Methadone Drug Addiction .com

what med can i take on top of the methadone for break trough/acute pain.oxycodone,morphine,?If so what is the average dose

I take 60 mg of methadone for chronic back pain plus one 15 mg OxyIR (oxycodone) up to 3 times a day for breakthrough pain. It works well for me, but I do get quite drowsy at times.

2008-06-29 04:46:55 by Scooby-Doo buttercup

Many people know that methadone is used to treat heroin addiction, but did you also know that it's a very effective medication for the ...

Hi all, I'm a chronic pain patient with fibromyalgia, and possibly Mcardle's disease and chronic fatigue syndrome. I was on Oxycontin 40 mgs, 4 times a day. I got off all Narcotics for a year, but the pain was too great and my doctor put me on Methadone 5 mgs twice a day( it was up to three times a day at one point.) But im still having pain. Is Oxycodone a stronger pain killer?

No- methadone is a stronger medication. Unfortunately, your physician doesn't seem to understand it's basic pharmacology, as methadone is a time released medication and only supposed to be taken once in 24 hours.
This kind of thing, unfortunately, is what is threatening people's right to this medication for opiate addiction treatment- not your fault,but something you should know,as your physicians is putting you at great risk, and providing you with terrible pain management options.
I would strogly suggest looking for aother physician- methadone is a wonderful options with chronic pain, if used properly- and may help you a great deal once you've found someone who knows how to properly prescribe it- but it has other implications that may make milder medications more appropriate for you, especially in consideration of the doses you're given. A little information of methadone:
Methadone has two main uses:
1) Severe pain: Methadone is used to treat severe, chronic & terminal pain. It works as a pain management drug because it is strong, but also time released- one dose holds you for 24 hours. Once a proper dose is determined, the patient does not develop increasing tolerance the way you would with other opiates, so you stay at the dose, instead of constantly needing higher doses for the same effect. Because it is such a strong medication, it is not used for mild pain easily treated with other narcotics, because it does cause dependency- if however, a patient will likely need pain meds the rest of their life, it makes sense to use methadone instead of other opiate pain killers that also cause dependence, and must be increased frequently & taken several times a day.

2) The second use is for opiate addiction- MMT (Methadone Maintenance Treatment). It is one of the oldest & is the most successful treatment for opiate addiction

I’m assuming you’re familiar, but in case not- opiate addiction, unlike other drugs, causes a physical dependence. If an addict suddenly stops using opiates, they become severely ill. Methadone is an opioid agonist- not an opiate, but a synthetic drug that works on the same receptors in the brain that opiates do, and therefor “tricks” the brain into thinking it’s getting opiates.
There is a lot of science behind it- but the long and short of it is that our bodies produce endorphins- natural pain killers- in small amounts, as needed. Opiates- drugs derived from the poppy plant- (heroin, vicodin, Darvon, oxycontin, morphine, dilaudid, etc.)- when taken, cause an influx of these endorphins. When a person takes opiates on a regular basis, the human body, which is extremely adept at conserving it’s natural resources- recognizes that the person is providing them with more than enough synthetic endorphins through opiates- and the body stops producing it’s small amounts. So when an opiate addict suddenly stops using opiates, the body goes into an endorphin-deficiency, causing the person to become very ill.
Until the last decade, addiction was not recognized as a disease. Since then, the medical community has found evidence of “addictive” genes, in the form of THIQ- a chemical produced from opiates & alcohol by certain people thought to contain the addictive gene. Those without the Addictive gene don’t process the opiates or alcohol the same way, and therefore, do not turn any portion of them into THIQ, the way a person with the addictive gene does. THIQ is believed to be part of the reason that an addictive-prone person develops such strong cravings & is unable to stop using, compared to the non-addictive prone.


Methadone, when used to treat opiate addiction, and taken in the prescribed, stabilization dose, does NOT impair cognitive ability, motor function, or logic. The very basis of why methadone has been successful in treating opiate addicts is because it works in a time released capacity- rendering it incapable of producing feelings of euphoria or, in laymen’s terms, unable to get you high.
Now- someone who has never taken methadone before, who takes a large enough dose, may experience marked drowsiness- but that’s why Methadone Maintenance Clinics (MMT) follow strict regulations that entail starting every new patient/opiate addict off at the very low dose of 20-30mg, regardless of their height, weight, or tolerance level to opiates. From there, each patient is seen by the clinic physician on a weekly basis, and given the small increase of 2 -5 mg once a week, until they are “stabilized”- meaning they’re feeling normal- not in acute physical withdrawal from the sudden lack of opiates in their system. From that point on, there is a blood test called a peak and trough, that measures the serum levels of the methadone in the patient, to ensure their dose is of a therapeutic level, and not so high as to cause drowsiness. It varies by patient, but anywhere from 65mg-300mg is average.

