Do You Gain Weight With Suboxone? (Page 3)
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Hi I'm just starting to research suboxone. I'm currently going to a methadone clinic every day and it is such a hassle. I have to get up every morning at 4am to be there in time to get to work the line is so long but that's beside my point, My real question is Do you gain weight with Suboxone? This is my third attempt at trying to get off of opiates by taking Methadone but every single time I start taking Methadone I gain 40 to 60 pounds within the first 4 months. Most people do, some don't I just happen to be one of them. I get so discouraged by the weight gain that I stop going to the Methadone clinic and then start using again. Sadly my mom died from using the same drug I used before treatment. I have 3 children and want to get my life together again but I just can't cope with the weight gain. Can anyone tell me if Suboxone has the same side affect? And also is there any difference between Suboxone & Suboxine? PLEASE HELP!!!

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To Tracy, I was on suboxone for 4 months. Before that I was methadone for a very long time. All prescriptions. I developed an allergy to Methadone and it made me very sick. The only way I was able to get off was to go to detox center and treatment. The rehab center put me on suboxone to get me off Methadone. They also gave me librium (a benzoyl). After 4 months on suboxone I loved it but could not find a (legit) doctor who will prescribe it. I have yet to figure that out. When you go off it there is not the withdrawal you get from Methadone or Percocet. I also never gained weight but it gave me so much energy to do things such as clean house, shopping, cooking, the normal things you do in life. My point good luck with finding someone to prescribe suboxone or buprenorphine Generic suboxone in pain patches. It worked great too but no one will prescribe it for me!! I go to a pain clinic and even they want prescribe it anymore! It is very frustrating!!!

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I'm in the same boat, I've been on subutex for about 14 months and gained every bit of 40 lbs. not to mention with my diet and excercise patterns, I should have lost 40. I've never been fat, well I was when I was a strung out junkie but that makes me eat non stop and not exercise. Today I have been on a liquid diet (whey protein powder and water or skim milk) and I allow myself to eat fruit and vegetables. I literally work out 1 to 3 times per day, and I mean seriously working out hardcore and I keep gaining weight, certainly am not losing any. There's 0% doubt in my mind it's the subutex which I'm down to 4 mg/day. I'm suicidally depressed now and my girlfriend of course left me and I have no love life and I'm consumed by anger and resentment. Oh on a side note, I have no idea what people are talking about when they say the withdraw of buprenorphin is worse than any opiate. That's laughable to me. It's harder withdrawing off Tylenol as far as physical symptoms. I'm not seeing that side. But if I come off this which I can but relapse on other drugs my problems will be compounded exponentially and I'll do anything just to be miserable and fat. So it's tough, a person like me who is so emotional and needs love in his life and can't have it, it's just torturous. I'm a really good person and really funny but just big, I don't really have much of a belly but I'm just a big guy and that's a bad look now of days. I'm 39 and going to come off these now, well the last time I filled my script will be my last time. I just hope I'm doing the right thing, I have to take a chance one way or another. I'm down to 4 mg/day from 20. Still bloated and overweight. Give me any feedback if you want. Thanks.

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I totally agree with you I also gained 20 pounds and I also have a small body.. I think it causes weight gain !!!!

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I am on suboxone also. I went to my doctors and she wants me to cut down to 2 mg. film a day. I have always been thin so when I started gaining the weight I did not want to leave the house. I have gained 21 pounds. I am so upset. I am going to a lower dose, so hopefully I will lose it. My doctor said it does not make people gain weight. I have to say she is wrong on this one.

