breaking drug addiction

[MizTink]

does anyone here have any experience (not necessarily their own) with using either methadone or suboxone to break an opiate addiction?
are you willing to share your knowledge, opinions, experiences??

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I don't know about that but this site is very informative about methadone. Sorry to hear someone you know is an addict. It has to be tough.

http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/publications/factsht/methadone/index.html

 

[LuvOrlando]

A close family friend of mine I won't give details, it won't help you, but there is also a treatment where the addict is sedated through detoxification. Supposedly it is more humane because the person isn't aware of withdrawal, I found a spot on-line that calls it "Accelerated Neuro-Regulation"

I hope things go ok for whoever it is you are worried about

 

[Colleen27]

The medical supervision and psychological part of the program are essential to the long-term goal of actually getting clean, and the quality of the provider makes all the difference in the world. Someone close to me has been in and out of recovery programs for prescription opiate addiction for the last several years, and it really is a nightmare to deal with. The options for the uninsured quite frankly suck and it seems like some clinics just substitute a legal addiction for the illegal one and collect the fees. It can end up being a very painful catch-22; addicts aren't exactly great at holding down jobs, and with our system of employer-based health insurance that often leaves them unable to afford the help they need to be able to hold a job and function in society.

 

[HelenePA]

yes, someone very close to me. Honestly nothing helped him until he was ready to be helped. Something just clicked and now he's about 4 years sober.

 

[ChrizJen]

The only experience I've had is with an infant born addicted.
Methadone worked well.
But there's a HUGE difference between an infant who recovers from addiction and is OK and an adult who can go right back out and abuse again.
I'm sorry I can't really be of help, and I'm sorry if you or someone you know is dealing with this. Good luck.

 

[scrapquitler]

I had a relative who was on Methadone. Really, as another poster said, it seemed to me that it was just trading an illegal addicition for a legal one. He was still addicted and 'needed' his Methadone. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons (stupid ones, IMO) he chose NOT to do rehab. Ultimately, he got in some legal trouble while on Methadone and had to do some jail time. The prison would not let him continue on Methadone while in Prison, so he ended up detoxing from it cold turkey, and was extremely ill for quite a while, we thought he might die as a result of it.

Now that he has been out of prison for a few years, he is on a number of anti-anxiety meds, and meds for Bi-Polar disorder and who knows what else. He seems to be 'not right' still. I think the heroin addicion, methadone use, and/or sudden detox gave him some sort of brain damage or something. It's very sad, and still stressful for our family.

 

[tazdev3225]

My SIL's DS is is an addict and has been on methadone. My SIL has banned her from his life. She lost custody of her 2 children to her parents, the younger boy doesn't even know her. Her parents are in the process of divorcing after 25+ years of marraige because of the stress of dealing with her.

She OD'd on several occasions after getting her methadone fix. Dealers hang out around these clinics and addicts will still use even on methadone. She has been in and out of jail and in and out of rehab. She stole from her parents, her siblings, other relatives, her senile grandmother and her niece (my DGD) wiped out her piggy bank.

Several years ago I took her shopping with my DD and I. She stole pumpkins from an outdoor display and gourds, halloween decorations, and a pair of Nike shoes for her DS. She then had a bad reaction to something she took in my car and I had to have fire rescue come to the shopping center for her. When I took my DD home we found out what all she stole. She had some money on her so we didn't realize it until after teh fact. No one really knew that she was on cocaine and heroine at the time either.

At my youngest daughters baptism last year she was high. It was in between her methadone fixes. She flashed my priest, used her hands to put food on her plate - pretty much had to toss everything, and stole my DD's prenatal vitamins. We found that out when my 2 y/o DGS was eating one. Of course we had no idea what it was at first and my poor daughter became hysterical. We still don't know why she stole them. My SIL is still so embarrassed that my family was exposed to this.

She is now expecting, the baby will be born addicted and she has no idea who the father is. Methadone is a legal synthetic version of Heroin. It is just as addictive. An addict will not change until they want to. Unfortunately that can be never. The family honestly thought that after her last OD and almost dying and then winding up in jail for almost a year that it would wake her up. It didn't happen. I do know addicts that have become clean and sober but they will tell you that every day is a struggle to stay that way. I took an Addictions Studies class and the teacher and many of my classmates were recovering addicts.

Sorry this was a little long and rambling. Drug addiction affects so many people beyond the addict.

 

[Colleen27]

Now that he has been out of prison for a few years, he is on a number of anti-anxiety meds, and meds for Bi-Polar disorder and who knows what else. He seems to be 'not right' still. I think the heroin addicion, methadone use, and/or sudden detox gave him some sort of brain damage or something. It's very sad, and still stressful for our family.

A lot of times it goes the other way round - the onset of those sorts of psychological disorders leads to the experimenting with drugs and ultimately the addiction. It is something of a pattern in my family, with the relative who is currently struggling with opiate addiction and his father, and from what little people in the family will say about him, probably his great-grandfather as well.

