Thread: Can I be in "recovery" while taking Suboxone?

Hi Jenna,
I know it can be a difficult struggle questioning if we're doing the right thing, if we should be trying to go off the suboxone/subutex or if it's truly helping us. I did mean what I said in that I couldn't have gotten off of the Norco if it weren't for the Suboxone. I believe that is how I got clean and for now it's how I am staying "clean". whether I am truly "clean" or not, I don't care anymore. I've stopped analyzing that and worrying about it. It doesn't help my recovery to focus on whether it's right or wrong to be on an opiate substitute. I'm on it, I'm not on other painkillers and I'm not out of control in my life right now. I'm sure not at the happiest and best place I've ever been but there is still alot of healing to take place. I would suggest you stop worrying about if and when you're getting off of the sub. I've now been on it for 15 months and have gone from 16mg to 12mg but feel like I need to stay here for awhile until I stable out and start feeling less depressed and more like myself again. I've been going through some other medication changes, switching from one anti-depressant to a newer one which very well may be why I feel kind of funky and sad all the time. Try to look at what the positive things in your life are. You're no longer addicted to opiates, right? Is your life more in control? Are you working a recovery program of some sort? Do you feel better now than you did when you were using? If you can answer yes, I believe you are on the right path.....we will deal with coming off of our suboxone/subutex when it is time and I now trust that I will know when it is time. Take care!

Karen

kew: The answer is "yes" your are in recovery even if you are taking one drug molecule to break an addiction to another; provided you are doing it under medical supervision and you are following the doctors' advice and not trying out your own home chemical remedies. I manned the phones at the AA South Bay Central Office in Los Angeles for years and continually received calls asking that same question. It came up because some cult AA groups were telling their merabers that sobriety required the avoidance of any drug whatsoever, even Asprin. I recall particularly one young man who had just been released from jail on the condition that he continue counselling for his bipolar disorder and took the medications prescribed upon his release. He called crying his soul out because he had just returned from of his first AA meeting after being released from jail and had been actually shunned by the group because he told them he was on a medication regimen for his bipolar conditiona and they informed him that he was not "working the program". He asked me if they were right. I replied without a pause that the people at the meeting were both wrong and dangerous. It is NOT the AA policy to avoid legitimate drug therapy. The next morning I called the AA office in New york to confirm that AA does not discourage the use of legitimate medically treatment while one is pursuing sobriety.

I would not waste my time Googling every drug in the world trying to figure out which is the best for me. Since you have access to a good shrink follow his or her advice. And since psychotropic drugs work diffeently on different people, let him know immediately if something doesn't seem right such as sudden sleep difficulty, clinical depression, strange nightmares or suicidal thoughts, no matter how "slight", that you have never had before. And watch out for drug interactions. I've discovered that even the "best" shrinks aren't very knowledgeable
in that area. Always maintain a current list of every drug you are taking, the generic and brand name, the mg of each pill or capsule and the prescribed daily dosages. Also include any over the counter medications such as low-dose aspirin therapy, stool softeners, anti-histamines and topical skin creams. Every time there is a change in your prescriptions, update the list, give one to your doctor for your file, and then take your list to a pharmacist at a large volume drug store and ask him or her to look it over for adverse drug interactions. Pharmacists are the experts on drug interactions, not doctors.

Good luck to you. Damn the bizarre advice of people who have no stake in your life and do what your doctors tell you to do.

Heh there always good tae hear fae ye, I don`t really have much to say today except please stay strong and talk to someone face to face if you ever contemplate suicide ever again or if you feel more comfortable you can always talk to me.
Suicide as am sure you now realise is the easy option, in the past iused to wake up in the morning the first thing i used to think about was how am i going to get some peace of mind from my mental pain at the start drugs were the easy option it then progressed onto death being a much more final solution because it had become such a hassle to score drugs on a daily basis, and was getting tiresome.
Many many times i found myself praying to God to let me die, The big man had other idea`s for me and did`nt grant me those prayers which at the time i resented him for but am now grateful.
Anyway i`ve rabbled on a fair bit, start writing and end up going off on one.
Stay Strong,Stay Positive, and Be Cool.

Ah yes that would be 2011 LOL. I hadnt even been drinking either.
Take care
Kim

Hi Kewood
I know what you mean about the bike. I just purchased a Suzuki Boulevard M90 1500. Man I get high everytime I ride that thing. It is a great destresser I'm glad to hear you feeling more positive. Its hard at times I have been struggling myself the last few days. I wish I could figure out an addicts brain I would be a millionaire. You would think after all that we have put ourselves through and the pain and anguish it causes, you would never even think about doing it again. I have decided I need to up my dose of sub. From what I have been reading from other peoples experiences if your dose is right you dont crave anymore. Well I definetly am still having cravings. I dont know how they run the program in your part of the world but here in australia where I live you have to have supewrvised dosing for three months before they will consider you for take away doses which you can then only get four days worth at a time. I have six weeks to go, and at times I have felt like tossing it all in. Trying to fit in work (I am a shift worker) with collecting my dose whcih if I dont get it on time or within 2 hours of when it is due, I start having withdrawals, is proving to be very stressful. But at the end of my shift when I hop on my M90 I feel the stress leaving. I really do want to make it this time so I guess that has to count for something. My children have grown up now and I am still rebuilding a relationship with them after years of addiction nearly destroyed them as well as me. It takes time but sure is worth it. I love them so much and they are the main driving force behind me pushing on. Happy and safe riding take care
Ilovebikes:wave:

