What
A measured dose of a pharmaceutical grade opiate medication given daily for as long
as you need it, stopping cravings and withdrawals for at least 24 hours after each
dose. Some medications can be given less often as they can stop cravings and withdrawals
for as long as three days at the right dose.
Who
People seeking to take back control of their lives, get healthier and take the first
steps toward achieving longer-term life goals.
Like
Craving-free life that revolves more around family, work, and rehabilitation, with
medication taken once daily or even less often, depending on opiate replacement
therapy choice. Potential to take medication home over time once stable.
Dislike
Depends which maintenance treatment is selected and what you need from treatment.
Patients may not like the fact that some opioid replacement medications can be hard
to come off and can leave you feeling stoned. Or, patients may complain that other
medications can be too easy to come off and can leave you feeling more clear-headed
and in touch with your emotions. Some treatments have to be taken in front of the
pharmacist or doctor. See your Options pack to find out more about specific drugs.
Tell me more...
Treatment can stop cravings and withdrawal for at least 24 hours after each dose,
and can help you to find the space to get your life back on track, minimise illicit
drug use and regain some control. This should give you a solid base from which to
move towards personal goals, including abstinence, when the time is right.
Maintenance treatment is the long term replacement of your regular opiate with a
pharmaceutical grade opiate that has different effects. It is not a residential
treatment so it can normally be done through your doctor or a local treatment centre.
As maintenance is usually a longer term treatment, it is important to build up a
good relationship with your healthcare professionals. Different clinics have different
approaches, but you may well be assigned someone who will be your key contact throughout
your treatment.
How it works
Three treatments are available: buprenorphine with naloxone (Suboxone® Sublingual
Film and Suboxone® Tablets), buprenorphine (Subutex®) and methadone (available
in the forms of Methadone Syrup® and Biodone Forte®). With the right dosing,
these all affect the body like commonly used opiates such as heroin, morphine or
oxycodone, so your brain thinks you have used recently, reducing cravings and withdrawals.
The similarities only go so far, though. For example, you won’t experience so much
of the euphoric sensation that you would normally associate with heroin. What’s
more, maintenance treatment's effects are much longer lasting than heroin’s. This
means that they can be dosed at daily intervals, or even less frequently depending
on your choice of medication, so your life doesn’t need to revolve around frequent
drug use anymore, putting you back in the driving seat.
All of the treatments currently available block the effects of heroin to an extent.
Moreover, all treatment medications affect other parts of the brain too, and affect
them to different degrees, so, for example, they might help to improve your mood.
Importantly, because you are taking prescribed doses of a pharmaceutical grade drug
and reducing your iv injection, you should be putting yourself further away from
some of the health risks and dangers associated with your usual drug use.
