Klonopin withdrawal

[Guest [Sa...]]

Hi everybody,

 

I am tapering off of 0.7 mg klonapin liquid (Rivotril).

 

I started out at 1.5 mg in January 2020.  After a 40-day doctor-driven taper, I had stabilized reasonably by well by August on a dosage of 0.7 mg , taken as follows:

0.100 mg 8 am

0.100 mg 2 pm

0.500 mg 8 pm

 

Then I joined BB for advice on how to continue.

 

On August 20th, I reduced to 0.650 mg

0.100 mg 8 am

0.100 mg 2 pm

0.450 mg 8 pm

 

On September 25, I dropped to 0.625 mg

0.100 mg 8 am

0.100 mg 2 pm

0.425 mg 8 pm

 

I'm still holding at 0.625 mg. 

 

Over the course of these reductions I have experienced many of the withdrawal effect in the Ashton manual and am beginning to lose hope that I can get through this.  Does anyone have any suggestions? 

Thank you in advance

[[Br...]]

I'm sorry you're experience rough withdrawal symptoms.  I also experienced those symptoms after Klonopin too - I know how hard this is.  I'm almost 13 months off now and most of my symptoms are completely gone.  Everyone's timeline is different but healing takes place and it takes time.

 

You're currently at .625.  From what I see on the forum symptoms often get harder to cope with as the doses get smaller.  Many members slow down considerably as they get down to the lower doses toward the end of the their taper.  It may be best for you to hold at your current dose for a couple more weeks before making your next cut.  And continue tapering by letting your symptoms guide your taper - making cuts only when your symptoms become more manageable.

 

This is a recent thread by a member who tapered from Klonopin very slowly.  I think you'll find it very helpful:

 

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=247043.msg3144394#msg3144394

 

Keep your focus on the prize at the end of this - being benzo free! You can do this!

[[He...]]

Klonopin and Clonazepam (generic version of Klonopin) can be successfully tapered.  It takes time.  The lower the dose, sometimes the harder it gets.  For awhile.  This can be discouraging.  It takes dedication and courage to keep going.  Even after the final dose, withdrawal symptoms can occur.  It is different for everyone.

 

I am at a very tiny dose of clonazepam now.  Only .005 mg.  I have tapered from .5 mgs once daily and this has taken 14 months.  I held up to a month a few times, and usually 10 days to 2 weeks before reducing 10% of whatever the current dose was.  I was able to do this by having the clonazepam compounded to a liquid by the compound pharmacy.  Otherwise, it is impossible to cut the pill by 10%.  Clonazepam does not come in a small enough dose to comfortably jump off for most people.  I intend to stop very soon.  This way of dosing is called walking off, not jumping.  For me it has been the least disruptive.  However, I still had to handle symptoms and some very rough days.  Even recently, I went through another 3 days of feeling very ill.  It always passes.  I do not continue until the sick feeling is over for at least a few days.  You can get through this.  Cross one bridge at a time.

 

Comforts along the way include:

Routines

Distractions

Walks

Gluten, sugar, caffeine free

Warm epsom salt baths

Melatonin in tart cherry juice

Amino acids, L  theanine

Magnesium

Weighted blanket

Eye mask

Dark room

White noise

Avoidance of blue screen, light especially at night

Avoidance of all stress, stressful tv, news

Funny movies are good

Counselling is helpful

 

I am almost at the end of this taper.  You will be in time, too.

 

 

 

 

[Guest [Sa...]]

Klonopin and Clonazepam (generic version of Klonopin) can be successfully tapered.  It takes time.  The lower the dose, sometimes the harder it gets.  For awhile.  This can be discouraging.  It takes dedication and courage to keep going.  Even after the final dose, withdrawal symptoms can occur.  It is different for everyone.

 

I am at a very tiny dose of clonazepam now.  Only .005 mg.  I have tapered from .5 mgs once daily and this has taken 14 months.  I held up to a month a few times, and usually 10 days to 2 weeks before reducing 10% of whatever the current dose was.  I was able to do this by having the clonazepam compounded to a liquid by the compound pharmacy.  Otherwise, it is impossible to cut the pill by 10%.  Clonazepam does not come in a small enough dose to comfortably jump off for most people.  I intend to stop very soon.  This way of dosing is called walking off, not jumping.  For me it has been the least disruptive.  However, I still had to handle symptoms and some very rough days.  Even recently, I went through another 3 days of feeling very ill.  It always passes.  I do not continue until the sick feeling is over for at least a few days.  You can get through this.  Cross one bridge at a time.

