i would suggest you be careful with doing dope on maintenance especially if you haven't before. More chance of ODing.
Absolutely untrue. MMT is protective of overdose, as long as you're at a stable, sufficient dose and have been for a couple months.
I'm not here to argue, but I am correct. NIH or SAMHSA, etc...publications (i.e. legitimate sources of info on methadone), and personal experience have demonstrated & documented this in many publications. The same is generally true for bupe, although I won't go too far with that one, seeing as it's a much newer maintenance med, and low doses may not be protective of ODs.
Being on methadone is protective of OD! Please do not spread incorrect info regarding the treatment that has helped me and millions others regain our lives! Stopping methadone for several days and using dope is a great way to OD, but not if you're taking it daily at appropriate doses, the best way to know when you've gotten to the point of being protected from OD is after the "honeymoon" period, when you no longer feel your daily dose as a high, and you're just feeling "normal" when dosing daily.
Don't write "facts" if you cannot support them:
http://www.cdc.gov/idu/facts/MethadoneFin.pdf
^^ One of a hundred sources of evidence based confirmation.
Personal experience: one example, I have several more if you'd like: I was stable at 120-mg/day methadone, injected 3 bundles (30 bags) of decent east coast dope. Nothing. Just a nasty histamine reaction, as millions of others have similarly discovered. No other depressants used.
Caveat: insufficient doses of methadone from a clinic may not provide sufficient protection. If you are feeling any signs of withdrawals and are in MMT, using dope may be problematic, including overdose. Super potent fentanyl, and its analogs possibly could cause OD in properly maintained MMT recipients, but I cannot locate a single confirmed case of methadone + fentanyl overdose that didn't also involve a benzo, alcohol or other respiratory depressant.
Here's your challenge, prove me wrong, find a couple toxicology reports to the contrary that state no other respiratory depressant was found. I can't find one, work in harm reduction and haven't heard of one such case just as "street news". "Stories" you've heard aren't enough to overturn the long standing verdict on this fact.
Always have naloxone on you at all times if you're using any opioid. Period. Have friends and family know how to administer it. Again, SAMHSA is a wonderful resource for this info and how to obtain naloxone.
Drs. Dole & Nyswander who developed MMT in the late 1960s noticed this benefit and it was a major reason why the FDA approved its use for treating chronic opioid abuse - mostly heroin and morphine at the time. Synthetic, super potent opioids are capable of overcoming the MMT blockade, but abnormally high doses would be required. Then again, when isn't abusing fentanyl a risk of OD?
MMT is the gold standard for treating opioid abuse and dependency, people reading here need to trust in it, not be suspicious of it. In no way do I recommend trying to use dope while on MMT. Not one bit, but know your "facts" before you write them in a public forum.
