Over 60 help and support.

[Guest [Lo...]]

Hello,

I need some honest feedback.  Can I get off .75 Klonopin at this stage or do I need to consider staying on it for life?

Also take 5 mg Ambien.  Thank you very much!!!

[[or...]]

imo yes you can. What would lead you to to believe that you can't? You could taper K directly, or cross to valium. Many, many ppl on here have done either, successfully.

 

Ditto the Ambien.

 

However, may I ask why you want to get off these drugs? Having a compelling reason e.g they are making me sick, I am anxious between doses, the drug(s) are not helping me sleep . . . usually provides the "fuel" for your taper. If you're feeling okay, then, meh, why bother? (Well, there is an answer to the "why bother" question . . . tolerance . . . but let's leave that aside).

 

In my case, I felt awful. That was my "fuel" -- the belief that if I got rid of the drugs I would feel like a human being again, and be able to resume my career. I was right on both counts.

 

btw I was 65 when I started my taper. I don't think age is a determining factor. Planning an intelligent taper, listening to your body, taking good advice, and exercising common sense and will power will get you off your drug imo.

 

Does this help?

 

 

Katz

[[Fi...]]

imo yes you can. What would lead you to to believe that you can't? You could taper K directly, or cross to valium. Many, many ppl on here have done either, successfully.

 

Ditto the Ambien.

 

However, may I ask why you want to get off these drugs? Having a compelling reason e.g they are making me sick, I am anxious between doses, the drug(s) are not helping me sleep . . . usually provides the "fuel" for your taper. If you're feeling okay, then, meh, why bother? (Well, there is an answer to the "why bother" question . . . tolerance . . . but let's leave that aside).

 

In my case, I felt awful. That was my "fuel" -- the belief that if I got rid of the drugs I would feel like a human being again, and be able to resume my career. I was right on both counts.

 

btw I was 65 when I started my taper. I don't think age is a determining factor. Planning an intelligent taper, listening to your body, taking good advice, and exercising common sense and will power will get you off your drug imo.

 

Does this help?

 

 

Katz

 

It helps me. I'm 60 and struggling like crazy right now with deep depression from Clonzapam.  The drug makes me sick and I have been very discouraged by how slow i have to go, while experiencing deep despair. 

 

Thank you for posting.

[Guest [Lo...]]

imo yes you can. What would lead you to to believe that you can't? You could taper K directly, or cross to valium. Many, many ppl on here have done either, successfully.

 

Ditto the Ambien.

 

However, may I ask why you want to get off these drugs? Having a compelling reason e.g they are making me sick, I am anxious between doses, the drug(s) are not helping me sleep . . . usually provides the "fuel" for your taper. If you're feeling okay, then, meh, why bother? (Well, there is an answer to the "why bother" question . . . tolerance . . . but let's leave that aside).

 

In my case, I felt awful. That was my "fuel" -- the belief that if I got rid of the drugs I would feel like a human being again, and be able to resume my career. I was right on both counts.

 

btw I was 65 when I started my taper. I don't think age is a determining factor. Planning an intelligent taper, listening to your body, taking good advice, and exercising common sense and will power will get you off your drug imo.

 

Does this help?

 

 

Katz

Yes, it helps. I have been feeling horrible for months, pins and needles, adrenaline surges, can’t sleep without Ambien.  I did just discontinue Remeron in June, but i think it triggered a dose reduction and put me into Klonopin withdrawal.  Can you start a taper feeling so horrible?

[[or...]]

Final, this is a depressing and despair-ful process. Many, many times, I fell into the despair pit and wondered if I would make it. I tapered the last bits at .01 mgs a day -- it took me 100 days to get rid of the last mg. And I felt rotten all the way down, I won't kid you about that. But I believed that I would feel better once I got rid of my drugs . . . Lordy, I thought, is the rest of my life going to be like this? Feeling rotten? Feeling malaise all over my body? Feeling dizzy? Feeling headachey? Feeling depressed? So I just made up my mind that I would taper my drugs (3 of them) and see. Heck, if I didn't feel better, what had I lost? But I did feel better.

 

I understand your weariness with this process. It is completely awful. All I can say is that time-worn cliche, "hang in there". It is absolutely worth it.

