A new edition to mmt......

[Mokelly]

Hey everyone,
It's been a while since I've posted anything, but now I have some things to share with all of you and hope you have advice for me. Anyhow I'll cut to the chase, I've progressed rapidly into dilaudid and heroin injection, and as I can't procure a steady supply I'm constantly up and down, and I'm getting sick of it. Sick and tired of being sick and tired (I'm sure you've heard that one before). So I have decided to go on methadone maintenance as I know if I get suboxone or subutex I won't take it and will be back to the same bullshit. I'll get my first dose of methadone on thursday which will be 30 milligrams and then I'll go up 5-10 mgs a day until I get on a stabilized dose. Luckily I only have to drive 20 minutes to get to my clinic. So basically I'm just looking for some wisdom and advise from all you veterans of methadone maintenance.

Thanks guys & gals,
Morgan

[Mokelly]

I guess not then......

[shaunclo]

Glad to hear from yas Mokelly, Hopefully someone will help you out, I have only ever been on suboxone/subutex and have no methadone experience.

What is it that your actaully wondering? What is a stable dose for most, or what its like at the meth clinic? Try to elaborate on your Q so we can try and help you out with the details a little better.

[Mokelly]

yeah sorry I'm just looking for stories relating to day to day methadone maintenance and how it effects you guys in both positive and negative ways...

[poppy]

Hi Mokelly, good to hear from you again.
So you want to know about methadone, the pros and cons!
I'm on methadone maintainence myself so I have mainly good things to say about it, having said that I've never actually done a rattle off methadone, which is by all accounts pretty hellish. My boyfriend H has been a junkie for over 20 years and has done several enforced withdrawals when he's been to prison and he says by far the worst rattle he's ever done was off methadone. So if you think your withdrawals were bad off the other opies you've been using, things will probably be much worse off methadone. I hope I never have to find out in such a way, or anyone for that matter, I aim to do a nice slow reduction over a long period of time.............................but to do that you've got to be prepared to put up with and accept that the meth clinic almost own you, also you've got to accept the stigma of being a junkie, even if most of the people in your life don't know what you are, the people at the clinic will and will probably treat you like a low life. Thats how it is in the uk anyway. The clinic have your life in their hands, they can stop and start your methadone as and when they choose, if you don't play ball properly in terms of attending appointments, collecting scripts etc, they have the power to stop your script which will quickly become 'your health' (at least that's how I see mine, one of my worst nightmares is going back to those desolate pre script days again) If the clinic says jump you'll have to jump, your life is no longer yours as such, but then your lifes not your own once you sign on the dotted opiate line, methadone maintainence is just an extention of that.

I think you should be aware that the chances are your methadone script will probably go up over time, and I don't just mean this stabilizing period you're in at the moment, which of course has a ceiling so to speak, they're not going to put you on 1000ml of meth a day however big you say your habit is (at least you wouldn't over here in the uk) I started off with a 30ml daily dose of methadone for what was honestly for a £10 a day habit. It worked, for the first week I thought it was a miracle cure, no more waking up rattling, no more getting the kids sorted in the morning feeling like death, no more trying to get the funds together to buy a bag for me and my boyfriend, tossing and turning, arguing with each other for no reason other than we felt shit, shitting, puking, the list goes on...................and on...Yep for a week it was wonderful and would have continued to be If only I'd stuck to it.... it would of worked out just fine, problem was/is I didn't stick to just the 30ml dose of meth I carried on having my £10 bag of gear on top of it. End result: much bigger habit than I started out with to an opiate with a worse withdrawal and still no nearer a cure and my methadone was no longer holding me. Therefore over time my methadone has gone up and up as has my boyfriends.(thankfully we've got our scripts down a bit, just lately) At one point (a point which lasted about 4 years) we had our methadone in injectable amp form. Even that didn't stop us scoring gear on top of our scripts. We no longer have our amps (actually we voluntarily gave them up, in the end we were just sick of them, the buzz didn't come close to the buzz we got from heroin (to us at least, I'm sure others will have a different opinion) so we swapped it for methadone mixture (admittedly a good part of the logic behind this was my shitty rapidly deteriorating veins, it made sense to drink our meth and reserve any injections to heroin a buzz we really enjoyed)Anyway my boyfriend is now on 95ml methadone a day, and I am on 65ml methadone a day. We are now finally managing to do clean tests which involves not using gear on top of our meth for four days at a time, but the pull to gear is still great, for both of us.
Personally I don't really get a buzz from methadone (at the moment at least, never say never!) I find it enables me to function as a normal(lol) member of society without the hassles that go with heroin. What I'm saying is don't think of it as an easy way to get a buzz because it isn't(I was going to say free buzz, but you guys over the pond have to pay for it don't you? I guess that makes things different)
I suppose it depends what your expectations are. All I'm really saying is I started a methadone script after a one year addiction to heroin, thinking I'd do a 3 months reduction I am still on it in much larger quantities than I started with and am not really any nearer ending my relationship with opiates, if anything my love for them grows stronger with everyyear. Having said that thanks to methadone, I am not breaking the law in order to get money for drugs, therefore I am not in prison, I still have full custody of both my children and have never had any interference from any governement agencies eg social workers etc, I am able to attend college, my boyfriend works full time as a jcb driver. In other words I/we are able to live a fully functional life even if it is an unusual one by most people's standards, however it is not a life I could or would reccommend or wish on anyone, as I can't turn the clock back, methadone gives me the best life possible for me at the moment.
Thats all!!(a bit long winded, not well written but hopefully it makes some sort of sense!!I hope)

