I think it important to mention that there really ARE people who find buprenorphine euphoric.
Yup.
I used buprenorphine in between heroin & tramadol, so my tolerance was basically low-to-nil at the time.
And I found it enjoyable enough that I continued to take it & would even buy it. A really small dose kept me noddy all day.
One of the first times I tried a Suboxone, I took a little corner piece & went to work thinking I'd be fine cause I was use to working on tramadol. I even had a tolerance to 400mg of tramadol at the time, so I didn't expect much from it.
But I stood at my mailing station at work & was nodding standing up the entire day. My eyes just continuously kept closing & I could not keep them open. People even noticed and asked me if I had gotten enough sleep. lol I had to lie & say "yeah I'm just tired".
Subs can give me intense nods, almost similar to fent-like nods. No real euphoria, but a strong urge to close my eyes or tilt my head forward.
Heroin & tramadol nods were pretty nice, but bupe nods feel a little different than those nods.
I visited Washington DC in 2018 & took 4mg of Subs that day before I went. And for some reason it hit me just right that day. No pain, stimulated, a tad euphoric, calm, sensual, excited to be alive & exploring the world. It was really gloomy & rainy that day too which just added to the relaxation. So I have a fond memory of buprenorphine at least.
The euphoria can be lacking, especially when you're use to better stuff. But with no tolerance, it'll shine through a little bit.
Still wouldn't vote for it as one of my favorites though.
Buprenorphine can be enjoyable though to people who have nothing else. Check out the documentary "Reindeerspotting" from Finland. Buprenorphine was really huge there at one time.
If buprenorphine continued to feel the same as it did on the first day you take it with no tolerance, then it wouldn't be such a bad opioid. But for me, daily use made the good parts vanish & then it just makes you feel lethargic & tired all day. Where as with tramadol, heroin & hydrocodone, I could still feel wonderful everyday for days/weeks at a time on it, even when tolerant. Plus trams, H & other full agonists didn't leave me feeling dead inside, lethargic & lifeless like buprenorphine does. In the end with bupe, you end up dependent on a too-long-acting, potent partial agonist that doesn't have any of the same benefits as a full agonist. So that's why I think it also sucks. lol
I read that Matthew Perry was on buprenorphine for a long time & he wrote in a journal that it was making him feel dead inside & he couldn't enjoy his hobbies & life anymore (I dunno how true this is), but I relate to that so much.
I think the long acting opioids are great for maintenance or whatever. But I think because they hang around on your receptors so long, that you end up tolerant quicker & lose the effects quicker. Because at least with the shorter acting agonists, your receptors get a little down time (like when you sleep or in between dosing). At least this has been my experience.
So hell yeah buprenorphine can be enjoyable, even euphoric, under the right circumstances. But it's not the greatest for getting the same experience the next day or a week later like all the other shorter acting agonists. I think that's why I liked heroin & tramadol the most, because they can feel great, but they'll wear off, giving your receptors a break & the ability to re-dose & get the effects back. Redosing on bupe most of the time feels pointless.