Print PageHow to take Suboxone at WellStep
How to Take SUBOXONE
- Always take your SUBOXONE exactly as prescribed by your doctor.
- Before taking SUBOXONE, it’s a good idea to drink some water to moisten your mouth. This helps the SUBOXONE tablets dissolve more easily.
- If your dose is one SUBOXONE tablet, place it under your tongue, lean your head slightly forward, and let the tablet dissolve completely. SUBOXONE is absorbed into the bloodstream through the veins under the tongue.
- If your dose is two tablets, place both of them under your tongue, one on the left side and one on the right side (you can use a mirror to make sure the tablets are in the proper places). Lean your head slightly forward, and let the tablets dissolve completely.
- If you have more than two tablets to take, put the next tablet(s) under your tongue after the first tablets have dissolved.
- SUBOXONE takes a short time (about 5 to 10 minutes, but sometimes more) to dissolve completely. Don’t chew or swallow the tablets, because less SUBOXONE will be absorbed into your bloodstream, it will not work as well, and your withdrawal symptoms could worsen.
- Talking while the tablets are dissolving can interfere with how well SUBOXONE is absorbed.
- You may want to do something that doesn’t require talking, such as reading or watching television, while waiting for the tablets to dissolve.
- Let family and friends know that you won’t be able to answer them or talk on the phone during this time.
Important SUBOXONE Safety Information
- If you miss a dose of SUBOXONE, take it as soon as possible. If it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and take the next dose at the regular time, unless your doctor instructs you otherwise.
- Injecting SUBOXONE is dangerous and can cause severe withdrawal symptoms, painful or collapsed veins, blood clots, and increased risk of infection.
- Your friends and family should be advised that an ambulance should be called right away in the event that you become extremely sleepy, the pupils of your eyes become like pinpoints, you feel faint or dizzy, or your breathing becomes much slower than normal.
- It is important that you take your SUBOXONE or SUBUTEX® (buprenorphine HCl sublingual tablets) with your other medications exactly as directed by your physician. Abuse or misuse of your medications while on SUBOXONE or SUBUTEX can cause death.
- A number of deaths have occurred when dependent people have injected buprenorphine, usually together with benzodiazepines. While you are being treated with SUBOXONE or SUBUTEX, do not use benzodiazepines, tranquilizers, or sedatives unless they have been prescribed by your doctor. Do not drink alcohol while taking SUBOXONE or SUBUTEX.
For more information, visit www.suboxone.com.