[shaunclo]

Hi Mokelly, good to hear from you again.
So you want to know about methadone, the pros and cons!
I'm on methadone maintainence myself so I have mainly good things to say about it, having said that I've never actually done a rattle off methadone, which is by all accounts pretty hellish. My boyfriend H has been a junkie for over 20 years and has done several enforced withdrawals when he's been to prison and he says by far the worst rattle he's ever done was off methadone. So if you think your withdrawals were bad off the other opies you've been using, things will probably be much worse off methadone. I hope I never have to find out in such a way, or anyone for that matter, I aim to do a nice slow reduction over a long period of time.............................but to do that you've got to be prepared to put up with and accept that the meth clinic almost own you, also you've got to accept the stigma of being a junkie, even if most of the people in your life don't know what you are, the people at the clinic will and will probably treat you like a low life. Thats how it is in the uk anyway. The clinic have your life in their hands, they can stop and start your methadone as and when they choose, if you don't play ball properly in terms of attending appointments, collecting scripts etc, they have the power to stop your script which will quickly become 'your health' (at least that's how I see mine, one of my worst nightmares is going back to those desolate pre script days again) If the clinic says jump you'll have to jump, your life is no longer yours as such, but then your lifes not your own once you sign on the dotted opiate line, methadone maintainence is just an extention of that.

I think you should be aware that the chances are your methadone script will probably go up over time, and I don't just mean this stabilizing period you're in at the moment, which of course has a ceiling so to speak, they're not going to put you on 1000ml of meth a day however big you say your habit is (at least you wouldn't over here in the uk) I started off with a 30ml daily dose of methadone for what was honestly for a £10 a day habit. It worked, for the first week I thought it was a miracle cure, no more waking up rattling, no more getting the kids sorted in the morning feeling like death, no more trying to get the funds together to buy a bag for me and my boyfriend, tossing and turning, arguing with each other for no reason other than we felt shit, shitting, puking, the list goes on...................and on...Yep for a week it was wonderful and would have continued to be If only I'd stuck to it.... it would of worked out just fine, problem was/is I didn't stick to just the 30ml dose of meth I carried on having my £10 bag of gear on top of it. End result: much bigger habit than I started out with to an opiate with a worse withdrawal and still no nearer a cure and my methadone was no longer holding me. Therefore over time my methadone has gone up and up as has my boyfriends.(thankfully we've got our scripts down a bit, just lately) At one point (a point which lasted about 4 years) we had our methadone in injectable amp form. Even that didn't stop us scoring gear on top of our scripts. We no longer have our amps (actually we voluntarily gave them up, in the end we were just sick of them, the buzz didn't come close to the buzz we got from heroin (to us at least, I'm sure others will have a different opinion) so we swapped it for methadone mixture (admittedly a good part of the logic behind this was my shitty rapidly deteriorating veins, it made sense to drink our meth and reserve any injections to heroin a buzz we really enjoyed)Anyway my boyfriend is now on 95ml methadone a day, and I am on 65ml methadone a day. We are now finally managing to do clean tests which involves not using gear on top of our meth for four days at a time, but the pull to gear is still great, for both of us.
Personally I don't really get a buzz from methadone (at the moment at least, never say never!) I find it enables me to function as a normal(lol) member of society without the hassles that go with heroin. What I'm saying is don't think of it as an easy way to get a buzz because it isn't(I was going to say free buzz, but you guys over the pond have to pay for it don't you? I guess that makes things different)
I suppose it depends what your expectations are. All I'm really saying is I started a methadone script after a one year addiction to heroin, thinking I'd do a 3 months reduction I am still on it in much larger quantities than I started with and am not really any nearer ending my relationship with opiates, if anything my love for them grows stronger with everyyear. Having said that thanks to methadone, I am not breaking the law in order to get money for drugs, therefore I am not in prison, I still have full custody of both my children and have never had any interference from any governement agencies eg social workers etc, I am able to attend college, my boyfriend works full time as a jcb driver. In other words I/we are able to live a fully functional life even if it is an unusual one by most people's standards, however it is not a life I could or would reccommend or wish on anyone, as I can't turn the clock back, methadone gives me the best life possible for me at the moment.
Thats all!!(a bit long winded, not well written but hopefully it makes some sort of sense!!I hope)

