Xanax .25mg Taper help

[[to...]]

Hello,

I’m 20 and was prescribed by my doctor this to help with panic attacks and my anxiety. In the beginning in mid march I i took as he said 1-2 a week for really bad days. However, my doctor (and loved ones) told me to use it more often as my anxiety was still severe even though the xanax never helped the height of my panic attacks only when it calmed down near the end. 

It’s progressed to the point where I use this stuff everyday (only once a day I never tried to increase my dose) with my doctor encouraged once every other day or daily if needed. I really want off of this junk, it hasnt helped me now and it seems to make me more dissascioated and just plain dumb. Please help me taper off of this, I don’t want to live needing to take this crap especially when it doesnt help me anyway and instead makes me more anxious of the withdrawal (thanks doc.) 

I just want to state I don’t want to include an anti-depressants I’ve had bad experiences with trying some in the past and honestly feels like russian roulette more than treatment imo.

Thank you for reading.

[[Pa...]]

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

A little more information would be helpful if you don't mind.  Can you tell us how long you've been using the Xanax on a daily basis and have you missed any doses since you've been taking it daily?  I'm wondering if you've noticed any odd symptoms when you've missed a dose, this could help us figure out if your body has become dependent.

I'm hoping you can do a very short taper since you've only been on the drug for a short time and haven't used it daily for too long.  May I ask, have you ever used benzodiazepines before or taken sleep inducing medications such as Ambien?

The more we know, the better we can advise you.  

Pamster

[[to...]]

I’ve been using it nearly daily since April, I used to break up my usage by a day after some days but it got harder to keep it up. I don’t think it has affected my sleep but I do notice lately when its around the time for my dose my head gets fuzzy and my anxiety is high. I haven’t tried to break it up lately and have been going 15 days straight atm.

[[Pa...]]

It sounds like your body has become dependent, the fact that your anxiety is high around the time for your dose would suggest this.  My suggestion would be to do a short taper, but I have to warn you, it may be unpleasant.  The reason I advise a short taper is because we don't want to see an increase in your body's dependence on the drug, the longer you stay on it, the greater the chance and the slower you'll need to taper it.  

Once we become dependent, the medication begins to cause the symptoms we're taking it to relieve, anxiety, panic, insomnia and many others so tapering it before things get more complicated is wise.

I say it will be unpleasant because you'll most likely have increased anxiety and other symptoms but hopefully, this will be brief.  We typically see short term benzodiazepine users recover in terms of week or months, instead of months and years for the long term users.  

I need to stress that you could be one of the lucky ones who can get off of these medications easily, I hope so but just to be safe, its wise to taper.  Would you like some suggestions in how to taper and if you do, is your pill size the .25? 

[[to...]]

yes. my doctor is being firm on the .25. Would the withdrawal symptoms be physical..? Also would I need any additional to work through the withdrawal? my psychiatrists keep saying i need to be on a anti-depressant before tapering

 

Edited June 11 by [to...]

[[Pa...]]

Symptoms can be physical, as well a mental and emotional, we seem to get hit from every angle.  But again, you may not have to face what many of us here do so please don't worry until we see how its going to go.

Would you feel comfortable cutting your dose into quarters and take one less quarter a day for week or two?  Xanax is very short acting so you should know fairly soon how you're going to be affected.  

What some members who take Xanax will do is divide their dose so they can keep their blood serum levels constant throughout the day, but if you're not suffering too much between doses, you may be able to stay at one dose per day.  

Lets keep talking.

[[to...]]

I haven’t felt much interdose I believe atm (hard to tell with anxiety), but I’ll be honest I’m afraid to do something drastic in fear of the withdrawal biting me harshly. Oh, and to answer your previous question earlier I only take some chamonmile tea to sleep and I’m completely new to benzos as I’m not fond of meds in general.

Edited June 11 by [to...]

[[Pa...]]

@[to...], thank you for answering my question, even though sleep aids such as Ambien are classified as non-benzodiazepines, they can cause many of the same problems.

I understand your fear but its important to find out where you stand, and doing it in a timely manner so you can avoid anymore dependence.  If you find your symptoms are too harsh, you can go back to the .25 mg dose and we can come up with a different strategy but I believe its important to take this first step.  

[[to...]]

Would it be possible to go back to being able to use this medication for once-twice/as needed for panic attacks? I just really. want to be less dependent both physically to an extent mentally.

[[Pa...]]

Many people can take these medications for years without issue, we don't understand why some of us have more difficulty, so yes, its possible to use it as you describe but we don't know if it will be possible for you.

I understand needing the relief it can provide and I sincerely hope you can use it but I'm worried you're already displaying symptoms of dependence and if this is the case, then I'm not sure you'll be able to.  

