How Long Does Methadone Stay In Your System?
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Methadone, otherwise known as dolophine, is a long acting opium derivative used for the treatment of heroin dependency. This is used in place of heroin to fulfill the addict’s requirement for the drug. Methadone is prescribed for the treatment of narcotic pain and is helpful in reducing the withdrawal symptoms of heroine addiction. The two types of methadone are oral methadone and IV methadone. Oral methadone settles in the liver after use. IV methadone reacts just like heroin.
It is essential to know about the positive and negative effects of methadone and how long methadone stays in your system if you are confronted with a drug test. So just read and understand the details
Hidden Effects of Methadone
Once you start taking methadone for chronic pain, your system starts to store it. Eventually you may fall prey for pain killers. The effect of addiction to methadone is more than other painkillers. People prefer to take methadone because it is available at an affordable price. Painkillers never make you feel high or euphoric like methadone. Physicians do not allow the patients to take the drug often, even though the patient suffers from severe pain. If you increase the dosage your body requires more pills and in the long run you tend to get addicted to the drug.
The Benefits of Methadone
Methadone is used for heroine addicts who are inpatients at rehabilitation centers. It is also helpful to those who indulge in criminal activity and infected by HIV. It helps you in heroin withdrawal and reduces your yearning for the euphoria that comes up with the intake of heroin. If you take this for such purposes, make sure that you don’t raise the dosage to get the desired result. Methadone maintenance programs have proven to give excellent results over years. However, the misuse of the drug spoils the popularity of the same.
How Long Methadone Stays in Your System?
The detection window of any drug depends upon age, weight, mind set, and health condition of the examinee. Apart from that, the dosage of the drug, its quality, and period and potency play an important role during the drug test. Urine test reveals positive result for 1-7 days. The half-life of drug is just 24-36 hours, and it may remain in your system from 7 hours to 52 hours. Half-life refers to the time taken to eliminate half of the drug’s effect; A drug takes 4-5 half lives to get expelled out of your system completely. It is always better for the person to stop using methadone two weeks prior to suboxone treatment.
Disclaimer: The above information regarding how long methadone stays in your system has been compiled from the testimonials offered from different sources. We are not responsible if your drug test goes wrong and is in contrast to what is desired.
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Thank you for such a very well written info about methadone. I’ve learned a lot about it lately because a friend of mine started getting hooked on it after they finally broke their addiction to heroin. I’m not sure if I’ll ever see sober again. I really hope she can drop this methadone addiction and get back to living a real life, and being my friend again….
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@Jessie
The best thing that you can do is to get the details of the best rehabilitation centre and get your friend attend the first few counseling sessions. Get help from the best expert there. And the withdrawal will start automatically. Be by the side of your friend through the process and motivate him when he is down. Assist him in all what she wants and the process might take few months but be patient and get her out of addiction soon
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how long will it take for the physical symtoms of methadone withdrawl last, my daughter took her last one monday night, but still keeps vomiting
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ddddddddddd Reply:
October 14th, 2009 at 10:15 pm
Depending on how long she has ben on methadone, it could take up tp 6 months to get norma. My sugestion is to go to a regular faMILy physician and get on phenergan for nausea and kolonapin for anxiety until the withdrawas subsie. I know its hard i have been ther. I took it for 2 years now
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@jackie
In case of methadone, the after effects would depend on the nature of the individual’s body. It’s almost a week in your daughter’s case and the drug seems to be still effective. In this case, why don’t you consult your medical practitioner immediately and do the needful in this regard?
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hi i am addicted to herion and methadone i have been useing 2 to 3 grams a day for the last 3 yrs also tking 50 to 80 mg’s of methadone in morning so i dont wake sick.how long if i got down to say 20mg’s a day of methadne only when could i switch to suboxone?
i need help please!!!!!
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@claude
Half life period is the time taken half of the drug effects to get out of your system. It takes around a day or two for that. So it may take 5-7 half lives for the drug to get out of your body. But since you are addicted, it may take long for sure. You need to stop methadone at least 2 weeks prior to your suboxone treatment
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I starting 8/12/2009 to get off methadone –Question if Im reading this right after I have been triming down and Im at the forth week and Im only taking .5mg from 80mg a day four weeks ago down I have .5mg in my body as long as I keep taking it .say I stop there nomore .5mg—-[ it will take up to 10-days]which is 5 half lives half being 24-36hr x 2 = so 5 half lives = 10-days to be expelled out of your system .So the bottom line is you will suffer aleast 10 days is this correct. thanks E-prise
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admin Reply:
October 19th, 2009 at 7:10 am
Given that you have drastically reduced the consumption, you can get out of the problems very soon. But the half life depends more on your metabolic rate as well.
