What Is The Withdrawal Like When Your On Methadone To Subutex

Please be ware there is no explaining what will happen to you physically and mentally you will wish you where dead and you feel like your going to I was on 80mg of methadone for 1 month I did 1\4 of an ampuill it was the worst experience I don't think they put o the warning labels what happened but it was really BAD

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Hi Pat,

Sorry to hear about what happened. Sounds like you had a pretty grueling experience there. And I can only imagine how concerned I would be too, without having any prior warning labels/interactions listed on the packaging to help make sense of what's going on.

From what I've read, it's probably not safe to use either of these drugs within at least a week of each other. Taking subutex (buprenorphine) directly after methadone could potentially put your body into a life-threatening state of withdrawal.

I've seen a number of other unfortunate reviews from people who accidentally attempted this and later paid the price. Apparently when your receptors are filled with methadone, buprenorphine may take the methadone off of the receptors and cause precipated withdrawal syndrome. And is basically considered an acute withdrawal - what is normally experienced over several days is compressed into a period of several hours, with headache, cramping intestines, diarrhea, vomiting, restless legs, etc.

Methadone's long elimination half-life of anywhere between 8-59 hours might also make things a little difficult when considering a switch from one drug to another.

Hope you're feeling a whole lot better now!

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Bulls***. About 3 years ago I was on methadone, prob not near as much as yal cuz I'm a tiny girl, about three 10mg pills a day.. wanted to quit, switched to subutex, or soboxone, whichever I could find.. immediately. And may not have felt much the first or second day but continued the sub every day, and eventually started feeling the strong effects of the bup. Which acts sort of as an opiate for awhile until u get used to it, than u just feel normal. I totally SKIPPED withdrawals. Never had to go thru it. That's my experience. Just wish i hadn't gotten addicted to the sub afterwords. Its much better, if not abused u feel sober, clean.. but still, its still another physical mental addiction to a pill.

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Hi looking for someone to chat with trying to wean off the methadone to get on Suboxen

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Hi Spiritual mom! I was on 110 of methadone. 4 almost 5 years. What u have 2 do is taper down very slowly. Once u get 2 the point of having bad withdrawals, then, u can switch 2 suboxone. I got down 2 (24) when I switched over. By that time , I was pretty bad off. Buy, a few minutes after taking the suboxone, I felt SO much better. Remember , the main thing is , 2 b in withdrawals b 4 u switch. Let me know how u make out .

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Thanks for the info,,I'm going to be on 30 mg methadone then stop for 3days then start sub,,I'm so optimistic and a little anxious,,,I will keep in touch

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Hi Bobbiejo! At any point, while tapering down, u feel bad withdrawals, u can switch 2 suboxone.

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BS: I posted this elsewhere but it belongs here, I'm sick of seeing NOTHING BUT horror stories that either 1. scare someone away from detoxing or 2. scare someone from trying MMT.

I've read nothing but horror stories about coming off methadone and the greedy people at my clinic told me I should drop 1 mg every 1-2 weeks. I dropped by 5 mg from 45mg until 20mg where I stayed for a month, then jumped down to 10mg for 10 days, then 1 mg every 5 days-- I'm down to 1 mg-- for 8 days I haven't even become slightly ill and I can't imagine that the 1 mg every 24 hours is "holding me" or keeping the withdrawals away.

I even skipped a 1 mg day to see what would happen and-- NADA. Just a bit tired. Two more days and I'll be done. And Don't tell me that jumping from 1mg to 0mg is going to all of a sudden bring on "wish I was dead" withdrawals.

It's going to be different for everybody.

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Thats exactly why you had no withdrawal. You are supposed to be on a low dose (20-30mg) is the suggested dose of opiates and start your initial sub dose many hours after your last opiate dose. Or preferably already starting withdrawal symptoms before dosing with subutex or suboxone. The manufacturer would prefer you be somewhat in the beginnings of withdrawal and if you read the pamphlet that comes with the medication it even states that. Along with those little advertisments in the Drs office. That way you will have a better experience with their products and instead of using them as a means of getting off of opiates completely, you just trade one medication for the other. And continue buying their product instead of the more economical Methadone. But ill just bet you think thats BS also. But thats ok. We all live and learn.

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Every detox depends on the dose your on. 80 mil of Methadone is not a dose to walk away from. It's bad enough doing a gradual taper. Plus, doctors have little sympathy for patiens detoxing. They should script a weeks supply of Benzo's at the least. Too many relapses result from the detox nightmare. No sleep is the worst. Remember you will get back to normal. It just won't be today. Get as active as possible, occupy your mind with something besides how bad you feel. Go to meetings as much as possible, two a day minimum.

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Nikins, the reason it was so easy for you is because you were on 30 mg of meth a day forever. When coming down from say 100mg of meth is so much harder. But I'm so happy it worked for you!

