Methadone Detox / Taper Regimen

[Chip (OP)]

been on 10 mg for a while now and getting ready to drop to 7.5.

I don't get nearly as anxious before my dose like I used to ... small amounts feel so much easier all around.

not long now...

[Chip (OP)]

pick up my last dose soon. got 250 mg. saved up. drop to 5 mg. today.

no more clinic puts more money into my pocket.

tweak (and lately, low dose Phenibut) helped me ... every time that I had some crystal, I was able to drop. yes, you can use that shit to lower your dose but it's still uncomfortable.

I went back and checked when I started and it was ages ago (Jan 2015) but it can be done ... just got to take it easy.

EDIT: Later, i dropped to 5 mg. but the first day is the easiest and it gets the toughest by the 4th day, eventually becoming normalised after a week.

[Chip (OP)]

chipper leaves the clinic but has 400 mg. saved up for some lucky friend because he is only taking between 5-7.5 mgs daily at these final stages of the taper.

without the burden of injecting on me and being free of the clinic and soon to be free of Methadone is a sensational feeling. a friend that I see often is using H and I have zero compulsion to use it - it's like "been there, done that and now I'm over it (plus being a potential role model for my friend is a good thing)".

it can be done but you have to move through these stages after living with them becomes about negative returns/health risks for a lot of time, money and effort ... it is NOT a moral judgment because i used to love the way drugs like Heroin used to make me feel, how could i not get that ? i have many fond memories and some favorite "nods", indeed. even my face-plant into my coffee, in public, was actually hilarious in a junky sort of way ()).

all side effects from MMT are now virtually undetectable at this stage.

thank you for sharing my journey.

[Griffin]

That is awesome chipper I am envious, I wish I could make myself taper but don't have it in me right now, I just want to get to a lower dose so that I can lose weight. My new job I started 5 weeks ago is manual labor so I have been gaining muscle but weigh the same it looks like I am losing fat and turning it into muscle which I credit the testosterone with. They had a new nurse my last appt and I didn't realize she gave me 2 inch needles instead of 1.5" and when I stuck it all the way into my thigh I got a weird feeling hopefully I didnt mess anything up.

Are you going to switch to a short acting opie when the done runs out like hydrocodone for a week or two to shorten the wd, or are you worried that it will kick off a run? Are you completely done with opiates? Congrats on coming this far keep us updated please.

[Chip (OP)]

Thanks for the support.

I'm sitting on 6 mg. now and am taking it easy as I slide down to 0.

Yes, I am done with opiates but if I get hold of some oral M down the line then I may eat it.

Apart from that, I'm really keen to avoid any type of physical addiction.

At this low dose, even 1 mg. makes a difference.

That physical job of yours can make it easier to drop your dose a bit but that's up to you.

I am going to stick with the MD and still wait 24 hours between doses - it's nice and simple that way.

[dysmorphic]

I was on 400mg to 600 mg morphine for shit.... ten years or better. Decided it's time to not just taper but get off of it. I'm down to 60 mg every 12 hours. I'm ready to go down to 30mg every eight hours. Getting my dose down to every 12 hours wasn't fucking easy. I was running the ragged edge of withdrawal for weeks at a time.

What I can say is that I get a buzz off the morphine I wasn't getting before. Less works far better. Going to the point of having little medication in my system has the benefit of working far better when I take my dose. Regardless of the issues I'm dealing with it's about time I abstained from the narcotics, Completely and totally.

I also realize that now I'm on a far lower dose it's easier to cut back and taper further. The first week was a mother fucker as I cut my dose directly in half then in half and in half again. I smoke a little ganja now and again but I didn't use much of anything to do the taper. Just sucked it up. I get the feeling it's why it's going to finally work.


I'm so fucking done.....

I'm glad you're working it out chipper. It feels good and helps me to know others are successful .

[Esoteric Anhydride]

I'm at another crossroads with this shit. I've been stable on subs for a couple months I guess? I burned through my stash though and don't have many resources, I found a few more strips to get me by but I'm really sick of chasing chemicals just to feel fucking normal.

