Under .125 Klonopin Club

[[Mo...]]

It can be hard to filter what is helpful from what freaks us out.  For that reason, I have limited myself to a couple of these threads where the situation described corresponds somewhat to my own and the posts have something to do with where i'm at.  It's not that I judge others, we're all doing what we need to do.  But when one is participating for support it makes no sense to be unnecessarily exposed to frightening things. 

I appreciate the encouraging words of everyone on this thread.  It think it s going to be very helpful as I go back to below .125, which I hope to start soon.

 

Blossom4, are you getting ready to jump?

Bob7, how are you doing.

 

Monray60 

[[...]]

It can be hard to filter what is helpful from what freaks us out.  For that reason, I have limited myself to a couple of these threads where the situation described corresponds somewhat to my own and the posts have something to do with where i'm at.  It's not that I judge others, we're all doing what we need to do.  But when one is participating for support it makes no sense to be unnecessarily exposed to frightening things. 

I appreciate the encouraging words of everyone on this thread.  It think it s going to be very helpful as I go back to below .125, which I hope to start soon.

 

Blossom4, are you getting ready to jump?

Bob7, how are you doing.

 

Monray60

Thanks for asking.  My biggest issue is still anxiety induced insomnia.

Recently, I have been experimenting to see if my blood pressure medication is part of the problem.  I read people low on salt have sleep problems and I take a water pill for blood pressure which can lower salt.

I have always done a very low salt diet so recently I started to increase my salt and I think I am sleeping better.  Too soon to be sure.

[[Mo...]]

That d_ _ _ _ _ insomnia!  I hope the salt adjustment works for you.  I find the anxiety/insomnia issue like a vicious circle.  The more anxious, the less sleep, the less sleep the more anxiety.

I am VERY fortunate that anxiety is not a primary symptom for me, never was. I've only had 2 bouts of it, 12 years apart, both times due to  long-term sleep deprivation, ie: many nights of very poor sleep.  As long as I can stabilize after cuts I'm OK.  But boy, after a month straight of that, and going down too quickly, the anxiety took over.  (I just updated my profile showing the setback.  That was all due to anxiety.)

Do you get more anxious at night before sleep, anticipation of sleep?  I may be stating the obvious but one can have wretched  insomnia during a taper due to withdrawals without being anxious.  That was the case with me for 18 months. 

What have you tried?

 

Monray60 

[[...]]

That d_ _ _ _ _ insomnia!  I hope the salt adjustment works for you.  I find the anxiety/insomnia issue like a vicious circle.  The more anxious, the less sleep, the less sleep the more anxiety.

I am VERY fortunate that anxiety is not a primary symptom for me, never was. I've only had 2 bouts of it, 12 years apart, both times due to  long-term sleep deprivation, ie: many nights of very poor sleep.  As long as I can stabilize after cuts I'm OK.  But boy, after a month straight of that, and going down too quickly, the anxiety took over.  (I just updated my profile showing the setback.  That was all due to anxiety.)

Do you get more anxious at night before sleep, anticipation of sleep?  I may be stating the obvious but one can have wretched  insomnia during a taper due to withdrawals without being anxious.  That was the case with me for 18 months. 

What have you tried?

 

Monray60

No doubt during the tapering my withdrawal symptoms made the insomnia much worse.  I have been off benzos for a year now after a long slow taper so I am surprised to still have trouble with sleep.  I have tried many over the counter drugs and all kinds of tea and hypnosis and meditations and everything works to a point.  It is important for me to do something so I tried many things and in doing so, I think it helped me get to where I am today.

I plan to retire at the end of Oct - that might really reduce the anxiety induced insomnia.  I am ALWAY worse the night before work.

[[Mo...]]

I agree, when there is pressure to wake up at a certain time and hope one has slept enough it makes it much worse.  I hope retirement will make a difference for you, it did for me.  Amazing that you are still able to work with all of this!

We are (early) retired and have a teen-aged daughter in high school (older parents).  My husband understands this issue and is on-deck to wake up with her.  I often wake first feeling OK so I get up and do the morning routine.  But there is never any pressure for me to get up and that helps tremendously.

Sounds like it won't be too much longer, light at the end of that particular tunnel.

Monray60 

[[NJ...]]

That d_ _ _ _ _ insomnia!  I hope the salt adjustment works for you.  I find the anxiety/insomnia issue like a vicious circle.  The more anxious, the less sleep, the less sleep the more anxiety.

