[iamaAddict!]

HI everone, i really would like some advice on suboxone, I have been taking pain pills of all types,, This all started with a car accident when i was 18, I am now 43 and have been taking pain pills everyday since.... I went to the dr im just so tierd i do not want this anymore.. to make along story shorter, He put me on this drug called subutex at first now i have been on suboxone for about a month now..and yes it did help me with the w/d, But i am craving the pain meds something terrible the pain is still horrible especially the leg cramps i can,t sleep, can someone please tell me whats going on, i have been told that the suboxone is suppose to take the cravings away.. not ! I do not know not knowing alot about this drug i am taking 4mgs twice a day ! I have been told by other people that have taken the drug that my dosage considering the amount of pain pills i had taken in the past 20 years that i might need a higher dosage! Does anyone have any advice for me? IF SO PLEASE HELP!!!!!! i am desperate

[Robert_325]

Originally Posted by iamaAddict!

HI everone, i really would like some advice on suboxone, I have been taking pain pills of all types,, This all started with a car accident when i was 18, I am now 43 and have been taking pain pills everyday since.... I went to the dr im just so tierd i do not want this anymore.. to make along story shorter, He put me on this drug called subutex at first now i have been on suboxone for about a month now..and yes it did help me with the w/d, But i am craving the pain meds something terrible the pain is still horrible especially the leg cramps i can,t sleep, can someone please tell me whats going on, i have been told that the suboxone is suppose to take the cravings away.. not ! I do not know not knowing alot about this drug i am taking 4mgs twice a day ! I have been told by other people that have taken the drug that my dosage considering the amount of pain pills i had taken in the past 20 years that i might need a higher dosage! Does anyone have any advice for me? IF SO PLEASE HELP!!!!!! i am desperate

I hope I can give you some advice that helps. So you know a little about me, I am 55 and starting abusing RX pills in 1968 as a teen. I started taking stupid amounts of barbiburates like Nemutal, Tuanol, Seconal, etc. That progressed through the Methaqualodes in the early 70s, to stronger opiates, Benzos, muscle relaxers, on to Mandrix in the late 70s/early 80s and so on. So whatever was "the favorites of the era" I was right there for 40 years. My terror ended not that long ago when I cut back from taking 25-30 30mg Roxies a day to 40 Lorcets a day along with 25 Somas, and 15-20mg a day of Benzos. Not bragging, just sharing that my addiction has lasted a long time too like yours. There is no difference in your 25 year habit and my 40 year habit except I don't know the volume of meds you took. I too suffered serious injuries and have legitimate illnesses contributing to my pain.

I started on Subutex like you, but never went to the Suboxone. I found Subutex worked great for me and did not want to change to anything else. I began on 12mg a day for a few days and reduced to 8mg a day like you. Stayed on 8mg for almost a month, had no W/Ds, my PAWS symptoms I suffered from in the past were not present this time, and at about a month I began skipping doses, then skipping days off the Subutex. After a week or so of this I stopped the Subutex cold turkey. I had some mental issues with stopping as I was accustomed to putting something in my mouth throughout the day for SO LONG but no true W/Ds really of any kind when I stopped.

The reason I share this is I want you to see my experience on Subutex before I give any advice. My years of drug abuse shows me that each one of us reacts to the same medications differently. What works for me does not necessarily work for you even if we have done the exact same thing. Stories from a lot of people on this forum who have used opiates for a long time like we have seem to be that they needed to take the Suboxone for a lot longer period of time than I did. You may very well be one of those people. It may be that you need a stronger dose and accept that you need to take this for a longer period of time. Taking Suboxone is not the end of the world. It surely beats the pain meds ... all the hurt we cause our families and so on. You should talk to your dr and expain your situation. I agree that you may likely need a stronger dose and may need to take the Suboxone for several months and then do a very slow taper. There are lots of threads on slow tapering from Suboxone.

If you stay on Suboxone for a good period of time and stop craving the opiates then you will be able to determine what your true pain level is. Being in W/Ds or craving opiates causes us additional pain where we don't really know if it's true pain, or the pain of just wanting more drugs that our mind plays on us.

If you are still experiencing massive amount of pain after you smooth out on the Suboxone, and I really hate to suggest this, but you might consider methadone for that pain. I never recommend any more drugs for people. I know I don't take anything for pain today at all. I find I am able to deal with it by taking anti-inflammatories, some Prednisone, just non-narcotic meds. But there are cases when methadone is a viable option. There are exceptions to the rules. Your situation may be one of those cases. I don't know. You can't tell until you get past where you are now. Just keep that option in mind. The main thing is that you don't want to go back to all the street or RX opiates. I hope this helps and doesn't confuse you more. Keep us posted how you are doing. I truly think you need to talk to your dr for now about prescribing a higher dose of Suboxone to get you settled down and then you will be better able to concentrate on your recovery. It does work great if you are on the correct dose. Good luck and God bless.