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Tapering from 1mg Xanax


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Hello, I'm new here. My Xanax usage should be in my signature, we shall see if it shows up. I have been taking a daily dose of Xanax for last 2'ish months. Sadly, I've had very bad experiences with Drs - the last one did cut my dosage from 1.0 to 0.5 which was what I needed to get started off this detrimental drug. I've turned to a tapering plan that has been developed by myself + acupuncture 2 x's per week + some supplements - based on several articles I've read and of course I've now found this forum for added support and information.

 

Last night I tapered to my first .25 dose and slept like a champ. Did wake up a few times in the night but nestled right back in. Woke up SO GRATEFUL for sleep. The 3 nights prior I dealt with insomnia - absolutely no REM sleep - so my body was clearly suffering and ready for true sleep. Interesting with the tapered down dose I managed to get some rest that first night.

 

My taper experience thus far has been on day 2 once I taper down, I have extremely high anxiety. Those days have been so rough. I've also dealt with extreme insomnia, a lot of sweats - both day and night - just uncomfortable. The first time I tapered from 1.0 to 0.5 I was extremely nauseous + bathroom issues. :/ I haven't had those w/d's since that first <large> taper. Was worth it though even through the struggle to get started.

 

Please take a look at my taper history in my signature and feel free to comment. I want to be sure I'm doing things OK and would appreciate your feedback or knowledge. I also have so much to share through what I've learned over the last 2 weeks. This has been a rough last few months (job-stress induced), however I'm thankful I figured things out sooner vs later. I know my situation and history is very minuscule to what others are facing. One day at a time for all. Thank you for reading.

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In my opinion you're doing what would be recommended for 2 months of benzodiazepine use, which is beyond the recommended 2-3 weeks of use but not by much.  The symptoms you're having indicate you've developed some dependence already so it's good to be stopping the Xanax before the dependence deepens.

 

I would, if it were me, probably hold at .25mg for three more days.  If you're doing okay, I'd then cut to .125mg for three days, then .0625mg for a couple of days just to be cautious.  You may not even need to go that slowly, but it's better to go slower than too fast.  On the other hand you don't want to drag it out and risk deepening the dependence.

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Hello, I'm new here. My Xanax usage should be in my signature, we shall see if it shows up. I have been taking a daily dose of Xanax for last 2'ish months. Sadly, I've had very bad experiences with Drs - the last one did cut my dosage from 1.0 to 0.5 which was what I needed to get started off this detrimental drug. I've turned to a tapering plan that has been developed by myself + acupuncture 2 x's per week + some supplements - based on several articles I've read and of course I've now found this forum for added support and information.

 

Last night I tapered to my first .25 dose and slept like a champ. Did wake up a few times in the night but nestled right back in. Woke up SO GRATEFUL for sleep. The 3 nights prior I dealt with insomnia - absolutely no REM sleep - so my body was clearly suffering and ready for true sleep. Interesting with the tapered down dose I managed to get some rest that first night.

 

My taper experience thus far has been on day 2 once I taper down, I have extremely high anxiety. Those days have been so rough. I've also dealt with extreme insomnia, a lot of sweats - both day and night - just uncomfortable. The first time I tapered from 1.0 to 0.5 I was extremely nauseous + bathroom issues. :/ I haven't had those w/d's since that first <large> taper. Was worth it though even through the struggle to get started.

 

Please take a look at my taper history in my signature and feel free to comment. I want to be sure I'm doing things OK and would appreciate your feedback or knowledge. I also have so much to share through what I've learned over the last 2 weeks. This has been a rough last few months (job-stress induced), however I'm thankful I figured things out sooner vs later. I know my situation and history is very minuscule to what others are facing. One day at a time for all. Thank you for reading.

 

As your taper gets lower beyond the 50% cut range you may experience inter-dose withdrawal.  You may find it helpful to dose  4 times a day or every 6 hours.  This may cut into your sleep at first until you get accustomed to multiple daily doses.  Xanax only has a 7 hour half life which may start becoming very evident the lower your dose gets.  Let's hope not but watch for it and know what's happening and how to fix it.

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In my opinion you're doing what would be recommended for 2 months of benzodiazepine use, which is beyond the recommended 2-3 weeks of use but not by much.  The symptoms you're having indicate you've developed some dependence already so it's good to be stopping the Xanax before the dependence deepens.

 

I would, if it were me, probably hold at .25mg for three more days.  If you're doing okay, I'd then cut to .125mg for three days, then .0625mg for a couple of days just to be cautious.  You may not even need to go that slowly, but it's better to go slower than too fast.  On the other hand you don't want to drag it out and risk deepening the dependence.

 

Thank you @Challis99 for your feedback. It helps validate my go-forward plan of attack. I really appreciate your insight. I'm going to take your advice and hold for a few days at my current dose of .25mg, then cut to .125 after that for another few days. I see what you're saying on that final dose (.0625) being a tossup with dragging out or deepening the chance of dependency. I'll continue to think that one through and might decide once I get there based on how I do this next week. I'm also getting acupuncture 3 times next week, and my acupuncturist added ear tacks to both of my ears for added comfort. I had never heard of these before, but she said for some these can be life-changing!?! Hmmmm..... I'm trying to exercise even though I'm feeling a little draggy today and yesterday - even if just a 1 mile walk at the park with my dog. Pushing myself to stay busy and keep my heart rate and endorphins pumping. I think self-care/self-love right now is super important.

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Today will mark the end of the 2nd day on .25mg Xanax and my heart has felt pretty heavy (anxiety) today and a little yesterday afternoon too. The good news is I slept again! 2 nights in a row! I went to church this morning and the gym this afternoon - both of which I think helped me - but the anxiety/lethargic feeling was still rearing it's head. I don't really enjoy talking to people right now (and I love people - have a very outgoing side to my personality). I feel pretty alone, but I want to be alone because I don't open up to anyone about what I have going on. It's very private and a lot of people are judgemental and gossipy. I've shared a little with my mother, but I've stayed strong and upbeat in our conversations - the real truth of what is going on is much deeper and lonely than anyone but God is aware. Yes, I know therapy would be good and on my short-list of things to seek out. Tonight I'm going to journal a bit, read some, and hope for a good night sleep. Funny enough I have an interview (oh Lord help me!) for an internal position within my company tomorrow. The reason I got on Xanax to begin with was this job - so me interviewing for a different position internally is actually a really good thing (blessing!), I just hope I can bring forth my true self tomorrow during this call. I'm sure it will be a struggle but I'm hoping some sort of energy-surge will take over for this hour of time.  :o
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