I am VERY fortunate that anxiety is not a primary symptom for me, never was. I've only had 2 bouts of it, 12 years apart, both times due to  long-term sleep deprivation, ie: many nights of very poor sleep.  As long as I can stabilize after cuts I'm OK.  But boy, after a month straight of that, and going down too quickly, the anxiety took over.  (I just updated my profile showing the setback.  That was all due to anxiety.)

Do you get more anxious at night before sleep, anticipation of sleep?  I may be stating the obvious but one can have wretched  insomnia during a taper due to withdrawals without being anxious.  That was the case with me for 18 months. 

What have you tried?

 

Monray60

No doubt during the tapering my withdrawal symptoms made the insomnia much worse.  I have been off benzos for a year now after a long slow taper so I am surprised to still have trouble with sleep.  I have tried many over the counter drugs and all kinds of tea and hypnosis and meditations and everything works to a point.  It is important for me to do something so I tried many things and in doing so, I think it helped me get to where I am today.

I plan to retire at the end of Oct - that might really reduce the anxiety induced insomnia.  I am ALWAY worse the night before work.

 

Bob, have you tried taurine to help with sleep? I can't believe how well I have been sleeping with it.

 

I follow these posts even though I may never get to this point in my taper! But I hope to someday.

[[...]]

That d_ _ _ _ _ insomnia!  I hope the salt adjustment works for you.  I find the anxiety/insomnia issue like a vicious circle.  The more anxious, the less sleep, the less sleep the more anxiety.

I am VERY fortunate that anxiety is not a primary symptom for me, never was. I've only had 2 bouts of it, 12 years apart, both times due to  long-term sleep deprivation, ie: many nights of very poor sleep.  As long as I can stabilize after cuts I'm OK.  But boy, after a month straight of that, and going down too quickly, the anxiety took over.  (I just updated my profile showing the setback.  That was all due to anxiety.)

Do you get more anxious at night before sleep, anticipation of sleep?  I may be stating the obvious but one can have wretched  insomnia during a taper due to withdrawals without being anxious.  That was the case with me for 18 months. 

What have you tried?

 

Monray60

No doubt during the tapering my withdrawal symptoms made the insomnia much worse.  I have been off benzos for a year now after a long slow taper so I am surprised to still have trouble with sleep.  I have tried many over the counter drugs and all kinds of tea and hypnosis and meditations and everything works to a point.  It is important for me to do something so I tried many things and in doing so, I think it helped me get to where I am today.

I plan to retire at the end of Oct - that might really reduce the anxiety induced insomnia.  I am ALWAY worse the night before work.

 

Bob, have you tried taurine to help with sleep? I can't believe how well I have been sleeping with it.

 

I follow these posts even though I may never get to this point in my taper! But I hope to someday.

For some reason, I never tried taurine except for maybe once years ago.  I cannot remember why I stopped it.  How long have you been on it?

[[Bi...]]

It can be hard to filter what is helpful from what freaks us out.  For that reason, I have limited myself to a couple of these threads where the situation described corresponds somewhat to my own and the posts have something to do with where i'm at.  It's not that I judge others, we're all doing what we need to do.  But when one is participating for support it makes no sense to be unnecessarily exposed to frightening things. 

I appreciate the encouraging words of everyone on this thread.  It think it s going to be very helpful as I go back to below .125, which I hope to start soon.

 

Blossom4, are you getting ready to jump?

Bob7, how are you doing.

 

Monray60

Thanks for asking.  My biggest issue is still anxiety induced insomnia.

Recently, I have been experimenting to see if my blood pressure medication is part of the problem.  I read people low on salt have sleep problems and I take a water pill for blood pressure which can lower salt.

I have always done a very low salt diet so recently I started to increase my salt and I think I am sleeping better.  Too soon to be sure.

 

I recall reading a study a few years ago that showed those with the lowest intakes of salt and vitamin C had the poorest sleep.  I believe it had to do with the fact that these things nourish the adrenal glands.  I know saturated fats gets a bad rap, but natural fats also nourish the adrenal glands and are needed to produce hormones.  I find all of these helpful.

 

Just tossing that out there.

[[...]]

It can be hard to filter what is helpful from what freaks us out.  For that reason, I have limited myself to a couple of these threads where the situation described corresponds somewhat to my own and the posts have something to do with where i'm at.  It's not that I judge others, we're all doing what we need to do.  But when one is participating for support it makes no sense to be unnecessarily exposed to frightening things. 

I appreciate the encouraging words of everyone on this thread.  It think it s going to be very helpful as I go back to below .125, which I hope to start soon.

 

Blossom4, are you getting ready to jump?

Bob7, how are you doing.

