Suboxone and Sweating: What Users Say

• Lif...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 31, 2019

For Opioid Use Disorder "I was addicted for 6 years. Suboxone saved my life. I've had nearly every single kind of sub out there, nothing compares to the original Sub. The generics do work for shorter time frames. I read that others believe it's a mental thing, but it's not fully. I won't even be thinking about it and asleep and slowly start feeling the sweats and stretches after a few hours. They come out of nowhere! So while they're cheaper than the name brand, you end up spending the same or more because you're taking twice as many. Based on what we know about RX corps and their greedy and shady (thanks to the Sackler family for the major issues with opiates!), it wouldn't surprise me if the bioavailability in the generics wasn't as high, or so high that most bodies metabolize them quicker. I have no problem taking another medication for the rest of my life if it keeps me sober. I know it stinks, but it's better than the alternative, and no one wants to be on RXes forever, but sadly, many people are anyways (insulin, antidepressants, etc.). Yet Suboxone is 'taboo?'"

• Ist...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• January 25, 2016

For Opioid Use Disorder "I'm currently on my third day of detox from Suboxone. I'm fairly sick, can't control my stomach at times. I've been having the worst insomnia and have only been able to sleep for a few hours at a time before I wake up in a pool of my own sweat. I started my jump at 2 mgs. I had been tapering for a while to get to this point and finally made the decision to end this affliction that overall I've been dealing with for close to three years. I read so many wonderful shared stories here. It's given me a lot of hope as I forge my own personal story."

• Jac...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 19, 2022

For Opioid Use Disorder "Personally, I should say no one should ever get on Suboxone. Through personal experience, it was the absolute worst thing I could’ve ever done to my body and my mind. I should’ve just gotten through the little withdrawal of heroin and gone to 12-step meetings and gotten my life back. I am 90 days off of Suboxone and still going through intense physical symptoms every day of my life. My hands and feet are always sweating and discolored, my back always hurts, I get numbness and tingling through my whole body, my head hurts every single day, it is doing weird things to my skin, I have absolutely no sex drive, it literally feels like it destroyed my body and I’m only 23 years old. Suboxone is a trap physically and mentally. If you’re going through withdrawal, use Suboxone for 5 to 7 days and then stay off of it. I’m telling you from personal experience, it just isn’t worth it, the amount of stuff you go through."

• nik...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• November 12, 2013

For Opioid Use Disorder "I have been on Suboxone since 2005 (8 years). I started taking this medicine when I hit rock bottom. I was addicted to Percocet, morphine, and Klonopin. I hated myself. My doctor suggested I take Suboxone. Eight years later, I am still on this medication. I have never relapsed while on Suboxone!!!!! I have a few side effects: dizzy, sweaty, and tired. These effects are nothing compared to the way I was living my life addicted to opiates. I am truly thankful for Suboxone."

• Sam...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• January 15, 2013

For Opioid Use Disorder "I have been clean now for 114 days. Before Suboxone, I had given up on everything. Myself, my kids, and my husband. When I first used Suboxone, I started with 4 mg. I had a horrible reaction to it. Everything was slow motion, I was vomiting, sweating, nodding in and out, aches and pains everywhere. The scariest part was the hard time breathing. It's like I forgot to breathe. My clinic doctor had never seen or heard of a reaction like that. I refused to give up, though, after 5-7 days, I had finally felt like me (before my addiction took over). I have had some side effects, but minor ones. I finally have my family back!"

• Kit...
• November 13, 2019

For Opioid Use Disorder "I don’t know what happened, but I was excited about taking this. But the first day I had received the prescription late, so I took the required dose of 8mg/2mg. I felt good right away, but about 40 minutes later, I could feel something hit me - I couldn’t stop throwing up, had a horrible migraine headache, and I thought I was going to pass out, dizzy and confused. I could not walk straight. Sweating puddles, my hair was soaking wet. I had to call paramedics to make sure I wasn’t reacting badly to it. I was given 60 strips for under the tongue of film 8mg/2mg to be taken twice a day. I threw up for 8 hours and finally stopped. No sleep, I haven’t taken another dose. Horrible nightmare for me!!"

