Comparing Buprenorphine vs Sublocade

For Chronic Pain: I have had Fibromyalgia for 25 years +-, degeneration of the cervical spine and bulge of several discs in my lower back and neck which each area needs surgery but I refuse to go through it. I don't like being on buprenorphine because of the stigma behind it and having to go to the Dr. once a month I was on tramadol for 19 years which work well most of the time but it was starting to impact my liver enzymes and with both parents dying of liver cancer I wanting to reduce my risk. After 2-3 months on Buprenorphine 8M twice daily my liver enzymes went from 4X the upper limit to 1.5X the upper limit and is now almost under the upper limit. Using ultrasound my liver was 50% larger than it should be, now it is normal.

For Chronic Pain: I had been on OxyContin 5mg three times a day for years and years with Vicodin higher strength for breakthrough pain. I retired in 2017 and moved from California to Oregon and the opiate crisis was and still is in full bloom here. I was given OxyContin 5mg three time a day by my primary nurse practitioner for about 9 months but was then sent to a PM specialist. He switched me to buprenorphine 1mg tie. After having tried the patch which was alright but my copay was $109.00/month. He wanted to start me on the film one but the copay for that was $160.00/month . So now (just started the dissolvable pill 2mg but cut in half for a 1mg dose tie. Buprenorphine works for me most of the time but I could really use something else for breakthrough pain. Not gonna happen for me. I just want good pain relief, not a “high”. I guess that it’s too much to ask for.

For Opiate Dependence - Maintenance: I will share my experience with Sublocade. Prior I was on Suboxone, high dose for 2 years. I've now had 4 Sublocade injections (four months). Here's my report. Sublocade works -- but not in a dramatic fashion. Maybe 'subtle' is the correct word. I can tell that something is 'in the background' in my CNS, working, but there's no "highs" as what would one would get after dissolving a strip or two. For me that was hard getting used to: those initial rewards after taking first strips of the day. It's not there anymore. I requested a blood draw, to make sure there's actually Bupenorphine in my system. There is. It seems that I felt my best right after the 3rd injection. Oh, and when I first wake up in the morning I feel perfectly fine.

For Opiate Dependence - Maintenance: Had my first Sublocade shot today after 5 years on strips that no longer worked effectively. I will tell you that I break toes all the time (clumsy with really long finger-toenail always stubbing), been shot by 9mms GUN 124gn, and the worst had a knee surgery after being told I did not need to stop sub. strips, came out of anaesthesia, and it felt like they were still cutting into me - anyway I have to say the Sublocade injection was the most burning pain I had ever felt however I have little fat and it only lasted about 30 seconds. I feel better then I did when taking strips, so it is worth it, because the strips had started to make me sick for 30-45 minutes after I took them. They worked I would feel ok then for about 2 hours then felt like I needed another strip. This led to over use just trying to stay comfortable. I will get the next two 300mg shots and the 1-2 100mg shots then I will see how long I can go without getting another shot or I will demand the only give me a half of a 100mg shot.