Suboxone Treatment
if you or a loved one are struggling with opiate addiction please give us a call right now. Once you call we can work through this together.
 |
Suboxone and Subutex
Suboxone, also known as Buprenorphine, and the related drug Subutex, is one of the most misunderstood class of medications in the field of addiction. Although Suboxone can be used as an outpatient detox medication for opiates, and can be effective if taken correctly over a short period of time, it is often abused or taken along with other drugs by the client, leading to a worsening of their addiction.
In addition, Suboxone is often prescribed long term for maintenance of addiction, and the user can become physically dependent on the drug when it is prescribed in that matter, leading to an addiction to Suboxone that is equally as severe as the addiction to the original substance that the user is being treated for. |
Detoxifying From Other Opiates
Suboxone is a controlled substance that is available by prescription only. It is a mix of a semi synthetic opiate and an opiate blocker antagonist. While the user is detoxifying from other opiates, the synthetic opiates in the drug keep the user from becoming ill with withdrawal symptoms, while the opiate discourages the user from taking other opiates to achieve a high while they are taking Suboxone. The antagonist in the drug also discourages the user from injecting the drug. Suboxone is most commonly prescribed in doses of 8mg, 4 mg and 2mg. |
 |
| Dr. Romanos, our medical director, is licensed in the dispensing of Suboxone |
|
Suboxone Addiction and Treatment
The hope with outpatient Suboxone detox is that the user will taper down over a few weeks, eventually leaving the user drug free. With long term Suboxone maintenance, doctors use a harm reduction model; although the patient concedes that they will remain addicted to a substance, the theory of harm reduction is that at least the user is addicted to something that is controlled by drug manufacturers and available at a fixed cost as opposed to being addicted to a “street drug” such as heroin which may lead them to commit crimes to obtain their drugs. However, the actual physical and psychological addiction to Suboxone is the same as any other opiate, such as heroin or oxycontin.
Suboxone keeps a user from feeling the sickness of withdrawal...
 |
In practice, detox or maintenance use of Suboxone rarely works the way it should in theory. but it does not give the user the same type of high that they can obtain from other opiates. Because of this fact, the user will often obtain a Suboxone prescription with a vague plan of becoming sober, but will only use it on days when they cannot find or afford their drug of choice. The user will use heroin or another opiate for a few days, interspersed with a few days of Suboxone, in order to give themselves the feeling that they are not an “everyday” user. |
The largest danger associated with Suboxone is that of overdose...
In the preceding instance, the physiological addiction would be the same as if they were in fact an everyday user of the street drugs, because their body is still taking in an opiate every day. The largest danger associated with Suboxone is that of overdose. If a user has taken Suboxone in the morning, they may take an unusually large dose of heroin or oxycontin later in the day in order to overcome the opiate blocker in the Suboxone, and end up overdosing.
 |
A Suboxone user who has agreed to come into a life of permanent recovery will start with a seven to ten day stay in a detoxification facility to physically stabilize, followed by a longer term drug treatment facility. |
A lifetime of sobriety
The treatment phase of the Suboxone user’s recovery is an essential step to help them build a solid foundation for a lifetime of sobriety. The treatment should have three main focuses.
First, the patient needs to work a course of relapse prevention, in which they focus on the psychological and environmental stressors that lead to them craving and using the drug. |
|
Secondly, they work closely with a therapist to help identify and work through the underlying issues in their personal history that led to their original and continued use.
Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, they must construct an aftercare plan that will help them with the daily maintenance necessary to keep the sobriety that they achieved in treatment. |
Questions? Call Now! 1-866-616-0069
|