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• October 31, 2021

For Opioid Use Disorder "My son was on Suboxone for about a year due to dependence on over-the-counter medicines. After a year on Suboxone, he tapered off, and since March 21, has suffered constantly from sleeplessness, muscle cramps, diarrhea, frequent urination, and excessive sweating. Under no circumstances would I recommend this drug to anyone, unless you want to have an addiction by another name."

• jdh...
• November 2, 2009

For Opioid Use Disorder "I started Suboxone 2 months ago. Prior to this, I had been abusing painkillers for over ten years and have been to jail about 5 times over fake prescriptions. Suboxone is a miracle. I don't think about getting high anymore, period. I take two 8 mg's a day, and I'm happy at that dose. The only side effects I have are a little constipation and increased sweating. This is how I feel about taking a drug like Suboxone to treat addiction: I believe that opioid dependence is a medical disease and that therefore it will respond to the right medication. I think an opioid-dependent person using Suboxone is no different than a diabetic person using insulin. I can't imagine why I wouldn't just take Suboxone the rest of my life."

• Mau...
• November 14, 2016

For Opioid Use Disorder "My experience taking Suboxone was the complete opposite of what I thought it would be. I always viewed Suboxone as the lesser of two evils between methadone because Suboxone contains naloxone, so you technically can't get 'high.' Not that I have anything against people who choose methadone as their recovery route; I have actually tried methadone in the past to actually get high and, well... I succeeded, lol. When I started taking Suboxone, I got really bad side effects after the first month of taking it. I would severely sweat to the point I wanted to bash my head through a wall. It was so rough on my body. But my maintenance program doctor just said it was 'withdrawals' because when you take the pill every day, I guess you're technically withdrawing from the one you took the day before due to the long half-life on Suboxone. So his idea was to up my dose to 12 mg to see if the sweating would go away (I didn't see the logic in that idea too). Anyway, it didn't, so he tossed me some clonidine, which helped a little. But the side effects kept adding up, such as headaches, severe constipation to the point I had to use daily enemas (not normal), abdominal pains came too along with nausea and vomiting (every day). It just got to the point where my mind and body couldn't be on the medication anymore. I was on it for 7 long months, even trying to wean myself down on my own. That was a struggle too, seeing how the withdrawals from Suboxone are supposedly worse than heroin sickness, which my doctor and counselor kindly reminded me after I was already hooked. It was a messy time in my life. Suboxone gave me severe anxiety, which left me buying benzos off the street just to mellow me out. I went to a weekly Suboxone maintenance program on purpose. To get piss tested weekly and to have a doctor and counselor help me move forward. But instead, I felt I was moving 10 steps back. My only option to get off the Suboxone (which was my choice, obviously) was to get the vivitrol shot and have 3 bad days of sickness but be off Suboxone. It took me a week to build myself up to do it because I was terrified of how bad the sickness was going to be. Choosing the vivitrol shot had to be the best worst idea I have ever made. I did get violently sick after it, but it went away. Plus, my doctor who gave me the shot helped me out with some comfort meds, so it wasn't all that bad. That was in December 2015 that I received the shot and have been clean since. So my advice for any addict who's struggling on which route to take for recovery: just get the shot. They'll give comfort meds for the first couple of days, then after that, you'll be shackle-free from drugs. I'm telling ya, choose vivitrol if you need to detox. For others who take Suboxone for other reasons, such as pain or etc., power to you; but if y'all are struggling out there and want to get sober quick, vivitrol's the answer. Methadone and Suboxone will just make you sicker down the road."

• Bla...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• January 10, 2018

For Opioid Use Disorder "After two years and a slow taper. After Christmas the 26th, I ran out of the last little piece. That night, the sweats and chills hit. Never slept all night for 15 days, RLS was the worst. Still not normal. The stuff worked wonders until it's gone and out. Never again taking this, the withdrawal symptoms aren't worth it."