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Add on to E-prise———-I am taking the methadone for back pain and I just what to get off -don’t like it controling my life .if triming from 80mg slowly down to .5mg over 4-weeks it’s got to stop some where right- when ever I take that last .5mg rather it’s 4-weeks are 4-mounths Im still going to have a bad week right .—————thanks E-prise
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admin Reply:
October 19th, 2009 at 6:55 am
Half life of methadone first of all depends on the metabolic rate of your body. It is not common for all. Approximate calculation can only be done. But now that you have come down drastically, you can get out of the withdrawal symptoms very soon
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i was on methadone forfor 4years,and one day i woke up and said i dont want this ball and chain…I was at 165mgs i weigh,160pds..and im 3mgs of klonapin a day(which i truely need and take as directed)So every week i would drop 10mgs.and let me tell u once i got down to 5mgs.i was a train wreck…tom.will be 3 weeks completely off it..my bones and joints ache like hell, and im still so weak…but if u wanna get off u can,i did!
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My story may make some ppl agg or even downright mad.
But I have been on oxy’s/hydroc./vic/…anything w/ hydrocodone since I was 18 years old and continued doctor hopping and MAJORLY addicted for like 14 years or so.I finally wound up in prison for nearly 5 years.The worste part was breaking my 2 daughters hearts AGAIN!The WHOLE time in prison I begged God to NEVER let me digest another pill.BUT—the WHOLE time in the pen I was having something like panic atttacks(even to the point that u couldn’t understand what I was talking about…just babbling sorta)and I felt a craving to get that “normal” feeling back that hydrocodone gave me.After my release,I broke down and wound up w/ bottles of 100 Vic’s each,and ther I was…back on the friggin wagon.Back to running out and having withdrawals again,feeling like I had the flu 10 times over.Mentally and painfully I was on my way back to prison,and I just knew it.
I seen a commercial about methadone,and I tried it.After only 1 week,my life started feeling 100 percent better.I wasn’t “high”,but I wasn’t sick either.NOR did I have the massive stress headaches I always had all my life.After less tyhan 3 months I had a great job,a car,a home,and my kids back in my life.I didn’t tell them I was on Methadone,because there are so many misconceptions about methadone.My clinic monitors me,counseling is mandatory,seeing a doctor regularly is mandatory,and urinalisys(sp)tests are serious.If you get dirty UA’s,your dose goes down,cuz they want you to get the feeling that you have “no use for other chemicals”…you can’t get high there.They can look at your eyes,among other things to see how you are being affected.
Since I joined the program I can even work 2 jobs,wheras BEFORE I was scared to even be in public places.
I seen an HBO special about the (methadone)clinics in New York and was appalled.There,it looked like there are so many clinics that it’s a money thing to them,b/c of the competition.But here in Tyler Texas,it’s about helping you stay off other things that can send me back to the joint and do more damage to my kids.
I highly recommend the clinic for log time users of any drug…Oh,and there are many many ppl, that go to the clinic that have cancer and other painful medical problems,because the doctors don’t want the patient to over-do their pain meds,so they are sent to the clinic where you can be monitored for the pain relief.
Hope my rambling helps.
If you are struggling,try it….this silly talk about trading one addiction for another is bull^&%$#.It saved my life and I have NOT met another person at the clinic that has anything negative to say about turning to methadone for help.
Good luck.
