Sublocade and Constipation: What Users Say

• Pai...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 14, 2025

For Opioid Use Disorder "I was on Suboxone for 8 years (4-6 mg). I decided to go the Sublocade route. I did have to increase my dosage to 8 mg daily before I got the shot. The shot itself was painless (my doc numbed me up before). At first, I HATED the shot, I was groggy, numb, and withdrawn. However, after two weeks, I started to feel better. I recommend that YOU DO NOT SUPPLEMENT!!! The whole reason to get this shot is to get off daily Suboxone. Yes, there was some discomfort in the beginning, but try to stick it out. My doctor recommended 3 shots total: 300 mg, 300 mg, 100 mg. After the first shot, I realized I feel fine, I called the doctor's office and canceled my next shots. There are some side effects, my constipation is horrible, I feel like I gained a few pounds (for some reason, I craved SWEETS the first month). However, it’s been two months since my shot, and I feel better every day!"

• Pre...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 15, 2022

For Opiate Dependence - Maintenance "I started on Suboxone 2 years ago. It was fine. No side effects, really, except constipation. I didn't like taking it daily, the whole routine of it, and absolutely didn't like the taste. So I switched to Sublocade. I didn't notice the transition, except being really tired for about two months. I have nothing but good things to say about it, and it's kept me opiate/heroin-free for two years. I have absolutely no desire to use, so I've decided to go off Sublocade cold turkey. After reading the reviews, I'm quite confident."

• joe...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 26, 2023

For Opiate Dependence - Maintenance "I had my fourth 300 mg shot yesterday and feel awful: nauseated and badly constipated. I will not be getting any more shots because it did not work for me at all. I might even lose my job because I was too sick to go to work. I have been on Suboxone strips for 13 years and am dying to get off, but I will most likely be on it for my whole life. It's all about the money. Remember that they are not trying to cure anyone. The reason I say this is that buprenorphine, which is sold alone in tablets, works better than Suboxone with no naloxone and only costs $30.00 for a month's supply, whereas Suboxone strips cost hundreds of dollars. The VA medical board told doctors to stop prescribing it about 4 years ago and the only way to get this cheap medication is to be pregnant or allergic to naloxone. It's a 50-50 shot with Sublocade. It did not work for me, and I am stopping. No more for me. It makes me feel like rubbish."

• Mug...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 20, 2022

For Opioid Use Disorder "BEWARE before taking it if you are sensitive to meds and subs! I really don't like Sublocade. I have been on it since February 2022, and it has been awful. I started on 300 mg, which was instantly too high; I slept 14 hours a night and couldn't stay awake throughout the day. I went down to 100 mg. Still too high. I gained 30 lbs within the first month and a half on this, could not stay awake throughout the day, and was foggy-headed. I became SO constipated that I have to take this daily: two Ex-Lax pills, one Colace clear, and four doses of Miralax. I have to give myself an enema at least twice weekly because I am so blocked up. My doc said my only choice was this or methadone, or she wouldn't treat me, so I got a second opinion from an expert, who ran the FDA trials for Sublocade. He said the 100 mg dose was too high and was a 'TOXIC' dose for me. It slows down EVERYTHING: my body, mind, and ability to function. After nine months, I'm finally getting off it and will never go back to it."

• Kat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 26, 2022

For Opiate Dependence - Maintenance "I've been an opiate addict for 20 years now. After 5 years on Suboxone, I was looking for a new solution. I ended up going with Sublocade. I had two 300 mg injections and one 100 mg. It's been 2 months now since my last injection, and I'm still feeling great. The only side effects I had while on the injection were tiredness and constipation. I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who is ready to be sober."

• Rom...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 7, 2021

For Opioid Use Disorder "Got my first 300 injection today, about 5 hours ago, after only taking 8 mg today and taking 32 mg daily until today for over 20 years, and I feel normal. I got the lidocaine injection a few minutes before to numb it, and I felt nothing. I’m hoping to jump off after one or two, or maybe even after the 100 mg one, which is the third. Tired of being on subs and feeling depressed and numb and angry and gaining weight and constipated and losing teeth, this awful drug! Heard it’s easier to come off of than the sublingual buprenorphine, so fingers crossed."

• Swo...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 28, 2021

For Opiate Dependence - Maintenance "I thought Sublocade was going to be a godsend. Not going to a pharmacy every day, only having to get injected once a month. This injection stays in your body for a long period of time. It has been over 4 months since my last injection, and I still have a prominent amount in my system. It causes extreme nightmares, constipation, sleep irregularities/difficulties, weight gain, hunger, balance issues. Please be aware that this medicine isn't as great as you'd think."

• ZDo...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 16, 2022

For Opiate Dependence - Maintenance "I have been on 8 mg per day of buprenorphine since 2005 (a total of 17 years), and it is about time I got off this medication. I feel that buprenorphine is very effective in helping me manage opioid dependence. However, I feel that buprenorphine has some unwanted side effects for me, like chronic constipation, depression, and an overall dulling of the feeling of being alive. I feel buprenorphine has robbed me of some of the joy of living and ambition. I discussed with my doctor a strategy for the cessation of buprenorphine for me, and we decided on Sublocade to accomplish this. I received one 300 mg shot exactly 88 days ago. So far, the Sublocade lump is completely gone, and I have been feeling very minimal negative effects. The symptoms I have been feeling are subtle, and I wonder if it's just in my head or I am really experiencing withdrawal symptoms as I have not received a follow-up shot. I do feel a little depression, and normal bowel function has resumed. So far, piece of cake...."

• Kat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 5, 2022

For Opioid Use Disorder "I was an opiate user for 20 years prior to beginning Suboxone treatment in 2017. After 4 years, it became apparent that I wasn't going to be able to come off Suboxone without awful withdrawals, so I figured I was stuck on it for life. Then I heard about the Sublocade injection from a friend. I figured I had nothing to lose. So far, I have had 2, 300 mg shots, and I feel great. No withdrawal, no cravings. I just feel normal again. My next injection is supposed to be 100 mg, but at this point, I'm holding off to see if I'll even need it. The only side effects I've experienced from Sublocade are sleeplessness the day of the injection, some discomfort at the injection site for a few days, and also constipation, which I'm used to from the Suboxone anyway. If you are looking to break the daily habit of needing to take something, Sublocade is absolutely the way to go. It has literally given me my life back!"

• Mba...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 13, 2020

For Opioid Use Disorder "I have been on Subutex for years. Way better than the shot. Plan on feeling sick, constipated, and giving the system what they want. (Even when they say free) plan on counseling, etc. At $1,700 a shot, plus you have to call the company and tell them month to month to ship my shot to the pharmacy, then to the free drug and alcohol clinic if you can get it. I make $50,000 a year, but I felt so pressured I tried it. I did it for a month. Keep your doctor!!! Not worth it!! To each is their own, but because of my 6 months of probation, I felt pressured."