I was on methadone for 12 yrs and sub for almost 2, and I forgot what it was like to be straight. I'm not going to lie, it can feel raw and exposed at times, but I do prefer it over maintenance. Sub never agreed with me. It felt unsatisfying and speedy after yrs of methadone. I've said it before here, if I was going to be a lifer, I'd choose methadone. I still miss those mornings of dosing 140mg of meth and then falling back asleep for a couple hours and waking up painfree. Mornings can be rough now, but I like the fact I'm not physically addicted to anything. It's a freeing feeling after decades of being hooked to opiates. Sub seems to "turn" on a lot of people. There's a honeymoon period were it feels great but it slowly feels worse. People complain of feeling joyless and numb. After I got off sub I was tearing up at toilet paper ads. I'm much more motivated to do art and my passions in life (animal welfare) now. Life seems to be going by faster and I feel like I better make up for those yrs that I let it go by while on meth and sub. I still slip up once in a while. I had dental surgery and jumped at the chance to get a few scrips of lortab 10s...but after 11 days, I could let them go without any WD or drama.
Blue, your right. You have to plan on feeling like shit for three weeks to a month if you kick sub. But it's not as bad as SAO. It's long and drawn out but not as harsh. You've kicked it before? Do you struggle with using dope? (Sorry I don't know your story)
Sub has it's place..it's better than shooting dope, but it's sad to see people put on it for small habits or pain control. They are in for a shock when they try to get off it. It takes a long ass time to feel back to normal. It took me 4-5 months, but I'd been using opiates daily for over 20 yrs. I'm not going to lie...I still miss that warm hug, but being able to really FEEL trumps that. I think once your a addict it's always part of you. I'll never forget what it's like, and that's why it's a struggle at times. I just have to remember that living numb is not really living, it's more like just passing time. Now everyday feels new and sometimes scary...
If your happy on maintenance that's fine...I was for 13 yrs, but if you want off you can do it. It sucks, but it's not forever.(it just feels like it is)

There's some meds that help...Nerontin, benzos in short supply, Imodium. The wealth of info about sub detox has really grown in the last few yrs. If you want off you can do it! I'm proof..i always thought I'd be a methadone lifer. And even if it was free and with a guaranteed supply for life, I wouldn't sign back up for slavery. I don't want a drug to tell me what to do. No more physically addictive drugs for me.
