Here’s a guide to questions you should ask your pharmacist or doctor before taking any medicine. Always check with your doctor before adjusting your dosage either up or https://ecosoberhouse.com/ down — do not change your dose without checking first. Your doctor is the best person to advise you on whether methadone is the right medicine for you, how much you need and how long to take it for.
Buprenorphine – Long Acting Injectable – Alcohol and Drug Foundation
Patient care involving methadone is an evolving subject, and healthcare providers must stay informed about regular updates to the literature to establish the best possible care. As with all medications used in medication-assisted treatment (MAT), methadone is to be prescribed as part of a comprehensive treatment plan that includes counseling and participation in social support programs. Methadone works by changing how the brain and nervous system respond to pain. It lessens the painful symptoms of opiate withdrawal and blocks the euphoric effects of opiate drugs such as heroin, morphine, and codeine, as well Methadone Withdrawal as semi-synthetic opioids like oxycodone and hydrocodone.
Naltrexone – Alcohol and Drug Foundation
When you start your treatment, and until your dose is stabilised, a key worker or pharmacist will usually supervise you as you take methadone. Methadone is a man-made opioid (also known as an opiate). Other opioids include codeine, morphine, fentanyl and diamorphine (heroin). Patients taking methadone may develop heart-related effects that can lead to irregular heartbeats, which can cause sudden death. Your doctor will want to ask you questions about heart disease and monitor your heart regularly during treatment. If you miss a dose of methadone, take it as soon as you remember unless it is closer to the time of your next dose.
More about methadone
- Along with its needed effects, a medicine may cause some unwanted effects.
- Opioids are natural drugs derived from the opium poppy or synthetic drugs, and have a depressant or sedating effect, causing the brain and central nervous system to slow down.
- Follow your doctor’s orders or the directions on the label.
If you’re taking methadone for maintenance therapy, you will usually take it long term. When you have stabilised on methadone, it may be possible to take some of your doses at home. You’ll discuss this with your key worker and prescriber to work out what is right for you. You will get your first prescription (or script) from your GP, or a prescriber at your drug treatment service. This information is being provided as a community outreach effort of the American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists. This information is for educational and informational purposes only and is not medical advice.
- This medicine is available only with your doctor’s prescription.
- The parent or legal guardian must provide written informed consent.
- Also, using it for a long time or in high doses near the expected delivery date may harm the unborn baby.
- An additional 5 to 10 mg of methadone may be provided if withdrawal symptoms have not been decreased or if symptoms reappear after 2 to 4 hours; total daily dose on the first day should not exceed 40 mg.
For healthcare professionals
Other medications may interact with methadone and cause heart conditions. Even after the effects of methadone wear off, the medication’s active ingredients remain in the body for much longer. Unintentional overdose is possible if patients do not take methadone as prescribed. Ask a doctor before using opioid medicine if you are breastfeeding. This medicine passes into breast milk and may harm your baby. Tell your doctor immediately if you notice increased sleepiness (more than usual), difficulty breastfeeding, breathing difficulties, or limpness in the nursing baby.