Stopping these medications is brutal, for some of us, its the worst experience of our lives but we understand the commitment it takes to do this so if you feel you need to try this, then you probably should.  Most of us exhaust every option before committing to this process, we have to reach the point where we know we have no other option.  

[[to...]]

if you don’t mind me asking, what do you mean by “exhaust every option”?

 

[[Pa...]]

10 hours ago, [[t...] said:

if you don’t mind me asking, what do you mean by “exhaust every option”?

We try doing what you're contemplating, hoping to still receive the benefit without the pain but for some of us, there is no middle ground, continuing to bargain with the drug is pointless, the longer we take it, the worse the outcome.  

Please know I'm hoping you can do what you're proposing, and yes, it can work for some.  I don't want to leave you hopeless but I feel its important to be prepared.

[[to...]]

I just hope since my dose is low and i havent tried to increase it, it’ll be easier.

[[to...]]

On 12/06/2024 at 10:21, [[P...] said:

We try doing what you're contemplating, hoping to still receive the benefit without the pain but for some of us, there is no middle ground, continuing to bargain with the drug is pointless, the longer we take it, the worse the outcome.  

Please know I'm hoping you can do what you're proposing, and yes, it can work for some.  I don't want to leave you hopeless but I feel its important to be prepared.

Currently trying to taper slowly on my own, I’m not sure what the withdrawal symptoms are. I’m just taking a small chunk off of half of it and taking it.

[[Pa...]]

When you say taper on your own, do you mean without the knowledge of your doctor and family?  This is fine of course, many of our members have to do this on their own.

If tapering is what you've decided on, I strongly suggest doing this as accurately and methodically as you can.  Even incredibly small reductions can have a dramatic effect so I don't want to see you hurt and getting discouraged.  Would you like to talk about doing this to give you the greatest chance for success? 

[[to...]]

Sure, it’s hard for me to measure so I’ve been taking a chunk off with my nail. Does this tapering affect your arms by any chance? or make you tired?

[[Pa...]]

Here are some possible withdrawal symptoms and an explanation of what may be causing them.  There is so much unknown about this process, this is why there are so many support groups, the scientific community has neglected us.

The Ashton Manual

To the best of your knowledge, what is your current dose and how many days have you taken this same dose?

[[to...]]

.25 xanax once a day and I’ve been taking nearly every day since April. I haven’t tried to increase the dose at all.

[[Pa...]]

Hi @[to...], you mentioned taking a chunk off with your nail, this would be a reduction, can you estimate what your actual dose is?  I know this seems unimportant but even the slightest difference in dose can have an impact on how we feel.  

[[to...]]

i know its more than half left on one side of the pill

 

Edited June 17 by [to...]

[[Pa...]]

So, 1/2 of a .25 tablet is .125 and you say there is more than 1/2 left on one side of the pill?  So, your current dose could be a bit greater than .1825?  

Also, when did you start to reduce and have you broken off the approximately the same amount each time?

I apologize for being so picky but I want to do all I can to get you on the right path for your circumstances.

 

[[to...]]

I can send you a photo is that helps. I started last Friday, I might’ve broken off a bit more yesterday unintentionally but generally I try to keep it consistent.

[[Pa...]]

You can certainly post a photo, but the most important thing right now is consistency.  It would be good if you could try to be a bit more exact by using a razor or pill cutter or you can even file your pill to make little piles.

As I mentioned previously, we like to see members make a reduction, then hold that same dose for between 1 and 2 weeks. This allows your body the time it needs to somewhat recover then when you feel a bit better, you know its time to reduce again. 

Its important to record your reductions and symptom severity, you'll use your symptoms to determine how much and when to reduce again. 

My hope is you'll can get more consistent cuts on your pills to help keep your symptoms manageable. 

[[to...]]

3 hours ago, [[P...] said:

You can certainly post a photo, but the most important thing right now is consistency.  It would be good if you could try to be a bit more exact by using a razor or pill cutter or you can even file your pill to make little piles.

As I mentioned previously, we like to see members make a reduction, then hold that same dose for between 1 and 2 weeks. This allows your body the time it needs to somewhat recover then when you feel a bit better, you know its time to reduce again. 

Its important to record your reductions and symptom severity, you'll use your symptoms to determine how much and when to reduce again. 

My hope is you'll can get more consistent cuts on your pills to help keep your symptoms manageable. 

I can try to find a razor, is it normal for your brain to feel off or even dizzy in this process? Like it’s harder to think clearly or put words together?

Edited June 18 by [to...]

[[Pa...]]

4 hours ago, [[t...] said:

I can try to find a razor, is it normal for your brain to feel off or even dizzy in this process? Like it’s harder to think clearly or put words together?

Please let me know how it goes with the razor, its important to cut off the same amount each day.  Do you take your dose at the same time each day?

The Ashton manual, chapter 3 has a list of symptoms and why we feel them, I found this very comforting, it helped me not to be so afraid.

The Ashton Manual