How safe is your Methadone?

 Keep it locked, Keep it safe!!

          If you have made it to the stage of receiving your weekly take-homes (Carries) then you know that you must have a lock box prior to receiving them. You can not leave the pharmacy/clinic with unlocked methadone. Well some places anyhow, but it is of utmost importance that you store your take-homes in a lock box at home. Where we are from it is mandatory that we have a lock box, but other places do not require this, policies are always different from place to place.
Once you are home there is no need to take these out of your box, especially if you have small children, well any children for that matter. Also, if you have friends that act like small children! All kidding aside this is a huge problem and one we see quite often in the media and it is heart breaking. 

Keep your Methadone locked at all times!

Mothers, fathers and guardians being sentenced for the death of their children because they left their medication out or transferred it into regular household cups and their child ingested methadone. Some are ridiculous, such as a woman who poured her methadone into a Gatorade bottle, had a lapse in memory I am guessing and later gave her child the Gatorade to drink, she also gave it to her 5 year old and 8 year old, luckily they made it through, it was the 2 year old that wasn't as lucky. R.I.P little one! On top of this the mother did not even call 911!

The latest story of a 2 year old child who died as a result of her parents irresponsibility, is heart breaking, but the tweets and comments in response to this only prove to us what people think of all methadone patients and this must stop! 

There are many instances of this story and such stories just further fuel the fires of stigma and give great satisfaction to those in opposition to medication assisted treatments. They now get a chance to point their fingers and say "See, didn't I tell you people who take methadone are all low lives"
         Of course people never hear about the success stories. The patients who pick up their medication, follow the treatment plan and live as productive members of society. They are responsible, careful and take their recovery seriously.

The horrid things we hear and see on social media regarding methadone patients, is truly nauseating! For instance, some ignoramus wrote this:
"The rest of society has to work harder, and sacrifice more so these bums can escape reality. We spend far too many resources on the stoners, and we as a society are so tolerant of their behaviour they have spread like a cancer"

It is always such a huge tragedy when a child dies and even more so when they die at the hands of irresponsible parents/caretakers.

Methadone is not the only cause, an irresponsible person will leave out any type of medication, pill, cough syrup, etc. without any thought of what it may do to their children.

The world loves to blame methadone and label it as the evil killer, but in reality it is the irresponsiblity of the parents/caretakers who killed the child.

Many deaths occur due to prescription medication, including buprenorphine, but these medications are not splashed across the media near as much as methadone. Suboxone mistreatment is just as prevalent as methadone, but you take away methadone and the media will begin showing people just the types of problems there are out there, then this too will become a drug everyone loathes.

Here is a case of buprenorphine poisoning, yes this does happen! Everyone is so focused on attacking methadone that they miss stories such as this one.

More than 60, 000 young children end up in emergency departments every year because they got into medicines while parents or caregivers were not looking. These figures include all medications, not only methadone.

 It is essential that your medications be locked and out of reach from children.

Each year between 2007 and 2011, about 9,500 U.S. children younger than 6 years were hospitalized after getting a hold of family members' medications. Three-quarters of those children were just 1 or 2 years old.
Please note this is not only a methadone problem, many deaths occur due to other medications, for some reason the media likes to portray methadone as the main culprit when it is not! 

Example: *For every 100,000 people prescribed buprenorphine, 200 children were hospitalized for an accidental ingestion in the United States. By comparison, two children landed in the hospital for every 100,000 people prescribed Oxycontin 

When it came to single active ingredients, it was found that buprenorphine topped the list. That narcotic, implicated in almost 8 percent of the hospitalizations each year.  Besides opioid painkillers, these include heroin and morphine. In most cases of accidental poisonings, children had taken a combination product of buprenorphine and naloxone (brand names such as Suboxone and Zubsolv)*

        Patient education must be a main focus in clinics and pharmacy's, as well as educating their significant others, and sadly in some places it is not. Many people still consider methadone as they would any other drug. They assume the more you do the more "high" you will get and this can be fatal.  Methadone carries more risks than other painkillers because it tends to build up in the body and can disrupt a person’s breathing or heart rhythm.

Methadone can be toxic to anyone who is not tolerant of opioids and a single dose can cause life-threatening respiratory depression and death.

