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How the Doctor Decides Your Methadone Dosage
Methadone is considered by many to be a miracle drug in helping people get through opiate detox. Although methadone is an opiate itself, your doctor will be able to provide you with the right dose so that you can get through the withdrawals of opiates in a safe and secure manner.
About Methadone Clinics
Methadone clinics have been around for decades and have significantly helped with lessening opiate withdrawal symptoms. Methadone clinics were developed for the primary reason of helping with heroin detox, but now they help with the withdrawal from all opiate drugs.
According to the Center for Substance Abuse Research, in America, methadone maintenance programs are often thought of as one of the most common and effective means for treating heroin addiction. The term ‘maintenance’ is used when describing these programs because the goal of the program is to ‘maintain’ an individual abusing opiates for the purpose of helping them avoid the negative and severe withdrawal symptoms.
Methadone is an opiate drug, but it has a slow onset, and when taken, its effects work all day long. If you are addicted to heroin, or a prescription painkiller, going to a methadone maintenance program will help you get through the withdrawals from your detox with some ease. Methadone will not completely rid you of withdrawals, but it will help to lessen them. Since methadone will help you get through the physical withdrawal of opiate detox, you will be able to focus more on healing any emotional problems you may be experiencing, and overall, overcoming your addiction.
How the Doctor Decides Your Methadone Dosage
Your doctor will take into consideration various factors about your drug use and your physiology to decide on your dosage.
Your dose of methadone will be based on different factors. Methadone doses are carefully decided upon since the drug is also an opiate, and since it is extremely powerful. Your doctor will have to put into consideration your weight, your tolerance level, and how long you have been using opiates, as well as how strong your addiction is to opiates. For example, the heavier you are, or the more addicted you are to the drug, the higher your dose will be.
According to the Center for Substance Abuse Research, methadone is dispensed in oral forms, including powder, tablets, and liquid for the treatment of opiate addiction. A single dose of methadone should not exceed 80 to 100 milligrams, and can last anywhere from 24 to 36 hours depending on the user’s characteristics such as, age, weight, level of addiction, and tolerance.
Your doctor will choose the safest and most effective does of methadone to give to you. Methadone is a powerful drug and since the effects of the drug are long lasting, if you are given too much you could have a bad reaction to the drug, which can be dangerous. This is why your doctor will have to consider various factors before administering you any methadone.