Klonopin and Gabapentin Taper- don’t know where to start

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Hello. I have been on Clonazepam 0.5mg at bedtime and Gabapentin 600mg 4x day ( 7am, 11:30am , 4:30pm, 9pm ) for eight years for  neuropathy. The big problem is I have had a new onset of tinnitus and hyperacusis for four months. I do not know what has caused this. It could be long time noise exposure but I’m worried it’s these medications. I know people get hyperacusis during withdrawal but can they get it from being on these meds? I  would really like to taper off them but I am already not in a good place with the hyperacusis, tinnitus, not sleeping well. It could be really difficult and I don’t even know which medication to start with. On the other hand if these medications caused my symptoms, I hate being on them. Any ideas? Should I try to taper? I feel stuck in a bad place right now. 

[[Pa...]]

Hello @[...], welcome to BenzoBuddies,

I can see your dilemma, and I can also see you understand that taking action to taper from these medications will make your situation worse and you're right.  But as you say, what if they're causing it, then it makes sense to face the pain now and hope recovery will bring relief.

I hope others will stop by to give you some input on your question about tinnitus being present while still taking the Clonazepam, I didn't have it until I quit cold turkey but it wasn't as bad as some have had it and it went away upon recovery.

My thoughts would be to taper the Clonazepam first since many here will use Gabapentin as an adjunct medication for symptom relief but I've heard it can also be challenging for some to taper.

We suggest reducing your dose by about 5-10% every few weeks, but a symptom based, patient led taper seems to work the best.  I hope we can help you sort this out.

@[Pa...]

 

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I was put on these meds after chemotherapy and they treated Gabapentin as if it were Advil. The doctors are not very helpful when it comes to side effects. I had never had issues with my ears but now they are in such bad shape. The hyperacusis and sound sensitivity is terrible. I’m just worried these meds could be ototoxic. They both act on the same receptors and I think the Gabapentin gets me through the day and the Clonazepam at night. If I tapered the Clonazepam I wonder if I would feel the effects of that and the Gabapentin because the Gabapentin is so short acting. I’’m already suffering with the hyperacusis and tinnitus but I don’t want to stay on these meds if they could be doing more damage to my ears. I’m also worried the neuropathy will worsen if I taper. 

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How do you taper from a 0.5mg Klonopin pill to reduce by 5-10%? The pill just breaks up. This is all overwhelming. 

[[Pa...]]

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14 minutes ago, [[P...] said:

It appears one of the two if not both are causing your audio distress and while I haven't researched it myself, I have read here from members that benzodiazepines are ototoxic.  I believe a taper would exacerbate your neuropathy as well but as you say, if they're contributing to your discomfort then getting off of them is your only option.

Lots of ways, there is titration where you use jewelers scales to measure the amount or make a liquid suspension to taper.  Or some will shave their dose and just eyeball the little piles, it all depends on your level of comfort, some are okay with good enough, others need something more exact. 

Or, you could ask your doctor for a script for a compounding pharmacy or you could ask for a smaller dose tablet like the .125 orally disintegrating tablet. 

I don’t have any level of comfort with this. I remember when I first started I was worried to take the entire pill and would try to break it up and it was always so uneven. Thank you for your input. 

[[kn...]]

I've taken 4mg of Klonopin (clonazepam) for over 30 years and have been tapering using a diazepam cross over for about two and a half years.  The WD, for me, has been painful and debilitating.  It's gone on so long now that I can't really remember how life was like before I started the taper.  I also have tried to take Gabapentin three times on my taper;  twice at 300 mg per day and the third time at 100mg per day.  I had some neuropathy before I started WD and it's gradually gotten much worse during my taper. The med (Gabapentin) does work miracles for the neuropathic discomfort, but the side effects:  nausea, headaches, muscle twitching, etc.  have proven too much and I've had to quit taking it completely.  Although I didn't have any auditory problems, that's about the only side effect that I didn't experience.  However, good news, Gabapentin WD is tolerable and doesn't last anywhere as long as the benzo did.  (I'm still working on the Klonopin).  Remember that Gabapentin does come in a variety of dosages and by simply requesting to change out one 100mg tab for something smaller, it's fairly easy to do.  It only took me about a month to get off 100 and it was 'ok.'  Be careful that your provider doesn't try to push you into knocking off a 100 mg tab at a time.  You'll regret it.  As for the Klonopin, I'd wait until I was through with the Gabapentin and then follow @[Pa...]'s advice regarding the left over 'K".  Chopping up pills is a guessing game unless you have a precise plan and at the low dose you have left, it could be 'dicey'.  I think @[Li...] told me: "when you go low, go slow".  

Edited March 1 by [kn...]