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Bupe Suboxone/Buprenorphine FAQ and Megathread v.1; 2007 - 2010

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Q: Is it safe to shoot Suboxone/Subutex?
A: No. It can cause many of the same complications as shooting other pills. Just because Suboxone/Subutex dissolves easily, unlike other pills, does not mean it's any safer to to shoot. The best advice is to use a micron filter.

question?
i've done i bunch of searches on this forum for injecting bupe and all i can find is warnings about trying to shoot the pills (wouldn't). however i have liquid bupe that i'm planning on using this weekend to help with w/d's if my dr. doesn't refill my opiate rx tomorrow. that is fine to IV, rather than IM correct?
also curious why there is so little talk about liquid bupe around....no one uses this?
It's uncommon in the US.

If it's meant for injection, meaning it's sterile and doesn't have things that an oral solution would have(sugars, coloring, flavor), you can iv it.
 
Q: Is it safe to shoot Suboxone/Subutex?
A: No. It can cause many of the same complications as shooting other pills. Just because Suboxone/Subutex dissolves easily, unlike other pills, does not mean it's any safer to to shoot. The best advice is to use a micron filter.

question?
i've done i bunch of searches on this forum for injecting bupe and all i can find is warnings about trying to shoot the pills (wouldn't). however i have liquid bupe that i'm planning on using this weekend to help with w/d's if my dr. doesn't refill my opiate rx tomorrow. that is fine to IV, rather than IM correct?
also curious why there is so little talk about liquid bupe around....no one uses this?

You sure can. It's not going to be the quickest onset for a drug, it might take a few minutes. However, the relief you get from buprenorphine while in WD is really nice.

I wouldn't expect to feel euphoric off of IV buprenorphine until your opiate tolerance is medium-low to low.

While IVing buprenorphine, you might find that re-dosing every few hours is effective. Try to stretch the time window as wide as you can for re-dosing because it's a very effective drug and can be administered in small doses two or three times a day very efficiently.

Let me know how it goes for you.
 
Hey Caterva:

Sorry to hear about your troubles, but glad to hear that you want to quit. This should (will) prob be moved by mods to TDS forum.

I am not an expert on subs... just have my own experience getting off opiates 3+ weeks ago so I at least know what you're going through mentally and the fact that you are trying to find a balance between getting yourself clean while having that fear that we all have of being stigmatized as an "addict."

Three thoughts I can provide:

1. From my knowledge, in the US as long as you keep your medical insurance out of the picture, and do not tell another doctor you've been to a sub clinic (or the sub doc about your other doctors), there is no way anyone will know the truth.

I am not positive, but, if you pay upfront and don't use insurance, I don't even know if they would even have a way of confirming your identity.

2. If you are really worried about anonymity, and were only planning a short term sub program, maybe subs aren't the answer for you. You mentioned the problems with tapering with H due to size and potency, but you can avoid that if you tapered by just taking enough perc's or vic's to stay sane for a week. This obviously isn't a long term solution due to cost... but it could help you go CT from there.

3. More of a question... What's your long term plan for staying clean after your week long detox?

-DISCO
 
Methadone is no easier or harder than Heroin or Buprenorphine to stop. They are all potent opioids with pro's and con's compared to eachother's withdrawal syndrome.

Another option is to call the Methadone clinics in your area, as many MMT clinics now also offer Buprenorphine maintenance or taper outpatient as well (mine does). I would recommend looking them up on the SAHMSA website (they list most/all of the Methadone clinics in the country), printing out the list, and calling them and asking if they offer Suboxone and if you can come in for intake for a Buprenorphine taper outpatient.

This is also going to be cheaper than going to a Bupe mill doctor; most if not all of them charge a few hundred dollars just for the first visit and hand you a script for 90 days worth of Buprenorphine. If you are only interested in a couple weeks, and low doses at that given you want to taper, this option (the doc + pharmacy) will run several hundred dollars easy.

Policy is often different for BMT patients at an MMT clinic (i.e. more expensive), but not by much. I think at my clinic MMT patients pay $12 a day, BMT patients pay like $20.
 
You don't need to worry about all the doctors you see in the future seeing you were an addict, the system doesn't work like that

The only way a doctor can get your medical records is if you give them written permission, and then you also have to give them the information of the doctors you want them to receive records from

There is no medical file that follows you around. If you don't give someone permission to have specific records, they don't have it. The privacy laws in place allow you to control this information

Just go to a clinic and if it really makes you feel better, don't use your insurance. Maybe go to one that's a little far away from where you live.
 
Methadone is no easier or harder than Heroin or Buprenorphine to stop.

