How many people up dosed due to tapering to fast and found it helped?

[[md...]]

 

Looking for feedback...

 

I screwed up and do not know what to. After being put on and off multiple meds, and c/t off most of them after no results, I restarted previous prescribed Klonopin, which was not helping after a month, so I quickly reducing .75 mg K to .5o k, then switched from .50 K to .25k and 5 mg V for 1 week and then dropped k and did 8 mg of V and started 1 mg taper per 7 to 10 days, tapered it down to 6mg while experiencing multiple symptoms and have been feeling awful!!

 

How many people up dosed due to tapering to fast and found it helped to continue with a slower taper? I have had mixed reviews, some stated it worked, some stated it made it worse and added more time??

 

[[va...]]

 

Looking for feedback...

 

I screwed up and do not know what to. After being put on and off multiple meds, and c/t off most of them after no results, I restarted previous prescribed Klonopin, which was not helping after a month, so I quickly reducing .75 mg K to .5o k, then switched from .50 K to .25k and 5 mg V for 1 week and then dropped k and did 8 mg of V and started 1 mg taper per 7 to 10 days, tapered it down to 6mg while experiencing multiple symptoms and have been feeling awful!!

 

How many people up dosed due to tapering to fast and found it helped to continue with a slower taper? I have had mixed reviews, some stated it worked, some stated it made it worse and added more time??

 

I updosed and I'm so glad I did. Now I'm holding until I'm stable enough to resume my taper. You will get mixed responses here. Just do what feels right to you given your circumstances. If you can stay bedridden with agoraphobia good for you, but if you have to keep up with responsibilities maybe an updose is not out of the question. BTW an updose sometimes doesn't make you feel better immediately. It took me a full two months to start feeling human and now on month three I have decent windows. I will hold until January and that'll be six months since the updose. I did have a very bad crash with very very bad SI and constant terror 24/7, so I only condone an updose if the situation is very critical. Wishing you luck whatever you decide. Don't go up and down in doses. Stay on one dose and allow your CNS to stabilize. Up and down is a bad idea.

[[md...]]

 

Valiumnomore,

 

Thank you for your feedback. A little important thing I left out of my other message is that I was kindled on, off and back on benzos 3 times this year in between other failed sleep meds. I restarted taking K in June and switched to V in July with the fast transition and taper. I'm a littler nervous because I have also grown a tolerance due to my kindling and not sure if the up dose will work, or if I should tough this out wich is slow torture and keep going? My worst symptoms are at night when I wake from Micro sleeps (chronic insomnia ) rapid heartbeats, sweats, hot/cold, racing thoughts, flu symptoms and bladder retention. Im not sure if it makes a difference but I have not been on benzos longer than 6 months?

 

Thank you again!

 

Best, mdv

[[va...]]

 

Valiumnomore,

 

Thank you for your feedback. A little important thing I left out of my other message is that I was kindled on, off and back on benzos 3 times this year in between other failed sleep meds. I restarted taking K in June and switched to V in July with the fast transition and taper. I'm a littler nervous because I have also grown a tolerance due to my kindling and not sure if the up dose will work, or if I should tough this out wich is slow torture and keep going? My worst symptoms are at night when I wake from Micro sleeps (chronic insomnia ) rapid heartbeats, sweats, hot/cold, racing thoughts, flu symptoms and bladder retention. Im not sure if it makes a difference but I have not been on benzos longer than 6 months?

 

Thank you again!

 

Best, mdv

 

HI mdv,

 

I'm also very very kindled you just have to see my signature and it's incomplete. Some will tell you to push through. I'm not willing to push through intolerable symptoms. I prefer to hold until I stabilize, which is taking me months, and then consider resuming my taper at a slower pace. For me, the priority is not getting off ASAP. It's not becoming disabled in the process. I really wish you the very best.

[[md...]]

That is another thing, I do not want to risk causing a protracted w/d syndrome that will linger one I am off either? Thank you again for all of your feedback.

[[va...]]

That is another thing, I do not want to risk causing a protracted w/d syndrome that will linger one I am off either? Thank you again for all of your feedback.

 

There's an updosing support group and a long hold support group. Maybe you want to check them out. And yes, usually when the taper is faster and more difficult, the post taper is longer and more painful. Each person's circumstances are different. I just know that I have many responsibilities and I need to be functional while I taper, even if it takes me years to come off. Again, that's my approach given my circumstances. I understand others wanting to come off faster.

[[md...]]

I understand, I just wonder if coming off

Faster is worse for the healing process after your last dose?

[[va...]]

Usually a slow, symptom based taper will entail less difficulties when you finally jump, or walk off.

[[Mo...]]

Based on personal experience I am a proponent of up-dosing if symptoms become intolerable. 