 

Comforts along the way include:

Routines

Distractions

Walks

Gluten, sugar, caffeine free

Warm epsom salt baths

Melatonin in tart cherry juice

Amino acids, L  theanine

Magnesium

Weighted blanket

Eye mask

Dark room

White noise

Avoidance of blue screen, light especially at night

Avoidance of all stress, stressful tv, news

Funny movies are good

Counselling is helpful

 

I am almost at the end of this taper.  You will be in time, too.

Thank you for taking your time to answer and for your suggestions. In your process, going down from 0.5 ti what you are now, do you consider yourself almost "healed" or do you think that the actual healing will only start once you will be benzo free? And do you feel better now than before when you were on 0.5? Thanks

[Guest [Sa...]]

I'm sorry you're experience rough withdrawal symptoms.  I also experienced those symptoms after Klonopin too - I know how hard this is.  I'm almost 13 months off now and most of my symptoms are completely gone.  Everyone's timeline is different but healing takes place and it takes time.

 

You're currently at .625.  From what I see on the forum symptoms often get harder to cope with as the doses get smaller.  Many members slow down considerably as they get down to the lower doses toward the end of the their taper.  It may be best for you to hold at your current dose for a couple more weeks before making your next cut.  And continue tapering by letting your symptoms guide your taper - making cuts only when your symptoms become more manageable.

 

This is a recent thread by a member who tapered from Klonopin very slowly.  I think you'll find it very helpful:

 

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=247043.msg3144394#msg3144394

 

Keep your focus on the prize at the end of this - being benzo free! You can do this!

 

Thank you. I couldn't understand properly your signature(my bad , it s because of my english). What dose of klonopin were you at the beginning? And how long did it take for you to be benzo free? I heard the last part is the worst but i would like to know (my body should guide me) how long it would take for me to get ti the finish line. And also, do you think my method of tackling the evening dose is correct? Or should i move the doses in order to make them even through the day? That is just an idea. I don't really want to experiment in the field of uncerteinty

[[Br...]]

Healing64 is a much better model  than I am for how to taper slowly and carefully. 

 

I followed my doctor's guidance and tapered too quickly - I was taking 1 mg each day.  My taper was only 5 weeks - way too fast.  I didn't know any better and sure enough I was hit with awful withdrawal symptoms.  In desperation I searched the internet and found BenzoBuddies.  It was too late to help with my taper but the support while coping with withdrawal has been invaluable.

 

Healing64's coping tips are excellent! You can do this!

[Guest [Sa...]]

Healing64 is a much better model  than I am for how to taper slowly and carefully. 

 

I followed my doctor's guidance and tapered too quickly - I was taking 1 mg each day.  My taper was only 5 weeks - way too fast.  I didn't know any better and sure enough I was hit with awful withdrawal symptoms.  In desperation I searched the internet and found BenzoBuddies.  It was too late to help with my taper but the support while coping with withdrawal has been invaluable.

 

Healing64's coping tips are excellent! You can do this!

 

Wow, so you basically did what my doctor told me to do... I went down from 1.5mg per day to 0.7mg per day in 40 days... it was awful. But still, due to all these tiredness of being dependent on benzos, I have this inner voice that tells me to rush things up and reach the finish line soon as I don't have the patience to be in withdrawal anyway.

I am glad I have found benzobuddies and i really hope there will be some light at the end of this odissey.  I already dome a huge thing: I got rid of paroxetine... i am probably still in withdrawals from it (i finished my self made taper in july last year and some of those symptoms are still there... those drugs are awful).

Were you paranoid, depressed,  suicidal when you went down so fast?

[[Ti...]]

you absolutely 100% will recover from this.  This drug lies to you and makes you think you will never ever recover, but the truth is that you will.  4 years ago, i was in the same boat. It's a long road that just takes time, and it is important that you have support.  You are going to have people in your life who think you are weak while you are fighting. Trust me, i have been there, and i am sure alot remember me on here.  I reinstated twice because i could not handle it.  I was told i would never recover because i reinstated.  I can totally 100% promise you that you will recover.  There was nothing i did that made it less tolerable other than "TIME".  I only had one secret for me that worked, but i am not going to write it on here because i am not sure it will work for everyone.  I did a really fast taper from 1.5mg that took 4 months. I just dug deep, had alot of support, and told people to never question what i am doing.  Well, it worked and i made it and so will you.  Send me a message anytime.  Be glad to help you.  Best of luck!

[[Ko...]]

And also, do you think my method of tackling the evening dose is correct? Or should i move the doses in order to make them even through the day? That is just an idea. I don't really want to experiment in the field of uncerteinty

 

I'm just going to chime in here and clarify that, far from being experimental, dosing by equal amounts evenly during a 24-hr period is a conventional recommendation--even per the Benzodiazepine Information Coalition.   

