Split Dosing Methadone - Does It Really Work (Page 2) (Top voted first)

I am currently on a hundred and 80 milligrams of methadone and at 8 p.m. every night I start to feel icky and in little withdrawal by morning I am in full withdrawal! if I split my doses and take 90mgs in the morning and 90mgs in the late afternoon will that help my wds? also the main question is when I go to 90 milligrams in the morning will l get sick from only taking the 90 mgs instead of the 180mg? I've been at 180 for a year now and every morning wake up sick. I just really need some help because I am really getting confused and tempted to just get back on opiates and I really don't want to if anybody is educated on this or has experience please help me. l have a really good life now and I really don't want to resort back to that.

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Re: djp (# 18)

I had a fried who was getting 65mil daily dosing in front of clinic people it never stopped detoxing. Turns out her body was not storing the methadone. First time I heard of it but she's a good friend & the clinic isn't lying. So u might want to ask that your levels are.

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Re: Kayleigh (# 14)

I have been on methadone for 8 years now, I was on 110 and dropped to 50 overnight, it does take you 24 to 36 hours to start to withdraw, I have not had any problems.

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To be honest, that was the common practice in Edinburgh back in the 80’s but it didn’t seem to work for the majority. However that’s not to say that you could be in the minority. Give it a try. Good luck

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Re: Eric (# 31)

Good advice! yes... take the blood test... Then you and your clinic will know for sure. That's what I did. Turned out I had really low trough levels and needed higher dose or split. I did both. Best advice I've seen on here yet Eric ?? The blood does not lie!

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There is actually a test you can ask your clinic to run. It's called a peak and trough test. They use this to see how fast your body is metabolizing your dose of methadone. Then you can get a really good idea of how to make your dose be effective for you. I am down to 75mgs from 150mgs and it took 2 years as I could only handle a decrease of 2 mgs a month. I would only get 6 to 8 hours out of my dose and into withdrawals fast. I did the test and found that split dosing was best for me. I was hard to adjust to, but sooooooo worth it. Please don't give up all you have and go back to using. You have the right to help with finding a plan that will keep you well the entire day and be able to sleep at night. You have a fast metabolism and things like stress, illness or lots of exercise will kick the methadone out sooner than most people. If you get take homes it will be simple to start split dosing, if you don't most clinics will offer split dosing but check with yours or your doctor. Try to get the test done and find your body's best way to take your medicine so it can work for you instead of against you. Google the peak and trough test. Good luck girl and hang onto your sobriety tightly, you worked hard for it! Hang tough!

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GI absorbtion is everything. You start out and everything is fine. You then start craving sugar, eating badly and get constipation. 100lbs and one giant gut later your dose doesnt hold. You are not absorbing anything properly anymore and it causes mood disorders. Your serotonin and vitamins start in the gut. Cut back your sugar, caffeine and carbohydrates. You will feel worse for awhile due to the body flushing toxins and getting re adjusted. I lost 100lbs my dose holds again. My body was totally malnourished from not having proper digestion and my diet. I am 40yo and been dosing for 14 years. Try it your mood will change from pure panic and homebound to optimistic. Current dose 100mgs once daily.

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Re: Dr N K (# 13)

I read something years ago that said if you are on a high dose of methadone it was possible the withdrawal in the morning could be worse because of the high dose. This made a lot of sense to me. I kept thinking I needed to get a higher dose but after reading this I came to the conclusion it was not the methadone-or lack of it that was making me feel bad but just the opposite. I stopped going up every six months and stuck to 130mgs. I have since come down to 100 mgs and refuse to go up. I feel the same. Sometimes good sometimes bad. If possible on evenings I work I save a little of my take home to take later in the day. This helps me make it through the night easier but the morning is the same. I have been on methadone for 20 years.