Heh ILB how`s life treating you two hope your life and your program are working for you so far remeraber it`s nae a sprint recovery is all about the marathon so easy does it. I don`t know what you and your husband do with regarRAB to hobbies or activities but i would suggest finding something you enjoy doing outside your work or whatever cause constantly working and doing nothing else can end up making life seem like a bore and not worth taking part in.
I started rockclirabing and play football 2 or 3 times a week if nothing else it makes the task of recovery more enjoyable and i believe you must try and enjoy your recovery because it makes it a lot easier in the long run.
Take Care. Iain.

Believe it sister! you are who you are because thats who you are:dizzy:a wee bit confussing but i believe to be true. Au Revior!

Hi Iain,
I hear you about "life on life's terms". It gets me so mad because I often dislike life's terms as well and want things on MY terms. I know sometimes I get really annoyed at the little AA sayings and ditty's like "one day at a time", "life on life's terms", "let go", etc. but it's only because they are true! I don't like to admit that I don't have control over almost anything in life and I struggle against those things which only makes life harder for me. I do just need to let go and accept life on life's terms whether I like it or not, that's just HOW IT IS! Maybe when I can learn to do that, I will find life is a bit easier and I'm a bit happier? It's possible I guess. I will try this week to see if I can just accept life on life's terms without the fighting and struggling and see how it impacts my life, day to day. Will get back to you on that. Thanks for the kind thoughts, Iain. Hope you have a great week!

KEW

Hi Kewood,

I've read several of your posts and it seems you've struggled with opiate addiction in one form or another for quite some time now. I was an intravenous heroin and cocaine user for almost twelve years, and one thing I learned was that substituting one thing for another never worked for me. I never went to rehab, never did any of that; when I was FINALLY ready in my LIFE to be done with using, I eliminated all drug dealer nurabers from my phone, threw away all OCs in the house, and locked myself up for a week with a ton of food in the fridge so I didn't have to go out. The thing about addiction is that while support CAN be helpful for some people, the ultimate decision to be done with them has to come from inside of YOU. You have to be in a place in your life where you're no longer willing to be a slave to the drugs. These health boarRAB have been IMMENSELY helpful with other issues I've had, and you can indeed find all the support you need to quit right here, but I don't believe using one thing to wean yourself off of another thing does anything at all except create another addiction. When I got off the needle, I never felt more physically horrible in all my life. I wanted to die in that house for about five days, but I thought of what a life without addiction would be like the whole time, and it spurned me on. You WILL be sick. There's NO way to beat an opiate addiction without bearing the consequences. Cold turkey is the ONLY way to go, in my opinion, but you have to have balls of solid rock and be willing to go the distance. The end result will be SO much better. I've gotten my health back, my family, my old frienRAB, and my old life. Are there days I still think about how good that needle and spoon would be? Damn right. It never goes completely away, but I think about it less and less as the years go by. I've replaced my addictions with a new will to live a better life, a new desire to find beauty in everything, and you will, too. We're here if you ever need to talk, my friend.

Hello Kew

I believe that the most important question to ask yourself is "do you feel like you are working in recovery?" How we work our way in recovery is just so personal and we each must find the way that works for us as an individual. While I did not choose the suboxone route, it does not mean my plan was better than yours. I did what worked for me. I believe AA and NA are both terrific programs, but do not believe they are the only way to sobriety. I do believe that an opiate is an opiate is an opiate, but sometimes we have to think outside the box for our own personal recovery.

What I see that is good about Suboxone is that it allows a drug abuser the time to get the thinking straight about addictive thinking patterns. If we do not personally believe that we can straighten out the thinking because the cravings prove too much, then Suboxone is a great tool to help us. The path we choose to find sobriety is not important... it is important that we believe that the path we coose is right for us.

I took nearly a year to taper first from Oxycodone and then from Xanax. I know that I became sober thinking long before my tapers ended. I worked hard with my doctors and with a clinical social worker to understand why I had crossed a line and began to abuse the drugs. The more I came to understand the reasons behind my issues, the more sober thinking I became. In my opinion, it is sober thinking that is the truest measure of being in recovery. So if you use the time on Suboxone to really work on sober thinking, so what? It surely is progress from the daily abuse of a drug used to get high.

I am sorry you are in such a tormented place right now. You need not be. There is no reason to feel defensive about your chosen path. As you work to gain sober thinking, the time will present itself when you fell ready to get off ther suboxone. Will it be hard? Probably. However, when we have sober thinking erabedded in our mind set, it will not be an impossible task.

I hope you are sharing your concerns with the psychiatrist. Perhaps, just perhaps, he might be able to form a group of Suboxone users to support one another. As Suboxone becomes more and more widely used, I really see a need for peer support groups to come to be. Might even be a calling for you to start one!

I hope you stick around and share with us as you move along. Stand tall in your decision to use Suboxone. It is a tool for you in your recovery. Always remeraber to work on the things that sober thinking encompasses. Develop a plan and work it!

Wishing you well
reach