Water taper

[[Sa...]]

Hi. I have been on .25 for 2 months of K pin and it’s messing me up. Originally it was for Insomnia. I don’t know how to come off. I don’t want a super long taper, but don’t want a rapid one either. Also, don’t know which method. Liquid seems the best or ask for compound or shave? That seems difficult and what percentage? Thank you! 

Edited June 23 by [Sa...]

[[Cr...]]

I don't have any personal experience with tapering but I will do my best to help you lay the groundwork while waiting for others to jump in.

You said you want a taper that is not too short or long. What is the ideal range for you in terms of time?

Have you attempted any cuts or missed any doses thus far? If so, how did you handle it?

We often use the Ashton Manual as the starting point for a taper and then make adjustments based on the members needs and situation. Generally the suggested rate is 5 to 10% every 10 to 14 days. Since you have not been on that long, it would probably be better to come off as quickly as you can tolerate due to your body possibly becoming more dependent with time.

If this is your first time on klonopin, and benzos in general, you might be suited to 4 weeks or less as there are many people that come off of benzos their first time with little to no know problem.

Back in 2004 I was prescribed .5 klonopin for 4 weeks and stopped it on the last dose without tapering. I would not suggest that for you as you have been on twice as long and appear to showing signs of sensitivity to the med. Just an example that the process of coming off is not guaranteed to be as hard as we imagine.

Once you have a plan/method in place, just monitor yourself closely and you may be able to further speed up or slow down depending on how it goes.

[[Sa...]]

That’s how I feel just don’t know how to cut and what method? Hoping others can chime in. I was thinking in the next 6 weeks? Hoping 

[[Cr...]]

Oh and you also have the .5 mg pills correct?

[[Ji...]]

I’m doing a fast taper and am at .25 once a day and having some severe symptoms (mostly nights).  After this I am finished with it all.  I started the taper on 2 mg per day.  Do you have to wean also from .25?  Curious to know if after .25 mg I still need taper, after reading this I may have to ask my doctor if she recommends tapering after .25 mg.  Sorry I don’t know the answer, but I’d like to hear others chime in too. 

[[Pa...]]

1 minute ago, [[J...] said:

I’m doing a fast taper and am at .25 once a day and having some severe symptoms (mostly nights).  After this I am finished with it all.  I started the taper on 2 mg per day.  Do you have to wean also from .25?  Curious to know if after .25 mg I still need taper, after reading this I may have to ask my doctor if she recommends tapering after .25 mg.  Sorry I don’t know the answer, but I’d like to hear others chime in too. 

Welcome to BenzoBuddies @[Ji...].

We'll need a bit more information to fully understand your situation, might I suggest starting your own thread so we can discuss?  If you'll use this link, then select Start new topic, we can fully address your concerns.  It would be helpful to include how long you've taken benzodiazepines, which one you're taking and how long its taken you to reduce from 2 mg to .25.

We're glad you found us and hope we can help.

@[Pa...]

Benzodiazepine Withdrawal, Use & Recovery - Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Support (benzobuddies.org)

[[Ji...]]

Thank you, I just signed up this am.  I will def start a new thread.  Do I address it to anyone in particular?

[[Sa...]]

I only have .25 disolvable tablets please advise 

[[Pa...]]

1 hour ago, [[J...] said:

Thank you, I just signed up this am.  I will def start a new thread.  Do I address it to anyone in particular?

No need to specify anyone in particular, that tends to limit responses.  I look forward to helping you work through this. 

[[Pa...]]

1 hour ago, [[S...] said:

I only have .25 disolvable tablets please advise 

Hi @[Sa...], I've heard other members discuss the dissolvable tablets, they seem to work well for tapering purposes, I believe you should be able to taper using them.

We'll need you to answer @[Cr...]'s questions first, have you used benzodiazepines in the past?  Have you ever missed a dose in the 2 months you've been taking it and if so, did you experience any odd symptoms?

 

[[Sa...]]

I used ativan a year ago for 7 weeks went to a place to get off of it quick which was dumb and then was polydrugged from there 

 

I missed one dose of k pin and woke up at 1 then went back to sleep til 5 but didn’t notice any weird symptoms 

[[Pa...]]

Thank you for providing your previous experience, one more question, how intense were your symptoms when you tapered from the Ativan?

Even though you have previous experience with Ativan, it was only for 7 weeks so I'm hoping you can taper the .25 fairly quickly.  We don't like to see members taper longer than they've used the medication.  What do you think about dividing your tablet into quarters and taking one less quarter for a week or so?  Xanax is fast acting so you should know fairly quickly if your symptoms are going to be too much for you.  If that happens, you can go back up to .25 and hold there while we devise another plan.

 

[[Sa...]]

They tapered me in 3 days and I was a mess then immediately put on lexapro and seroquel which prob most definitely made things worse 

 

I got on klonopin recently bc I was diagnosed with visual snow syndrome which can cause Insomnia but im having bad reactions to kpin like shakes 

 

I could cut them in quarters but they’re so disolvable I feel like parts will come off 

 

so would I do 3/4 for a week then 1/2 for a week then 1/4 for a then off? 3 weeks would be quick no? 

[[Sa...]]

