How Can I Make Suboxone Absorb Better?

The best way to make Suboxone (buprenorphine/naloxone) absorb better is to take your medication exactly as your treatment team tells you to. That means don’t chew, swallow, sniff, snort, or otherwise adjust your medication. It also means avoiding eating or drinking anything 15 minutes before and after taking your Suboxone dose.

When taken properly, medications like Suboxone are incredibly helpful in treating opioid use disorders (OUDs). 

In one study, 100% of people taking a placebo relapsed to opioid use, as compared to just 25% of people taking a buprenorphine-based medication (like Suboxone). [1]

If you take your buprenorphine medication as directed, you have the best chance of achieving a similar success rate. If you want to ensure each dose works properly, following a few basic steps could be helpful:

How to Maximize Suboxone Absorption 

Suboxone is a little more tricky to administer than most medications because it is not a pill, but a strip (or, less commonly, a dissolvable tablet). Every prescription comes with a label and an instructions guide on Suboxone administration, describing how to use the drug properly. [2] 

Read that document, and you’ll become familiar with how to take Suboxone. 

Steps to maximize Suboxone absorption include the following:

1. Check about Suboxone interactions: Some prescription and over-the-counter drugs and supplements can change the way Suboxone gets absorbed. Tell your treatment provider about everything you take to make sure none of it potentially interacts with the absorption of your Suboxone. 
2. Moisten your mouth beforehand: A sip of water swished around your mouth could allow your dose to dissolve a little faster. 
3. Let the drug dissolve: Put Suboxone tablets or strips under your tongue or into your cheek (as directed by your doctor). Let the medication dissolve completely. This usually takes anywhere from 1 minute to 10 minutes. 
4. Don’t help the drug dissolve: Suboxone’s active ingredients need contact with your oral membranes. If you chew and swallow your tablets or strips, you reduce the drug’s effectiveness. 
5. Stay quiet: Talking while your drug dissolves could reduce effectiveness. Keep calm and quiet until the medication completely melts.
6. Keep your mouth closed: Air inside your mouth could change how your Suboxone tablets and strips melt. Close your lips tightly until the medication is completely gone. 

How Long Should I Hold Suboxone Under My Tongue?

You should hold your Suboxone dose under your tongue or in your cheek until it fully dissolves. This is different from person to person, but it may take anywhere from 1 minute to 10 minutes in order for your medication to dissolve. 

Most people find it helpful to create a routine for when they take their Suboxone since they can’t talk or eat while it’s dissolving. Maybe take this time to meditate or read a book. You could also journal or do your gratitude practice during this time. Either way, you want to follow the administration instructions closely—don’t move the dose around in your mouth or chew or suck on the strip or tablet since this can negatively affect Suboxone absorption.

Tips for Maximizing Suboxone Absorption 

Suboxone is relatively easy to use. What you do right after placing Suboxone in your mouth can have a big impact on how much of the active ingredient enters your bloodstream. 

To ensure you’re getting the help you need from each Suboxone dose, follow these tips:[3]

• Don’t alter your Suboxone: Moving the tablets or film makes your medication less effective. Place your dose in your mouth, and leave it there. 
• Don’t tamper with it: Injecting Suboxone won’t get you high. Instead, people who shoot up Suboxone tend to feel incredibly sick. 
• Don’t overlap doses: Some people need more than one Suboxone strip for OUD treatment. If you’re using two strips at once, ensure they don’t touch one another inside your mouth. 
• Don’t pile on doses: If you need more than two strips, wait until your first strips are completely dissolved before adding more to your mouth. 

What if These Steps Don’t Work?

If you’ve followed all the instructions and tips available to make Suboxone absorb better and you still don’t feel relief, your Suboxone dose may be too low. 

Talk to your doctor about the steps you’ve tried and the symptoms you’re feeling. A minor adjustment in your medication dose could help you feel better and more in control of your OUD.