There has been a lot of propaganda in the press lately about the dangers of Methadone- the bulk of which is directly related to a few celebrity deaths that were caused by the mixing of methadone and alcohol, or methadone & other medications. What is not so well known is that NONE- ZERO- of those cases involved opiate addicts taking methadone in a methadone maintenance program. All of them were the result of a personal physician prescribing methadone for pain, to patients who abused the medication by taking it with other drugs, creating a lethal reaction.

The Harrison Drug Act made it illegal for physicians- general practitioners- to prescribe methadone to patients for opiate addiction. Only MMT clinics, which are strictly regulated, may prescribe it for addiction. MMT clinics require frequent, SUPERVISED, random drug screens (so anyone on methadone for opiate addiction cannot be abusing other meds, or they would be kicked off the program); as well as one on one counseling, group treatments, state required classes, state required physicals and blood tests, as well as anything else the individual’s counselor feels they need. They must complete treatment plans and goals on a monthly basis, demonstrating they are moving forward with employment, housing, etc., and they are not permitted to take many medications, even when prescribed by a physician, if there is any chance of an interaction. For example, benzodiazepines are well known for their ability to interact with methadone in a way that induced euphoria- (i.e., a buzz)- and are a major no-no. The MMT clinic will prescribe another medication that will not interact, if necessary, but using the benzo’s will result in being kicked off the program. A general practitioner, on the other hand, can prescribe methadone to whomever he sees fit for pain management, and there are no other regulations.


Hope this helps- if you have any other questions and can't find the answers in the resources below, feel free to email me- i run a website & group for MMT based advocacy and client rights and we have a strong group of RN's,Physicians, Counselors,and MMT users/methadone for chronic pain users that will be happy to help. best of luck to you-

2010-11-08 12:15:20 by Mike A

Price: $5.95 $5.95

I have a chronic pain condition caused by an autoimmune disease and the pain has been getting pretty bad lately. I originally was on Darvocet for about 2 years, then started Vicodin about 6 months ago, then Norco [for less tylenol per dose] about 2 months ago. The pain is still pretty bad and was today prescribed Methadone [5-15mg, every 4 hours as needed].

I looked it up, and it seems like the primary use for this med is for heroin withdrawal, yikes! That sounds scary. My Dr. also said that I can still use the Norco as needed if it still hurts along with the Methadone.

So my question is, is this a normal pain med prescribed for chronic pain conditions? What type of effects can I expect? The pharmacist said 5mg was a very low dose. So I guess I'll start with it and see. Pain relief wise, how does it compare with norco/vicodin/hydrocodone? Is it stronger, or just longer acting, or.....? Thanks for any info you can offer about this stuff.
One other question about this medicine is, it seems that it may "block" the effects of other opiates. Which I think may also be the reason it's used for opiate-addicts...?
If this is true, then I would guess that it would block and essentially null out the effect of the Norco/hydrocodone.....so why would my dr. say to keep taking it as well? Methadone sounds like a strange medicine, unless I'm reading its details wrong?

okay this was used on me for chronic neckpain and after a week of taking it and then going off of it, I landed up having withdrawls from it. They were horrible!!! Wonder how people live on this daily..It lasted 24 hours.
My husband was given this after elbow replacement surgery and it worked for him, and he was okay after it. Made him a tad irritable..but after 2 weeks of being on it and then off he handled it well.
Perhaps it has something to do with the weight not sure. I prefer vicodin but only the real vicodin not the generic of hydrocodone, which is usually the first to be given. That does nothing for me..and Norco did not touch me either. ultram was better in that area...
Everyone is different though, bodies all handle it different. Hope they find something to help you out. Good luck

2007-10-05 15:29:23 by someoneoutthereishere

Price: $9.95 $9.95

have had three spinal fusions and continue to struggle with a lot of pain am only 43 and trying to raise my kids dont want to be a druggie

Yes. Me. What are you asking? The benefits, the bad things? In short, it is good if you realize you are going to have to take it the rest of your life. You have a lot of things to consider before you do this. I don't even know where to begin. My answer would be about 3 pages long. Again, there are a lot of things you need to know and before this can be answered I have to know something about you.

2008-04-30 11:27:14 by the man

I have started Lactating (alot) and have not had a period since I began taking it. I know to speak to my doctor, I am just interested in finding out if anyone else has experiance this. When I researched side effects, I found a few things that barely hit on this, but it was very vague. Help!! It's freakin me out!!

Not having a period is very common when taking opiates for long periods of time. But the lactating? I've not heard about that. Other hormonal issues can be emotional ones. You can feel completely crazed and it's due to the morphine. Yes, please talk to your doctor about the lactating....and all other symptoms as well.

2007-06-22 17:27:31 by DeltaQueen