An opioid-tolerant person can function normally at doses that can be fatal to a non-tolerant person.

Education is essential for safety and could potentially save lives, which is why patients and family members need to have a basic understanding of how methadone works and should be provided adequate information about the signs/symptoms of over medication, which is of utmost importance during the beginning of treatment. 

So if we as patients are going to help reduce this stigma related to our methadone treatment, we must absolutely ensure that we keep our medications properly stored and share the proper information with others. It only takes one pill or one small dose to kill anyone who has no tolerance! Even if you live alone and have no children, do not get lax in proper storage, friends and family still visit!

Be Smart about Storage Always

• Always store your methadone in a lock box. Make sure the key isn't left in it, it defeats the purpose of keeping it locked!
• Always keep it in a safe location, far from the reach of children
• Always take your methadone at one time, so you don't leave an open bottle with methadone in it.
• Always rinse out the last bit with a touch of water and drink it or just rinse it period! 
• Always put your empty bottles back into the lock box, so they are there for your next pick--up and the pharmacy/clinic can dispose of them. 
• Always Keep medicines in their original bottles! There is no reason they need to be taken out!
• Always put your medication away, even if you have to run to telephone for a moment. 
• Always talk to your children about the dangers of medication and the dangers of taking other people's medications.

Absolutely Never

• Never let your child see you drink your dose, child like to imitate their parents
• If a child ingests methadone you may not know right away because of the the peak effect, which is 2-5hours after
• Never, Never give your child a bit of methadone to make them sleepy or to "relax" them NEVER (An instance of this can be found here)
• Never take methadone unless its prescribed to you, there is no way to know how methadone will react in your body. Not everyone responds the same way to methadone.
• Never tell children medicine is candy, NEVER!(Instance of child thinking drugs are candy
• Never leave your open bottle on the table/counter if you have to run to answer door/telephone. It only takes a second for a child to ingest it

  

  E-pill Kitchen Safe with Interval Timer

   E-pill Kitchen Safe with Interval Timer

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

We were scrolling through the net and found this! It is called an E-pill Kitchen pill safe with interval timer lock. 

All you do is put your pain medications or regular medicines inside the clear bucket, set the timer (in Minutes, Hours, Days from 1 minute to 10 days), close the lid, and you are locked out until the interval timer reaches zero.

Perfect for those with take homes!
They even state it is perfect for methadone bottles and your marijuana! 

 **Please note that the above slide will be much easier to read in full screen mode!**

We decided to try an experiment on our own bottles to see exactly how much is left over in our bottles! We were surprised by the results as we generally throw our heads back and try to get every last drop! We took our bottles from their respective lock boxes and placed our medicine dropper in, what we pulled back was 0.3 to 0.4ml from each bottle.
Stixx and I have all of our take-homes (6 each)

So after doing some simple math it turns out that 12 bottles on average contain 4.2ml

Shockingly enough a teaspoon is equal to 5ml, on average. Less than a teaspoon has been known to be fatal to a baby! Scary stuff!

                    
 Ensure you know the signs of overdose, see our post on Overdose Awareness and also over at www.studiolonline.net

If you believe anyone has ingested methadone, 

call 911 immediately!

Poison control center Ontario 1-800-268-9017
(416) 813-5900 (Greater Toronto Area)  

For Poison Control Centers throughout Canada, visit this site!


We love hearing from you, so please leave a comment below! If you have any ideas for future topics or if you want to share your story, please let us know!

Your Friends in the maze,
 Chixx & Stixx

Methadone Myth #1 - Methadone Rots Teeth!

Methadone has many myths attached to it, and one of these myths is how methadone rots your teeth. So is this true or is this false? I hate answers that say yes and no, what is that, it is either one or the other right! But in the case of methadone and teeth this is true! Methadone itself does not cause your teeth too unfortunately rot, but...it does indirectly cause your teeth to rot!  

So "No" to methadone causing tooth decay

"Yes" to it indirectly speeding up tooth decay

This is due to the drying nature it has in your mouth, it decreases saliva flow, but this is not unique to methadone solely. Many medications cause dry mouth, the fancy medical term for dry mouth is "Xerostomia" (Zero-stow-mia) but for most of us it is called the "pasties" or "cotton mouth" among other hilarious sayings such as: "My mouth is drier than a popcorn fart"?! Ya okaay! That term is not something that should be used in conjunction with your mouth! Just saying!