 

And post here! We're a nice bunch, us over 60s. We'll provide shoulders to cry on if nothing else.

 

Best to you,

 

 

Katz

[[...]]

Final, this is a depressing and despair-ful process. Many, many times, I fell into the despair pit and wondered if I would make it. I tapered the last bits at .01 mgs a day -- it took me 100 days to get rid of the last mg. And I felt rotten all the way down, I won't kid you about that. But I believed that I would feel better once I got rid of my drugs . . . Lordy, I thought, is the rest of my life going to be like this? Feeling rotten? Feeling malaise all over my body? Feeling dizzy? Feeling headachey? Feeling depressed? So I just made up my mind that I would taper my drugs (3 of them) and see. Heck, if I didn't feel better, what had I lost? But I did feel better.

 

I understand your weariness with this process. It is completely awful. All I can say is that time-worn cliche, "hang in there". It is absolutely worth it.

 

 

 

And post here! We're a nice bunch, us over 60s. We'll provide shoulders to cry on if nothing else.

 

Best to you,

 

 

 

Katz

 

Katz,

 

You are a great inspiration for us over 60 and trying to do this. I know that we have to keep it low and slow. Listen to our bodies even more so than when we were younger. I seem to be a lot more sensitive

the older I get. I don't like it at all, but it is part of it. Having a determined Spirit and having Hope will get us through this. Good Times, Bad Times. I believe that is Led Zeppelin. Those were the good times! 

 

[[Fi...]]

Final, this is a depressing and despair-ful process. Many, many times, I fell into the despair pit and wondered if I would make it. I tapered the last bits at .01 mgs a day -- it took me 100 days to get rid of the last mg. And I felt rotten all the way down, I won't kid you about that. But I believed that I would feel better once I got rid of my drugs . . . Lordy, I thought, is the rest of my life going to be like this? Feeling rotten? Feeling malaise all over my body? Feeling dizzy? Feeling headachey? Feeling depressed? So I just made up my mind that I would taper my drugs (3 of them) and see. Heck, if I didn't feel better, what had I lost? But I did feel better.

 

I understand your weariness with this process. It is completely awful. All I can say is that time-worn cliche, "hang in there". It is absolutely worth it.

 

And post here! We're a nice bunch, us over 60s. We'll provide shoulders to cry on if nothing else.

 

Best to you,

 

 

Katz

 

Thank you so much.  I do cry a lot so I will need the shoulders. 

I feel every cut but am hoping that as I get lower that the depression will lift some. 

 

Thank you so much Katz, I really need support at this time.

[[Ma...]]

There are so many supportive people, all over bb........love ya FH.  :smitten:

[[...]]

Final, this is a depressing and despair-ful process. Many, many times, I fell into the despair pit and wondered if I would make it. I tapered the last bits at .01 mgs a day -- it took me 100 days to get rid of the last mg. And I felt rotten all the way down, I won't kid you about that. But I believed that I would feel better once I got rid of my drugs . . . Lordy, I thought, is the rest of my life going to be like this? Feeling rotten? Feeling malaise all over my body? Feeling dizzy? Feeling headachey? Feeling depressed? So I just made up my mind that I would taper my drugs (3 of them) and see. Heck, if I didn't feel better, what had I lost? But I did feel better.

 

I understand your weariness with this process. It is completely awful. All I can say is that time-worn cliche, "hang in there". It is absolutely worth it.

 

And post here! We're a nice bunch, us over 60s. We'll provide shoulders to cry on if nothing else.

 

Best to you,

 

 

Katz

 

 

 

Thank you so much.  I do cry a lot so I will need the shoulders. 

I feel every cut but am hoping that as I get lower that the depression will lift some. 

 

 

Thank you so much Katz, I really need support at this time.

 

Final,

 

You have 2 more shoulders to cry on. I understand the despair and pain. I went to hell and back with my C/T. Even after reinstatement, it took time to feel human. But it happened. Now I am attempting again to taper. I know that I will hit bends in the road. You are doing great. Take it as slow as you need to. You will get there.

 

Dana

[[Br...]]

Dana,  read your sig.  Have you an idea as to why your K to V crossover didn't work ? 

