Best way to taper off .5 mg Clonazepam taken for 7 weeks

[[Tr...]]

Best way to taper off .5 mg Clonazepam taken as .25 mg two times a day for 7 weeks

I believe I am experiencing negative side effects from taking Clonazepam (for hypnic jerks) - fatique, weakness, dizziness during the day. My neurologist told me that I can just stop taking 0.125 mg every week (as I have been taking Clonazepam for less than 2 months), but I am too afraid to do it in order to avoid withdrawal symptoms.

I started this week by reducing my morning intake with only 0.0625 mg. My tentative planning is as follows:

Tapering off 0.5 mg of Clonazepam

Week 1: reduce by 0.0625 mg Week 2: reduce by 0.0625 mg Week 3: reduce by 0.0625 mg Week 4: reduce by 0.0625 mg

Week 5-6: reduce by 0.0625 mg Week 7-8: reduce by 0.0625 mg Week 9-10: reduce by 0.0625 mg

Week 11-12: reduce by 0.0625 mg (linear taper - shaving off with a file some of the pill powder)

Many thanks in advance for your suggestions and sharing your personal experience!

 

[[...]]

Hi, @[Tr...], and welcome to BenzoBuddies! It's very wise of you to decide to come off clonazepam.

As for my own experience, once i managed to quit clon cold turkey after a few months of use. I don't remember any complications afterwards. May be it was just my luck. I think a taper is safer but a short one so as not to risk benzo tolerance developing. I'm not an expert in tapering and really hope other members will step in and share their thoughts.

Good luck to you!)

 

 

[[Tr...]]

Many thanks for sharing your experience and advice, Kate!

[[pi...]]

Hello @[Tr...] and welco,e to the forum from me as well,

Your plan sounds very doable to me. My taper was not textbook and very likely too fast. It is possible to reach dependency after 7 weeks of use so your taper plan is reasonable. The longer you start on the drug, the stronger the propensity for dependency. I see your plan as very workable. Do listen to your body and make adjustments if you feel it’s necessary. Good luck to you!

[[Tr...]]

Many thanks for your advice and words of support, Pianogirl!

[[Tr...]]

I am not quite sure how to approach the taper when I reach 0.25 mg. 
- Should I directly start taking 0.0625 mg less and do that for two weeks or 

- should I decrease gradually by 0.0625 mg over a period of 10 days and hold for 4 days? I have bought a jewellery scale for this purpose. 

I am thinking about this approach, in order to avoid sudden stress to my body with a sudden drop of intake, as I have Parkinson’s disease.
 

Many thanks in advance for your advice! 

 

[[pi...]]

Hello @[Tr...],

I think you have to make these final cuts as easy as possible due to the Parkinson’s. Only you know your body and what you need to do to keep it healthy. We would support any decision you make, and I think your gradual decrease is a good plan.

[[Tr...]]

Thank you so much for the advice, Pianogirl!

[[Pa...]]

Hi @[Tr...], I love your methodical approach to your taper, proper planning is so important not only for the steps we plan to take but for our confidence in our chosen method.  These medications make us doubt ourselves, we constantly worry if we're doing the right thing so I applaud your thoroughness.

I like your plan, its cautious as it should be considering your health but I want to highlight what @[pi...] mentioned about listening to your body.  Plans are important but paying attention to your symptoms and their severity is key, let them guide you instead of the calendar.  You may find you can taper a little faster because you've only been on the medication for a few weeks, I hope so.

And I'm glad your doctor is on board with you tapering off the medication, even if I don't exactly agree with his timeline. 

 

[[Tr...]]

Thank you so much for your help and kind words, Pamster! 🌺I really hope I can taper a little faster and will pay attention to the symptoms. 

[[Tr...]]

I started 2 weeks ago tapering every week 0,0625 mg. I had only tinnitus and dizziness as symptoms until last Saturday evening when I had an episode of tachycardia - 118 bpm for around 5 minutes and felt scared and disappointed. I will slow down my taper now and will decrease every 2 weeks. I hope and pray that I will be able to carry on the taper without tachycardia or needing to take a beta blocker. 

Edited July 29 by [Tr...]

[[Pa...]]

On 29/07/2024 at 01:49, [[T...] said:

I started 2 weeks ago tapering every week 0,0625 mg. I had only tinnitus and dizziness as symptoms until last Saturday evening when I had an episode of tachycardia - 118 bpm for around 5 minutes and felt scared and disappointed. I will slow down my taper now and will decrease every 2 weeks. I hope and pray that I will be able to carry on the taper without tachycardia or needing to take a beta blocker. 

Excellent response to those increased symptoms, slow it down.   I've read many members who have had to go on beta blockers, maybe you can avoid that by slowing down. 

[[Tr...]]

Hello @[Pa...], many thanks for following how things are developing!