How long before some of these side effects subside?

Hi Patti,

Haven't talked in a while. Hope all is well. God bless. :)

Thank you! I am fine, hope you are too!

You are also having symptoms from stopping the phentermine and neurontin both at the same time as the opiates. I usually suggest tackling one thing at a time. You are having multiple symptoms that can't be controlled just by taking subs. I would deal with the opiates / subs, finish that, then deal with the phenterrmine and do the neurontin last. That will provide you with the most simple detox. Your dosing process with the subs was fine, you're not taking too much, you're just trying to stop everything at once. It can be done but you will not be comfortable during the process going about it that way. Patti that posted to you above knows me too and I'm sure she will agree with me. God bless. :)

sshhhwww! Ok, so all looks ok then! The diet pills will suck for a while but I can deal. The neurontin is something that I should be taking because I had back surgery last month. Do you see any harm in me continuing that? Its not a narcotic right? I take it for the nerve damage down my leg... which the dr said could take a year for the nerves to go back to normal. Bottom line I just want recovery! I want to atleast be on the road to recovery! I know suboxone is controversial and I will deal with that when Im ready... however I want to be on suboxone and getting well I DO NOT want to be on any other narcotic right now... so dealing with a lil wd from phentermine for a little while is doable. Can I have your thoughts on this?

Hey Amber, I think you may be having some pms/pmdd symptoms along with some fear of starting a new life, and also some wd from the other meds and maybe, some naloxone sensitivity. It is hard to trouble shoot this post as you do have more than one possibility of what is going on. I had nausea and headaches during pms/pmdd, so, that is likely some of it. You are on a low dose, try to do the spitting and rinsing techniques and keep taking that COWS test, you may need a full 2 mgs in the morning, that is not a high dose at all, if you do the spit technique and take 2 mgs and are fine, you simply need the full amount and to reduce the naloxone getting into your system. Please stay hydrated and stay here for support, it will help. Fear also causes any symptoms to be magniified. Patti

Thanks Pattishan! I feel so relieved! I will try the whole spitting out thing, it will definitely help with the after taste. And yes, the whole pre menstrual thing stinks... some months are better than others. I am just so relieved that you guys didnt say I took the sub too soon or ... I dunno... I am relieved by your responses... thats all... I just was expecting the worst as always ... glass half empty! Yes, I am full of fear too! The pills gave me confidence... so I think. Im scared to go back to work, Im scared to go food shopping, Im scared of being around people and talking. I have no idea who I am without them so yes I am scared to death. Thank you for all your doing... I dont know If I would have made it this far. I want life back... sooo tired of being a slave to pills!

I know the feeling of the fear and know what fear can do. I promise that if you can find an addiction therapist you can afford, they can help you with your recovery and the fears associated with it. I hope you are really feeling better. Patti

You shouldn't be having fear and isolating, afraid to leave the house. That is likely from stopping three phentermine daily which is too high of a dose anyway. That will get better the longer you are off them. I would deal with the neurontin last as it is for the nerve pain, but don't be disillusioned, when you stop taking it if it goes for a year you'll have to taper off it or you'll be dealing with w/d. A medication does not have to be a scheduled narcotic to have a dependency develop, but you're not taking an outlandish dose. Just know where you stand and keep things in the proper perspective. And ask if you have questions. Good luck. Patti gave you some good advice as well.

Thanks Robert! I totally abused phentermine, not much is done in my life in moderation. Fear has run my life and pills have given me false courage for a long time. Ive learned alot in a 12 step group Ive been going to. I know I need help and I need to change. Change scares me but Ive also learned that change is not hard... whats hard is the resistance to change. I thank you for being here to help me.

amber, Robert gave you great advice too, and I think he is right, you aren't stable at your dose. I will be out of pocket until later this afternoon, just know you are OK, and try to not be afraid. No one can see the damage done to your brain's natural pain relieving system, you mentioned 15 years off an on of taking pain pills, you may need 2 to 4 mgs until you are stable. I started on 12 mgs, that is vastly more than you are on, and I was able to stabilize and feel great. I am not suggesting you take 12 mgs, I am just stating that the amount of subs could be increased and you still be on an appropriate amount at 2 or 4 mgs. Give each dose you take 2 full hours to reach maximum effectiveness before you think you need more. Example, you take 1 mg and feel good for half a day, but it seems to wear off and you start having wd symptoms in 5 hours time, that may mean you need 2 mgs initially instead of 1 mg. I will check back later, feel better Amber. Patti

Hey Amber, are you feeling any better?

Thanks Thor! Yes, these 8mg strips are kind of a pain... I was given a script for #120 of them though. I see my sub doc this Thurs, I dont even know how to tell him that I totally negated everything he said to do as far as taking suboxone.
... and by the way can you give me another script for the 2mg strips??? Dunno how thats gonna go over... I would much rather have the damn 2mg strips though!!!

As a last resort the 8mg suboxone strips are 7/16" long. So 1/16" is 1mg if you round it off, that is plenty close for our purposes. This doesn't have to be like rocket science. Once you get in a standard method of dosing your body will become acclamated even if you are off a fraction of that 1/16". If you get a little ruler and a razor knife it's not that hard to work with them. I personally wouldn't go buy a bunch of 2mg strips if I already had a drugstore's worth of 8mg strips in my possession. Cutting them isn't that big a deal and the 8mg strips are much cheaper if you figure the cost per mg.

Hmmmmm, Um Yea. seems like everything is rocket science when you have 5 days clean... but things are looking up.

At least your sense of humor is still intact. Hope you feel better today Amber !

Hey Amber, for some reason, the email alert is not working on this post, meaning it is not telling me when additional comments are made so I apologize for the lateness. You don't have to split your dose up, you can take it all at once or take the larger portion in the morning. I recommend taking the larger part in the morning if you are going to split the dose as subs can cause insomnia if you take it later in the afternoon. I am so glad you are better. You can always send me a private question if for some reason you see I am not answering, I have no idea why the email alert isn't working on this particular post. Patti