupe. i wholeheartedly believe if he had prescribed 4mg/day it wouldve worked just as well as 16. 16mg of bupe roughly equals 600+mg of morphine, and thats a little excessive in my opinion. i wish i had known as much as i do about bupe now when i first went to the dr.
any input would be MUCH appreciated, but please, i can do without judging or telling me what ive done wrong. i thank you all in advance.