Suboxone and Subutex
Opiate Treatment Options
Opioid dependence—addiction to opioids such as prescription painkillers or heroin—is a challenging and complicated condition. But it can be treated effectively with medication assisted treatment combined with counseling and support – a winning combination that we offer at Journey Malibu drug Rehab.
There are many reasons to stop using opiates. Impaired relationships, reduced job functioning, legal problems, and serious health issues are all prevalent in individuals who abuse opiates long term. Serious problems such as collapsed veins, heart problems, infections of the heart lining and valves, cellulitis, liver disease, and pulmonary disease are just a few of the long term health effects of opiates. However, it can be daunting to consider quitting opiates on your own. Opiate users are likely to need additional help in the form of an inpatient treatment center such as Journey Malibu Drug Rehab, where they can utilize the support of both medication managed withdrawal and compassionate counseling staff.
Individuals who use opiates are very likely to develop tolerance to the drug as well as intense cravings for more of it. If the addicted individual continues to use the opiate, their body can become used to the drug being present, as if it were supposed to be there in order for everything to function. At the point that the body becomes so used to the drug that it needs it to function, the individual is now opiate dependent, and will need to go through a process of detoxification when they reduce or stop their drug use. Although opiate detoxification in itself is not dangerous, the symptoms of opiate withdrawal can be extremely uncomfortable if not treated appropriately. Symptoms of opiate withdrawal include agitation, anxiety, muscle aches, tearing, insomnia, runny nose, sweating, abdominal cramping, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. These symptoms begin within 6-12 hours after stopping opiate use and can continue for 3-14 days. The possibility of severe withdrawal symptoms can lead many people to delay getting help for an increasingly dangerous drug addiction.
Moreover, without treating withdrawal symptoms, opiate users are far more likely to relapse and begin using drugs again. And unlike the detoxification process itself, relapse after a period of discontinuing opiate drugs IS dangerous because the individual using opiates is likely to return to their previous amount, which can lead to overdose. Therefore, in order to prevent relapse, reduce cravings, and reduce uncomfortable symptoms of withdrawal, it is important to consider opiate treatment options such as Suboxone and Subutex. Buprenorphine (Subutex) and buprenorphine and naloxone (Suboxone) are allopathic treatment options used to treat opioid dependence. They can be useful in reducing the severity and duration of withdrawal symptoms, while safely and effectively getting off of narcotic drugs of abuse.
Subutex (buprenorphine) is a partial opioid agonist-antagonist (a mu-opioid receptor partial agonist and a kappa-opioid receptor antagonist) used to treat opioid withdrawal. Once taken, Subutex bonds with the opioid receptors in the brain, expelling existing opioids (such as heroin, morphine, oxycodone, etc) because of its strong binding ability. After pushing other opiates off of the opiate receptor, Subutex takes the place of the opiate, preventing others from attaching to the receptor. This diminishes the symptoms of withdrawal and can also shorten the withdrawal period. It also means that if the user tries to take another opiate, such as heroin or oxycontin, Subutex will decrease the effect of the high. Subutex is taken orally, as a tablet that dissolves under the tongue. When taking Subutex, you place the tablets under your tongue until they melt, a process which should take around 2 to 10 minutes. If you are taking more than two tablets, either place them all under your tongue at the same time or place them under your tongue 2 at a time. Do not chew the tablets or swallow them whole, as this can decrease their effectiveness.
Suboxone (buprenorphine and naloxone) contains an additional drug, naloxone (an opioid receptor antagonist), which serves to block the effects of other opiates. This also makes Suboxone itself impossible to abuse as an opiate drug. If crushed and snorted and injected, the intended high will not be experienced, and effects of the naloxone will throw the individual into immediate withdrawal. However, if administered under the tongue as directed, naloxone will not affect the actions of buprenorphine in diminishing withdrawal symptoms. For these reasons, Suboxone is the preferred detoxification medication for many addiction medicine doctors. Suboxone can be taken as a sublingual tablet, or as a faster-dissolving sublingual film.
Both Subutex and Suboxone are FDA approved for the treatment of opioid withdrawal, however; these medications can only be prescribed by physicians who meet certain qualifying requirements and have been licensed to prescribe buprenorphine, the main active component of both Subutex and Suboxone. We at Journey Malibu are dedicated to providing the most up-to-date and comprehensive treatment options available, and so at Journey Malibu, our addiction treatment physicians are approved to prescribe these medications. We realize that addiction is a personal situation, and that your treatment needs to be personalized as well. Subutex and Suboxone are two options that can be incorporated into a complete narcotic dependence treatment plan, such as the one we offer at Journey Malibu Drug Rehab. Although there are many common issues shared by those affected with addiction, we strive to provide a custom-tailored, individualized rehab experience. At Journey Malibu, we will work with your opiate treatment doctor in order to find you the best treatment for you. Getting off of opiates does not have to include the uncomfortable or distressing experience that you may think it is. Advanced treatment options are available, including the withdrawal medications Subutex and Suboxone. At Journey Malibu Drug Rehab we will be happy to work with you and your addiction specialist doctor in order to determine if Subutex or Suboxone are appropriate to incorporate in your treatment. You can get off of opiates without the discomfort or withdrawal symptoms, and detoxification does not have to be a painful undertaking. Let Journey Malibu guide you through the process of detoxification with dignity and comfort.
If you’re serious about your recovery, and want a treatment center where you can get off of opiates comfortably, make Journey Malibu your destination.