[[...]]

Dana,  read your sig.  Have you an idea as to why your K to V crossover didn't work ?

 

Breck,

 

It made me feel strange, depressed and really out of it. I was going slow trying to crossover. I felt so much better when I got off and was just on the K. I know we are all different. K has a long half life so it has been fine for me. Hope this helps.

[[Br...]]

Breck,

It made me feel strange, depressed and really out of it. I was going slow trying to crossover. I felt so much better when I got off and was just on the K. I know we are all different. K has a long half life so it has been fine for me. Hope this helps.

 

Just pondering something different.....  thank you for the feedback !

[[Ma...]]

Breck,

It made me feel strange, depressed and really out of it. I was going slow trying to crossover. I felt so much better when I got off and was just on the K. I know we are all different. K has a long half life so it has been fine for me. Hope this helps.

 

Just pondering something different.....  thank you for the feedback !

 

Break, I am just going to pop in here quickly.  Valium has 3 different metabolites, anxiety, muscle relaxation and sleep.  They all have different half lives.  I crossed from Xanax and it was really difficult, wish I had done like Dana.  Some people have any easier crossover, but quite a few don't.

Just throwing that out there so you really research if you are thinking about it.  Mary. 

 

 

[[Br...]]

Breck, I am just going to pop in here quickly.  Valium has 3 different metabolites, anxiety, muscle relaxation and sleep.  They all have different half lives.  I crossed from Xanax and it was really difficult, wish I had done like Dana.  Some people have any easier crossover, but quite a few don't.

Just throwing that out there so you really research if you are thinking about it.  Mary. 

 

I wasn't aware of multiple metabolites - makes sense though.  thank you...

[Guest [Lo...]]

Hi everyone

I am 61 ( can hardly believe it )  I was thinking that it would be good to talk to people who are 60 or over to see if we have similar symptoms/ problems etc.

I know that we shouldn't really compare because everyone is different but I think that it would be interesting.

I suppose that I am also worried about going through this horrible experience at 61.

Any thoughts or feelings would be great!

Thanks

Liz

Liz,did you start your taper yet? I feel the same way.  I am 62 and very scared about it.

[[Fi...]]

There are so many supportive people, all over bb........love ya FH.  :smitten:

 

And you have been one of them for me Mary.  Love you too. 

[[Fi...]]

Final, this is a depressing and despair-ful process. Many, many times, I fell into the despair pit and wondered if I would make it. I tapered the last bits at .01 mgs a day -- it took me 100 days to get rid of the last mg. And I felt rotten all the way down, I won't kid you about that. But I believed that I would feel better once I got rid of my drugs . . . Lordy, I thought, is the rest of my life going to be like this? Feeling rotten? Feeling malaise all over my body? Feeling dizzy? Feeling headachey? Feeling depressed? So I just made up my mind that I would taper my drugs (3 of them) and see. Heck, if I didn't feel better, what had I lost? But I did feel better.

 

I understand your weariness with this process. It is completely awful. All I can say is that time-worn cliche, "hang in there". It is absolutely worth it.

 

And post here! We're a nice bunch, us over 60s. We'll provide shoulders to cry on if nothing else.

 

Best to you,

 

 

Katz

 

Thank you so much.  I do cry a lot so I will need the shoulders. 

I feel every cut but am hoping that as I get lower that the depression will lift some. 

 

Thank you so much Katz, I really need support at this time.

 

Katz, do you have a success story posted anywhere?  If so, I woiks love to read it.

Thanks. 

[[or...]]

I don't, Final. I've thought about posting one . . . but I'm waiting to see if my few lingering miserable s/x leave me. 

 

 

Katz

[[Fi...]]

I don't, Final. I've thought about posting one . . . but I'm waiting to see if my few lingering miserable s/x leave me. 

 

 

Katz

 

I understand. 

 

May I ask a few questions?  You may have answered these before so bear with me.

 

You said you tapered 3 meds ( with this taper, I am am on my 4th)  Did you taper all together or one right after another?

 

Did you find anything about your age to be a hindrance a help?

 

Were there things that you did to stay motivated?  I know it was awful for you as you have said.  I'm determined to get off but when I'm in that depressed state, it's so hard to believe.  I'm better today but now it's more anxiety.

