You started maintenance treatment to get your life under control, and for a while it did exactly that. But months turned into years, and the daily dose is still there. If you want to be done with it, and every attempt to cut down has pulled you back, this guide explains why that happens and what your options are.
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When a Temporary Treatment Becomes a Daily Routine
For most people, maintenance treatment starts as a bridge. It ends the daily chase for opioids and gives you room to work and be present for your family. That is a real benefit, and starting it was a reasonable decision.
The problem is that the bridge rarely has an end. SAMHSA's national treatment guidelines say many patients stay on maintenance medication "for varying lengths of time, including lifelong treatment." In practice, that often looks like this:
- A dose you take every day, with no end date
- Clinic visits or pharmacy refills that shape your schedule
- Work trips and vacations planned around the next dose
- Withdrawal symptoms whenever a dose is late or missed
- A quiet feeling that you are still dependent, only now on a prescription
If this sounds familiar, nothing is wrong with your willpower. Your body is responding the way it responds to any opioid taken every day.
Why Is It So Hard to Stop?
Your brain has its own opioid system. It makes natural opioids called endorphins, which help control pain, mood, stress and sleep. Endorphins work by attaching to opioid receptors throughout the nervous system.
When any opioid is taken every day, including a maintenance medication, the body adjusts:
- Endorphin production drops. The body senses a steady outside supply and makes less of its own.
- Opioid receptors increase. The nervous system adds receptors to keep up with the constant stimulation.
Before
Your endorphins fill your receptors
On a daily dose
Fewer endorphins, more receptors. The dose fills the gap
When the dose drops
Empty receptors, felt as withdrawal
The daily dose covers that gap. When the dose goes down, the gap shows: more receptors and fewer natural endorphins to fill them. You feel it as withdrawal, with aches, sweating, restlessness, anxiety, poor sleep, low mood and cravings.
Many maintenance medications are long-acting. They leave the body slowly, so withdrawal from them tends to start later and last longer than withdrawal from short-acting opioids. Even after the physical symptoms fade, low mood, poor sleep and cravings can linger for months. This stage is called post-acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS), and it is where many attempts to stop fall apart.
Your Options for Getting Off Maintenance Treatment
Once you decide you want to stop, there are two main medical paths.
A note on stopping suddenly: stopping maintenance treatment abruptly, without medical support, usually brings the hardest withdrawal and a high chance of relapse. Tolerance also drops quickly, which raises the risk of overdose if opioids are used again. Please do not stop or cut your dose on your own.
How ANR Works
ANR (Accelerated Neuro-Regulation) is a one-time, hospital-based medical procedure developed by Dr. Andre Waismann and backed by more than 30 years of development and research. It targets the root of the problem: the imbalance between the body's endorphin production and its opioid receptors.
25,000+
Patients treated worldwide
36 hours
Approximate hospital stay
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Stage 1: Preparation
Before admission, our medical team reviews your medical history and your current daily dose, and plans any adjustments needed before the procedure.
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Stage 2: Regulation
You are admitted to the hospital for about 36 hours. For a few of those hours you are under deep sedation, monitored by board-certified anesthesiologists and critical care staff. During this time the opioid receptor system is regulated, and the most intense part of withdrawal passes while you sleep.
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Stage 3: Stabilization
After discharge you have 3 days of in-person follow-up with our team near the hospital. Some discomfort in these days is normal, similar to recovering from surgery, and it eases as your system settles.
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Stage 4: Optimization
For the next 6 to 12 months you follow a personal plan built around nutrition, physical activity and mental engagement, along with a daily non-opioid tablet dosed to your own system. It blocks opioid receptors, does not create dependency and helps protect against relapse.
Patient Stories
Jared and Tory both spent years on daily maintenance treatment before coming to ANR.
"I was on that medication for six and a half years. [...] I was just tired of that feeling, just not feeling good, and then just kind of feeling stuck with it. So I wanted to get off of it."
"I woke up, I immediately knew that I wasn't sick."
Jared
"I was on opioids after a car accident for many, many years. After the last two years on [maintenance treatment], I lost hope of ever being drug-free and having a life. I was stuck in one place, unable to go forward in my career or even do a simple thing like traveling, cause of course I needed my daily visit to the clinic. [...] I have been completely opioid-free now for several months, and I have ANR to thank for it."
Tory
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I stop my maintenance treatment before I contact ANR?
No. Keep taking your medication as prescribed. If you move forward with ANR, our medical team plans any dose changes with you during preparation.
How long is the hospital stay?
About 36 hours, followed by 3 days of in-person follow-up near the hospital. A companion needs to be with you from discharge through the follow-up days. If no one can travel with you, we work with a company that provides professional companions, at an additional cost.
Will I be replacing one medication with another?
No. The tablet used during the optimization plan is not an opioid. It blocks opioid receptors instead of activating them, and it does not create dependency.
How much does ANR cost?
ANR costs $21,500, paid in two parts: $10,500 when you book and $11,000 the week before the procedure. It is not covered by insurance, and financing options are available.
Ready to Talk About Ending Maintenance Treatment?
If you have been on daily maintenance treatment for years and want to be done with it, talk to our team. We will go over your history, your current treatment and what ANR would look like for you. The call is free and confidential.
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Sources / References
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. TIP 63: Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (2021). https://library.samhsa.gov/product/tip-63-medications-opioid-use-disorder/pep21-02-01-002
- Ling W, et al. Addiction. 2009;104:256-265. NIDA Clinical Trials Network study CTN-0003. https://ctnlibrary.org/?p=77
- NeuroRegulation. 2023;10(4):253. https://doi.org/10.15540/nr.10.4.253