Addiction to heroin or other opioids can be very difficult to treat. This is because these products are extremely addictive and can produce serious withdrawal symptoms when they aren't used. Methadone has been developed as a synthetic opioid that can be used to help detox from heroin or other opiate abuse. Methadone acts on the brain to help reduce the withdrawal symptoms and to prevent relapse.
Step 1
Get methadone from a reputable source. This generally means getting a prescription from a physician or from a detox clinic. Although this can be uncomfortable for some people, it's the only way of being sure that the methadone you are taking is pure and is the dosage that you believe it to be. Obtaining methadone from other sources is risky and can lead to accidental poisoning.
Step 2
Take the methadone daily. Methadone pills are designed to be taken every day. Ideally, you should take them at the same time each day, such as when you wake up.
Step 3
Do not take any other opioids. This will halt the detox process and make the methadone treatment ineffective. In addition, one of the functions of methadone is to partly block the effects of other opioids, so using them will produce a greatly diminished high.
Step 4
Gradually diminish your dose. For a 4-week detox, you may want to start at 25mg of methadone per day and then lower your dose by 5mg every 6 days, for example. This will help you avoid becoming dependent on methadone as a result of your treatment.
Step 5
Eat a well-balanced diet, stay hydrated and take multivitamins. This will help your body deal with the withdrawal symptoms and will help keep you from relapsing.
