Follow @Erowid on Instagram!
Maintenance
Clonidine & Methadone
Citation:   Jeff F.. "Maintenance: An Experience with Clonidine & Methadone (exp58552)". Erowid.org. Aug 28, 2009. erowid.org/exp/58552

 
DOSE:
1.2 mg oral Pharms - Clonidine (daily)
  70 mg oral Methadone (daily)
BODY WEIGHT: 230 lb
Some years ago when I was a patient on a methadone maintenance program at a daily dose of 70 mg. of methadone. I used clonidine to potentiate my dose and also as a sedative at night. Clonidine was easy for me to get since I suffered from mild hypertension at the time. My experience was this:

A dose of four 0.3 mg. tabs seemed to about double the effects of my daily 70 mg. dose of methadone and the same dose, for me, was a fast acting and powerful sleep aid. At that dose, however, the side effects were considerable. I would regularly experience positional hypotension (I would pass out sometimes if I stood up quickly) and I had extremely vivid visual hallucinations those times when I would awaken during the night.

Also, after taking clonidine at the dose described above for a couple of months, I ran out of the stuff and thought nothing of it until mid afternoon of the first day when I began to experience classic opioid withdrawal symptomology - even though I had had my usual methadone dose at about 10:AM that day. After a couple of hours feeling the symptoms getting worse and worse, I figured that my discomfort might have something to do with a lack of clonidine and ran to the pharmacy to get a refill. Taking the clonidine again relieved the withdrawal symptoms in about 20 minutes.

Today, I am drug free for the last 20 years and work as a chemical dependency counselor in a behavioral health treatment center where the psychiatrists sometimes use clonidine in off-label ways. One of them told me that he has prescribed cloindine (I don't know at what dose) for nightmares associated with PTSD. I think it is also sometimes used to treat the symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in some patients.

Exp Year: 1984ExpID: 58552
Gender: Male 
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Aug 28, 2009Views: 29,683
[ View PDF (to print) ] [ View LaTeX (for geeks) ] [ Swap Dark/Light ]
Pharms - Clonidine (344), Methadone (166) : Addiction & Habituation (10), Combinations (3), Not Applicable (38)

COPYRIGHTS: All reports copyright Erowid.
No AI Training use allowed without written permission.
TERMS OF USE: By accessing this page, you agree not to download, analyze, distill, reuse, digest, or feed into any AI-type system the report data without first contacting Erowid Center and receiving written permission.

Experience Reports are the writings and opinions of the authors who submit them. Some of the activities described are dangerous and/or illegal and none are recommended by Erowid Center.


Experience Vaults Index Full List of Substances Search Submit Report User Settings About Main Psychoactive Vaults