Day 3 on Suboxone
 

Hello everybody, I'm new to the site, and I started taking suboxone for opiate addiction 2 days ago. About 30 minutes after I took my first dose, my w/d symptoms disappeared, and I felt good, although quite dizzy. I'm currently on 20mg a day, and since that first dose, I haven't felt any good effects at all. In fact I feel downright awful. I've barely been able to get out of bed for 2 days. I feel very fatigued, and very depressed. Has anybody else had this reaction to suboxone? I know that it takes a while to adjust to the medication and I may still be going through w/d from oxycontin (about 50-60mg a day), but I am starting to get worried. I read all these glowing reviews online about how suboxone gave people their lives back, so I'm just hoping that day 3 brings a little more hope. I know I probably just need to be more patient, but this depression is pretty bad. Has anybody else felt awful for the first few days on sub, and then felt much better after that? Right now I can't even say that the sub has reduced my cravings for opiates at all. Bad, right? I'd really appreciate any advice/info/encouragement you could give me at this point. Thanks!!!!

Good luck bucklepump... you'll find plenty of support here. I know I did. Can't comment on the subs b/c I never took that route. I'm detoxing off of Methadone but not taking anything to help with the w/d symptoms....just tapering all the way down to 0, as slow as possible.

Hi Buckle,

Congratulations for taking charge of your life again and doing something about your addiction to oxys.

I am sorry to hear that you are having trouble adjusting to it. I am not your doctor so I cannot give you medical advice BUT I can tell you about my experience. I also had some difficulty adjusting and actually gave up three times, before I inducted properly with some good advice from people here and am doing much better now. I think with the dose of oxy that you were on, it is possible that you are taking too much sub, if you are having those problems. Everyone is different when it comes to the amount of sub that is warranted. Now that your opiate receptors are flooded with sub, try taking a small amount in the morning, like 2 mg, see how you feel in an hour. If you are still having withdrawal symptoms, take 2 more mg and wait another hour. Keep doing that 2 mg at a time. When your withdrawals dissipate, don't take any more. Stay at that dose for at least a week to stabilize.

When is your next doctor appointment? Are you able to call him and let him know what is going on? Honestly, from the symptoms you are having (which were the same as mine), I think you are just taking too much. If you talk to your doc, ask him if you can take less.

I hope that you start feeling better soon. I know how frustrating it is when you know how well sub can work, and then doesn't work as well for other people until they get their dose adjusted. All I can say is hang in there, it will get better, I promise.

I will be around all weekend, if you have any other questions.
Take care,
Lizzy

Hey Bucklepump,

Definitely talk to your doctor, but in the meantime don't be too discouraged. I was put on 24 mg suboxone at first and I was sick and practically falling asleep standing up. Once I started taking less (6mg/day per Dr) I felt much better, and it helped immensely with withdrawal and cravings. Wish you the best.

Congratulations for taking this step towards recovery! Give yourself a break, because transitioning from addictive abuse to maintenance takes time. Your body has been gong though the wringer for a long time. I had severe balance problems for about a week, probably due to the small fact that I was self-medicating. I abused Rx drugs and the doctors who prescribed them for years, so following directions and taking meds as prescribed was a big deal for me.

Your doctor is your best friend during this time. You might consider making a log of how you feel, severity, and timing of all your symptoms. This can help your doctor help you. Don't do what I did, which was taking things into my own control, tinkering with my dose, etc. Things will improve....rapidly!