• col...
• August 8, 2008

For Opioid Use Disorder "I have been clean since May, and it is a beautiful thing. To think that I was a college student, learning all these things, and the only thing I knew was dope. I mustered up some courage, and after talking to the campus counselor, I called a specialist. After a long night of no sleep and cold sweats, among other nightmarish withdrawal symptoms, I dragged myself to the doctor's office with my loving girlfriend beside me. My life spun 180 degrees that day, and I never looked back."

• Lis...
• January 27, 2009

For Opioid Use Disorder "I was addicted to opiate painkillers for a little over a year, and it got to the point where if I didn't take them, I would get cold sweats, body aches, and diarrhea. My whole world revolved around taking Vicodin or Norcos. I had to take them just to feel normal. Then I heard about a drug called Suboxone. I went to a drug rehabilitation clinic, and they prescribed it to me. Twenty minutes after taking it, I felt 100 times better. I can't believe how amazingly it worked. Some people try to say that it is just substituting one drug for another, but that is definitely not the case. Suboxone was not at all addictive, nor did it cause me to have withdrawals. It is an awesome drug, and I definitely recommend it to anyone with opiate dependence."

• bee...
• May 13, 2009

For Opioid Use Disorder "Wow! That's all I can say. I had my doubts. Withdrawals-fever, cold sweats, chills, dilated pupils, upset stomach, shakes, extreme anxiety, loss of appetite. Should I say more? Well, I did not have one of them. Suboxone-a miracle drug."

• kur...
• November 16, 2008

For Opioid Use Disorder "I have been on Suboxone for almost a year. I was using 80 mg Oxy's for almost 6 months prior to this drug. Suboxone has saved my life, my marriage, my sanity, etc. I do have some side effects, but I am used to them. The side effects are constipation, sweating, and sometimes mild headaches. I also had trouble urinating at first. I am ready to taper the dose. I recommend this medicine to all who suffer with opiate dependence like I do. It truly helped me get in a program without being 'dope sick' first, and it helps with cravings. Good luck to all."

• Anonymous
• March 29, 2009

For Opioid Use Disorder "I was prescribed Suboxone 8 mg (naloxone 2 mg) and found that the benefits were far greater than the side effects. Upon my initial use, I began to feel better about 30 minutes after administration. About 3 days later, I had no cravings for opiates or other drugs. I began to feel like a normal person again. There are a few side effects that not everybody feels, but I did for many weeks, which was nausea, vomiting, dizziness, muscle aches, and joint pain. I also experienced a lot of sweating. For the nausea and vomiting, my doctor prescribed Phenergan, which worked great except it makes you very sleepy. After about 3 months of taking the Suboxone and a few minor dosage adjustments, I feel even better and have not returned to opiate usage."

• Alm...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• October 10, 2021

For Opioid Use Disorder "I have been on Suboxone for several years. I thought it was the best option that I could find. The choices/options were zero. For an epidemic, there aren't any solutions or hopes for any. We all are happy for Suboxone, mainly because it was the only other game in town for us without finances for high-end drug withdrawal resorts. But we should not just compare Suboxone to opioids. I am past that, and now I must compare Suboxone to NO DRUGS AT ALL. No more sweats, chills, confusion. No more mood swings, depression, dizzy spells, cramps, and a loss of who I am. Because, compared to no symptoms, Suboxone is still a barrier keeping me away from who I am, or can be. I won't know what that is for 6 months if I start my taper now. I want to know who I am, without symptoms, without Suboxone. I don't imagine it is going to be perfect, but it will be the genuine ME. God will lead me there....."

• run...
• December 28, 2010

For Opioid Use Disorder "Suboxone was great for my opiate dependence. I was using 160 mg of oxy daily and really wanted to be free from its painful grip that it had on me. I tried quitting cold turkey but couldn't stand the withdrawal symptoms. So I went to a doctor and got on Suboxone. Things were great until I started tapering off of it and eventually quit. The withdrawal was not as painful as opiate withdrawal but lasted a lot longer. Day 3 was when it began, mostly when trying to sleep: cold sweats, the kicks, could not sleep at all. Day 7 now, and I have not slept more than 2 hours a night yet. I have read posts on other sites, and everyone else has had the same problems. I hear day 10 is when it starts to get better, and that it takes about 2 weeks before it's over."