Buprenorphine

What is buprenorphine?

Buprenorphine is a medication that can help you with withdrawal symptoms you might have when you stop using opioids like heroin.

Buprenorphine is a replacement for heroin or other opioids. It can help you to withdraw from opioids you’ve become dependent on by reducing cravings and limiting your withdrawal symptoms.

When you stop taking an opiate, you might have withdrawal symptoms as your body returns to normal. They can include: sweating; feeling hot and cold; runny eyes and nose; yawning; losing your appetite; stomach cramps; feeling sick or vomiting; diarrhoea; tremors; poor sleep; restlessness; general aches and pains; and just feeling awful.

Withdrawal symptoms usually get a bit better within five days, but you might still notice cravings for opioids, tiredness and restless sleep for a while afterwards.

 

Why choose buprenorphine?

Buprenorphine is not the only opioid substitute that you can be prescribed. There is also a medication called methadone, but there are a few reasons that people sometimes pick buprenorphine instead:

  • Parents usually choose buprenorphine as it’s safer around children. You should keep both medications away from children.
  • Some people feel more ‘clear-headed’ with buprenorphine than with methadone.
  • Some people have difficulties using methadone.
  • Buprenorphine tends to be easier to detox from than methadone.
  • Buprenorphine is less dangerous than methadone if you take an overdose.

 

How long will it take to work?

You’ll start on a low dose of buprenorphine and work your way up to your regular dose. It’s important not to take other opioids during this time, as this will give you withdrawal symptoms. Most people feel they are on the correct dose within the first week of treatment.

 

Taking buprenorphine

Buprenorphine comes as a ‘sub lingual’ tablet, which means the tablet should be placed under the tongue and kept there until fully dissolved. This normally takes 5 – 10 minutes. Buprenorphine is absorbed straight into your bloodstream. The tablets do not work if you swallow them.

 

Usually, you’ll take buprenorphine once a day. At the start of treatment, the pharmacist who gives you your buprenorphine will need to be there when you take it. This is to make sure you’re taking the right dose for the buprenorphine to be safe and effective.

 

When you first take buprenorphine:

  • If you use heroin, you should wait at least 6 – 8 hours after your last heroin dose.
  • If you are taking methadone: you take the first dose of buprenorphine between 24 and 36 hours after your last dose of methadone.
  • For buprenorphine to work well you need to take it when your body has low levels of heroin or methadone. You should only take your first dose when you feel some withdrawal symptoms starting. Buprenorphine can cause withdrawal symptoms if taken too soon after your last dose of opioid.

 

How is buprenorphine prescribed?

One of our recovery workers and someone from our clinical team will give you a full health and wellbeing assessment. If the assessment shows that buprenorphine could be good for you, we’ll prescribe it. If you’ve ever injected drugs, we’ll help you to get a liver test, screening for any blood-borne viruses, and vaccinations that you might need.

 

Coming off buprenorphine

Once you’ve settled into your regular buprenorphine prescription, your recovery worker will talk to you about what your goals are for your treatment. One of the things you’ll talk about is how to reduce your dose and eventually come off it completely. This is called a detox. Your worker and prescriber will take a look at your dose every six weeks and see if they think it should be changed.