I’m trying to kick an oxycodone habit I’ve dealt with about 3 years now. I got on Suboxone recently and tomorrow I will make one week sober. But I did it because I was taking the subs. Does My effort still count since like everyone keeps telling me you just switched one vice for another. My week is something to be proud of right?
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Of-flipping-course it is! You are making a choice to become clean and sober…shoot, im proud of you and I don’t know you.
While I never partook in your DOC, from what I’ve read on here, a lot of people dealing with what you are used what I think they call a taper? There’s lots more knowledgeable than me on the subject that you can reach out to (do a search for sub taper or something similar and heck the top responders) from what I know it’s a lot about having a plan to ween down to get down to zero in a healthy way for you. Reach out to those in the know on here, they are fantastic. You are fantastic. Congrats on a week!
Much Love,
Ely
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I dont know much about suboxone or opiates, so bear with me, but:
If you’re using the suboxone as prescribed, with the purpose to get off whatever the other drug may be, and with the intent to ween off the suboxone over time as intended…then I’d say your golden.
Your sobriety is yours, and if you honestly feel you’re pursuing it right, then you are. Just stay honest with yourself and their opinions mean nothing.
Best of luck, you can do it 
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Hell yeah it counts, opiate withdraws are no joke, just make sure you taper off the subs too, dont stay on them too long or you’ll more than likely turn right back to the oxys and percs st some point…also u dont wanna be addicted to suboxone either, the withdraws from it are even worse than the pain pills.
Edit: congratulations on making the choice to quit my friend, I quit a little over 5 months ago and my life has made a complete 180, bills paid, I feel way better, and some health issues I’d had for years seemed to pretty much vanish. The first couple months were not fun at all and it takes a considerable amount of will power but it is by far the best decision I’ve ever made (and that includes divorcing my ex wife! Lol)
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Lord yes it counts! Don’t give that or anyone who thinks differently a second thought. You do what you have to do to get sober, healthy, and stay sane, as long as you are doing it as directed and with the goal of moving off of it. Good for you for getting the help you need and using the resources available.
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Yes it does count but you should plan on tapering off them soon, suboxone should really only be like a 7 day taper this is long enough to carry you through detox but not enough to get used to the suboxone since you start out low and end even lower, when I was in rehab they did that and the most was 6mg first day then slowly lowered I think the last 3 days were only 2mg. I have a friend that has been on them for about 10 years no exaggerating, his life has been a million times better since the switch however now he is so used to subs now it would take a really long time to taper off them and he still would get sick. Not trying to scare you I just want you to be aware the longer you are on them the more difficult they will be to get off of
There’s nothing wrong with getting a bit of assistance through suboxone or methadone. Whatever helps you get clean. Assuming your insurance covers it, at least you’re not in a situation where you’re trying to figure out how to get money for your next pill or buying pills on the black market. With all the fentanyl going around now, you never know what you’re getting. But be aware of the fact that a lot of those clinics want people to be on subs or methadone for years and I don’t agree with that. Use it to get clean and then work towards getting off it too. Congrats on your first week!
As long as it is taken as prescribed, you’re good dude. It’s temporary and not permanent. Some people need it, and it does help for those who are in recovery.
I too take subs after a 10+ yr addiction. I wouldn’t have been able to quit without it. Yes in a perfect utopia quitting anything is easy, but the reality is quitting is the easy part…staying quit is the hard. Everyday clean is a day clean. I’ve gotten a lot of flak from people who tell me I’ve switched one for the other, I feared that when I went on suboxone because I didn’t want to just switch, I wanted to change! The people telling me this were people who didn’t have addiction issues so how can they tell me that when they don’t even understand addiction? Opinions on this issue are pretty strong in society, but as individuals we need to do what’s best for us and screw the rest! Good for you for going on suboxone, stay strong and don’t let people tell you that your clean days aren’t clean days! Some have no idea how hard it is to earn even 1 day, let alone multiple consecutively!
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Thanks. Yeah, i hear it a lot. "You’re not really clean because you’re doing MAT. But MAT is the longest I’ve ever gone not picking up that oxy. All other attempts without MAT failed miserably. So, at the end of the day, in my book, subs are worth it. My quality of life has improved greatly and for that I’m thankful. Could never say that I old attempts to sober up. It is hard to totally tune out the naysayers though…Something I gotta work on. Not care what other people think. Easier said than done for a vulnerable, introvert like me. Although this community does help me come out of my shell some and actually seek advice, which has been rewarding.
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Well being clean is being clean. Suboxone can be abused. Someone that doesnt do opiates can nodd out on 4mg. Your still dependent on a substance and will withdrawl eventually. Congrats on getting your life together and not using.yes that is a much better life then when using. Without your suboxone could you make it? If your insurance cut u off and you could no longer get subs …you would seek oxys or heroin so your not sick. Im not bashing your clean time but maybe opening your eye to what they may see…
Thats the part i think about…that i will withdraw eventually. I honestly dont know what i would do if the doc stopped prescribing my subs. I just know I’d be in a world of hurt. I’ve attempted tapers given all those things in mind, but I’ve failed miserably with tapers.
Yep, I still tell people that Suboxone saved my life and a lot of counseling. I think dealing with the issues that brought us addicts to use definetly need to be recognized and dealt with or when the MAT is done majority of people will go right back to using. Some say I switched one for the other and that’s ok as other people opinions of me are none of my business LOL 
. I know me, my situation and I know that the ideal life is to not take meds daily for addiction and one day I will get off the subs; with that being said, to each his own and may we all be successful in our battles! Keep up the good work!! Everyday without using is a victory in my book!! 
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Absolutely suboxone can be abused! I know people who do it and they have stolen it from me to get it. You’re right about still being dependent on a substance and the withdrawals from subs were the worst thing I’ve ever had before. I had decided to quit taking them cold turkey so I didn’t have to count on them anymore. It was one of the WORST decisions I have ever made. By day 8 my anxiety was so terrible (never had anxiety before) I couldn’t move, I could only lie in the fetal position, rock and focus on breathing. I went back on it at day 9 with the goal to start tapering off, to date I’m down 12mgs. I too have thought the what if questions you asked and the results scare the shit outta tbh, henceforth my tapering began.
12mg is overboard to begin with. Using subs you dont want to feel great. Without some withdrawl shining through your body isnt healing. I took one 8mg sub through out ten days. I wouldnt recommend a drastic taper like that for most. You have to do it at your own pace and not look forward to dosing just to feel relief. It takes dicipline and some suffering. Taking high doses for a long period suboxone will linger in your system for days. This is going to drag your wd out longer then your avg opiate wd. So tapering is the safest way to go. Make sure to not jump til your down to .5mg.