 

I had been tapering for 18 months with very unpleasant symptoms that altered my lifestyle but I always stabilized and was able to move on.  When I was on what was to be my last taper dose before jump-off, my nervous system went haywire.  I held and went crazy for a month before I up-dosed as a last resort.  It took some time and addition of some other drugs but I stabilized.  Now 3 months later, I am off the other drugs and where I was 3 months prior to the up-dose.  I'm doing well and plan to re-start my taper in a week or so.

 

My take-away:  Holding too long with intolerable symptoms does not move one forward.  It causes a bigger set-back than if one had up-dosed earlier on.  My theory is that the nervous system gets so out of balance that you end up digging out of an even deeper hole.  And that takes more time.  Every progress column I've looked at where a big crash occurred shows an up-dose to a level higher than prior to the dose at the time of up-dose.  This sets the poor person back for a long time. 

 

I say:  Nip it in the bud!  If you've gone 2 weeks or so and it's not improving at all, up-dose part way and see how you do.  You may need to up-dose to the prior level and hold longer.  What is wrong with that?  While I've only had to do this once, I 'm fairly sure that if I had not let things get so out of hand I would not have been set back so far. I'm not angry or regretful that I up-dosed.  It has taught me to listen to my body and refrain from heroics. 

 

I hope this helps.  Keep going at YOUR pace, you will make it!   

[[va...]]

Based on personal experience I am a proponent of up-dosing if symptoms become intolerable. 

 

I had been tapering for 18 months with very unpleasant symptoms that altered my lifestyle but I always stabilized and was able to move on.  When I was on what was to be my last taper dose before jump-off, my nervous system went haywire.  I held and went crazy for a month before I up-dosed as a last resort.  It took some time and addition of some other drugs but I stabilized.  Now 3 months later, I am off the other drugs and where I was 3 months prior to the up-dose.  I'm doing well and plan to re-start my taper in a week or so.

 

My take-away:  Holding too long with intolerable symptoms does not move one forward.  It causes a bigger set-back than if one had up-dosed earlier on.  My theory is that the nervous system gets so out of balance that you end up digging out of an even deeper hole.  And that takes more time.  Every progress column I've looked at where a big crash occurred shows an up-dose to a level higher than prior to the dose at the time of up-dose.  This sets the poor person back for a long time. 

 

I say:  Nip it in the bud!  If you've gone 2 weeks or so and it's not improving at all, up-dose part way and see how you do.  You may need to up-dose to the prior level and hold longer.  What is wrong with that?  While I've only had to do this once, I 'm fairly sure that if I had not let things get so out of hand I would not have been set back so far. I'm not angry or regretful that I up-dosed.  It has taught me to listen to my body and refrain from heroics. 

 

I hope this helps.  Keep going at YOUR pace, you will make it! 

 

This is such good advice and you describe exactly what happened to me. I wish I had updosed earlier. Due to waiting too long, it's taking me ages to stabilize, but I'm MUCH better.

[[Mo...]]

I hope you can move on from here.  I also noticed you are taking Gabapentin.  I am as well but only 100 mg.  One of  the reasons I crashed was because I went off the gabapentin and the benzo at the same time. I knew I had to get off both so I went for it.  For me, that was a bad idea.  I up-dosed the gabapentin to 200 mg as well back in late June to get out of the hole.  I'm now back to 100 mg and will NOT  attempt to go off both together again.  My plan is to resume the benzo taper and taper the gabapentin once I'm off the benzo.  You may want to talk to your doctor about that.  I was told not to try that again.

 

I also reflected on the set back timing.  It has taken me 3 months to get back to the drug levels  of February 2019.  So, I think of this as a 6 month set-back.  I believe that if I had up-dosed after a week or 2 last June, I may have been set-back a month or 2.  Oh well, chalk it up to experience.

 

Just keep moving  downward.  The timing is yours!     

[[va...]]

I hope you can move on from here.  I also noticed you are taking Gabapentin.  I am as well but only 100 mg.  One of  the reasons I crashed was because I went off the gabapentin and the benzo at the same time. I knew I had to get off both so I went for it.  For me, that was a bad idea.  I up-dosed the gabapentin to 200 mg as well back in late June to get out of the hole.  I'm now back to 100 mg and will NOT  attempt to go off both together again.  My plan is to resume the benzo taper and taper the gabapentin once I'm off the benzo.  You may want to talk to your doctor about that.  I was told not to try that again.

 

I also reflected on the set back timing.  It has taken me 3 months to get back to the drug levels  of February 2019.  So, I think of this as a 6 month set-back.  I believe that if I had up-dosed after a week or 2 last June, I may have been set-back a month or 2.  Oh well, chalk it up to experience.

 

Just keep moving  downward.  The timing is yours!   

