Do You Gain Weight With Suboxone?

Hi I'm just starting to research suboxone. I'm currently going to a methadone clinic every day and it is such a hassle. I have to get up every morning at 4am to be there in time to get to work the line is so long but that's beside my point, My real question is Do you gain weight with Suboxone? This is my third attempt at trying to get off of opiates by taking Methadone but every single time I start taking Methadone I gain 40 to 60 pounds within the first 4 months. Most people do, some don't I just happen to be one of them. I get so discouraged by the weight gain that I stop going to the Methadone clinic and then start using again. Sadly my mom died from using the same drug I used before treatment. I have 3 children and want to get my life together again but I just can't cope with the weight gain. Can anyone tell me if Suboxone has the same side affect? And also is there any difference between Suboxone & Suboxine? PLEASE HELP!!!

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I've been on Suboxone for about a year and haven't had any weight gain at all. I haven't really noticed any side-effects. I'm currently taking about one half of a (I think) 2 mg suboxone per day. I've had a very positive experience with this drug. If you really wanna quit opiates, I think this is the best, safest, and easiest way to do it. I don't know what Soboxine is... I think Subutox or something like that might be used to start a suboxone regimen, but I'm not sure about that.

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I have been on suboxone for about 7 months. It is a miracle drug!!! You can do it! I have not gained any weight- I have probably lost 5-10 lbs. I have three children too! They need you!!! Be strong. You will be able to quit the other pills!

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http:/­/­www.prescriptiondrug-info.com/­Drugs/­Suboxone.asp

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I have been on suboxone for five months. Prior to that I was on norco for a year and a half battling with a bone disease. While I have been 115-120 my entire life I have gained about 39 pounds since all the opiate use. The confusing thing to me is that my eating habits never really changed.I have lost a few pounds since starting the sub

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I am a RN and a heroin IV user/IV opiate user of more than 20 years. Suboxone has saved my life and made such a difference! I actually live my life now. I too was on several methadone clinics. I was never bothered by weight. Suboxone initially made me gain 20 lbs, but I was undernourished from using heroin. Weight gain is not as dramatic as methadone. For me constipation is the culprit. I can go 2 wks without a BM. I have tried everything, nothing works except water enemas. I reccomend this drug to any addict who has used opiates for more than 5 years consecuitively. It is incredibly expensive. I pay 80 dollars for 13 tablets/week supply from my pharmacy, but it beats going out taking the risk to cop dope every day. Good Luck!

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I have been on 4mg of sub for 23 days1 I have noticed no weight gain at all. Plus since being off the methadone I am much more active that before. Methadone makes u very drowsy. Becareful when makin the switch over, Methadone to sub is tricky. I had to put 5 days in between . Please do this under a docs care.

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I have been on suboxone for about 4 months i am 23 years old and i have been struggling with oxycottons since i was 14 years old i have went2 the methadone clinic and the last day of going i went right back 2 the pills being on the suboxone has saved my life u can acutally live normal like every1 said it is a MIRCLE drug and only u can quit if u want2 bad enough i have a daughter and i understand your children need you so if i was you i would get on the suboxne and as far as the weight gain i only gained about 10 pounds in 4 months and thats because my body was so malnutriun REPLY

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suboxene unfortunately caused me to gain weight the first few months were good then the weight started creeping up at least 40 pounds!I I've always been a slender person and could eat whatever...now I'm not hungry at all but still am overweight . I'm depressed about weight gain but theirs no way i would go back to the methadone clinic that stuff is brutal

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I'm 23 yrs old! I was addicted to oxycottin! I have now been clean for 4 yrs! I had an awful struggle trying to stay clean. I attempted several times but never could seem to do it. The last time i went to rehab i really wanted it, my life was unmanagable. I lived my life to chase drugs. This time i had to do it for myself and nobody else. I was put on a list for suboxone doctors in my area. I thought it would takes weeks even months. 3 days later they started me on suboxone. From that day on things started looking up for me. I have been on suboxone since. It may take me the rest of my life to wein off them, but atleast i have a life now! I am a good wife and a mother now! That was something i couldn't have been while using. I'm not sure wheather the buep is making me gain weight but recently i gained 50lbs. So that is why i'm on this site looking for some answers.