Well if thats not one of the best written responses I have ever heard about meth, than I must have mist another thread, props to you poppy for the detailed info here.

[jacky]

methadone is good stuff for a few months at a time, I am not sure how healthy it is to be on it for years at a time, but for the short term or for a year or so I think it is great stuff.

as an occasional recreational vehicle I love the stuff, some people dont really get euphoria from it, but man I do.

remember with methadone maintenance, at first, it takes a few days to saturate the system, so the stronger effect will come on in about three days, dont worry if in the first few days that you are feeling somewhat down, that will go away.

also, if you start getting take home doses, or get more methadone on the street, dont double dose or triple dose every day, you will run the risk of extreme constipation. basically my body needed that once every 24 hour dose, but I was taking it 2-3 times a day, and after a month or so of that I built up a big obstruction, and had a very painful 2 days dealing with my constipation problems....I wont go into detail, but I could barely work, or walk much, as I couldnt pass a large ball of feces, I got a nickname (hashi...means chopstick) from the procedure I used rather than going to the emergency room to get cleaned out with a spoon while I am locked in stirrups..no siree, I did the home chopstick removal...........

I also know a good deal of people who would take methadone and then still take smack....after a few months they would be dependent on both, and notice if they missed either or of the two drugs

the state I live in doesnt have methadone, I used to drive to another state every week to get take home doses. it was great cause 4 of my freinds and me would drive the 4 hour distance each way every sat. night, and pick up a take home amount, it is legal to take the methadone into my home state, as long as the presription was written and filled in the other state. I would claim 90 milligrams a day, but was only taking 30 on average, so we could save up a large amount over a few months..then be able to stop doing the drive and drop out of the program, me and my girlfreind had accrued some 20 some grams worth.

[Coddfish]

Thanks for not going into too much detail, hashi!:rolleyes: That is some good experience.

I knew an old timer that was only on about 100 mg that had to go to the hospital for constipation, and I have had my share of problems with it. I concur, watch out ....or visit chinese restaurants often.

The first month or so I was on it was great. It was exciting to get up in the morning, and I slept like a rock at night. BUT, once you are on it for a while you do notice what poppy said, they RULE you. In the places I have been in it takes a while to get take-homes, and vacation doses are an f'n pain. It' not cool to tell your family you can't go to a funeral for some bullshit reason just because the clinic didn't do your paperwork right. (my family never knew about mmt). And the people you will meet, wow. it's alll types, but wow. There are some fucked up people on meth programs; I found the early morning crowd the most interesting.
If it works for you, then great. But if you are hoping to be rid of it all, then try not to get on too high a dose and get off as soon as you can. It's a LOT easier early on, promise you that much.

[Mokelly]

Thanks a lot guys... I know it's going to have it's pros and cons but at least I know they're really nice there, and vacation doses are a breeze....


I'll probably end up on 80-120 mg they said. Is that a good amount? Even over time will I still feel it?

[antigonemuse]

Mo, sweety, empty your PM's... I cant get to you....