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You sound just like me! I'm 27 yrs old and I've been on suboxone like 5-6 years and am terrified to get off it. I'm on two-12mg suboxones a day and I was on that dose at 114lbs when I started...I had my second child three yrs ago n have stayed at about 118-124 lbs. Until now..I have gained like 35-40 lbs in the last three months!!! And I actually am eating wayyy less than before and I'm n nursing school now too so I'm always moving around..before wen I was my normal weight(120) I did nothing but stay home and snack but NOW I'm gaining weight! Wth? I'm tired all the time too...I have no IDEA all the sudden why suboxone decided to make me blow up after being stable on it for 5 years. I've always been a small framed girl even after I had two kids. I weigh between 145-154lbs now! None of my clothes fit. I went from a juniors 3-5 n pants to a size 9-11! I'm so depressed. I've never been close to this big even at nine months pregnant. Idk wut to do bc I CANNOT get off it right now, I'm n school and its the only thing keeping me stable! Not to mention I have some facial acne now for the first time, along with my period fixed itself n got regular like never before. I've had two periods a year for a decade (due to cesarean complications) until about four months ago. I can literally time them now. Everything's so weird and I can't live looking or being this fat! My bp also drastically increased from 90/60 to 130/89! Yeah ppl May think I need to get off suboxone but I'd never finish school and stay off opiates if I did. Help. Realistic help someone plz. My Dr thinks it may be my thyroid but if so why isn't my husband having problems like mine too? He takes more than me n for longer and he's actually been overweight several times before. But he's n the best shape ever now. Pssh...answers?!??

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I have been on subutex for 6 years now for back pain. Works so much better then all the other drugs. I have gained about 50 pounds over the 6 years and I'm sure it's the subs. I don't eat much. But I would tell anyone with a problem to take them. They work!!!

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Yes, suboxone will definitely cause weight gain!

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Wow am I happy to see other people are suffering for this undocumented side effect of WEIGHT GAIN. I BENN ON SUBOXONE FOR OVER A YEAR AND GAined 75 pounds I also retain water in my legs. I brought this to my doctors attention and she said that these were not side effects of suboxone. I attempted to take myself off for a week and lost 7 pounds but the cravings were too much and had to go back on suboxone. I'm now depressed and fat. Starting tomorrow I will go cold turkey I would rather go through a few weeks of hell then be 35 years old and fat. I own my own home and have a greAt career, gaining weight is not what I think is getting healthy. What's next high blood pressure,stroke because of the weight gain.

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AJ',
I just wanted to let you know that you are not alone.....I feel the same way everday! I haven't been motivated in years, depressed and I always think people are thinking I'm lazy. I have always been the complete opposite actually....Ive always been very active. The methadone just makes me feel useless, and actually even more depressed because I never feel like doing anything in which that even makes me feel worse about myself. It's a vicious cycle!I'm just hoping that they come up with some type of drug or way to make it easier to come off of opiates and methadone. I do know that he had people working on studies everyday to find wayS to come off of methadone and opiates.thanks for listening, I'll definitely keep posting if I find new info regarding methadone or suboxone.

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Hey Tracy,

First of all. Congrats for asking for help and taking the necessary steps to change your life. It sounds like your situation is similiar to mine. I have successfully gotten off of the suboxone. It's been about 2 weeks now. I only intended to get on for the amount of time that the withdrawl from my doc would be at it's worse. However; the doctor told me that I should stay on at least a few months.. I was on for 5 months... I went on it being 127 lbs and when I finally had enough i was about 145... I was not impressed and depressed each and every time I looked in the mirror. My clothes weren't fitting and I was beginning to get depressed. I wiener myself down to 2 mg... Once a day... Initially I felt like s*** but i found taking B12 helped

Soooo much....the worst symptom is honestly the fatigue.. I work full time and clearly napping on the job wasn't an option.. For the next cpl days I took caffeine pills to stay awake. Lots and lots of water. I napped on my lunch break and took Advil for the aches and pains....
In hind sight... I would never have swapped one drug for another that have the same s***ty withdrawl option... Best of luck... You really will feel human again once this is over and u will drop he weight as well.

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Tracy,
I was disillusioned by the pink cloud of suboxen. It has all the positive affects you mentioned and unexpected weight gain! ( I early have an appetite! My doctor assured me that he is slowly weening me off; yet it has been 4 months alreay. My dose started at 8mg/2 twice a day. Now it's down to 2mg/1 3 times a day. I have weened myself to 1 tab of 2mg a day. Next Monday, it will be reduced to 3/4 until I can't get the least anount of withdrawral. Hopefull the age the 22lbs I gained will also dissapear. since this process began! It's so hard to admit you have a problem and ask for help. It is worse when the MD wants you to stay on as long as possible. ( I don't know if this the same case as MD.).
I have done a great deal of research and very few doctors will prescribe this drug or have a license to. With that being said, does your MD have you to his pharmacy or make attend 'outpatient'? And what are the consequence if you don't follow the plan? No more suboxene which has withdrawals like opiods. The longer you are on it, the harder it is to get off.