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NOT bulls***. if you do subutex or suboxone too soon after methadone, you absolutely will go into precipitated withdrawals. it happened to me. im thinking it must have been because as you said, you were in such a small dose of the methadone. when i switched, i was on 120mgs of methadone, so that would take a lot longer to get out of your system. im glad you didnt have precipitated withdrawals when you switched. trust me, YOU should be glad too. it aint pretty. but PLEASE dont dismiss the legitimate experiences of others as "bulls***".

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First of all, Naloxone is a pure opioid antagonist-it's Narcan, what EMTs use to reverse overdoses. So...yeah there will be precipitated withdrawals if you are taking Suboxone (Buprenorphine/Naloxone) However, Subutex contains no Naloxone, it will NOT precipitate a withdrawal.
Let's review:
1. Suboxone-bad, brings on withdrawal
2. Subutex-good, no early withdrawal
The Naloxone is present "so that IV users will not abuse Suboxone." Right. Tell that to some junkies I know! (exact same effect-waste of time) I can only surmise that it is there because the pharmacies & the doctors gotta get paid. They should! Just not so efghijking much!

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Sorry but you are just plain WRONG. Subutex can and will bring on precipitated withdrawals. Your bulls*** sarcasm is not withstanding. I have personally been there. You are WRONG WRONG, so very WRONG.

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Re-lax. Why people let themselves get so worked up over what some strange(r) types on a website is beyond me. I mean it's not like I'm talking about your momma. Chill, baby. Peace.

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Okay, I'm bored & I'm also open-minded. I read a bunch of crap saying basically what I said, BUT it also said you would go into full withdrawal if you inject subs. Not true. Big fat lie. I've seen it done too many times-it's ridiculously unnecessary. But, I have never taken, nor witnessed anybody take, Subutex right on top of methadone. Ergo, I will concede that point.

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no, you are just dispensing bad and completely incorrect advice that is going to send someone into serious s*** if they listen to you. i take this stuff seriously, so if you don't, maybe you shouldn't be running your mouth (or your keyboard) on a forum about serious, grown up things. this is a thread about something of which u obviously don't have the correct information. so how about staying out of it?

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are you withdrawing now, sweetheart? Maybe you could talk to your doctor(s) about a script for some benzodiazepines so you can chiiillllll

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I never said anything about IV'ing subutex. What I said was taking subutex too close to opiates can throw you into withdrawal. A fact that you dispute. Thanks for making my point, tho. you dont take this seriously. I do. Like i said, if this is all a big joke to you, maybe you shouldn't be here. Hopefully no one will take your bad advice.

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You have absolutely no idea what I am thinking, feeling, or what I may personally be going through myself that might bring me to this website. I have no idea what you are so angry about or why you want to try to take it out on me, but I am neither impressed nor scared. If I weren't taking this seriously I would have used this as an opportunity to TROLL the crap out of you, but instead I have tried to placate whatever it is that might be bothering you, because I DO understand that people come here for help. Now, back off, I've got some pretty intense Suboxone withdrawals to go through and I really don't need your aggravation, ok?

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And why are you saying I "dispute" your point? I conceded to you days ago....????

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The precipitated withdrawal hit so fast and furious I wanted to die. I had diarrhea so bad the ER put me in a diaper. My doctor thought Suboxone would be a better pain medication for me. He was wrong. He sent me to the ER. Nothing would stop the horrible withdrawal an incredible pain, nausea and diarrhea. They finally resorted to Benadryl and Valium IV. The hospital put I am allergic to suboxone on my chart in big red letters because they said my body couldn’t handle this again.

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Re: niele (# 19)

Respect. It sucks. But to be honest, I went down a mg every 3 days for 2 weeks from being on 8mg a day..... I felt not great the first day, but they told me to take a multivitamin and Advil (few times a day) and it helps withdrawals from opiates cuz by day 2 I was feeling jus fine. Couldn't believe it.

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Re: JB (# 7)

Good job bro. I'm about to start my own detox protocol if my clinic wants me to take a year to get off of 120mgs. I have to admit I went to jail and they put me in the infirmary and I did get a small dose of Ativan for 3 days and Dallas County Jail but if anyone knows methadone it takes almost 45 days to sleep right in that situation but I was on 90 mg back then and everybody was telling me I was going to die I made it. Just keep looking forward I'm proud of you.

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Your situation is different. The amount has a lot to do with how long you want to wait. You were on a dose that doesnt even block other opiates. I went from 120mgs a day for 4 months to 2 weeks on opiates and then subs, and I felt even worse for almost 12 hours. And then another time I switched from pure fentanyl for 1 month, and took a subutex 10 hours after my last dose of fentanyl, and went into the worst withdrawals of my life. I wasn't able to sleep or get any relief from the subs for 4 days. You need to wait to take subs, and if you keep going with these drugs you will learn that for yourself.

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My insurance will not pay for the subtext or suboxone it's costing us almost 900.00 dollars out of pocket every month my bills are behind because of this is there any place we can go for help

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Yep!!! this right here is good common sense info!!!....everybody is different and remember! you only hear the horror stories on the internet and not all that many of the success stories, because people just move on with there lives after being a slave to there addiction/DOC for so long!! peace!!