Hope all is well hun

peace

[opiobsessed]

Very informative info, I will be heading into a clinic only 20 mins from me and the only thing currently keeping me stalled is credit cards maxed out, no cash barely, strung out so bad on subs and binging on vicodin, then back on subs. I"m such a wreck right now, I barely can get stuff done around the house the past few days, other main worry is the one car we have is well at least reliable for now, but its an old used car and one main worry I have about letting the clinic own me is if the car breaks down or I run out of cash. I already got myself in a hell of a mess staying on the suboxone a year and a half and paying friggin $450 a month until the last 3 months when insurance finally kicked in and now I'm paying only $65 a month for the darn things, and now they are not doing me much good to boot. One thing I am looking forward to about going to the clinic is, I hope for once in my life that maybe I will meet another junkie there who has something in common with me and we become good friends and I get some support or people like me to hang out with to break up the monotony. My local clinic has strange hours too, 6 am to 8 am and then only 12pm to 1 pm, of course I have been used to getting up at noon for years now so I'm sure my life will make another big change as it has since I became a junkie. Hopefully it will be a change for the better like it was when I first found opiates.

[devilsdrug]

dont do it dont dont do it nobody , that is nobody i knew in the late 70s and 80s on done is alive edit that is thaat stayed on it

[HistoryofMadness]

dont do it dont dont do it nobody , that is nobody i knew in the late 70s and 80s on done is alive edit that is thaat stayed on it

I agree... you will eventually have to come off, and you will never get away from WD... plus methadone will not keep you from using, ask anyone on this board, not if it blocks or if its supposed to keep you away, but if THEY use on it.

DD has a pretty good maintenance regimen (hope you don't mind the disclosure) 2 tsp of poppy grounds each day... its cheaper than methadone and you won't be treated like a cow being herded through the medical community.

If you are sure you're ready to quit, just do a 10 day detox with subs or methadone, or some other managed method, and take your break or quit.

After methadone, your WD will be worse, your tolerance will be sky high, and you'll use truckloads just to get fucked up. Its not a good solution especially if you're just out of money or have a small pill problem.

I'd try all other options before suboxone or methadone if I had it to do over.

[poonwhalla]

If you need it cool but methadone is some nasty shit the WD's from them are 10 times worse if not more IMO

[Mokelly]

I'm not ready to give up EVERYTHING yet, that's why I'm going on mmt. But if I ever get sick and tired of it and want to stop I'm going to get weened off and then jump on to some suboxone or subutex to finish off the withdrawals from that..




My evaluation is in an hour and a half and my first dose is tomorrow morning.... I'll let you all know how it goes.

[Matty Fats 420]

i was on methadone for about a year till i got off and believe me it was hellish. went to a 21 day inpatient program just to come off meth but the WD were still killer. just if you can try not to fail any drug tests. failing=more meth=harder to come off in the end=sucks balls. if your counsler is cool shell prob remind you what days your drug tests are on. i had a really cool one. just try not to get cought cuz they will just keep upping you and that, you dont want. peace MO. hit me up when you get a chance

[Mokelly]

that shit's bananas, I mean bellybutton, I mean..... (inside joke with me and matt) damn man I didn't know you were on the DONE... that's crazy. well I got my evaluation done, but I don't get any done till' next wed. it's all good though, I've got some friendly fent patches that are keeping me cuddly wuddly till' then.....

Thanks for sharing all of your experience with me guys and gals, it means a lot.

Morgan

[Tar_Baby]

yeah sorry I'm just looking for stories relating to day to day methadone maintenance and how it effects you guys in both positive and negative ways...
Well its double edged sword (methadone) It will fix you good for 24 hours and will get you out of that high/sick/high/sick BS..Thats a stressful ride isnt it? Its one thing to crave drugs but when you are physically hooked you got no choice whether you wanna use or not..Its fix or be in agony..
Anyway yeah methadone will help you alot just be patient and get your dose up to where you feel ok..you shouldnt be able to feel heroin at all or really even want it when you get stable..
On the down side it kills the sex drive, makes you smoke alot more cigs..and makes you emotionally numb. Its also a longer kick when you want off.
But dont worry about all that.
If you are out scoring off the streets and physically hooked then get your ass on the methadone. Dont worry about when you gotta get off of it. Dont set a date to be off the methadone.
Just get yer dose up for now..then try to get your life patched up with work and family etc.
Its gotten me completely off heroin and I never think about it at all..Ive recently slipped up myself with another drug..but that happens from time to time to those of us that are the true drug addicts. Just gotta pick up and go on..

