Street name for Suboxone; the narcotic agonist bupenorphine combined with the narcotic antagonist naloxone. Suboxone was invented in Europe several years ago and is slowly becoming widely popular in the states. Although it is a narcotic opioid analgesic, it is most commonly used as an agent to aid in the detoxification of other opiates such as heroin, oxycontin, morphine, dilaudid, methadone, codine, roxycodone, percocet, or vicodin. It is taken sublingualy and dissolves under your tongue allowing the drug to take effect at its highest efficiency. If swallowed whole, the drug will not be very effective and is basically a waste. If the patient has used recently before taking their first dose of Suboxone, and has not entered the withdrawl stage or feeling dopesick, they will find that the naloxone will immediatly put them into withdrawls which can be quite serious and worse in the sense that they are more intense and hit you harder. Suboxone comes in eight milligram tablets that are octagonal and orange and taste like a metallic flavored tang drink. The tablets come in two milligram doses as well. For every eight milligrams of bupenorpine, there is two milligrams of naloxone in the pill. Naloxone is a form of naltrexone, an opiate blocker. This is put into the drug to prevent individuals from injecting it or taking it just to get high. The withdrawl symptoms from Suboxone are a lot more mild than that of any other opiate including methadone and if taken properly for a detox program, it can prevent even the slightest of withdrawl symptoms. It can produce the same euphoric effects as any other opiate and allows the user to feel fulfilled when on it, preventing the feelings common with opiate addicts who do not have opiates in their system. These are feelings of depression, hopelessness, fear, anxiety, cramping, loss of appetite, sweating, shaking, inability to focus, lack of social skills, disinterest in hobbies, work, social situations, and loved ones. Some patients use it for maintenance after an initial detox period and others use it for a slow detox where the drug level is gradually decreased over a long period of time until it is stopped completly. Typically, after the final dose of Suboxone, a few days of discomfort might follow or minor depression but antidepressants and over the counter pain killers usually will suffice. Low doses of Benzodiazepines are commonly combined with Suboxone helping the patient sleep and eliminating any anxiety or panic attacks that may result as a consequence of kicking a heavy heroin and cocaine and klonopin habit for example. This is the most effective drug I have found in terms of allowing the addicted individual re-intigrate back into society and reduce harm to oneself and others and eliminates the risk of being arrested for stealing or being involved in drug seeking behaviors. Suboxone also has a lower chance of a patient suffering from an overdose. People also have a tendencey to become less dependent on it than methadone and typically take much lower doses of it than any other opiate agonist. Still heavily restriced. Physicians and psychiatrists who prescribe the medication have to go through special training and they are typically only allowed to retain thirty patients at one time that they can prescribe it to. I wish they had this stuff ten to fourteen years ago. It would have saved me so much hell and so many days upon days of cold turkey detox horror.