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I have only been on Suboxone 8mg taking 1/2 tab three times a day for almost 2 months and I have gone from a size 3 to a size 10. It is very discouraging to me. I am rarely hungry and actually eat less than before but I cant handle the weight gain..... suboxone has been wonderful as far as giving me my life back but being overweight is something i cant handle. I have absolutely no self esteem at this time to the point i dont even want to go anywhere besides work because i hate the way I look. I exercise weekly.... nothing helps.

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I have been taking Suboxone for a year now. All I have to say is it is a miracle drug and you need a miracle to help you stay around to raise your children! I am in my 50s and I so wish that these had been available when I was much younger; would have saved me a lot of grief and heartache. No, I have NOT experienced any weight gain at all from them. In fact, I have actually lost weight, I think partly due to the fact that I have more energy and get a lot more exercise. Believe me, I have also been on the methadone. That withdrawal is something I never care to experience ever again! I have had to go about 3-4 days once without my Suboxone because of transportation problems and my doctor is about 55 miles away. While I was feeling kind of blase and had low energy and was somewhat grouchy near the end, I am going to tell you that that was nowhere near the type of withdrawal I have experienced from anything else. I had no diarrhea or vomiting at all. It is SO worth it to get on this and do exactly as the doctor instructs you. Good luck and I am happy to see that you are really trying to do what is right for you and your family.

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I have been taking Subs 8 months. I'm usually 190 30yr old M. I'm up to 240! I never used to crave sweets like this. I also don't buy the whole it's detox from opiates argument. I've been off opiates 8 months on a stable dose of suboxone. I'm tapering down now. And working out. Good luck to everyone! Stay sober and God Bless

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If you are taking Suboxones just to feel high will you gain weight? i think a friend of mine is abusing them even though he/she was never addicted to heroine or anything.ive been told Suboxones make you gain weight and he/she definately has

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I know this is an older post.....but, Im on the weight gain side of taking Sub. Went from 190 to currently 230 and climbing! I crave sweets like crazy. I did eat right while I was taking pain meds and was in decent health shape. I have been taking 20mgs daily for a year now. Im also using it for the off lable use of pain management, when will the rest of the medical comunity see this is valuable for pain also. ps, I hate being fat, yuk

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I have been taking Suboxone for 3 years now. I was SEVERLY addicted to pain meds for 10 years. Suboxone gave me my life back and I have been clean for 3 years now. BUT, If I only knew what suboxone would do to me. I have ALWAYS been very thin and have weighed 115pds in my 20's & 30's even after having 3 children I was in PERFECT shape. I slowely started to gain weight on suboxone over the last 3 years. The weight gain started on day one. I am a healthy eater & never really eat alot at all...I eat like a bird. I have put on 30pds over the last 3 years. I have been trying to get this weight off for the last 2 years...its driving me NUTS!! Diets, excersise is not taking it off. The thing that will help a little is reducing the amount of suboxone I will take. When I have tried to wing myself off the drug than I would notice I was loosing weight. I also have been really deppressed since I have been on suboxone and have absolutely no motivation....that is not who I am...I have always been really active & on top of things....not anymore. I also have MAJOR constipation issues. I cant have a bowel movemoenty without laxatives like Milk of mag or magnesium citrate. I can go weeks without a bowel movement. Suboxone is better than being on drugs....but I hate the weight gain, deppression, no motivation and constipation it has caused....plus it is a pain in the butt because I have to take this medicine EVERY day in the morning to even focus on starting my day and letting the pills disolve takes forever....my dentist also said suboxone is really bad for a persons mouth and you can get the same mouth sores & bad teeth like methadone & meth can cause...its real bad for your mouth if you take 8mg a day. I have not had that happen yet except my teeth have become more sensitive. I want off the meidcine so bad....Im not myself and I feel so insecure & down lately. If I only knew 10years ago what pain pills would do to my life!