Also the methadone seems to cure alot of the depression and anxiety I normally have and makes dealing with people easier (like when you work with the public) Just really seems to keep my mood at an even keel.
Also cures cravings for alcohol.
PM me if you have questeons..IF your clinic is like mine most of the nurses etc are ignorant of methadone and what it actually does..and its history. So youll need to research it ..My clinic cant even answer basic shit on it..( nurse didnt even know what thebaine was)

[Tar_Baby]

Ok, its times like this when I hate being a MMT patient (up at 6 am for clinic drive) but Im also driving to get the best fix in town. :)
Im glad that Im not digging for an early am vein instead..my veins suck and I gotta shoot into my fingers and wrists..
Like the pinky and "karate chop" on my left hand probably have 70 puncture wounds snaking around from my recent cocaine binge..
Anyway sorry I dont know why Im rattling this shit off at 6 am..

[kat1lifeleft]

All i know is that for me, I NEVER felt any high/euphoria from methadone. I kept my dose very low so that I could easily taper. It's just that for some reason I was terrified to even try to come off... I guess because it became such a crutch, where I could switch up and not take my dose (save it, I had take home/prescription) and shoot up instead for however long- then when i was ready/or broke! I had my saved up methadone to keep me even until I either got my new methadone script or more cash and dope. So it became a lifeline for me- I'd save those puppies like they were GOLD- wouldn't sell them for any amount b/c I knew that even though I wouldn't be high- I damn sure wouldn't be sick either! I think methadone is a good option if you keep the dose LOW- not keep going in to get increased til you get up at 120 mg and then I guess it would be a real shitty w/d. Just my opinion...:rolleyes:

[Matty Fats 420]

its Bellybutton mykelly, belly button!! hahaha i used to be on methadone, its good while your one it but its either forever your you better start telling your counsler that your planning on kicking within a year, just my opinion. but keep your head up son! i mean bellybutton! peace!

[poppy]

that shit's bananas, I mean bellybutton, I mean..... (inside joke with me and matt)


its Bellybutton mykelly, belly button!! hahaha

I'm assuming this makes no sense to anyone else either?!! If I'm wrong please enlighten me!! if I'm not wrong, have you thought of PM'ing each other?!!!

[candy]

I did a slow detox off of Methadone without any withdrawals or discomfort.

My clinic put me on a blind detox and over a long period, a little over 6 months or so, I detoxed off of the Methadone.
With a "blind detox", you don't know how much or when they drop you. But, I never experienced any problems and when I went in one day to pick up my take homes, I was told I was done and they gave me my last 3 take homes. I never even took them and felt fine.

I think the best thing to remember is that everyone is different and we all experience things in a different way. Mokelly-your experience on Methadone may be good and you will be able to detox off. Whereas someone else may not have the same experience.

I would recommend not using on top of your Methadone dose. Not only will this only lead to you using more opiates to get high, but you will end up needing to increase your dose of Methadone to get to an effective dose.

The standard practice in Methadone clinics is to start at ~30mgs and increase the dose. At an effective dose, you should be able to go a full 24 hours without experiencing any withdrawal symptoms. If you dose at 8 am every morning, at an effective dose, you shouldn't feel any type of withdrawal symptoms in between dosing.

As I said, everyone is different and your dose may be significantly different than that of someone else. One person may be fine at 80mg and another may need 120mg to maintain a daily dose. Go with how you feel. As someone said, it takes a few days.

Some things to remember; Don't use other opiates on top of your dose; Some medications can interfere with the metabolism of your Methadone. The clinic should be able to supply you with a list of meds that can interfere with Methadone; Some swear that eating before getting dosed helps in the absorption of the Methadone.

I would not recommend a "cold turkey" type of detox from Methadone. It is a long detox and some say worse than heroin. Methadone clinics do offer a 21 day detox, but the success rate is not high and most go to the maintenance program.

Just do what is right for you. If Methadone works for you, then stay with it. If not, there are other options.
Good luck!