klonopin withdrawal situation

[[Da...]]

Hi I was on lorazepam  1mg @ bedtime for 3 weeks , some nights took only 1/2 tab.  MD took Me off and switched Me to klonopin 0.5 one tab each night for sleep. Been on the klons for 2 weeks. Want to get off this medication completely. Will provide more detail in My next post once approved. 

[Guest [Mi...]]

Hi, Dannysquest.

 

Welcome to benzobuddies! I'm glad you're ready to come off Klonopin. I was on it for many years, but feeling better now that I'm off.

 

You will find a lot of information and support here. 

 

A good resource about benzodiazepines is the Ashton Manual. Here is a link to the manual: Professor Ashtons Manual  It’s great for learning about these meds and for taper plans. Ashton recommends reducing between 5 - 10% every 10/14 days.

 

You'll find a great community of people here who will support and encourage you. Feel free to check out the forum and to post to any of the dedicated boards.

 

In addition to the Ashton Manual, here are some other resources:

 

For tapering advice, post here: General Taper Plans

 

For support with any symptoms you may have, post here: Withdrawal Support

 

Please add a signature (history of medication/doses etc). It will help members give you relevant advice. This link will show you how to Create a signature

 

Please let us know if you have any questions.

 

~ Mind

[[be...]]

welcome  was there a reason your doctor your doctor switched from Ativan to Klonopin? Benzodiazepines really should only be for very short time use...no more than a few weeks. This is for several reason. One being they are highly addictive and it doesn't take long to develop a dependency. I think that it is great that you want to get off. It is recommended that you taper at this point.

[[Da...]]

My last post was just kinda an introduction to My situation here is where Im at.  To summarize -  a couple of months ago I started suffering from insomnia, Im talking all night insomnia. I figured it would go away on its own , it did not. I sought medical help and My MD place Me on Ativan 0.5 once a day at night. It knocked Me out however only for 3 to 4 hours and the rebound symptoms from the severe sleep deprivation continued.

 

After being on the Ativan for 3 weeks She switched Me on Klonopin 0.5 once at night because She said it was longer lasting with a longer half life. Still only gave Me 4 hours of drugged up non refreshing sleep.    I started on the Klons October 15th so now been on them for two weeks. I was told I could take 0.5 or cut it in half and take 0.25 so some nights that is what I did. Same effect on both doses.

 

Now My Doc says My insomnia is probably caused by My deppression " clinical depression was born that way however never had to take any meds got through that on My own up until now " Ok so now She says I should be on an antidepressant on top of the klonopin.  I dont do good with medications, My nervous system gets irritable easy, I have the kind of depression that makes people anxious verses the one that makes others sleep all the time.

 

I finally found a psychologist that will take My medicare insurance however that is a little too late as Im already stuck on Meds.  I was a paramedic for 30 years and confess My sleep cycle is screwed up from working rotating shifts . So normally when Im feeling ok I sleep between 7pm and 1am then wake up for two hours then go back to sleep.

 

Now Im trying to get some sleep in on My own between 7pm and midnight then when I wake up I take the pill because I know it will only give Me 3 to 4 hours of sleep.  Im a wreck - most nights I cant sleep at all before midnight and then when awake from the dose around 3am I feel like I got hit by a truck the next day .  Rebound from the insomnia symptoms and maybe ? some interdose withdrawal symptoms. 

 

At present time I am without hope and admit scared to death . Dont know what to do - I spoke to at least 12 pharmacist and they all say " Oh that is just a small dose of klonopin You should not have any problem getting off it when the time arrives "  some said I should get off of it in 4 weeks then others said up to 4 months with no problems.  One day I skipped one dose and the next day had an anxiety attack in which I swore I was going into a seizure !

 

The bad anxiety symptoms did not start until I lost around 7 days of sleep. been downhill since then.  IS 0.5  or 0.25 a low dose ?  Im open to any suggestions as to how to deal with this situation .  Each day Im going down hill in every way and getting more frightened as to what will happen next.  Who do I believe My doc / the pharmacist ?    Sorry for the long story however I wanted to explain myself fully .  I will bet many of You have done the same thing as I and spent days on the internet searching for info regarding these type of situations.  I thank You ahead of time and God bless all of You suffering in the same way.  Wish there was a natural way out !

[Guest [ma...]]

Hi and sorry for what you are going through. There are many of us on BB who were wrongly prescribed benzos for insomina. As you may have figured out rebound insomnia is a very common w/d and recovery side effect from benzos in part b/c it prevents REM sleep. Add to that the fact that benzos are not to be prescribed for longer than 2 weeks. They are for acute situations only. Some people can become dependent on Benzos after a very short period of time.

 

Ativan is 10 times stronger than Valium. 1mg of Ativan = 10 mg of Valium. You said you took 0.5mg most times. Klonopin is 20 times stronger than Valium and 0.5 mg = 10 mg of Valium.

 

http://www.benzo.org.uk/bzequiv.htm

 

As you mentioned Ativan has a short half life and you could have been experiencing interdose w/d. Panic attacks can develop while ON benzos (b/c of dependency and/or interdose w/d) not just during w/d after stopping the drug, so everything you mention you are experiencing many others have as well.

 

As far as who to believe......well I worked in the medical profession for 30 years. I worked directly with and was respected by the drs I worked with. The ones who so readily prescribed the drugs to me. When I finally began to figure out it was the drugs all along that were making me so sick and approached my dr reagarding this fact........the respect for me went out the window. I was blacklisted in my community and no dr would take me on as a patient. I am sure you get the point........The person you need to listen to is yourself. The best thing you can do is to educate yourself. Read the Ashton Manual and any other resource you can get your hands on.

 

Insomnia is not nice but rebound insomnia that is caused by these drugs is worse. It resolves with time but sometimes a long time. There are many non-drug ways to cope with insomnia.

 

Once you post your introduction there is not usually a lot of activity in the thread so if you are planning on tapering to get off the drug perhaps post your question in the General Taper Plan section.

 

I am glad you began to question the efficacy and safety of these drugs.

 

Take care, mandala

 

PS the anxiety you are experiencing could very well be related to tolerance to the drug as well as interdose w/d and/or inconsistent dosing. It's really difficult to tell. The chemical anxiety caused by these drugs is very foreign to us and nothing like the "normal anxiety" we have as human beings. Benzo caused anxiety is not thought based. There is no external stimulus.....it's just there. If you plan to get off the benzos and as you heal the anxiety and panic will go away.

[Guest [Mi...]]

Hi, Dannysquest.

 

You may wish to research and post on the Insomnia Forum. Like mandala stated, "rebound insomnia" is rough. Hopefully you'll find some tips on making it a bit more bearable.