No disease is accompanied by more stigma and controversy than the disease of addiction. In fact, some people still contend that addiction is not a disease at all, but a weakness of will or character, a moral deficiency, or a "spiritual void." In the case of opiate addiction, methadone is the most successful treatment available, so why do we continue to prescibe 12 step meetings (with a success rate of about 10%) to heroin addicts who are on the brink of death and desperate for treatment that works? Once a severe opiate addict is stabilized on methadone or buprenorphine, he or she can then benefit from therapy or 12-step meetings. One cannot benefit from psychological treatment if the underlying biological issue is not attended to first.
Methadone has been studied and scrutinized more than any other drug, and now, 50 years later, it is still the best treatment for opiate addiction there is. I don't believe methadone and suboxone should be pushed on everyone; methadone especially should be a last resort. But those who choose medication-assisted treatment should be free to choose it, and they should be able to make that choice without shame and secrecy. If you are on methadone or suboxone, don't let anyone tell you that you're "substituting one drug for another" or that you're not really clean. Never let anyone take away your sobriety! You've earned it!
If more and more people find the courage to stand up and say they were saved by methadone or suboxone, then more people will see that medication-assisted recovery IS RECOVERY.
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