 

Monray60

Thanks for asking.  My biggest issue is still anxiety induced insomnia.

Recently, I have been experimenting to see if my blood pressure medication is part of the problem.  I read people low on salt have sleep problems and I take a water pill for blood pressure which can lower salt.

I have always done a very low salt diet so recently I started to increase my salt and I think I am sleeping better.  Too soon to be sure.

 

I recall reading a study a few years ago that showed those with the lowest intakes of salt and vitamin C had the poorest sleep.  I believe it had to do with the fact that these things nourish the adrenal glands.  I know saturated fats gets a bad rap, but natural fats also nourish the adrenal glands and are needed to produce hormones.  I find all of these helpful.

 

Just tossing that out there.

Thanks for the note on salt.  I am very interested in salt and sleep relationship.

[[Mo...]]

Bob7,  I'll be curious to read what you find about salt and sleep. 

 

I'm going to read about taurine again.

 

Have any of you been switched from the TEVA brand .125 orally dissolving to the PAR Pharmaceuticals brand?  This may sound strange, but I'm sleeping TOO well with this change and feel like I have up-dosed.  Not good!  I'd rather have a harder time and know I am reducing my intake of K. than to do better because I have up-dosed.

Thoughts?     

[[NJ...]]

That d_ _ _ _ _ insomnia!  I hope the salt adjustment works for you.  I find the anxiety/insomnia issue like a vicious circle.  The more anxious, the less sleep, the less sleep the more anxiety.

I am VERY fortunate that anxiety is not a primary symptom for me, never was. I've only had 2 bouts of it, 12 years apart, both times due to  long-term sleep deprivation, ie: many nights of very poor sleep.  As long as I can stabilize after cuts I'm OK.  But boy, after a month straight of that, and going down too quickly, the anxiety took over.  (I just updated my profile showing the setback.  That was all due to anxiety.)

Do you get more anxious at night before sleep, anticipation of sleep?  I may be stating the obvious but one can have wretched  insomnia during a taper due to withdrawals without being anxious.  That was the case with me for 18 months. 

What have you tried?

 

Monray60

No doubt during the tapering my withdrawal symptoms made the insomnia much worse.  I have been off benzos for a year now after a long slow taper so I am surprised to still have trouble with sleep.  I have tried many over the counter drugs and all kinds of tea and hypnosis and meditations and everything works to a point.  It is important for me to do something so I tried many things and in doing so, I think it helped me get to where I am today.

I plan to retire at the end of Oct - that might really reduce the anxiety induced insomnia.  I am ALWAY worse the night before work.

 

Bob, have you tried taurine to help with sleep? I can't believe how well I have been sleeping with it.

 

I follow these posts even though I may never get to this point in my taper! But I hope to someday.

For some reason, I never tried taurine except for maybe once years ago.  I cannot remember why I stopped it.  How long have you been on it?

 

Bob, I have been taking 500 mg at bedtime for a few months. I think it has helped me discontinue the need for the medical marijuana I was using to help me sleep.

 

While I haven't retired, I did recently switch from a going to work job to a work from home job with flexible hours and I am sleeping much better. I don't have set hours so I know if I need to sleep in I can. It's made a huge difference. I did it as I am really struggling with anxiety/depression due to health issues with my son and feared I was not going to be able to continue to work--now I feel confident I will be fine.

[[...]]

Bob7,  I'll be curious to read what you find about salt and sleep. 

 

I'm going to read about taurine again.

 

Have any of you been switched from the TEVA brand .125 orally dissolving to the PAR Pharmaceuticals brand?  This may sound strange, but I'm sleeping TOO well with this change and feel like I have up-dosed.  Not good!  I'd rather have a harder time and know I am reducing my intake of K. than to do better because I have up-dosed.

Thoughts?   

So far the additional salt seems to be helping me sleep.  I guess I was very low on it due to the low salt diet coupled with blood pressure meds.  I still would like to sleep better but this is a significant improvement.  I hope it lasts.

[[...]]

That d_ _ _ _ _ insomnia!  I hope the salt adjustment works for you.  I find the anxiety/insomnia issue like a vicious circle.  The more anxious, the less sleep, the less sleep the more anxiety.

I am VERY fortunate that anxiety is not a primary symptom for me, never was. I've only had 2 bouts of it, 12 years apart, both times due to  long-term sleep deprivation, ie: many nights of very poor sleep.  As long as I can stabilize after cuts I'm OK.  But boy, after a month straight of that, and going down too quickly, the anxiety took over.  (I just updated my profile showing the setback.  That was all due to anxiety.)

