Methadone: Methadone Facts

Question: How can i quit methadone/heroin "cold turkey", without being too sick to live normally?

(Posted by: Angela on 2009-06-16 05:32:09)

I was using heroin, then decided to get clean, so I got on methadone. I've been on methadone for over a year, and decided I wanted to quit this too. So, once I got down to 25mgs. I quit taking the methadone. I made it 2 days, then on the third day I was too sick, so I decided to do some heroin. (Back to square one!) So, my question is... is there anyone out there that can give me some pointers that have actually been there, done that? I want to quit both, and be as least sick as possible so I can still go to work every night. Thank you to whomever will answer my question thoroughly. 10 points to answer that helps the most!!

Posted by: puddles on 2009-06-16, 05:43:43

Go back on the methadone, and slowly decrease your intake of that down to like 5 mg every other day. try that for like 2 weeks. it should help. good luck

Posted by: 3.14159265 on 2009-06-16, 05:49:46

You've got to find a way to keep up that willpower for long enough to get past the sickness, which I believe lasts about a week. Would it be possible to take vacation time from work and lock yourself at home, without access to either drug, for a week? If you have a close friend who could stop by to make sure you're eating and drinking (and not trying to score), even better.

Posted by: Vader on 2009-06-16, 06:52:06

I agree, I never done drugs, but I'm sure it's just withdrawal symptoms that will take no longer than 1 week to a few months. During this time keep your mind occupied in healthy and positive activities. Also exercising and vitamins helps. Try something called "Vilift " from vilift.com it helped me out, its for depression/ anxiety (w/ e) but it lifted me out of a terrible addiction to masturbating & porn; I've been free from this for over 2 years now and never felt better. You can do it it's all about willpower, having an addiction sucks all the light out of life you can't live like this, you owe it to yourself. My uncle was also addicted to drugs and had it worse than you, he hid in a dumpster after buying crack from dealers b/ c they were looking to kill him in puerto rico. After almost 20 years in prison altogether he dedicated himself to learn law while in there, and after abused and beat down by guards for no reason he became his own lawyer to deflect a wrongfully set charge on him, and after this he won his own lawsuit against them of $1mil, besides that the lawyer who helped him win the lawsuit hired him to work for the firm because he was and i quote "better than any law student ". Now he's drug-free & very healthy, has enough money to buy a house for him and his wife and is working at a law firm while attending law school. Anythings possible if you just put your mind to it; the mind is a powerful thing. *My answer is more philosophical than technical although I do agree with minimizing your dosage and days taking it in order to stop both*

Posted by: Tracey H on 2009-06-18, 10:18:21

You must know that realistically there's no way your gonna quit that shit cold turkey without being deathly ill for at least 2 weeks and when the puking, shitting and sweating die down,the insomnia, depression and the extreme anxiety stay with you sometimes for months which we all know eventually leads to using again.If your on a mmt program, stop screwing around with the heroin cause it's a waste with the methadone block in place and you will never succeed unless you work the program properly. If your not in a mmt program, get into one and slowly let the doctor ween you down.It may take a couple yrs but so what, theres no rush, be patient and use the program to pull your life back together. Most importantly, don't let anyone make you feel as if you are some kind of a failure because you are on a methadone program, if they do it's because of ignorance and ignorance is fatal. You can do it, just give yourself the chance. All the best, Tracey

Posted by: brandonbl8 on 2009-06-20, 20:03:57

There is like a 99% chance that if you do it by yourself you will relapse..Rehab is the best Choice..And do not stop cold turkey.. there is a possibility you could die because your body is used to feeding off the heroine..If you talk to your work they will give you paid leave to go to rehab..most companies have support programs that will send employees to rehab