It is very rare that someone starts methadone or Suboxone without having tried to quit opiates on their own or with the help of a withdrawal management service (detox) or another method. None of our patients have been able to quit opiates (and stay quit) before they start at BMC – they would not be at our clinic if they could. 

Remember that methadone and Suboxone are opiates. If you have not been able to stop using other opiates then it should not surprise you that you are not able to stay clean once you stopped Suboxone or methadone.

However, things are not that bleak.

Most of our patients that desire to can successfully stop using methadone and Suboxone. We help guide those interested in eventually stopping treatment through what is called a taper. Tapering the medication must be done slowly to be successful. Avoiding any significant and persistent withdrawal seems to be important. We at BMC use various strategies to help patients achieve this goal if that is their desire.

So the short answer to the question Are Suboxone and Methadone harder to get off than other opiates is no.  Most, but not all, patients are able to stop taking methadone or Suboxone if they taper off these medications with the help of the experienced team at BMC.