How Do I Start Suboxone Therapy?
Once arrangements have been made for your appointment, your doctor will ask you to arrive in a state of mild-to-moderate withdrawal. Your doctor or the nurse may ask you questions to better evaluate your history of dependence in order to provide you with the best treatment. The information you give will be held strictly confidential. You may also have blood drawn and be asked to provide a urine sample.
Why Do I Need to Be in Withdrawal?
It is important to be in mild-to-moderate withdrawal when you take your first dose of Suboxone because if you have high levels of other opioids in your system, Suboxone will compete with the other opioid molecules and knock them off the receptors and to effectively beat an opiate addiction takes time. Suboxone will then replace those opioid molecules on the receptors. Because Suboxone has less opioid effects than full opioid agonists, you may go into withdrawal and feel sick. This is called precipitated withdrawal. By already being in the first stages of withdrawal when you take your first dose of Suboxone, the process will be easier, and Suboxone should make you feel better. Once your doctor has assessed your level of withdrawal and decided that you are ready to start Suboxone, you will begin the induction phase of treatment.
What Happens During Induction?
Your doctor or nurse will give you your first dose in their office. After that, they may have you either stay in the waiting area or take some time away from the office and return at a particular time. At that point, your doctor will assess your withdrawal symptoms and may have you take an additional dose of medication if you are still not feeling well. When you are ready to leave the office:
- Generally, your doctor will make arrangements for you to have Suboxone to take home. Typically, your doctor will give you a prescription for the amount of Suboxone that you will need until your next appointment, along with special instructions related to your care
- Your doctor may also prescribe other medications to help control specific withdrawal symptoms
You may be asked to return to the office over the next several days in order to assess your symptoms and adjust your dosage. When your opioid receptors are filled with buprenorphine and your symptoms are controlled, your doctor will decide what your regular daily dose of Suboxone should be. Once your dose is established, you will begin the maintenance phase of treatment
At this point, you and your physician may discuss the possibility of beginning medical withdrawal (detox) and explore other posttreatment options
What Happens in the Maintenance Phase?
- When you are receiving a stable daily dose of Suboxone and your condition is considered stable (your withdrawal symptoms are relieved and your cravings are decreased or are gone altogether), your doctor may decide to see you less often
- You and your doctor will discuss counseling options that meet your needs
- Your doctor may request urine samples from time to time. Some doctors find urine testing a helpful part of treatment because they can use the results to verify the absence of opioids in your system and thus evaluate the effectiveness of your Suboxone dose. You can talk with your doctor about the role of urine testing in Suboxone treatment
- During your ongoing maintenance treatment, your doctor will want to know if you experience any withdrawal symptoms. If you do, your dose may need to be adjusted
At Pat Moore Foundation Subutex and Suboxone treatments occur in a safe and comfortable setting that we consider an important aspect for the client’s state of mind. During this clients are still able to participate in counseling sessions with their case manager and group therapy with their peers, contingent on their physical well-being. To learn more about treatment, pricing and outpatient services, please click on the appropriate word.
If the individuals require further medical attention, Costa Mesa and the Newport Beach area have renowned hospitals within a few minutes of this facility.
Many issues come up in early sobriety that can be difficult to handle. The staff at Pat Moore Foundation is on call 24-hours and understands this, and is eager to help at any time of the day or night. Our goal is to enable each person who enters our doors walk the road to a healthy and happy recovery.
Pat Moore Foundation’s drug & alcohol detox and alcohol & drug addiction treatment programs are licensed and certified by The State of California. We provide non-medical and medically managed detoxification (using Suboxone, Subutex, and Buprenorphine when appropriate) and primary residential treatment. Our individual homes are on a unique co-ed campus where we offer gender specific treatment. We are located in Costa Mesa, in Orange County, Southern California, close to Newport Beach and Huntington Beach, and only an hour’s drive from Los Angeles and San Diego. To speak with a counselor, please call us 24-hours at (888) 426-6086 or if you’d like us to contact you, send a confidential message online by filling out our online form.
Note: All medical services are administered by medical professionals, which are facilitated and operated solely under the jurisdiction of a separate medical corporation.