Are you admin? Thank you for help with this. People say it’s hopeless and I’ve been polydrugged so my cns is a mess right now and has been for a year with all the different meds. 

[[Sa...]]

Oh and it’s klonopin not Xanax 

[[st...]]

5 hours ago, [[S...] said:

im having bad reactions to kpin like shakes

 

Hi, do you have shakes before taking klonopin or right after?

I was on ativan, then switched to klonopin. I tapered klonopin and found out the hard way that it was not safe for me to go fast.

So I made a schedule with a small percentage reductions daily to smooth out the withdrawal. Because the actual reduction is based on the weight of the whole tablet, I got a jewelry scale (like this one: https://www.amazon.com/AWS-Portable-Precision-Digital-Milligram/dp/B0012TDNAM?ref_=ast_sto_dp&th=1) to weigh each tablet and to slice away the right amount.

 

[[Sa...]]

Shaking after starting but I also dropped from 50-25 on lamictal around the same time…hard to tell. All I know is I want off benzo before it gets worse 

[[Pa...]]

1 hour ago, [[S...] said:

Oh and it’s klonopin not Xanax 

Thank you for correcting me.  Yes, I'm an admin but I don't have actual taper experience, I quit cold turkey so I'm relieved when other members like @[st...] lend their experience. 

I understand the tablet will crumble plus you'll need to be very careful about introducing moisture but I feel you can shave the tablet into piles that can be fairly uniform.  You could of course order a jewelers scale, they're inexpensive and can make your cuts more precise.  But, eyeballing can work too, its more about what you're comfortable with.  Some members need to feel they're being precise, others are comfortable with close enough, both methods work. 

Klonopin isn't as fast acting as Xanax but most members report feeling the effects of a reduction within 2-5 days and an evening out of symptoms around day 10.

Tapering is an experiment you perform on yourself, we're all so different, its up to you to find what works.  Keeping notes about your reductions and your symptom severity can help you know when and what to reduce next.

Yes, your central nervous system is highly sensitized right now but its not hopeless.  I remember when I was going through this and how overwhelmed I was by everything.  I had to keep telling myself that the only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time.  My suggestion would be to focus on one challenge at a time and if you decide yours is to get off of the Klonopin, then that should be your focus. 

Please don't make any other changes to your medication right now, your brain craves consistency and withdrawing anything other than the Klonopin will complicate things. 

 

[[st...]]

Because I reduced klonopin too fast, I had a seizure. Then I had to recover from that, start all over and do it slowly.

[[Sa...]]

Does it matter that I’ve been on so many different drugs this past year? Does that change things? I feel like I’m kindling would getting off kpin make it worse right now or better since I’ve had new worsening symptoms since getting on kpin? 

[[Pa...]]

@[Sa...], I don't feel you should concern yourself with kindling, its just a theory to describe what can happen when benzodiazepines are stopped and started many times.  Yes, it can mean more intense symptoms but it mostly serves as a warning that stopping and starting the drug as well as using it PRN can be problematic.

 It doesn't really matter what drugs you've been on if you wish to taper from the Klonopin, we all have to start somewhere if this is our intent.  Many will taper from what they believe is the most problematic and hope the other medications will blunt the symptoms.

If you feel you'd rather tackle one of your other medications first, then this is your choice and we'll support your efforts. 

[[Sa...]]

Pam you are great. Thankful for you so much. I’ve been at my wits end and so helpless. No one believes me that the drugs have caused so much damage but my body aches in places it never had before and my brain is on fire. I genuinely feel like the .25 of k pin for 9 weeks now is hurting me more than my 25 mg of lamictal for my visual snow syndrome. I need the klonopin for sleep but it’s hurting me and I need to taper. Again just don’t know how to start and scared. So would you suggest cutting pills into quarters? Or should I ask my pharmacist for compound liquid? Just want to get out before it gets worse…

[[Sa...]]

I wake up with my heart racing and these incredibly adrenaline dumps all day but I can’t move couch and bed. I’m so exhausted. The joint and muscle aches are new and kind of a restless leg feeling. 

[[Pa...]]

I can see you're miserable and believe you've correctly identified which medication is causing you the most difficulty.  

I don't recommend crossing to a liquid at the moment, any change you make in medication form will have an impact on how you feel.  If you went to a liquid now, you'd need to allow time for your body to adjust before making any reductions, yes, your central nervous system is this sensitive!

My hope is you can quarter your tablet and take 3/4 of it for a week or so. I'm hopeful that with your short time on the medication and your low dose that you'll be able to taper fairly quickly.  Your past use of Ativan may have an impact on this plan but I feel its important you at least try to get off the Klonopin, sooner rather than later.  If your symptoms are too intense, then we'll regroup and come up with another plan.

I want to stress that this is not going to be pleasant, whether you taper quickly or slowly, you're going to be uncomfortable, this is the price we pay to be free, the only way out is through, I'm sorry to say.

[[Sa...]]

I have been miserable for a year it’s all I know. I appreciate this advice and will try tonight. Would a pill cutter suffice and just take 3/4 and leave 1/4 in a separate thing and collect all those? Is it okay if it’s not “perfect” or “precise” I don’t know how to shave