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I was on 150 mgs of methadone; went down to 90, 80, 20, 50, 20 mgs. Took my last dose of 20 mgs at 7:45AM today. Dr gave me clonidine which seems to be helping. Supposed to switch to subutex. Does anyone know how long I should wait?

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PENNYLANE: Please do not attempt to mix methadone with bupe (subutex). You will throw yourself into precipitated withdrawals. If you take bupe too soon after taking methadone, or any other opioids, you can experience what are called precip. w/ds. They are HORRIBLE, and I have gone through them personally, because of bad advice from a pharmacist. They are NOT doctors. I had not researched this drug enough, and made the mistake of taking bupe too soon after opiates. UGH!!! Methadone is even longer acting, so you really need to wait 48 hours before taking bupe after methadone. Make sure you are feeling pretty crappy off the methadone before you go to the bupe. Believe me, I am in the same boat. I am on methadone tabs, have gone from a high-ish dose down to 85. I go down about a half a tab every 3 to 4 weeks. So yes, you will probably just have to go down slowly. But don't get discouraged. Unless you are willing to face full-on withdrawals, that's what you have to do. Constantly mixing bupe with methadone really just isn't possible, unless you are planning to come off of the methadone altogether and go onto the bupe. Good luck and let me know if you have any more questions.

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I am a prior opiat addict. About 3 years ago I used subutex to taper. I got 5 tablets broke them into 4 pieces and left town so I wouldn't get week and call someone. The first night was pretty bad I ended up using 3/4 of a pill, 3 of my little pieces. But the second day it was 2 pieces and so on so forth I took less each day. I didn't just lay around either, I played soccer and kept busy mind and body. Finally when I ran out I was experiencing no withdrawal ! It was amazing. I was clean and free of opiates. But that's when I lost my ability to sleep. I would take every over the counter sleep aid I could find and still watch the sun rise. After days and days of no sleep, I went back home and contacted the people I was never planning on contacting again, I was desperate for sleep and I slept so well one of the best sleeps I've ever had. Also one of the most shameful. I look back and if I had just planned a little better and knowen about the sleep thing I would have gotten a few weeks worth of prescription sleeping pills. I think then I would have succeeded. Anyways now I've been on methadone for over a year.A really high dose, and tapering is terrifying. Is it possible to use subutex to taper off of methadone? It worked so perfectly before but that was not methadone I was coming off of. If it is possible then I could just take some subutex split them up, do what I did before. Except this time be ready for the insomnia and have a couple weeks of good stuff sleeping pills. Then come back clean and free from everything. I started the methadone clinic to be free, and it's not bad, but I don't want to be on it forever. And trying to come off it is BAD. So is it possible to use subutex as a short cut? Or be ause they both similar drugs are they dangerous to mix.do I have to just face I have to come off of methadone very slowly over a long period of time.?

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It's great to hear someone else say this. There is a poster on here that swears that one can take subutex together with methadone since the subutex does not contain naloxone. WRONG....this poster is named VERWON, and he/she couldnt be more wrong. comes off like some big expert too with the "is there anything else i can help you with today?" ok, you arent helping ANYONE by giving bad advice! so thanks for verifying what i have said on here. I went through what you did from taking subs too soon after opiates. OM HOLY G....that is something i would never want anyone else to go thru, so please, DO NOT LISTEN TO VERWON REGARDING THIS SUBJECT. i thought i knew what bad withdrawal was....HA! I'm climbing the friggin walls. i was running into the living room, the bedroom, the living room, just going in circles. begging my hubbs to smother me with a pillow. he started feeding me trazodone until i finally passed out. i woke up on the couch 4 hours later, my clothes drenched in sweat and my body feeling like i had just run the NY marathon.

Anyway....while waiting a WEEK really isnt necessary, i would say 48 hours minimum. methadone takes longer than other drugs to leave your system. and you were on a fairly high dose, so even longer. i was on around 80-90 mgs of methadone (i think...its been a while) took the subs at my dr's office after about 50 hours, and was fine.

AGAIN.....buprenorphine, whether with or without the naloxone (subutex OR suboxone) taken too close to "full-on" opiates (methadone, oxys, etc) will send you into HELL... the naloxone is only in there to keep people from abusing the subs. bupe is bupe....it will ALL give you precipitated withdrawal.

I agree with you that methadone is better for me. i am on 90 mgs of 10 mg tablets, taking 6 tabs in the a.m. and 3 tabs in the p.m. i went all the way up to the 32mg ceiling with the subutex and i was just BARELY hanging on. the 90 mgs seems to be just right for me. i feel "normal" without getting buzzed or needing a nap in the afternoon. (which happened to me when i was on too much) also agree that opiate addiction is just horrible, difficult, nasty stuff. good luck to you.

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