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I, too, am on the suboxone maintenance. I have been on it for 3 1/2 weeks. I started in detox and am on 8mg. a day-taken all at once. I live in Toronto, Canada, and there are not 'take home's. I have to put it in my mouth in front of the pharmacist.
I have not weighed myself, however, by how I look and my clothes fit I just know I have gained a considerable amount of weight. I AM TOTALLY MISERABLE ABOUT THIS-TO NO END!! Yes, I want to be off the other stuff, that's for sure. But this blowing up business is such b.s.-to me!
Guess I'll have to trade one (my slim weight) for another (freedom off the effin pain meds). I am hoping when I stop the sub, I'll lose the weight again. I don't plan on being on it for more than 6 weeks-at the outside!

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Has anyone here been on suboxone and gained the weight and then lost weight when they went off of it?

PLEASE! IF SOMEONE HAS THIS EXPERIENCE PLEASE REPLY!!
IT WILL MEAN SO MUCH TO ME!
THANKS

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Hello...I am a 42-year old female..I have been abusing pain pills for most of my adult life..in 2000 I weighed 319lbs...and decided to have Gastric Bypass...well I got down to 110lbs...in 2008 I got very sick and during that time I was using Methadone..to kicked pain pills...well my weight dropped to 88lbs....I continued to use pain pills through the years...Oct 2010...I weighed about 120lbs..and I started taking Suboxone 8mg..5 tabs a day...well I can say it has been a miracle drug...no withdrawls at all...I noticed I was gaining weight so I started walking..excercising...really watching what I ate...thinking I will get it back under contol...plus with the gastric bypass..I shouldn't have any problems right?....WRONG!...I went to the Dr yesterday (Feb 1, 2011)....and I weighed 144lbs!...I'm about to lose my mind!...I love being pain pill free but OMG...I'm really going to watch what I eat...but has anyone expeienced this much weight gain?...please respond!

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I have had the same problem. I was seriously addicted to pain pills for years. I have been taking suboxone for 3 years. It is great for the cravings but the weight gain is CRAZY! I have always been about 115 -120pds, even after having 3 babies. I have never had to diet or excersise and have just had good metabolism. I remember going to see the doctor the first time to get on suboxone and I weighed 117pds. Every month after that I would put weight on when I weighed in at the doctors office. So 3 years have gone by & I have been on suboxone for 3 years but I am SO MAD!! I am 140 pds now. The ONLY time I have put this much weight on is when I was 9monthes pregnant with my kids! I excersise & have been dieting...it has not helped. The ONLY thing that has helped me loose weight is reducing the amount of suboxone I take. I usually take 8mg (4 pills 2mg a pill) a day. I have cut it in half. I am only taking 2 suboxone (4mg) a day now...well I have almost lost 10pds. since I cut down a month ago. Sometimes I will feel withdrawel symptoms & I will take one more (3 pills 6mg) a day & I will instantly put 2 more pounds on the next day. When I have only taking 2 pills a day than I will loose the pounds. I have plataued on my weight lose. I have been trying to get out of my 130's into my 120's for a month now with dieting & excersise and I cant lose anymore weight. Im going to try taking only 1 suboxone a day and eventually wing off whithin the next month. This medicine makes me so mad! Never have I ever had weight problems, but I have since I got on this med. the less of the dosage I take I will lose some weight...but not enough...I just need to get off this med. Hopefully by the end of February I will be totally off suboxone & Im keeping my fingers crossed my weight will decrease...it has so far just cutting down the dosage....lI will se what happens & when I do get off suboxone & IF I do lose this weight I will come back to this site and let everybody know the prognosis. So this med does cause weight gain and I wish my doctor would have told me. My doctor was suppose to wing me off the first year I was on this med...but he has not even talked about it. So Im going to do it myself and so far I have lost 10pds by cutting my dosage in half.

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I went through the same thing but just recently lost 45 lbs. It's not the methadone. It's the life change. You're not running around to get money for drugs and for the first time you're probably eating right and eating more than before. Plus you're more sedintary. Probably watch more tv and spend hours online,

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YES! Youll will gain weight. But taking a lattice will prevent weight gain,
Try taking a fiber laxative u shouldn’t have a problem

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Yes, subs cause weight gain as well but I believe it's probably not as much weight gain as the methadone causes. Good luck.. Martee

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Re: jewelia (# 105)

I have the same thing happening now and it started the first week on suboxone!

