Originally Posted by
jojo555 
I have been taking suboxone for about 10 days now. I do not want to get addicted to it after being an addict most of my life. I took this to get off methadone and it worked really great. Now I'm trying to go down each day, but it seems like either my methadone is still in my system and I'm still going through withdrawals (I stopped taking methadone 11 days ago) or I'm just experiencing a really rocky time. Can anyone tell me how long it actually takes to form a habit on suboxone and if I stop taking them tomorrow, am I going to experience withdrawals from either the methadone still or the suboxone. I know the last time I went through the withdrawal process, it took about 30 days to feel normal. I'm trying not to experience too much discomfort because I have a lot of responsibilities. But I can't seem to quit!!!!
Well. This is really a lot more complex then "will I get addicted to suboxone". The truth is you are already dependent on opiates. You opiate receptors require external stimulation and something to be bound to them. That started once you began abusing your full agonist of choice be it oxy, heroin or what not. Once you transitioned to methadone for maintenance, that is when you began to work on your "addiction". Remember. addiction and physical dependence are two vastly different things. Addiction is more psychological. It is the out of control use of substance. By going to methadone (and now suboxone) you began to get your addiction under control. If you and your doctor now feel that your life is under control and you will not go back to your addict behavior. THEN you can begin working on your physical dependence. I would not worry so much about how long before you are "addicted" to suboxone. You are already dependent on it. You were before you started it as your receptors still required some sort of agonist/partial agonist in order to keep your comfortable.
From what I understand the transition from methadone to suboxone is one of the most tricky and difficult of all inductions. It may take you a few weeks to stabilize on suboxone. I would, of course, talk with your doctor about any plans of action. But, I would suggest you allow yourself to stabilize on suboxone and get to feeling normal. Then you can begin discussing a taper plan/exit strategy. There is no free ride. You will have to deal with withdrawal at some point. However, the idea with sub is that you fix one half of your problem (the addiction) and once you are emotionally and psychologically stable and in a better place. Then it is believed you would have a better time trying to taper and deal with the physical withdrawal.
Whole lot of words here for the simple statement of. I would not worry about being addicted to sub and rushing to get off. generally speaking it is more dangerous to try to get off quickly then it is to stabilize and exit when you are more psychologically ready.