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I suffer from chronic pain and failed back surgery syndrome. I have a spinal fusion. I was on methadone back in 2015 and quit on rapid detox going down 6 mg a day. I was pretty much on. Now after having been waiting for disability and trying to work again I am back in the methadone clinic on 140 mg a day for almost 4 months now and am in the same situation. I NEED a split dose, the doctors abviously know I’m not getting high. I am usually sick sweaty and pucky/bubble guts by anywhere from 12 noon to 9pm. Depending on if I can take my dose at 11am. Or if I’m too sick and have to take it earlier. Or on weekends I have to take all 140 mgs at once by 8 am no matter what, those days I’m always hurt and in withdrawal around 12 noon. I live in Oshkosh Wisconsin. If anyone has any information on a methadone clinic around the area that will do split dosing please let me know. I am currently in AMS at Oshkosh and they do not permit split dosing, not even in person if I go there at 5 am I could take half and come back at 10:30if to take the rest but they won’t even make that exception!

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i've been on methadone 29 years and went from 140 to 180 to 140 currently. this is just my opinion but fast metabolism or not, with methadones half life, i don't believe people go through real withdrawels in less than 24 hours. after 29 years i can miss 2-3 days and just get very tired. feeling sick

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How can you say that????Everyone's body is Different,,just cause you can go 2'3days with NO Methadone,and not got sick!!!!!;How can you make a statement like that?For you to be on methadone for 29yrs,and make a statemeant like that,that No One truly withdrawals before 24hrs"just cause you can go 2/3days with none &not get sick!!!!!Everyone's BODY is different!!!!Everyone!!!!No two people are the same!!!!One has to wonder,you say 29yrs but obviously have no clue about methadone or the human body....to make statements like that and to be absolutely so wrong in what you are putting out there about methadone!that's how your body feels remember your body you can't tell someone that they don't withdrawals before 24hrs cause you don't lol !!!!!!!For someone that's been there SO LONG I would think you would know enough or at least a little about what you've been putting in your body!anyway wish you well

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I promise you there are people that start early withdrawl symptoms even before 24hours. Ive been clean for four years started on 185mgs after mulitiple blood tests now on 54mgs. Ive been sick the whole time before 24hrs never missed a day and no other drugs. I split somedays somedays no split. Doesnt make alot of diff but sometimes it helps. Im going down in hopes to get off because i just want to feel better, sleep at night, and not wake up sick every single day of my life.

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Methadone is a very effective pain killer, I was on it for serious lower leg injuries, I was also entitled to morphine every hour in hospital but only took it perhaps 4 to 5 times a days when the methadone wore off, especially at night) on leaving hospital I did not have the option of extra morphine unless I jumped through hoops, so to avoid the highs and lows of th effect of taking a whole dose in the morning...I split my dose to morning and 6.00 pm. This lowered my opiate (opioid intake but in the 2 weeks following I had to adjust... but did. Opiates are are product of the natural opium poppy) opioids are synthetic and synthesised due to the German worry of running out of natural opiates in WW2. Many health professionals told me I was doing the right thing by splitting the dose and I myself found it better. I do hope this helps.

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It does not say on my bottle of methadone how many milligrams I'm taking, but it says "Methadone HCI 65 split 2" on it. How many milligrams does that mean?

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Re: nick (# 11)

You have a right to your opinion, and believe me, I have been in every part of this. I have been able to go longer than 24 hrs between doses and now I sincerely am at a point where I am not able to go longer than 8-12 hours sometimes before I actually feel fullblown physical withdrawals, not just the cravings, which come from craving to feel well again and becomes psychological, too, later. They say the halflife for methadone on average is 24 hours, but most medical websites will report it is anywhere from 12-55 hours. You could be just really lucky to keep up a consistent metabolism. I just went 2 days without a dose and I used to be able to handle that and thought this time I could as well and I thought I was going to die by the 8th hour after my last dose, not just the missed dose!

We have to factor in other medications that may be breaking down our absorption or metabolism or whatever, like I have been detoxing and coming off of valium lately, so for some reason as I came off benzos for the first time in a while, a long while, it has affected my methadone dose and made me feel like it wasn't lasting, even though I was actively lowering my dose of methadone, too, at the same time, trying to get off both at once! My doctors told me not to, but I insisted bc I am pregnant and wanted to do it, bc I got off methadone really fast first pregnancy, as soon as I found out. But I was expecting to be pregnant before, so I was coming down as I got pregnant, but this time I had no idea, so I was further along when I began to figure out my options.