Not all people are affected by though, but for the majority it is the case. Many addicts had bad teeth prior to methadone treatment and methadone just potentiates tooth decay. This was the case for me, I had bad teeth coming into treatment due to heavy drug use, it's not because I didn't care for them, it's because of chemicals and how they affect some people's bodies. Luckily my back teeth took the beating. It greatly affects people's self-confidence, they don't want to smile, they try to talk differently so that their teeth do not show as much, they avoid certain social situations. Of course stigma increases this as well, you are constantly pointed out as an addict, a dirty junky, or a no good for nothing pill head due to your teeth, what nicotine stained fingers are too a smoker, bad teeth are to an addict. It is absolutely horrible.

The effects of some drugs can be disastrous to the teeth, as well as dry mouth and this is not limited to just us "drug addicts", but society sees it that way. There is an idea which is used in "Junky land" that Stixx often went by in order to obtain drugs in a new place where he would be playing with one of his bands,  if he needed drugs he looked for the person who was constantly eating sweets or had bad teeth Lol! But it is no laughing matter just a thought we'd throw in to show you how people view addicts, yes even other addicts. The stigma and stereotypes associated with us are ridiculous and we need to change this.

When you look at some addicts, you will notice right away that they have little to no teeth. The teeth they do have, usually are discolored, a greyish to black color. This is caused from the chemicals which are a big part of every drug. This discoloration is started from the inside out in many cases.

         The big misconception is that all drug addicts do not take care of themselves or their dental hygiene. This may be true in some instances, but not all. It is usually just the wear and tear of the drugs on their teeth. It does not matter how many times per day an addict brushes or flosses their teeth, chemicals are disastrous to some people. By becoming drug-free you can save your teeth from "chemical warfare"

When teeth lose enamel, which protects the dentin, the decaying process is now sped up and they become past the point of no return. You cannot reverse this at all. 

A mouth must remain moist to prevent bacteria from growing rapidly, and since drugs are drying to the mouth, bacteria grows faster than normal.The medical term for this is hyposalivation.

This saliva acts as an anti-bacteria; therefore, when this reduces, the chances of tooth decay increases. The chances of dental bacteria in your mouth exacerbate.
          
       Sugar cravings, need I say more!! This is a subject all on its own which we will also discuss in the future. But as ravenous sugar munching people we need to ensure that we properly care for teeth and remove sugars  which can lead to tooth decay as well.

Tooth decay can also cause halitosis, which just means "bad breath". These problems can be prevented by some of the following suggestions:

• Regularly rinse your mouth
• Brush and floss your teeth after eating something. Brush with flouride toothpaste before/after you get your methadone
• use circular or gentle scrubbing/brushing movements along your gum line and brush again before bed, which is the most important time to brush if you can not brush at other times throughout the day
• If your gums bleed, don't stop brushing, but see your dentist
• You can also constantly chew sugar free gum because it increases the saliva in your mouth
• You can also use mouthwash to completely cleanse your mouth
• Drinking plain water helps with dry mouth
• Your dentist can also prescribe toothpaste with more flouride to prevent tooth decay
• You can go to your dentist regularly for cleanings

There is a product on the market which we have been looking into called Biotene. It is made specifically for dry mouth caused by medications. We would like to include that just recently we had made mention of this product to a fellow twitter follower @adam420598 and he has gone and purchased a tube. It is a bit on the expensive side at $12.99+taxes, but well worth it if it helps to combat dry mouth while on medication of any sort. He will be letting us know what he thinks about it. He said there is many types to choose from, so at the end we will try to put the different types and what they do! 

        The destruction of your teeth will always be a constant reminder of your life in active addiction and will affect your self-esteem and self-confidence long after you have become clean and sober. At this point removal of your teeth is a definite and dentures will replace that horrible reminder of the effect drugs had on you physically. Others decide that caring for their teeth at this point wouldn't matter much at all, but inadequate dental hygiene can cause numerous problems, not only to your mouth but throughout your whole body. Abcesses are terribly painful and left untreated time and time again, can eventually cause the infection to enter your blood stream, which can be deadly.