Do you get more anxious at night before sleep, anticipation of sleep?  I may be stating the obvious but one can have wretched  insomnia during a taper due to withdrawals without being anxious.  That was the case with me for 18 months. 

What have you tried?

 

Monray60

No doubt during the tapering my withdrawal symptoms made the insomnia much worse.  I have been off benzos for a year now after a long slow taper so I am surprised to still have trouble with sleep.  I have tried many over the counter drugs and all kinds of tea and hypnosis and meditations and everything works to a point.  It is important for me to do something so I tried many things and in doing so, I think it helped me get to where I am today.

I plan to retire at the end of Oct - that might really reduce the anxiety induced insomnia.  I am ALWAY worse the night before work.

 

Bob, have you tried taurine to help with sleep? I can't believe how well I have been sleeping with it.

 

I follow these posts even though I may never get to this point in my taper! But I hope to someday.

For some reason, I never tried taurine except for maybe once years ago.  I cannot remember why I stopped it.  How long have you been on it?

 

Bob, I have been taking 500 mg at bedtime for a few months. I think it has helped me discontinue the need for the medical marijuana I was using to help me sleep.

 

While I haven't retired, I did recently switch from a going to work job to a work from home job with flexible hours and I am sleeping much better. I don't have set hours so I know if I need to sleep in I can. It's made a huge difference. I did it as I am really struggling with anxiety/depression due to health issues with my son and feared I was not going to be able to continue to work--now I feel confident I will be fine.

I am so happy for you NJ that you get to work from home and have some relief.

I look forward to seeing what happens when I retire at the end of this month.

 

[[da...]]

I am now at .05 Klonopin and will be jumping from this medication in a couple of short weeks. I have had chest pains and heart palpitations for the past couple of months, but those have disappeared in the past week! Which at times were worrisome but have been checked out a couple since and am perfectly healthy. I cut down to .05 K from .125 and have so far felt no change at all or increase in withdrawal symptoms. I cut .50 mg a month since Last november. I am ready to be off this medication and am in a good place mentally and physically to do so!

[[...]]

I am now at .05 Klonopin and will be jumping from this medication in a couple of short weeks. I have had chest pains and heart palpitations for the past couple of months, but those have disappeared in the past week! Which at times were worrisome but have been checked out a couple since and am perfectly healthy. I cut down to .05 K from .125 and have so far felt no change at all or increase in withdrawal symptoms. I cut .50 mg a month since Last november. I am ready to be off this medication and am in a good place mentally and physically to do so!

Congratulations.

You should be very proud of yourself.  Tapering off benzodiazepines is not an easy thing to do and you did it relatively quickly.  Be at peace about your heart, many of us have had the heart palpitations and chest pain’s but they do go away and it’s just benzos from everyone I’ve talked to.

[[Mo...]]

DAGORED

A huge congratulations in getting down so far from so high a dose!  You have indeed gone fairly quickly although it probably seems slow to you.  It is indeed difficult no matter how quickly or slowly you go.  Your experience lets the rest of us see that success is possible and that the process is indeed variable. 

 

Bob7

Glad to hear the increased salt has helped you.  We all know that with sleep every little bit helps.  I also believe that when you retire you will experience improvement with your sleep.  Just this AM I fell back asleep for a couple of hours after waking very early-just because I could stay in bed, not needing to get up.

 

   

[[Mo...]]

Have any of you been switched from the TEVA .125 orally disintegrating tablets to the generic PAR Pharmaceuticals brand?  Oddly, I've felt TOO good on the PAR and wonder if it is more potent or delivers differently.  I do not want to be putting more of this stuff into myself that I will just have come off of.

 

Thoughts?     

[[...]]

Have any of you been switched from the TEVA .125 orally disintegrating tablets to the generic PAR Pharmaceuticals brand?  Oddly, I've felt TOO good on the PAR and wonder if it is more potent or delivers differently.  I do not want to be putting more of this stuff into myself that I will just have come off of.

 

Thoughts?   

I very much noticed differences.  Brand name Klonopin seemed to me to be more powerful or effective than any of the non-brand name scripts I used.

I also liked brand-name disintegrating tablets but do not recall comparing them to anything.

[[Mo...]]

Thank you Bob7.

I'm beginning to think that it doesn't matter which one we take or taper from as long as it is constant.  It's the switching around that seems to be the difficulty. 

I made an adjustment with the new PAR that I was given, reduced it by 10% since it seemed more "potent".  So far, so good.

I'm going to continue my taper with this one and hope it doesn't get changed again. 

I think the name brand is a good way to keep things constant. 

 

Thanks again.