Anyway, the difference between being on a split dose, which they just put me on before, was great. I will always pick that option. I also was lucky to be at a clinic that had multiple options for dosing, and full medicaid (Medi-cal) and insurance coverage for all dosing and clinic fees, so it felt free to be there to me, so it wasn't a big financial hardship. They used the orange wafer discs (40mg) and tablets for those that needed them, and the liquid diabetic dose for those that didn't care. I always prefered the tablets and wafers bc they felt like they lasted longer and helped me with chronic pain, which is an issue.

When I had to transfer recently to a new area, they don't do split dosing here, so they had to wean me back to once a day, and I tried it, but I hate it. I feel like at a certain point I feel yucky and sick and then I am checking the clock for when can I feel normal and better and motivated again. It drains me, but it can also be the valium taper I am on, which I just ended, so, many factors!

If anyone has the choice to split dose, I would go for it. I would take half at the clinic, get my takehomes, and take the split whenever I needed it, ideally before bed, but some days I needed it earlier. That's what is good about it.

The other thing is they switched me to liquid from the tablets so I had to get used to that, which feels different, don't know why. This new place I am at in another State has the cherry liquid crap I hate, and it feels stronger at first, only because I metabolize it quickly, and then it's gone, and I literally feel nothing later, same day.

The worst thing to do is try splitting it on your own and managing it because while people who don't take it don't understand why that is, I always end up accidentally taking an extra split one day and then the day before I go back I am short a split or an entire day, and I can make it, but it makes my dose level plasma concentration or whatever it is, not consistent, which makes it harder to get back to feeling "even" again. If I could take my little bottles and split them exactly at 50/50 and go back and then on the day I have to dose at the clinic, got to split that as well, I would have NO problems. It's when I have been off split back to whole day that is harder!

The best thing about split dosing is that if you still need it, you can take the split right after your morning dose, so you shouldn't be scared to try it. You can ask your doctor to dose you at the clinic for a few days to manage it and force you to dose daily and that takes discipline. I would do that until you are happy with split dosing and then go back to take-homes and do it on your own. This way if you fail, you won't end up missing an entire day or splitting too early, like if I wake up at 1am and toss and turn and feel sick by 4am i am thinking to take my first split, and then by early afternoon, I am taking the rest, when ideally, I would be taking my first by 8-10am and then the split 12 hours later. I used to be able to manage that no problem.

Pregnancy has changed my metabolism, and surely being on other medications and detoxing off them can affect how you feel, bc benzo withdrawal feels VERY SIMILAR to methadone withdrawal at first, so I thought maybe I was making a mistake and thought I detoxed OK off benzos but had a problem with methadone so I went up on dose and then I ended up moving, and the split back to single threw me for a loop and I ended up being so regular at taking them every 12 hours I was 2 days off the first week there. I made a bad choice that I regret and told my family about so they were aware of my troubles and they made me feel worse and I know, the baby shouldnt go through how I feel, but I have no idea if she feels exactly what I feel, but it still isn't what they tell you to do.

So, everyone has a right to their unique dose level and taper or whatever, and split dosing is great.

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Re: Dr N K (# 13)

I think you just have poor health and hygein and blaim it on the methadone. Not tryin to be rude

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First, I don't think 80-90mil daily or nightly should be wearing off in less than 4 to 36 hrs. What were you on BEFORE methadone? To answer your question, I take a total of 50mg daily for addiction. I take half & half because of my arthritis & fibromyalgia. It works great for me, but my doctor told me to try that. Don't know how helpful it is to take halves for addiction. Ask your doc. They will answer truthfully.

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Hello, Emily! How are you?

Some people do have this problem, you may need a higher dose of the Methadone overall to last for the whole day, or you could ask them about splitting the dose. Usually they don't, because it is easier to monitor and make sure that someone takes one dose and they can't provide the same monitoring for multiple daily doses.

And whether or not your body adjusts fast, or you get sick form withdrawals will really depend on your body, so there's no way anyone else can answer that.

The FDA classifies this medication as an opiate, so it has the potential to be habit forming and may cause side effects, such as nausea, dizziness, drowsiness, dry mouth and constipation.

Have you discussed it with your care provider? They should be able to help you.

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Re: Itha (# 17)

I think you just have poor health and hygein and blaim it on the methadone. Not tryin to be rude

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