       Some believe that getting regular dental checkups is something you do only when you are younger but that's not the case. When you eat or drink, what`s left behind turns to bacteria quickly. This bacteria is what causes the majority of problems. 

Regular routine cleanings are crucial because no matter how hard you try there is likely to be little microscopic bacteria lying around in your mouth.

Poor diet can lead to significant dental problems, especially when there is a tendency to indulge in foods with high sugar content. Eating foods that are high in vitamin and mineral content will help defend against potential dental difficulties. Keep your dentist informed about what goes into your mouth or if you grind, click, or clinch your teeth or jaw.

        Grinding your teeth can be very damaging and possibly cause them to break or crack, the term for this is "Bruxism". At night I now use a mouth guard, which Stixx bought at the pharmacy for me. This greatly helps to save my teeth from excruciating pain and breakage. Your teeth have a tendency to crumble like sand, literally, I have experienced this and many I speak too about this also experience it. This caused by the dry environment in your mouth and enamel loss. Also calcium can get leeched out of your system when you are on certain medications.

Mouth Guard

Dry mouth is a big concern for Methadone patients and if you are new to MMT it is essential that you begin caring properly for your teeth by keeping hydrated at all times, to prevent future decay.

Below is a list of the various Biotene products available. There are other types of products which you may find in your area, or you can visit your dentist for other recommendations or prescriptions that may be available.

Biotene products available: 

Biotene Oral Balance Gel

• Now with an improved pH balance formula and more moisturizers and lubricants.
• Great for use at night or at any time.
• Small, portable tube is easy and discreet to use

Biotene moisturizing mouth spray

•     Biotène Moisturizing Mouth Spray is alcohol-free
•     Spray when mouth feels dry

Biotene PBF Oral Rinse

•        Alcohol-free.
•        Soothes irritation caused by oral dryness.
•        Refreshing, gentle and non-burning oral rinse cleans, while providing added relief of oral dryness

Biotene Oral Rinse   

• Now with an improved pH balance formula.
• Alcohol-free.
• Special formula soothes Dry Mouth symptoms and protects against odors

Biotene PBF Dry Mouth Flouride Toothpaste

• Provides essential fluoride protection and fights cavities.
• Contains no Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS)
• Gentle with a mild flavor

Biotene Dry Mouth Flouride Toothpaste Gentle Mint or fresh mint original

• Helps provide essential fluoride protection for Dry Mouth sufferers.
• Contains no Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS).
• Gentle with a mild flavor.

We hope this post has helped to answer some of your questions regarding tooth decay and methadone! If you have any further questions about tooth decay, methadone or any other topic, please feel free to contact us! 

~The information contained within should not replace the advice given from professional doctors, dentists, etc. It is solely based upon our experience and research~

Sources used:

http://www.methadone-side-effects.com/

http://www.goodhealth-manchester.nhs.uk/oralHealth/methadoneMouth.html

http://www.biotene.com/products

http://www.oceancitynjdentist.com/blog/post/whitening-a-discolored-tooth-from-the-inside-out.html

http://www.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_dental_disorder_where_your_teeth_fall_apart

Your Friends in the maze, Chixx & Stixx

The Many Guises of Methadone in the Maze

We hope you enjoy the slideshow which we have put together for you! We have done a lot of research on methadone and methadone formulations, etc. So please enjoy and let us know what you think in the comments below!



Your Friends in the maze, 
 Chixx & Stixx

International Overdose Awareness Day!

Show your support!

August 31st, 2014 is International overdose day This day is all about educating people on overdose and how it can be prevented. It originated in Melbourne, Australia in 2001 and is now globally recognized. In 2013, International Overdose Awareness Day events ranged from remembrance ceremonies to community training on naloxone administration. 

Overdoses happen and you must be armed with education regarding them. Stixx has saved quite a few people during his time because he was educated and he knew the signs and he knew how to react quickly to save their life. He has also been on the other side himself and has overdosed a number of times, as well as myself. Too many good people have died from overdose and many times these could of been prevented. Harm reduction does work and spreading awareness could saves many lives.

  

Signs and symptoms vary from drug to drug but most are the same, we will tell you about what to watch for if someone is overdosing on methadone.

