Does Methadone cause cystic acne?

[kotira]

Dear Forum,
My new dr put me on 30mg of methadone a day, in addition to my MSContin and breakthrough med. I have been on it for 3 weeks and now find my chin full of enormous cystic pimples---some of them have 2 or 3 whiteheads, they are so large.

Anyone else ever get pimples from methadone? I have acne rosacea and am very prone to them, but have been careful and not had a flare for 5 years. Methadone is the only new med I am taking.

It is also making me sweat like a hog in the desert. I have read the sweating will not go away, but will the acne improve? Help? I look dreadful.
Thanks,
Kotira

[Mark N]

I have heard of outbreak from people on opiods including methadone. I haven't heard of someone being on methadone, MSContin, and a BT med. It just may be your body responding to so much pain meds. Is there a reason you can't increase your MSContin and get rid of the methadone? I don't have much of an answer for you but maybe it is something you can talk to your doctor about.

[kotira]

Dear Mark,
Thanks for your reply. My dr added methadone to mscontin and dilaudid because she said it would keep me from becoming tolerant on the morphine. I never had any acne before the methadone on 5 yrs of morphine, so it can't be that, unless it is the combination.

She cut my mscontin by a third, and says she does not want to go up on it, but I did so much better on more mscontin and NO methadone.

I have never read about methadone keeping a person from developing a tolerance to morphine, but she says it works that way. It sure hasn't thus far. She also wants me to taper off the dilaudid completely with nothing to substitute for it. That has been a bust.

Thanks for responding,
Kotira

[Mark N]

If you stay with this plan it will take a while for the methadone to build up in your bloodstream so you may have better pain relief in a week or two. If this doesn't work for you can you go back to the combo that worked better? I hope she doesn't leave you with worse pain relief.

[cindybear]

I also take methadone with morphine,,Works great together....I take anywhere from 40 - 60 mgs of methadone and 90 mgs of morphine...this has been my drugs with not going up on anything for 2 years and feel I don't need too...It has worked great so far...I have had no problems with acne..But haven't had acne problems before either,,,I haven't heard of it causing that problem either,,Good luck..Hugs, Cindy

[Mark N]

Cindy, it is good to her this combination works well for you and you have a doctor that understands the issues with methadone and its half life. I have stayed at the same level of MSContin for 3 years now but it is good to hear of another plan I can go to if I need to get more pain relief.

[kotira]

Thanks, Mark and Cindy, for your responses.

Cindy--it is great to know someone is getting good relief with that combination, I am so glad you posted about it.

Mark, I have been on the methadone for a month with no help yet, so I am hoping I am slow in my response and it will help soon.

I tested drug after drug for 29 years---a total of 124 meds--all tested for at least 3 mo, most 6-12 months with increasing doses and many booster meds added to the original medication.

Now this new dr wants me to backtrack and start retesting meds I tested 33 years ago. She feels that if SHE prescribes them, somehow they will work this time around.

I have run into that scenario time after time in 34 years of pain and it seems all I can do is be patient and hope she will see the light sooner rather than later.

She seems very reluctant to admit the only solution for me is with pain control. Why does everyone want to be a "hero" and make people suffer while they search for the magic bullet which will never appear?

Four different headache specialists have told me that at least 50 per cent of people with daily h/a will never ever respond to preventative medications, that they need pain control.

I also resent that I was doing fine on 2 meds for 5 years, and she added 4 more to that mix that made me much much worse--she also added 2 beta blockers and a serotonin boosting med in addition to the methadone.

I was fainting and my heart was beating uncontrollably for 12 days until I could not take it anymore and stopped the meds. Also, serotonin boosting meds cause me to fall into severe depression--which I told her, but she Rx'd one anyway. After 4 days on it, I began to feel the familiar black hole and sobbed nonstop until I stopped THAT med.

So sorry for this lengthy post. I am so discouraged and cannot understand why drs need to tinker with what worked for me.

Her theory is that everyone develops tolerance to morphine and it is not the answer, no more than 300mg/day. I was on 450 before she lowered me by 33 per cent.

Thanks, everyone, for your support and suggestions.
Kotira