[[...]]

Thank you Bob7.

I'm beginning to think that it doesn't matter which one we take or taper from as long as it is constant.  It's the switching around that seems to be the difficulty. 

I made an adjustment with the new PAR that I was given, reduced it by 10% since it seemed more "potent".  So far, so good.

I'm going to continue my taper with this one and hope it doesn't get changed again. 

I think the name brand is a good way to keep things constant. 

 

Thanks again.

Yes indeed.  I totally like the brand name.  I mean, if someone is using a generic, then no need to change if they are proceeding ok.

 

[[Mo...]]

Thank you bob7

This is good information.  If they keep switching me around, I am going to ask to switch to and stay with the brand name Klonopin.  Even if I have to pay OOP.  That will ensure consistency, what we all need!

 

Are you counting down the days to retirement?  I hope you have had a rewarding career.

 

 

[[...]]

Thank you bob7

This is good information.  If they keep switching me around, I am going to ask to switch to and stay with the brand name Klonopin.  Even if I have to pay OOP.  That will ensure consistency, what we all need!

 

Are you counting down the days to retirement?  I hope you have had a rewarding career.

Yes I am and thank you for asking. My last day is October 30 which is the day of our company Halloween party and I do enjoy that.

I will be leaving my job as a  research fellow in engineering for medical devices.

I found an opportunity at a university where I can do research without being paid so I feel no commitments on how many hours I must work or when I have to be there.

I do hope this helps recover my sleep.

[[ea...]]

This is for jmhp.

I certainly understand your fears. Had them myself, a lot of them. I did not know what to expect in benzo wd and it turned out to be much worse than I thought. But I did get through it, and so will you.

Just about everyone on BB feels they wont make it. Maybe they think they cannot "TAKE" it. Such fears are normal and being caused by your benzos, not reality. There is so much unknowns about this stuff, we are sort of like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, trying to find our way out of a dark forest.  I felt just as you do now. This is quite normal.

I would suggest several things. Things that might eventually make a huge difference. I have told my fellow BB'ers for 7 years to "fake it." This is a poorly understood things but it sure does work. The human brain is susceptible to suggestions. Think "Just about everyone on BB feels like you do, scared, unsure, confused, not knowing what to believe or what to do. That is normal for benzo wd. Years ago I had a good counsellor (MSW), a woman who really tried to help me. My messed up benzo brain would not allow her to help me. I was so entrenched in negative, benzo thinking. She told me about reversing negative thoughts ("faking it") and I blew her off, assuming it was some crackpot theory. Huh! Turns out she was completely right. Early in my dreadful CT off benzos and SSRIs, I dimly recalled what she had said. I figured I had nothing to lose by trying it, so I began "faking it." Forcing myself to reverse all my negative thoughts, my "self censure" thoughts, etc. I started doing this on paper. That felt tedious and fake plus back then I even had trouble holding a pen due to shaky hands and body. But I sure tried. Once I found BB I began doing this technique online which for some reason I found easier. I faked it and faked it, and when I re-read my first posts here I am amazed at how sane and calm I sounded. I was nothing like that at all! I was a huge, shivering quivering mess of a human who had NO hope at all, only dismal glooms and worries. I honestly do not know why or how I managed to sound so rational and calm. I find this truly weird. I continued to fake it for years, and dammit, it worked really well. I somehow reversed my old negative, gloomy, sad personality into someone who normally feels upbeat and relaxed no matter what. Those changes seem to be permanent now, 7 years later.

I know you feel overwhelmed. I did too. Fear is an awful thing to experience almost all of the time, but that is what benzo wd can do.

Just about everyone on BB feels just as you do. We all wonder if we can get through this, and the dreads and fears can consume us.

I know you are trying, your PMS to me prove that. I just wish I could answer you in a normal PM but I cannot. But you can always find me on my Buddie Blog. Eastcoasts Trip Two. That is my current "direct" line to my special people.

BIG HUG to you!

east (Annie)

[[Mo...]]

Are people in this situation still posting to this board?  It would be nice to communicate with some buddies continuing the  march with the end in sight. 

[[Bl...]]

Are people in this situation still posting to this board?  It would be nice to communicate with some buddies continuing the  march with the end in sight.

 

Hi Monray 60, yes this board is still active

I am about to jump in 2 weeks. I am so ready to end this.

How are you feeling?? how's everything going with your taper? I went away for a while, I was taking a rest from BB

this weather change is giving me a hard time with my allergies and I feel like this could be the start of a cold.... I took some vitamin c and I'm drinking a lot of natural orange juice and celery

Blossom