In the first instance, use behaviour management strategies to address difficult behaviour (Table 2). Call your doctor or go to the ER if a breastfeeding infant shows unusual sleepiness, weakness, or breathing problems. When you’re ready to wean your baby off breast milk, talk to your doctor about how to do it slowly and safely to avoid methadone withdrawal. If your methadone is expired or if you don’t need to take it anymore, find a safe take-back program or flush it down the toilet. Talk to your pharmacist or treatment provider if you have questions. Even though it’s safer than some other narcotics, your doctor should keep a close watch while you take methadone.
- Research shows that roughly three in four people who complete opioid detoxification relapse within two to three years.
- If you take a lower dose or try to stop taking the medication, you’ll likely experience withdrawal symptoms.
- Your healthcare professional may recommend that you have naloxone available to lower your risk of an overdose.
- Methadone may even be preferable for patients considered to be at high risk for leaving OUD treatment and overdosing on fentanyl.
- One of the biggest risks during withdrawal is the possibility of relapse and potentially life-threatening overdose.
- The Alcohol Withdrawal Scale (AWS, p.49) should be administered every four hours for at least three days, or longer if withdrawal symptoms persist.
Methadone Withdrawal Symptoms
Those wanting to get off methadone quickly may agree to a fast-tapering schedule. Fast tapers work best when monitored on an inpatient basis due to the likelihood methadone withdrawal symptoms will reappear. When this happens, your doctor may reintroduce methadone to provide stabilization. Undergoing methadone maintenance treatment while pregnant does not cause birth defects.
An Individual Process
Your doctor may recommend you get naloxone (a medicine to reverse an opioid overdose) and keep it with you at all times. A person caring for you can give the naloxone if you stop breathing or don’t wake up. Your caregiver must still get emergency medical help and may need to perform CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) on you while waiting for help to arrive. Treating methadone withdrawal is similar to treating other forms of opioid withdrawal. It should focus on managing both physical and psychological symptoms while lowering the risk of returning to unsafe opioid use.
What Is Opioid Withdrawal?
Today, you might also get it as part of a treatment program for an addiction to heroin or narcotic painkillers. Dosages may need to be adjusted during medical detox to ensure stability remains and that withdrawal symptoms are minimal. Methadone may also be replaced with the partial opioid agonist buprenorphine during detox. Other medications can be helpful to address specific withdrawal symptoms.
Multivitamin supplements containing B group vitamins and vitamin C are recommended. Symptomatic medications should be offered as required for aches, anxiety and other symptoms. During withdrawal, the patient’s mental state should be monitored to detect complications such as psychosis, depression and anxiety.
Quality Care
How soon those symptoms start and how long they last can vary by person, but the general opioid withdrawal timeline can last 1 to 3 weeks. Education and therapy are two important components of opioid withdrawal treatment. https://ecosoberhouse.com/ Your doctor or the staff at your drug rehab center will teach you the skills you need to stay off these drugs long-term. You can also see a counselor or join a self-help program such as Narcotics Anonymous (NA).
Find a Detox Program
Once the body becomes reliant on methadone to function normally, a dependence has developed. Those with a dependence on methadone will experience withdrawal symptoms if they quit taking the drug. Ask a doctor before using opioid medicine if you are breastfeeding. Tell your doctor immediately if you notice increased sleepiness (more than usual), difficulty breastfeeding, breathing difficulties, or limpness in the nursing baby.
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