 

HI Monray. I'll worry about the gabapentin once I finish tapering the Valium, if that ever happens. I'm back to my valiumdose of last November, holding, and no immediate plans to taper because the crash has caused quite a lot of glutamate damage. I'm still in chemical fear, bouts of chemical depression, and brain jolts when I'm falling asleep so I couldn't dream of sleeping without the trazodone. This is not a position to resume a taper. I will think of it when my brain doesn't jolt as soon as I'm about to fall asleep, if I ever get there. I'd be better off if I had updosed earlier but every one advised against it : the psychiatrist, benzobuddies and Facebook groups. I hope this "never updose" belief is reconsidered some time soon. It would prevent a lot of needles suffering and we would avoid setbacks that make our tapers much longer, in my opinion. Gabapentin was given to me due to the crash, as well as the trazodone, so now due to a too late updose I'm also poly drugged. I don't mind the trazodone though. It's been a blessing with my otherwise non existent sleep.

[[Fr...]]

 

Looking for feedback...

 

I screwed up and do not know what to. After being put on and off multiple meds, and c/t off most of them after no results, I restarted previous prescribed Klonopin, which was not helping after a month, so I quickly reducing .75 mg K to .5o k, then switched from .50 K to .25k and 5 mg V for 1 week and then dropped k and did 8 mg of V and started 1 mg taper per 7 to 10 days, tapered it down to 6mg while experiencing multiple symptoms and have been feeling awful!!

 

How many people up dosed due to tapering to fast and found it helped to continue with a slower taper? I have had mixed reviews, some stated it worked, some stated it made it worse and added more time??

 

Up-dosing did not work for me. In fact I was off of benzos for a few months, but unaware 16 years ago of "withdraw" and found myself reinstating to 3mg a day and no amount helped. By 2017 I was at 5mg a day with the worst anxiety of my life and failing health.

Now I am tapering slower this 2nd attempt and suffering most days with the strangest symptoms. But I know once i am off Klonopin, I will be able to heal. I say longer holds have really helped me this time.

If I could suggest just holding your taper for a bit and when things are "tolerable" continue tapering. I would never endorse reinstating.

[[md...]]

How do you know your symptoms are to the point where you need to up

Dose? For example, I have chronic insomnia, night sweats, rapid heartbeat

and racing thoughts. A lot of people say this is normal w/d symptoms and to

Continue taper in order to get off and heal? What where your symptoms that

Made you know up dosing was the right thing?

[[va...]]

How do you know your symptoms are to the point where you need to up

Dose? For example, I have chronic insomnia, night sweats, rapid heartbeat

and racing thoughts. A lot of people say this is normal w/d symptoms and to

Continue taper in order to get off and heal? What where your symptoms that

Made you know up dosing was the right thing?

 

Mdv, with the symptoms you're describing I would hold. I'd do a long hold instead of updosing. When I updosed my symptoms were worse than that. If I had held when I was having your symptoms, I wouldn't have had to updose. Realize this is only my personal opinion based on my personal experience.

[[Mo...]]

It can be difficult to determine whether one should stick things out and hold or up-dose.  Perhaps the key word is "intolerable" and what that means to each of us.  What one can tolerate, another may not.  There is universal agreement among those who understand this process that we are all as different as snowflakes, have to listen to our bodies, and need to go at the pace that is right for us.

 

My personal decision to up-dose came after a call to my prescriber, when I was beside myself, and I asked if I should go to the ER.  Her answer was that all they would do was up-dose me.  So I did it myself.  I did this very conscientiously knowing that this was a last resort and hopefully a one time deal.  So far it has been and I hope that I can avoid that situation again by tapering at a more reasonable pace.  I am nearing the end (89% done) and things are now OK.

 

We all have to endure feeling badly if we are going to get off these drugs.  If we get to the point that we can't handle it, it's time to talk with our doctors and families and weigh the pros and cons of what to do.

 

As long as our doses are moving downward in the big picture, good on us!!!

 

Best to all.           

[[Fr...]]

How do you know your symptoms are to the point where you need to up

Dose? For example, I have chronic insomnia, night sweats, rapid heartbeat

and racing thoughts. A lot of people say this is normal w/d symptoms and to

Continue taper in order to get off and heal? What where your symptoms that

Made you know up dosing was the right thing?

 

My symptoms were 1. Stroke-like (my face was drooping, the ER doctors thought it was bells palsy. 2. I had Brain Zaps 3. I had two seizures. So I was put back on 3mg. BUT and don't want you to be scared and think this as a horror story. My shrink at the time took me from 3mg of Klonopin to Zero in One month. It was too fast and my symptoms were life threatening.

 

I am not minimizing your symptoms but what you are feeling is unfortunately "normal withdraw symptoms". They are AWFUL but I would just hold and stabilize. That's what I would do.