Even though it hasn't been that long since I left the klinik, I'm thinking about transitioning back onto lop for a little bit and then maybe off altogether. I've used this series of meds before, and it worked pretty well aside from the side effects of the lop; which scared the fuck out of me at the time. I also have some Ultram, quite a few, so that could help at the end too.

I'm just not sure how long it's gonna take me to adjust to being completely opi free, and I also have a benzo habit to deal with -- and I have a plan, but it still needs dealt with.

It's getting better though, being off the MD is HUGE. Maybe by spring I'll be able to claim some sort of sobriety again..

[Chip (OP)]

a few days ago, i was struggling because i foolishly thought that this taper would be much the same as my last one (about 15 years ago) where i could just go quickly when below 2.5 mg but not so.

i have been getting quite ill from trying to jump from 2.5 to 1.5 and then having to go back up to 2 mg for more than a week.

Then i have been struggling on even dropping HALF A FUCKING MILLIGRAM ! The symptoms are RLS, lengthy shivers moving all over the body. excessive burping, agitation, opiate cravings and insomnia.

The last bits must be done so far slower than i expected ... i didn't have any yesterday and only half a milligram early this morning but that's because i have had some meth ... i don't think i could have been motivated without it .

Anyone intending to do a taper is advised to do so whilst younger, rather than older.

I have no idea how my sleep will recover as i have not known a night with a lengthy solid block of sleep in it, for decades ! (unless using GHB).

i plan to jump off half a milligram and even that worries me a bit.

i dream of a full night's sleep one day -- a humble but worthy goal.

[Snout]

Chipper, good for you! I'm proud of you, what you are doing is not easy. Your last post scares me a bit, as I just got back on methadone for the third time in 12 years. I'm nervous about tapering off it, because I'm no spring chicken. Kicking was much easier when I was younger! I'm 45, how old are you?

[Dhedmo]

I feel so  guilty.

I've wanted to share my stretch/taper for more than a year, but one thing and another got in the way.

This thread inspires me, but unfortunately I am on a phone in a bar and keyboard is tooooooo small.

I will try to post tonight or tomorrow.
Might not work for all, but its almost no withdrawals, vastly reduced jones, and perhaps can change you as it changed my life.

Recommend starting when you're down to 60 mg done/day (pills) for best results. Down to 0 in less than 60 days.

God bless you  all, quitting or not.

[Chip (OP)]

Chipper, good for you! I'm proud of you, what you are doing is not easy. Your last post scares me a bit, as I just got back on methadone for the third time in 12 years. I'm nervous about tapering off it, because I'm no spring chicken. Kicking was much easier when I was younger! I'm 45, how old are you?

54. I have spent about 15 years on the 'done.

4th and last taper.

[Chip (OP)]

Dhedmo, I like 60 too and refused to go up from that so that's where this story starts.

No need to hurry, it's almost 2 years this time.

Life is still the same old thing but with a greater sense of normality.

To be honest, big achievement aside, it's an anticlimax all the same ... but it saves on clinic costs, doctor visits and urine tests.

All I need now is a valid passport - the carrot.

[Chip (OP)]

Finally finished. Last dose was about 1/4 of a mg. -- no sudden moves.

Here endeth my long dependency.

The slowest taper yet.

[Jega]

Dude! Congrats!

Are you feeling confident about being able to handle any last W/D?

[Chip (OP)]

Thanks. No symptoms except a slightly upset stomach and the odd sneeze.

It was a very slow taper and from experience +  how it went this time, I know I am in the clear.

The significant and obvious issue is that everything else in my life has remained the same. All my problems and other concerns are still there so I have to constantly remind myself that life is easier.

It's a funny anticlimax.

[lawyerup]

grats bro, im really hoping im not writing the same thing a year from now. my doctor said a couple days ago he wants me off all opiates eventually. I was at 40mg methadone few months ago now I'm down to 25 and Im really feeling it.