There's still a powerful stigma associated with mental illness in our culture, and to some "taking the edge off" with recreational substances is the more acceptable/less intimidating option.

 

[BEloveDisney]

Neither one will work well without counseling. Methadone detox is a long and extrememly painful process. Suboxone is much better in my experience. My patients were always miserable detoxing from Methadone and with Suboxone, they were okay. Subutext is another option that's very similar to Suboxone. Methadone maintenance can be successful, but again, counseling is necessary in order to be successful long term. I mean, they started using for some reason, right? They need to cope with their problems in a healthy manner in order to prevent relapse. Change their friends, etc. 12 steps meetings are crucial as well.

 

[DaisyD]

I know someone that is using methadone to break an addiction to Oxycotin among other things. He has been on methadone for almost 18 months. He started at a high dose to counter the addiction. I believe it was around 120 ml a day. He has since come down to 5 ml and doing great on it. He is almost done now. He has had no real counceling. Just a will to better himself. Good luck!

 

[MizTink]

what about the negatives of either med? especially methadone. i just can't find any info to justify using methadone instead of suboxone.

 

[C.Ann]

A former friend had a serious opiate addiction.. Neither methadone or Suboxone was covered by health insurance.. Tried methadone and failed.. Only a handful of specialized doctors in a 200-mile radius of this persons home was allowed by law to prescribe Suboxone.. The cost (again - not covered by insurance) was $350 a month.. The person then became addicted to the Suboxone - and was never been able to get back off of it as far as I know.. I haven't spoken to this person in several years now..

Unless a person is wealthy - or has some kind of top knotch health insurance - in-patient programs are useless because they don't keep the patient there long enough to deal with the "entire" problem..

Good luck to whoever is dealing with this..

 

[Mimi1965]

I am subbing to this thread

A relative is going "cold turkey " right now-due to hospitalization after a fall and broken bones

Its been 11 days and he is talking like he is nuts

Its hardest on his elderly Mother who is besides herself in worry

Horrible

 

[C.Ann]

I am subbing to this thread

A relative is going "cold turkey " right now-due to hospitalization after a fall and broken bones

That can actually be quite dangerous to your relatives physical health.. Did said person talk it over with a doctor? Some meds you just can't stop "cold turkey" without proper medical supervision..

Good luck - to all concerned..

 

[Colleen27]

what about the negatives of either med? especially methadone. i just can't find any info to justify using methadone instead of suboxone.

Suboxone is really expensive, at least around here, $400+/mo, only prescribed by a small number of clinics, and not covered by most insurance. The low-income/sliding scale programs use methadone. That makes me think the cost difference between the drugs is the main reason for using methadone rather than suboxone.

 

[LuvOrlando]

I am subbing to this thread

A relative is going "cold turkey " right now-due to hospitalization after a fall and broken bones

Its been 11 days and he is talking like he is nuts

Its hardest on his elderly Mother who is besides herself in worry

Horrible

I am so sorry to read this. Opiate addiction can cause serious permanent brain damage It's hard to accept that sometimes the person who started taking drugs is never coming back. Maybe this Mom could get into a Nar-anon program to help her cope

 

[Mimi1965]

I am so sorry to read this. Opiate addiction can cause serious permanent brain damage It's hard to accept that sometimes the person who started taking drugs is never coming back. Maybe this Mom could get into a Nar-anon program to help her cope

She is elderly and right now is pretty upset

Today he called her and reminded her that he has an Indian curse on himself and wanted her to remind him what Indian tribe they (the family) was part of

We have no Indian blood

 

[quentina]

does anyone here have any experience (not necessarily their own) with using either methadone or suboxone to break an opiate addiction?
are you willing to share your knowledge, opinions, experiences??

Not sure of the exact names however; my step sister has a heroin addiction. Anyway, she has really gone down the beaten path and seems to have her life in order. SHe told me she gets an opiate blocker put in her arm every 3 months. SHe also told me that without it, she would never be clean. She said that the addiction is so great it is unexplainable.

 

[bumbershoot]

The person has to want to change for anything to work long-term... Hubby's sister's ex-husband (I have never met him) was a heroin addict and most likely still is. If it wasn't heroin it was methadone, didn't really matter much to him (though you're not going to get arrested for taking methadone officially). As far as I know, even when clean, he was always a phone call away from using again, he didn't separate from his old friends at all. Seems to be an awful decision; can't figure out why anyone does it the FIRST time, with all the info out there about how fast you can become addicted...

The cost (again - not covered by insurance) was $350 a month.. The person then became addicted to the Suboxone - and was never been able to get back off of it as far as I know.. I haven't spoken to this person in several years now..

Unless a person is wealthy - or has some kind of top knotch health insurance - in-patient programs are useless because they don't keep the patient there long enough to deal with the "entire" problem..

Surely an addict is spending more than 350/month on the illegal drugs? Seems it would be a step down in cost.