I second that Tchort. Methadone also carries a much higher abuse potential than bupe as well as the threat of overdosing when combined with other CNS depressants. I've spent days in a coma because of methadone...
 
in my experience when you been using heavy opiates like you have there isnt just the physical aspect to look at but the psyco aspect to i think mentally its extemely difficult to cope with so maybe sum therapy other thamn chemical substition s needed to give you a real chance of quitting and wish you all the very best friend
 
To anyone who has ever been in this situation, is there an anonymous way to LEGALLY get subs from a Dr. without it going on your medical/insurance record and ruining the rest of your life? Cheap as possible is best

It may be if you find a nice doctor. My first doc wouldn't even take insurance because the insurance companies never actually paid her. My second doctor said she did that with some of her patients. Suboxone is not cheap though without insurance.

It's not a bad idea. Otherwise, you'll be treated like a worthless junkie by a few in the mental health professionals. Most are nice though so don't worry about that aspect. What you need to worry about is health insurance coverage. Are you currently insured? Or are you going to be seeking coverage soon?
 
Policy is often different for BMT patients at an MMT clinic (i.e. more expensive), but not by much. I think at my clinic MMT patients pay $12 a day, BMT patients pay like $20.

If you have insurance, buprenorphine is really cheap. Less than $2/day.

but lung damage and poverty dissuades me from smoking, but I have been vaporizing and making thc butter to get the most out of it while minimizing the negative health effects.

There are no negative health effects from smoking marijuana.

There might be negative health effects from heroin use... (might, not absolutely), but not from smoking marijuana.
 
How long do I have to wait after using suboxone to get high on oxycontin? is 2 hrs long enough?

;)
 
How long do I have to wait after using suboxone to get high on oxycontin? is 2 hrs long enough?

;)

It depends on how long youve been on Suboxone and in what dosages.
I would say atleast 24h.
 
How long do I have to wait after using suboxone to get high on oxycontin? is 2 hrs long enough?

;)

Like 1-3 days depending on how much you take. I think I read somewhere that it takes 72 hours after your last suboxone dose before you get the FULL effects of whatever opiate you're taking.
 
this whole medical privacy thing is interesting. I've never bothered going to a sub doctor because I didn't want to jeopardize my methylphenidate script.
 
this whole medical privacy thing is interesting. I've never bothered going to a sub doctor because I didn't want to jeopardize my methylphenidate script.

If it's 2 different doctors, you should be fine. Just don't mention it to your other doctor.
 
I just found this horrible comment buried in a DEA "Intelligence Bulletin" on Buprenorphine from 2004. The same song and dance about Naloxone causing precipitated withdrawals, and other half-truths. Then this:

Using buprenorphine and heroin in combination does not produce increased effects, but if buprenorphine and methadone are abused together, the effects of both drugs are enhanced. Consequently, diverted buprenorphine may be attractive to patients currently using methadone for opiate addiction therapy.

http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs10/10123/index.htm#Diversion

I don't know how widely spread this rumour is, as I haven't heard it before. But, for the record:

This statement is 100% entirely wrong. . If you are on Methadone Maintenance, and take any dose of Buprenorphine through any route of administration, you will go into horrible precipitated withdrawals. I have no idea where they got this information, or why they included it in an 'official' government document, but it is completely incorrect.[/i].

Also

There has been a lot of talk lately from Buprenorphine maintenance patients and people considering Buprenorphine maintenance who are either forced to taper and quit or forced to never start treatment due to the high cost (no insurance or insurance won't covor it).

Many Methadone clinics now offer Buprenorphine via Suboxone or Subutex. This is cheaper than visiting a Bupe doctor and paying out of pocket for the visit(s) and prescription(s). You would also have access to a staff of professionals nurses and counselors to help you with treatment.

Plus, many states have a non-Medicaid insurance plan for people with no or limited income. They usually covor doctor visits, prescriptions and outpatient mental health services. In my state (Maryland), I was just accepted into this plan, and it covors 100% of the cost of MMT. It should also covor Buprenorphine.

Please consider these options before putting yourself through a pre-mature detox or going without treatment when you know you need it or would benefit from it. We all deserve help when we need it, and deserve to have it as long as is necessary.
 
^
I took bupe at methadone clinic 3 or so years ago. It cost around ~$1500 for 6 weeks of treatment; including bullshit group and one on one counseling, and a gradual 2 week taper at the end. They also didn't give any take home doses. The clinic didn't take any type of insurance, and the only financial help came from the state. Like you said, you'd have to apply for some sort of welfare insurance. That takes up to a month, usually more, and is based on your income. Both were disqualifying factors for me.

In hindsight, I probably would have gone to a doctor for treatment. At least one that didn't require me to go through the counseling; some do and some don't, there's aren't any guidelines for this. With a doctor, I could at least use insurance to help pay for the rx, I'd get them all at once, and I wouldn't have to deal with the general bullshit surrounding daily visits to a methadone clinic.
 
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