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Drinking heavily while also on Suboxone or other sedating medications is dangerous and inadvisable. We recommend avoiding drinking altogether at least at first when you are starting your medication, to ensure that your body can tolerate Suboxone well and you are not overly sedated. While mixing alcohol and Suboxone isn’t smart, it’s unfortunately common. Both Buprenorphine (the active ingredient in Suboxone) and alcohol are sedating substances.
How to Help a Loved One Seek Treatment
All of these things can help mitigate any danger of mixing suboxone and alcohol. To ensure things go smoothly, it’s a good idea to make sure your treatment for suboxone and alcohol abuse has a medical detox program. Mixing suboxone and alcohol is an example of polysubstance abuse.
What are Hydrocodone Addiction Side Effects?
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If you or someone you know is struggling with the dangerous and potentially life-threatening effects of mixing Suboxone and alcohol, it’s important to seek treatment immediately. Treatment options for this type of substance abuse can vary depending on individual needs and circumstances, but it’s crucial to understand the importance of getting help as soon as possible. Suboxone abuse, though less common than with other MAT drugs, is still possible.
In extreme cases, breathing can stop completely and even result in death. Suboxone is prescribed to treat opioid dependence, acute or chronic pain. In most cases, the drug helps to overcome addiction and avoid relapse after treatment.
In fact, adding alcohol into the mix can make the use of Suboxone obsolete. In other words, while Suboxone works to reduce the likelihood of an overdose, when combined with alcohol, this may no longer be the case. Additionally, the combination of these two substances can actually cause overdoses at lower doses than would be typical when taking either one alone. Despite seeking treatment for an opioid addiction, some may continue to use alcohol. And when combined with Suboxone, this can be very dangerous—even leading to life-threatening issues. Most opioid dependence programs will have people sign a contract indicating they will not use intoxicating substances like alcohol and other drugs when using Suboxone.
Finding Treatment For Opioid Addiction With Suboxone
This can include enrolling in a treatment program, attending support groups, and finding a sponsor. It is also important to be mindful of triggers that may lead to substance use and to develop healthy coping mechanisms to manage stress and anxiety. To avoid the potentially dangerous consequences of mixing Suboxone and alcohol, it is important to hollow the prescribed treatment plan provided by a medical professional. This may include abstaining from alcohol entirely or limiting its use under strict guidelines.
- Beyond the physical side effects of consuming alcohol, there is also the risk of using alcohol as a substitute for the opioid addiction from which you are trying to recover.
- Finally, mixing Suboxone and alcohol can also impair cognitive functioning.
- Now that we’ve laid out Suboxone®’s effect on the body, let’s talk about what alcohol does when combined with this form of treatment.
- Around-the-clock support is provided to ensure patients can get through those crucial early stages of recovery when withdrawal symptoms are at their most acute.
- Of overdose deaths attributed to buprenorphine, 41% also involved alcohol.2 Each time you mix alcohol and buprenorphine, you could be increasing your risk of overdose.
What is polysubstance abuse?
Finally, there can also be gastrointestinal effects from mixing Suboxone with alcohol. Opioids can cause constipation, and this is an issue when mixing these drugs, too. Compared to these many downsides, there are few pleasant effects when mixing these drugs. It can make people feel buzzy and energized when they first take a drink.
- Combining two sedating substances (like buprenorphine and alcohol) can increase risk for overdose.
- For this reason, treatment may be needed for anyone who is mixing Suboxone and alcohol.
- We also make it easy for our clients to keep getting the support they need.
- It’s grown rapidly in usage – according to the Department of Health, the number of people prescribed suboxone increased from 3% to 16% between 2011 and 2020.
- Mixing Suboxone® and alcohol is not advisable because of the potential health risks.
- Some of these will reduce your quality of life; others are actually life-threatening.
You must adhere to your doctor’s recommendations and embrace the psychosocial support and therapy offered as part of the treatment plan. You may be required to undergo dual diagnosis care to help you overcome both addictions. Keep in mind that trying to overcome the abuse by yourself will only derail your chances of success. This post discusses everything you need to know about mixing Suboxone and alcohol, highlighting some of the dangers involved. Combining alcohol with Suboxone could slow down brain functions that regulate decision-making. Things you would never do while sober (like having sex with strangers or fighting with your spouse) can seem like good ideas when you’re intoxicated.
If you are mixing other substances of abuse while on Suboxone, you may need to seek treatment. Even after an individual has lost consciousness due to drinking, the body may still be absorbing alcohol in the stomach and small intestine. Alcohol use disorder is the most common substance use problem seen in the U.S.
THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF COCAINE ADDICTION
If you’re taking Suboxone, it’s important to understand how it interacts with other substances to ensure a successful treatment. However, combining Suboxone with alcohol can lead to hazardous consequences, even when following your doctor’s instructions. Therefore, it’s crucial to be aware of the potential dangers of combining Suboxone and alcohol and take necessary precautions to stay safe. The health risks of combining suboxone and alcohol mixing suboxone and alcohol should never be overlooked.