Many people are reluctant to call an ambulance due to police involvement, this is a huge reason worlwide why many will not call and many overdoses could of been prevented if the fear of being arrested wasn't present. With education, policy changes and promotion of such life saving items such as, naloxone, Etc. we can hopefully save more lives.

For many educational and interesting articles from harm reduction advocate, K. Lanktree, we suggest reading Studiolonline.weebly.com, she has many great views and is also a methadone patient who knows her stuff.

We would like to share with you how to spot the signs of methadone overdose and how you can react to save lives.

Methadone overdose can occur if someone accidentitly or intentionly takes more methadone than prescribed by their doctor, or taken by someone who is not prescribed methadone. Methadone is slow acting and does not provide the user with a euphoric high, because of this lack of euphoria, a person may take more and more of it in an attempt to acheive the rush, which will lead to overdose. Often times than not, methadone is taken in combination with other drugs such as narcotics, benzodiazepines, alcohol, etc. Methadone should never be mixed with the previous mentioned, as it is fatal.

The Signs of methadone overdose include:

• Blue lips/fingernails (Not receiving enough oxygenated blood)
• Cold, clammy skin
• Weak pulse
• Newspaper colored face(Greyish) or very pale
• Extreme sedation
• Confusion/staggering/not stable on feet
• Slurred speech
• Shallow breathing(respiratory depression)
• He/she wants to go to go lay down/sleep (Fatigue)
• mucus coming out of nose and mouth
• muscle twitches
• weakness
• Nausea
• They will most likely feel very hot

How you can quickly respond to a person overdosing:

• Call 911
• You can call a poison control center near you, always have these important numbers on hand in your phone.
• A cold facecloth and cold water to splash in face
• Keep person talking/keep them aware and awake even if you have to yell
• If possible, keep them moving using their own strength providing they haven't hurt themselves, ie fall/broken bones/car accident,etc.
• If they aren’t breathing or their breathing is slow, roll them on their back, tilt their head back, remove anything they may have in their mouth, take a deep breath and blow into their mouth, 2 breaths at first and then 1 breath every 4 seconds until the paramedics get there.
• Naloxone can be administered (If you have it, which you should) it can be given in the muscle. (Arm, thigh or butt)( Intramuscular)
• It is best not to leave someone alone, but if you have to leave, leave them on their left side with their left arm and left leg out straight and right arm and leg bent, this will keep them on their side.(Recovery position)
• Do not let them try to vomit, unless told otherwise by poison control or 911

Since Methadone can affect an overdose patient’s breathing, there is a risk of brain damage to a person who is experiencing depressed respiration. Even a suspected case requires immediate medical attention to minimize the likelihood of this outcome.

You and your friends should always learn about overdose and make a plan, it could save each others lives. 

If you have lost friends or family members to overdose, you can visit http://www.overdoseday.com/tributes/ to post a tribute to them.

                                                                                         

Resources:
The National Poison Control Center (1-800-222-1222)- All of United States

Ontario Poison Control Center (1-800-268-9017) -Ontario Only

For all provincial contact numbers in Canada visit http://www.capcc.ca/en/contact

 Too many great lives lost to overdose in the last 2 years

                      -R.I.P -

Sharon    31 years old

Bruce      48 years old

Pat          54 years old

Kelly        49 Years old

Dwayne   37 Years old

Phillip      38 years old

Tanya      32 years old

BoBo        53 year sold

Debbie     56 years old

Jimi         49 years old

Edgy        52 years old

Josh        24 years old

Bugsy      52 years old

Angie      43 years old

Your Friends in the maze,

Recovery: Do it your way!

 The other day we were reading on yet another wonderful woman's blog "Life of a recovering addict" by ChelsieCharmed and her post on "Methadone: Love Hate Relationship" made me think about what we have gone through.

She wrote of the love hate relationship you sometimes feel while on methadone and we just wanted to write about this struggle.

Recovery: Love/Hate

" Its ironic how the one thing that freed me is also keeping me trapped, but honestly it could be worse at least now my minds my own and I have a chance at life" Qouted from ChelseaCharmed 's post.