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Christina Reply:
October 1st, 2009 at 1:26 am
Response to TAMMI101,
I would just like to say Thank You. I was hit in a head-on collision by a drunk lady about 4 years ago. I sustain multiple injuries, my knee was messed up (torn meniscus), my L-4 L-5 discs were herniated, and it created a reverse curve in my neck that caused major recurring migraines. I have had 2 knee surgeries and am still on the fence about my back with going ahead for surgery. My neck problem was corrected with a chiropractor, and my knee is a lot better after the surgeries (not 100% though). However, I still have no improvement in my back, and I have tried EVERYTHING, aside from surgery, chiropractor, accupuncture, physical therapy, etc. When this first happened I was put on the normal medicines like vicoden, percocet, and such. At first I was taking them as prescribed but it got to a point after a long while that I was not getting any relief like before, so I would increase my dose (with out the doctors knowledge of course) before long I was up to 50 pills of the 10mg vicoden a day!! Obviously I was not getting that amount from my one doctor so I would doctor shop, and go to the hospital. I live in the San Francisco bay area, there are at least 30 hospitals within a two hour drive in different directions, I have been to every single one, at least 10 times. It got so bad that I was going to the hospital everyday and just rotating which ones I would go to so it wouldn’t be too close together between visits, and I would come up with convincing lies so that they wouldn’t get suspicious. In one year I probably went to the hospital 300 times, no joke. And thats just the hospitals, if I wasn’t there I was shopping doctors til I found one that would give me what I wanted. I got so hooked on those little pills without ever intending to get addicted. At first it just started because the doctor would keep handing out prescriptions like they were candy, no questions asked. Before this accident I never did any drugs, except for smoking pot a few times. Anyhow, it gets worse…obviously after a year of going to all these hospitals, visiting each one every month, questions started getting asked and my stories were not trusted any more and I eventually was black listed one hospital at a time. SO, what did I do you ask? I stole my sisters identity. Not to get money or the usual thing identity theives do, no, I used it to create a new person to call myself at these hospitals. That is until one of them somehow found my sisters real address instead of the fake one I gave them, they must have ran her credit or skip traced her. She knew I had a problem and put two and two together and called the cops, I now have a misdemeanor on my record, luckily the DA called it petty theft and not identity theft. (I never did anything to get in trouble before this accident) After all this happened I knew I HAD to do something or I was not going to like what was going to happen in my life, either death or prison, so I came clean with my doctor and we had a good talk, the sad thing is if I had just done this in the first place I would have avoided all those problems. Anyhow, the end result was he put me on methadone. I was a little hesitant at first because of the misconceptions involved with the drug, but it was the BEST decision I could have made for myself. That was over a year ago, and I am happy to say that I have not been to a hospital since then (other than for emergency’s not involving drug seeking behaviors) and my pain is not gone but 100% better than it was and I too got my life back like you stated. Each time I went to the hospital was at least 5 hours out of my life, sometimes 10 hours, all those hours for maybe 20 pills, which is why I went everyday. I can honestly say that methadone saved my life from the direction it was headed. My mom still thinks that I am a drug addict because I am on methadone, but I try to explain to her that I am not taking it just for the hell of it, I have really bad pain.
You know the really funny thing? My father herniated the same disc while living in Kansas, and they NEVER gave him anything other than ibprofen!! In California they just hand out those potent little suckers without informing you that if you take them everyday for even a short time, you WILL become dependent. Your body starts to depend on the drug like it depends on air, and withdrawls are no joke. I wouldn’t wish them on my worst enemy.
Moral of my story….If you have REAL problems like I did with pain or even addiction, trust in your doctor. Otherwise you will learn like I did, the hard way. I was too prideful to admit that I had developed a problem that I couldn’t handle and instead I messed up my life and ruined friendships and relationships. My husband almost left me during that bad period as well. If I had just not been ashamed and admitted to myself that something wasn’t right and told my doctor I could have avoided all of this stuff. On the flip side, my doctor should have asked me how I was handling my meds and if they were working or if I was experiencing any withdrawls if I missed a dose, if my pain was controlled, etc. Instead he assumed that everything was ok. I think we both learned something from this experience. He learned to care enough to ask questions and not assume that people will be forthcoming and honest about a problem. He also learned to educate patients about the risks so that they understand that dependency can and almost always happens after prolonged use, that way people are that are taking their meds are prescribed are not blindsided if they miss a pill and go into withdrawls then take more to sustain themselves all the while digging themselves in deeper and thinking there is something wrong with them, so they hide it and take matters into their own hands, like I did.
Anyhow, Tammi101, I thank you for telling your story, now I know that there are others out there that have been saved by this miracle drug.
For all others, if you do not need to be on this medicine then stay away from it, and all other opiates so you do not create an addiction for yourself. Trust me, it is no fun.
If anyone has any questions about the drug, or just wants someone to talk to about it, please email me at christinakresge@gmail.com
Thanks and good luck to all!!
Christina
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kelly Reply:
January 12th, 2010 at 7:20 pm
christina
I am in the same situation you are. I really need help, but afraid to talk about it with anyone. I am afraid if i tell a dr he will just think I”m a addict that just wants to get high, when all i want is to function normal. What do you think i should do?