 

https://www.benzoinfo.com/benzodiazepine-tapering-strategies/

"Dosing Multiple Times per Day

Many patients find it particularly helpful to take their dose several times per day, depending on the half life of their particular benzodiazepine. For example, patients taking diazepam may benefit from evenly dividing their dose 2 or 3 times per day; those on clonazepam may benefit from dosing 3-4 times per day; whereas those taking lorazepam may need to dose 4-5 times per day. Some patients on alprazolam may require 5-6 doses per day just to maintain steady serum levels. Where possible, all doses should remain as even as possible in mgs as well. Patients who dose evenly and at regular intervals are more likely to successfully complete a benzodiazepine taper because they do not experience severe “drops” throughout the day between doses that may make discontinuation intolerable. These symptoms are commonly referred to as “interdose withdrawal.”

 

Now if, by "experimental", you mean that you're concerned that rearranging your doses will be hard to adjust to, I see what you mean.  I remember you mentioning that, when you were taking 0.5 mg three times daily (at 8 am, 2 pm and 8 pm), you dreaded your morning dose the most because it tended to make you sick.  (And if I'm not mistaken, you still feel sick most mornings and dread your morning dose.)  I wonder if that might have more to do with the 12-hour gap from 8 pm to 8 am than it does the morning dose itself?

 

Does anybody else have a take on this?   

 

Koko Lee

[Guest [Sa...]]

you absolutely 100% will recover from this.  This drug lies to you and makes you think you will never ever recover, but the truth is that you will.  4 years ago, i was in the same boat. It's a long road that just takes time, and it is important that you have support.  You are going to have people in your life who think you are weak while you are fighting. Trust me, i have been there, and i am sure alot remember me on here.  I reinstated twice because i could not handle it.  I was told i would never recover because i reinstated.  I can totally 100% promise you that you will recover.  There was nothing i did that made it less tolerable other than "TIME".  I only had one secret for me that worked, but i am not going to write it on here because i am not sure it will work for everyone.  I did a really fast taper from 1.5mg that took 4 months. I just dug deep, had alot of support, and told people to never question what i am doing.  Well, it worked and i made it and so will you.  Send me a message anytime.  Be glad to help you.  Best of luck!

 

Thank you for your kind words and support. I hope you are right saying I will recover. I spent a horrible night (it, 's 10am vere now)..m i slept maybe 3 hours wth nightmares,  body shaking, tremore, body arching.  I threw up 3 times and I am probably going to spend the rest of this day bedridden with my heart racing like crazy.

You are right saying that these drugs lie ti me because I am starting thinking about going to a rapid detox center.

Unfortunately I have no support whatsoever. The only support I have is online, here on this forum.  No-one helping around me

[[He...]]

I felt okay at .5 mgs clonazepam, but I knew I had to get off the benzos.  I decided to taper and so withdrawal began.  I feel okay right now at .003 mgs.  I have had some withdrawal all the way down including this week, but not all the time.  And not always horrible.  I take one day at a time.  If I feel really bad, I cope by using every trick in the book EXCEPT benzos.  I know I will heal.  I know this will be in my rear view mirror some day soon.  I will manage each unpleasant experience as it occurs, just like I have all the way along. 

[Guest [Sa...]]

Hello, it'a been a while.  If you remember me i started my klonopin taper abruptly Hong down from 1.5mg daily to 0.7mg daily in s matter of weeks. That was awful. I joined her by mid august and started again but slowly and now I am on 0.6mg daily, divided like this: 0.1 in the morning, 0.1 in the afternoon, 0.4 in the evening. I went down PD 0.1 from august in the evening dose. I used a syringe to make things easier.  Now i decided to stop for this month in order to try to stabilize a little because i still have huge symptoms. Heart pounding, Vomiting(not continuously but often, huge nausea,  eepecislly in the morning when i am basically bedridden to the point where i really cant understand anymore if this is due to klonopin withdrawal,  lingering effects of paroxetine the done one year ago or depression). Maybe i should try to microtaper my reduction when i will feel ready but i am also here to ask if dosing more evenly the klonopin i am taking would help to keep my serum level fine. It is just an idea and i am scared i could feel bad during this but would it be ok in your opinion to reach 0.2 in three subministrations?

My idea was this:

      6 am  2 pm  10 pm

Fri      0.1    0.1    0.4

Sat      0.1    0.1    0.3

Sun    0.2    0.2    0.2

Mon    0.2    0.2    0.2

I hope you guys could help.  Regards to everyone