Testosterone Therapy and Benzo Withdrawal

[[Ju...]]

Hello, I'm new to the forum and wanted to take a moment to share my experiences. I was diagnosed with GAD and treatment resistant depression many years ago. I was on 200mg of Lamictal and 3mg of Klonopin for approximately 5 years.

In 2014 I decided to have my testosterone levels checked and they were crashed low (186 on a scale of 300-600) and I began my testosterone replacement journey. There's a lot to unpack there but, suffice it to say, I would recommend going to a TRT doctor. I have excellent care from an endocrinologist now but only after I paid out of pocket for TRT and blood work.

The TRT changed my life in so many ways and it's incredible. I was able to lower my Lamictal dose to 25mg/day and I've cut down to 1.5mg of Klonopin and I'm on my way to 1mg.. All over the space of three years. Before TRT, any reduction in Klonopin would be a miserable experience. I tried, many times, to lower the dose, without success. Now, I have withdrawals but the testosterone makes them far more manageable. There are times when I don't even notice the reduction in dosage.  Things are getting tougher as I get lower on the dosage but I've been able to push through.

Bear in mind that all of this has been accomplished under the supervision of a psychiatrist and an endocrinologist. I follow their instructions and don't make drastic changes without consulting them. With that being said, I strongly recommend that anyone dealing with benzo withdrawal take a look into hormone replacement therapy of some kind. Psychotropic medications obviously have their place in our world but there are other areas of medicine to consider when going through this difficult journey.

 

[[PE...]]

Interesting!

 

And welcome to benzobuddies 

Edited March 28 by [PE...]

[[Co...]]

Hello @[Ju...]. Welcome to BenzoBuddies.

Thank you for sharing your experiences. I think your advice applies more generally than to just TRT - if we are already unwell for some reason, going through benzodiazepine withdrawal at the same time will take a greater toll. It is helpful to aim to be in the best health possible before initiating a taper.

Congratulations on halving your dose of Klonopin and radically reducing your dose of Lamictal.*

* Edited to add: as an anticonvulsant, it is of course vital that changes to dose are undertaken with the supervision of a doctor.