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i have a grug test by the feds and took 60mg of methadone on friday and the test is wednesday. i have been on methadone for a month only. will i test positive, is there something i can do to increase my chances of success…alot of water 1000 mgs of niacin ?
please help
john
falconi53@hotmail.com
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john falco Reply:
September 21st, 2009 at 3:15 pm
took 60mg pill fprm methadone friday will it shoe up on a fed drug test on wednesday…..help
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John do you know how to get Methadone out of your system within 3 days?
I was taking 80mg Oxycontin’s (11 to 13 a day) and a friend gave me some of her Meth so I wouldn’t be so sick, but I’m caught in a catch 22. I tested postive for methadone and I can’t get on the program until it is out of my system. Therefore I need to find out how to get this out of my system so I can go on the program because I am going thru hell.
Thanks John and I hope you reply.
Tammy
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I don’t take methadone and im wondering why it is showing up in my body as possitive
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pam Reply:
February 28th, 2010 at 7:35 pm
i can up positive to and I have not taken it
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I TESTED POSITIVE FOR METHADONE AND I DON’t take the medicine
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tina k Reply:
February 17th, 2010 at 7:31 pm
you must of tooken something like it, bc it woudnt just show up in your system & did u take anykind of pill, or mb you took something like methodone, but a snythetic? bc i took suboxen for like 5 days & got drug tested & it showed up as an opiate & i had to freak out untill he took a blood test & it showed up as subs…so either you took methodone,or took something like or your just a flatout lair!
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I took methadone about a month ago to wean myself off of 4 years of taking prescription drugs and also heroin …my husband got endocarditis which spread to his lungs and caused pancreatic liver and kidney failure i was told he was going to die 3 times …he made it but now may be diabatic for life and have other cognitive lapses cause he also had a stroke …the heroin use was short lived we used only for about 9 months but it nearly destroyed our lives literally …we have a small child and are now waist deep in a child protective services investigation and i havent used in over a month methadone or otherwise …i dont know how i did it but i got angry at the drugs and got myself weaned off in a matter of two weeks …i had zero withdrawel …i think watching my soul mate nearly die gave me some kind of natural instant detox …but the odd thing is i had taken the methadone …and not even that much …i started at 25 mg’s a day to wean off of4 years of opiate use and i waited for the withdrawel to come and it never did …i know it builds up in your system but i only used it for two weeks …maybe less even and a month later cps is telling me i am testing posiive and whats more is i drank many pitchers of water took mass niacin and drank 3 jugs of cranberry juice to get the toxins out of my system …what would cause a false positive for methadone or is cps lying? I dont think it is beyond them to lie …i personally think them to be no more than the work of the devil himself and certainly have daily conversations with him …yes i did abuse myself but i always made sure my son was taken care of ..well fed …never left with a stranger well clothed etc …they could not prove child abuse so they had no cause to remove him but they are now in my home everyday intruding on my life and the stress i am under is causing panic that is nearly paralyzing …but methadone in my system after a month? What is the deal with that?
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I’ve took Methadone for a little over 5 years and just recently gotten off on 11/22/09. I was in a Methadone clinic. I got up to 120mgs every day down to 5mgs a day in the past year. My question is are my opiate receptors in my brain still blocking opiates b/c recently I broke down and took 40mgs of Oxycontin and barely feel anything. From what is said it should have already been out of my system. So another question is how long does it take to get the receptors unblocked and since it’s out of my system for a little over 3 weeks how come I didn’t feel the effects of the Oxycontin and how long it would take for me to feel the Oxy.? It should have put anybody who hasn’t had anything for 3 weeks on their but?
I’m very curious.
Please reply!!!!
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Has anyone takin Methadone 5mg 3 times per day for pain. I want to know how much is enough to manage chroninc pain. I also take 30mgs of oxycodone for break through which I’m sure my DOC will lower afterhe raises the M-done and I feel pain relief. I would like to hear other peoples story on chronic pain managment with Methadone. I have 9 Discs problems from neck,mid and low back. severe nerve pain in my arms,hands,fingers… Legs,feet and toes. my face even twitches. Thanks for all your help!!
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I took methadone sun. Got test wed. Nite, wil i pass?
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A friend of mine has been methdone for about 6 months & is on 160 mg..She hasnt tooken it in about 4 days bc she has a drug test sometime next week most likley thrusday..she has also been taking pills this whole week& next..so im just wondering she’ll be ok to go to the docters & get her drug test w/ out it showing up in her system? please help!! & i donr really care for rude people who want to tell me obvious answers so if your gonna do that dont even bother putting your fingers to the keyboard..Thanks
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how long for methodone to clear body to pass drug screen?
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