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Kkh: thank you so much for your response. Im going to take your advice and go slowly and hopefully i will see a difference in weight. I hope this goes well fo us both.

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ASHHOPE: You certainly would lose weight by cutting your dose drastically like that, because you would be in such hardcore opioid withdrawal, you would likely not be able to eat, would have serious diarrhea and would be barfing your head off. And since you admit that you are a "chronic relapser", the first thing you would likely do with a drastic drop like that is end up using.

Now, if you want to go down GRADUALLY, I would fully encourage that. And yes, as you go down you would likely lose some weight. 12 milligrams of Subutex is an average-to-high dose. 2 to 4 milligrams is pretty low. So the lower your dose, the more you will get back to "normal" as far as your weight. But it isn't going to be a quick process to get to that level. Not if you want to actually stay clean, that is. You may feel ok for a while, but all that rapid decrease will catch up with you, and BAM, you are going to feel miserable.

I would recommend going down 1 to 2 milligrams at a time, and waiting AT LEAST a month before going down further. You need to be FULLY ADJUSTED PHYSICALLY to the new dose before going down further. There is just no way to do this rapidly, without considerable physical suffering. And as you know, physical suffering is a huge reason for relapsing. I am currently in the same boat. I am slowly lowering my dose of tablet Methadone. But when I get going to fast, I definitely feel it. SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE WITH THIS. Remember that. I have gone down from 90 mgs. of Methadone to 70, and will be going down to 65 this coming week. And the reason I have been able to do that, WITHOUT relapsing, is because I did it VERY SLOWLY. And remember, that the withdrawal you feel with with ORTs like this? You don't even FEEL the worst of it for 2-3 days. These things go out of your body VERY SLOWLY, unlike "normal" opioids. Let me know if you have any more questions.

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Tracy, I also wanted to say that both suboxone and subutex made me gain weight. But now that i think about it subutex has caused more weight gain than suboxone did. I totally understand your frustration. I am right there with you. Same situation.. I used to have an eating disorder and used drugs to stay thin. Gaining weight while doing the right thing which is staying sober just sucks cause i don't want to relapse.

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I have been on 12mg of subutext for a year and a half and have gained a significant amount of weight and i seem to be eating less then i did prior to being on it. Im concerned because the weight gain is effecting my back and all sorts of things. However i am a chronic relapser and have been to 15 inpatient and outpatient rehab programs and so subutext is kind of my last option. Im afraid of going off it completely but does anyone know if I were to drastically cut my dose down to maybe like 2-4 mg would the weight gain decrease?

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JAMIE: I am a bit confused by your comment about "long lasting side effects from stopping opiates..." because Suboxone and Methadone ARE opiates. And opioids in general can cause weight gain, ORTs or otherwise. But for many people who enter recovery, some of the weight gain comes from getting out of the hectic lifestyle of active addiction, as well as ceasing any other drug use that may have been going on. But with me, I was a "working junkie" who already didn't smoke or drink, was active, ate healthy, etc. That didn't change when I went on ORTs. The only thing that changed was me taking Subs or Methadone instead. As I said, ORTs are also opioids, so the idea that the weight gain is from STOPPING the opioids doesn't make sense to me.

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I was a victim of a horrible motor cycle accident. I have always been extremely thin until i stopped taking my pain meds two years ago. I blew up bad went from 124 to 184 . i just started subs so i could function the same as b4 ,i have to say subs help you as if you never have taken anything for pain..I do have to say after reading all the post the weight gain is not from subs but a very strange And miserable long lasting side effects from stopping the opiates. I can say i have always been into activities outdoors. .now on the subs all i seem to do is stay indoors watching tv and sleeping..due to being overweight and depressing that i cant loose...im taking a weight loss medication, was supposed to shred the pounds well its not..Yes pain is hard to live with but no hassle staying clean..thank you subs manufacturers for helping us stay clean..

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PROSPECT: Can you please explain what "methadone is way worse side effect wise" means to you? I have been on liquid methadone from a clinic, Subutex, and now tablet methadone from a physician. And the only side effects I've ever had from any of them (besides that pesky physical dependence part) is constiptation. So I wondering these "way worse" side effects are to you.

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