Looking for taper advice

[[na...]]

Hey guys,so  I have been taking low dose xanax for roughly 5 years. I kind of got into a bad habit of taking it everyday at work because i found that it would make the workday go by faster (stupid, i know). I realize this was a terrible idea and am looking to cut the benzo use all together. I used to take 1 mg pretty much everyday for 2-3 years, then worked my way down to  taking .5 mg daily for probably the last 2 years. For the better part of the past year i have taken only .25mg daily, and occasionally .5mg a day if working long shifts.

 

Then I quit my job and for the past 4 months i have been taking just .25 mg maybe 2-3 times per week. I dont really "crave" taking it but i do notice that if its been like 3 days from my last .25mg dose i start to get a headache and irritable and then take a .25mg dose to alleviate the symptoms, then go another 2-3 days without any doses.

 

My question is, should I taper down to .125mg and just continue take it every 2-3 days until i feel i dont need to take it any longer, or should i go back to taking .25mg every day and then taper down 10% every 10-14 days until at 0? It would seem counterproductive to start taking it everyday again when i only take it 2 times a week now, unless it will help me completely stop by giving my body some consistency.

 

Any thoughts? I appreciate it.

[[Ch...]]

Hi nachomuchacho8.  Welcome to BenzoBuddies.

 

You'll probably get a range of answers to your tapering question given the dosing schedule you're on.  Personally, I would probably go with the .125mg every day for a few days and then cut to .0625mg for a few more days and then stop, but here's a link to General Taper Plans where you can post this question to the wider membership.

 

Please take some time to Create a Signature. This will help other members understand your history so they will be better able to support you.

Go to the top of the page and select Profile, then choose Forum Profile, insert drug history/timelines into the text box and click Change Profile.

 

When you have a chance, I highly recommend that you take a look at The Ashton Manual, which is an authoritative source on what to expect during withdrawal and recovery, authored by Dr. C. Heather Ashton, who is an expert in the field. It provides a great deal of information that can be very reassuring during any stage of this process, including a list of common symptoms with helpful explanations on the reasons for their existence.

 

Challis 

[[Tr...]]

Everyone's experience is different. When I tapered from 2mg Xanax, I jumped off at .25. Personally, when I due a Xanax cut, days 3-4 are always the worst. By day five I begin to feel better.

 

If it were me, I'd jump off and tough it out. For example, I would cut on a Thursday. feel a little bad on Friday, feel terrible Sat, a bit better on  Sunday, then be basically functional again by Monday.

 

I'm not a Dr., so this may be a terrible idea for you. It did work for me though.