I hope this validates you're not overeating or working out to stay in shape. I wish you & your boyfriend strength to be heathy. Life is too short to be addicted to suboxen or any substance and gaining weight.

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PS. Melisa, even when I am stable I start feeling very slight withdrawal symptoms in the evening & I don't feel good in the mornings. I think it depends a lot on how active you are & also each individual. I was on this stuff once before for only a year & never felt withdrawals but this time has been come rely different. I think getting older is also a factor.

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Hi Melisa, I reduced down to 40 mgs then after 48 hrs (In fact I think it was a little less time) went onto Suboxone. I think I took my last dose of Methadone early am then waited until the next day. Basically you need to be in withdrawal & I seem to go in to withdrawal quicker than others so my Dr let me take it earlier & I was fine as I was in withdrawal which is the key. Even with the Subi I need my dose each day & don't know how people can just miss a day! It took me 3 weeks to stablise & I had to go up to 24mgs of Suboxe which I was disappointed about. It wasn't pain free at all but was bearable. If your allowed to take Subutext I don't think you need to wait as it doesn't have Naltrexone in it. I am now down to 3.2mg but I have had a very rough time reducing as I work a physical job which makes it go through your system faster. It is worth it though. At 150mgs, for example, if you had an accident you would have a hard time finding pain relief as your dose is so high so you really need to get down. It's taken me 4 years of reducing, being well then sick constantly to get off this medication. I am not there yet & still fearful but I will never rely on drugs again & other than the three weeks & odd day off here & there I have managed to work although the rest of my life has suffered dramatically. It is worth it though. I feel like I am in prison. I can't have a normal life on it, as it takes away my motivation & I feel tired all the time & just can't be bothered. That is not a life. I suffer depression constantly & don't have family support. I am very much on my own, I think people look at me & just think I'm lazy. My point being, that if I can do it anyone can.

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AJ,
I was curious to how you went from 135ml to 40 mg and then directly to Sub? If you have methadone in your system wont you go through withdraw if you swap to sub, at least that is what everyone says? My program won't let me switch to sub unless I am without methadone for 72hours. I have been on 150 mg for 8 years and I go through withdraw every evening. In order to get increased or put on split dose they want me to get a EKG to make sure it does not show irregular heartbeat. I really don't want to go up though because I feel that even though it will help my symptoms, the increase still makes me feel horrible inside. I figured if I stayed on this same dose for a period of time my body would get adjusted to this dose and I would stop getting sick...but I don't think I will ever feel normal again. I JUST WANT OFF OF THIS S*** ! Thanks for reading!

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I have been on subs for 6 yes almost, for me it has. Been the best thing ever however, I have gained at least 75lbs maybe more! My doc has told me its because my life style had changed so much, before sub my doc was methadone/morphine. I now have high blood pressure and depression as well. I have asked doc how long someone should stay on subs and she told me that studies are showing it may be a life long medication because addiction is a desease, its just like a diabetic needing insulin... I'm not sure how I feel about that but I've been on it so long I am afraid to go through withdrawl.

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You might want to make a new post with your question because this ones old. That way more people are apt to see and read it. Just a thought.

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Thanks jolter. Also really interested to hear answers from people who have been on high doses & for a period of time. All up it was nearly 10 yrs for me. Methadone I went from 135ml to 40mg then swapped to Subi 24mg tapered down to 3.2 now. Going to give myself 4 months to reduce the rest then off.

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AJ. If you taper low and slow from subs there quite easy to jump with little wd. The trick is to stay on each taper long enough and to get as low as you can like .25mg would be good.

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Guys, just reading about Baclofen. Could anyone using it tell me how they go & how much & in what ways it helps exactly once you come off Suboxone/Subutext.thanks. Also I've been on Methadone for about 5 yrs then reducing off Subi for the last 3. In a few months I will have tapered off it altogether. Can you please tell me how bad the withdrawals could be. I've come off Methadone once brier at 35mgs which was he'll & Id only been on it for 10 months. Any help would be great. Thanks. Really great to hear everyone's point of views/experiences on here so thanks to everyone for sharing.

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Hi, Love to feel again, I might have misread your post but are you saying that your taking Baclofen and subutex at the same time?

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