The truth is that yes you do feel this. Alot. You wonder if it was the right decision and with all the stigma you are faced with, it really can play on your mind and you begin to question whether or not you did the right thing. We speak about this in our post "Is Methadone Bad "

Everyone chooses a recovery method and they may not always be right for some people, this is no reason to speak badly about that recovery option because it didn't work out for you.It may of saved other people's lives. Just as methadone has done for us and many people we know. I wish N/A wasn't so judgemental of methadone patients, we are in recovery too! I will save this debatable subject for a future post though.

Some days we question whether or not this is for us, and you know what "Yes it is for us" we have our lives back, we have relapsed less times on methadone than on any other type of treatment. Most relapses happened in the beginning when we were still trying to adjust to the dose that was right for us. You have a chance to start picking up the pieces of your life, you have a chance to work-out the inner trauma which may of caused your addictions all these years, withdrawal is put on hold and you can slowly come down at your own rate when you are ready. Keyword you, your journey, about you, your life, about what's right for you and nobody else.

Yes there are days when you want to throw it to the wayside and there are days where your side effects may feel worse than ever and make you think 'what a stupid thing I did getting on this methadone', but when you step back and realize that you were in a much darker place before and what it felt like while you were there, you quickly change your mind.

Recovery is difficult no matter what method you have chosen for yourself. you will have days of confusion, days of pain and discomfort. We are on a huge journey of discovery of who we are, where we are going and why it is we want to get there. Everybody is different and their why's and how's will be different.

If you want this journey to be successful, you must be willing to face and feel the discomfort that may come with it. As addicts we never want to deal with pain and discomfort, so we run to anything that will take it away for us, even if temporarily, but fact being, we must face it at one point or we will forever more be caught in the webs of a nowhere life and forever unhappy.

Due to the stigma that surrounds methadone, you try to quickly come down when you are not ready and this leads to being in extreme pain and the possibility of relapsing. Only when you feel you have reached a good place emotionally & mentally where you are now stronger than ever before and have worked through all the issues you have held onto for far too long, will you be ready to slowly wean yourself off methadone. Never let anyone rush your recovery efforts and never allow someone to make you feel that you should force yourself away from what is working for you.

"Good things require effort and determination" Qouted from ChelseaCharmed's post.

Have any of you felt this love/hate relationship with your recovery? Has stigma ever made you question if you were doing the right thing? If so please share your story with us! 

We love hearing from you all! No Judgements are ever made here!

Your Friends in the maze,

Close Encounters of a false positive kind!

Positive Urine samples

Urine Sample

Many of you have more than likely experienced a "false positive" urine test. You go in to receive your daily drink and take homes and the nurse tells you that you have tested positive for some drug or another, and you know full well that you have not taken a single drug at all. So what has caused this and why?

Speaking from experience, I had an allergic reaction to something and was prescribed hydroxyzine and ranitidine and was instructed to take in combination. One day at the clinic i was told that i had been postive on my urine test for methampehtamines. WHAAT! even at my worst in addiction that was not my drug of choice so why in the world would I take it now after being clean 4 years? If i'm going to relapse, it's going to be with my favorite drug.

Anyhow that was the only two new things that were introduced into my system in that last week or so. Well I did some research and submitted it to the nurse and doctor. 

So what I had found, is that the drug hydroxyzine is available in two formulations, the pamoate and the dihydrochloride or hydrochloride salts. 

Hydrochloride salts are also found in methamphetamines(I'm sure that's not the only thing or ingredient and since i am far from being a doctor I need to research much more to find the exact reasons for false positives)

Since my incident, I recommend you always tell the clinical staff about any new medication you are about to take, especially antihistamines, cough medicines, etc. this will allow them to chart when you began the medication in relation to the positive urine sample. You can also take it one step further and do the research on the ingredients yourself and also research the properties which make up the drug for which you tested positive. I take my recovery serious and having fingers pointed at me for taking a drug I never took angers me.  If I have a weak moment and take drugs, then the clinical staff will be the first to know long before I fill my urine bottle! Honesty is the best policy in recovery, that is what i believe anyhow. The doctor wants to know about you taking drugs so that he/she can help to adjust your dose, or get you counselling for something that may have triggered a relapse, like stress in your life, etc. 

A List of medications that can cause false positive urine tests. 

If you have ever experienced a false positive, please share your story with us!

Your Friends in the Maze, 

Chix 'n' Stixx