| What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? | |
|
|
Author | Message |
---|
Somniferum
Number of posts : 7 Location : Canada Registration date : 2013-10-09
| Subject: What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? Wed Oct 09, 2013 9:27 pm | |
| I am just wondering what everyone has found is their perfect dose of methadone for maintenance purposes. By 'perfect dose,' I mean what is the dose that completely eliminates both cravings and withdrawals, while sufficiently blocking other opioids and causing minimal side effects. I realize this will differ from individual to individual and with different factors such as use history, but I am just curious as I really don't discuss this with anyone else at my clinic.
-somniferum | |
|
| |
Zac_Talbott
Number of posts : 48 Age : 40 Location : Maryville, Tennessee 37804 Job/hobbies : Program Director, Counseling Solutions of Chatsworth Registration date : 2013-03-03
| Subject: Re: What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? Sat Oct 12, 2013 4:52 am | |
| Did you post this same question on the Drugs-Forum on methadone? If not, there is almost the exact same question there!! ;-) Everyone's stable/adequate dose is different. According to SAMHSA and NIDA the average range where most folks achieve stability is between 80-120mg's, and therapeutic doses start around 60mg. But some folks require MUCH higher doses and others need less. Just because that's where the majority of patients find stability it does NOT mean that all will.... I work with one patient in GA who is on 500mg's/day! (Granted this patient has other health considerations and also is on Dilantin, which lowers methadone blood levels... so it's a specific case/situation.) I also know a patient in Memphis who stabilized on 20mg's/day!! So you can clearly see that everyone is just sooo different. My stable range is between 160-180mg's/day. That is the range I have always been the most "normal" and the most comfortable... However, again, everyone's different..... | |
|
| |
Somniferum
Number of posts : 7 Location : Canada Registration date : 2013-10-09
| Subject: Re: What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? Sun Oct 13, 2013 1:38 pm | |
| I didn't post the same question there, but I did see it and saw it had lots of replies, so I thought I would post here and see if it would generate some discussion =P | |
|
| |
D Admin
Number of posts : 484 Age : 65 Location : Vermont Registration date : 2009-03-05
| Subject: Re: What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? Thu Nov 21, 2013 3:34 pm | |
| My optimum dose was 40mg's. When I started the clinic I was told that I could increase my dose until I was at a comfortable level and. Honestly I kept increasing my dose because I wanted to feel good. I wasn't quite yet ready to be fully in recovery. Once I got serious I started to lower my dose to a point where I had no cravings, withdrawals and once I did that I found that 40mg's was the right dose for me.
Yes are all different- I had a friend who was on a dose of 650 mg's. Split dosing 325 in the morning and the same for the late afternoon. She also had numerous medical problems accompanied by severe pain. Guidelines are just that, they are guidelines and should be used for that purpose only. Treatment should be as individualized as we all are. D | |
|
| |
shadowman007
Number of posts : 8 Location : PA Registration date : 2014-06-25
| Subject: Re: What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? Fri Jul 04, 2014 5:34 pm | |
| well the doctor was giving me 3 80mg oxys a day 3 percs a day 3 zanex a day plus restirol and when he got shut down and i ended up in the clinic i went to 80mg of methadone a day but within 3 months i tapered myself down to 40 mg a day and i know i can go lower i can,t see anyone using 650mg a day thats just crazy now i,m 6 ft 5 and weigh 285 and i have a high toerence what i mean is if you need 5 percs i need 15 i had no idea there was a state they gave 650mg a day again thats crazy, just my opinion.
Tom | |
|
| |
D Admin
Number of posts : 484 Age : 65 Location : Vermont Registration date : 2009-03-05
| Subject: Re: What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? Fri Jul 18, 2014 11:20 am | |
| There are states that actually have patients on higher doses than that. It all just depends on the person and their situations. I could never imagine myself on that high of a dose as I did very well on 40mg and eventually 25. | |
|
| |
shadowman007
Number of posts : 8 Location : PA Registration date : 2014-06-25
| Subject: Re: What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? Fri Jul 18, 2014 2:18 pm | |
| ok yes i understand everyone is different and their dose will be different but methadone is a a drug your not supposed to spend the rest of your life on its to help you get your life back togather and then quit taking it....when i see people in their 70,s and 80,s some in wheelchairs others pulling oxigen tanks and i hear they have been going to the clinic for over 20 years then there is something wrong with the system its not made to use that way......so everyone when do you see yourself leaving your clinic??? do you even think about it??? i do every day, i met with my counsler yesterday because i also have several other health issues i was just told this week i need a 3rd knee surgery and i have neuropthy in both feet ( very very very ) painful so i,m going to a pain clinic when i told her that she said you know if they give you anything you need to tell us so we can call them and confirm....i told her if they give me anything i won,t be back here, 1st thing i,m telling pain center is about clinic and how i ended up there i,m not a doctor shopper or anything like that but i,ll do whatever it takes to get out of that clinic they dianosed me with depression i won,t take any meds for it but i was never depressed until a few months after starting the meth clinic.........and my new temp PCP i say temp because i don,t like him and i told him so and i,m not going back i have an appt. to see another one but he was adament i try Lyrica for my feet and you know what at 460.00 a script you can shove it ........it made my feet 3 times as bad and the side effects i got were terrible, the only thing that gives me any releif with the pain in my feet right now is 1mg klonopin 3X a day works about 45 to 50 % relief unless the barameter is going down then nothing works and the pain doubles and feet and lower legs swell up.........then theres my back 3 surgeries all nerve endings burnt and now nerve endings are growing back but wrong and my foot doctor thinks thats what is effecting my feet he could be right.....i have never considered myself a drug addict but yes i am opoid dependent and i thank my last PCP for that then he goes and gets shut down for just writing scripts for everyone and anyone and those of us who did nothing wrong got caught up in it also, finding doctors around here who write narcotics is tough......sorry for ranting i havn,t slept hardly at all because of falling barameter and pain in feet has been thur roof.....i do like this site i wish more people got on it.
Tom | |
|
| |
Sponsored content
| Subject: Re: What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? | |
| |
|
| |
| What is your ideal dose for methadone maintenance? | |
|