Author: tearj3rker

Posted: Wed Oct 19, 2011 7:07 pm

Look. I know I can get worked up about this stuff. I just find moreso than any other kind of medical treatment, in my country, people on methadone and Suboxone are ignored and mistrusted the most. And it’s understandable as we are recovering addicts – we’re not the most credible bunch.

Yesterday I went to the pharmacy and there was a real messy looking guy – the kind anyone would pick as a junkie – picking up his doses before me. This guy has been around for a while. Just as the pharmacist told me that the new film was in, this guy chimed in to me and said "I don’t like em. I ask for the white ones, if ya know what I mean" and he turns around and gives me a sly wink, and I see a bottle of 5 Subutex on the counter being handed to him.

It’s because of this kinda shit that people like me are distrusted by doctors, pharmacists, pharmaco’s. I know this guy’s just a "sick guy", I’ve been there myself, and I know this stuff will always happen, but it just makes the possibility of creating change for us on the program feel … futile, ya know? We won’t be listened to unless we have people’s trust. And let’s face it. While this treatment is fantastic, it does have its shortcomings, and it has the potential to save many more lives than it does.

It would be nice if we had options, that we could choose between different products. Implants, patches, generics, methadone, antagonists. That us patients were read out accurate information before starting treatment, and we’re shown the tapering procedures for each before we sign up. I have been around since the beginning of buprenorphine treatment. I have seen us get funnelled from Subutex, to Suboxone, to Suboxone Film, as soon as these drugs patents expire.

I’m either going to switch to subutex and start my taper in the coming months, or at least try to initiate some change before I do. God knows I got enough time at the moment!