 

Can you share again, how you feel better?

 

Thank you. 

[[or...]]

Sure, Final.

 

I tapered the valium first. Then I tapered gabapentin. And last, Ambien. Ambien was a toughie -- but only psychologically. Although it wasn't helping me sleep, I was reluctant to give it up. Magical thinking, I guess. Well, I found other ways to sleep. Yes, I tapered them one right after the other.

 

No, I didn't think my age was a hindrance. Hey, we may be "old" but we've been around the block a few times. We know how to be patient, and how to be smart. We don't make impulsive decisions. So maybe my age actually helped me!

 

I stayed motivated because I had plans/dreams/hopes of getting back to the life that benzos had stolen from me. I'm a writer -- a novelist -- and I got writer's block on my taper. Worse than that, I got reader's block. I was as dumb as a box of rocks. My therapist helped me stay the course. She never stopped believing in me even when I doubted I could make it. I spent hundreds of hours watching reruns of old sf series on my Kindle. That's all I could do. Distraction from my despair and feeling like sh**. . I sure wished I could have read, but alas, I couldn't.

 

And then I started to feel like a human being again! My s/x -- malaise all over my body (benzo flu?), nausea, excruciating headaches, dizziness, awful tinnitus, fear of just about everything . . . started to fade. At 3  months off I didn't feel better; at 6 months I felt some better; at 9 months I felt lots better; and a year off, I felt darned okay. And I became able to read again! Then, the Christmas of 2017, I sat down at my computer and planned out a new book. I wasn't sure if I could finish it, but I did. And my second post-benzo novel was just published. What really did it for me was to ask myself, once I indeed felt like a human being, what would bring me joy. I'd just lost 6 years to drugs and their aftermath . . . time was moving on . . . what would bring me joy, I asked myself? Because at the end of the day, I didn't want to regret that I hadn't followed my joy. For me, joy is writing. 

 

Final, it's really, really hard to see beyond our depression when we're in that state. I know it well. But if you can imagine a better life for yourself . . .if you can visualize how things could be different . . . maybe even how you can pick up where you left off pre-benzos . . . that will help a lot.  And you need someone in your corner, cheering you on. For me, it was not the doofus who prescribed my valium, but my talk therapist who does not have a prescription pad or believe in drugs.

 

So,  that's my story. I don't think it's quite a success story -- I still have tinnitus and headaches. And I'm scared to death of PAWS. Every time I get a little stomach upset I set my hair on fire. But so far, no PAWS.

 

Hope this helps. I do feel better . . . about 98% better. I went to hell and was lucky enough to come back. Most of the way. And that's good enough for me.

 

 

Katz

[[Do...]]

Final, I am so glad you asked Katz!  What a journey and inspiring outcome.  "What will bring you joy?" 

    Thanks Katz. 

[Guest [Lo...]]

I am overwhelmed.  Where do I start?  How much do I start tapering?  So glad I found this site.  I need advice.  Thank you!

[[Ba...]]

so very sick.

 

Hoped to make it out of house to eyeglass place and could not go, even tho had a ride set up (cana't drive now).  Took a little more valium and it did not help... maybe made it worse?

 

I'm so desperate.

 

Phoned place called Lucid Lane as heard they had good support.  I guess they are coaching service.  Anyhow they now take only insurance (not mine) so it is $1000/month but they said to make them an offer on what I could pay? That is I think 3x what they had advertised they charge.  I sure was not epecting that.  I mean they're worth anything if they can help, but weren't exactly welcoming. 

 

Not gotten out of bed today.

[[or...]]

Lookin, if it were me, I would start with your benzo. I believe that is conventional wisdom here. First the benzo, then other drugs. I followed that protocol and it worked out. How much to reduce by? How about 5-10% every two weeks or so. Maybe start with 5%. Have you read the Ashton Manual? Ashton lays out a pretty good reduction schedule.

 

https://benzo.org.uk/manual/bzsched.htm

 

Hope this helps,

 

Katz

[[or...]]

 

Makes sense, Lookin. If you think the Ambien is giving you most trouble, taper it.

 

Good luck.

 

Katz