Severe insomnia coming off clonazepam help

[[La...]]

I haven’t slept in the last 3-4 days because I’m trying to wean myself off of clonazepam because it was making me feel worse (more depressed, more anxious, confused) so I’m trying to come off but my psych also just switched me from Zoloft to Paxil and I have not been able to sleep since and I feel like I’m dying!!! Has anyone found anything helpful for insomnia????

[[PE...]]

I use thc 50/50 of nights and it really helps. It's from the indica strain and is calming. 

It's the only thing that really helped me. I'm 9 months out and only have insomnia left.

 

 

[[vo...]]

@[La...] I highly recommend you read this post from a member, about insomnia. I promise it will help you tremendously! 

 

[[La...]]

@[PE...] unfortunately thc makes me extremely paranoid even in small amounts. I actually just took a dose of cbd oil with a tiny amount of thc and it’s not helping calm me at all. My anxiety is so bad right now I feel like I can’t remember my own name. 

[[...]]

@[La...] I wish there was an easy solution that fits all but I don't think it exists.  The brain takes a long time to normalize.  Things that help people are routine, sleep restriction, sunshine, exercise, etc.  Matthew Walker, PhD has a master class on YouTube about all things sleep.  It's very informative.  Personally, outside of my behavioral and lifestyle factors I take trazodone at night.  It helps but I am eagerly awaiting the day to discontinue it and be medication free.

[[...]]

For me, stopping and detoxing all chemicals was the cure. 

[[he...]]

I am sorry to say you might get several months of severe sleep deprivation, like 0 or 1,5 hr nights, in my acute like 3-4 months i had many 0-3 hr toxic fake sleep crap nights, then it got very waves and windows with much better to okish nights for years with still many crap ones too... 33 months off i sometimes can go weeks with mostly decent but still get crap too, i guess kinda less crap... overal its better but its not near my old normal pre benzo sleep. I was on clonazepam only 19 days, for some of us it slays or sleep for a long time. Push through and it will at least get a bit better in some months.

Edited August 1 by [he...]

[[De...]]

I had bad insomnia in begining. I couldnt sleep at all. It is torturing. Sorry you have problem with this. I kept one coffe in morning (because i didnt want to have coffee wd) clean diet. Exercise And lots of wAlks. And important thing is to go to bed in same time every night. Even if i wasnt sleepy. I used melatonin for 2 monts. So after two monts of problems my sleep started to return. I was able to sleep for 2,3 hours. Then 5. Now i sleep naturaly without melatonin for 10 hours without problem. (Six month out)

and yes. I was sleeping in dark room with black shades And with sleeping mask on 🫣

[[Mu...]]

For three months I slept exactly 3.5 hours per night .  I began to hate the night and the horrible thoughts that came with it. The only way for me was a one hour nap after lunch. I spent 17 yrs on Klonopin and quit CT, so I feel for you. 

Music60 

[[Bu...]]

On 01/08/2024 at 10:37, [[h...] said:

I am sorry to say you might get several months of severe sleep deprivation, like 0 or 1,5 hr nights, in my acute like 3-4 months i had many 0-3 hr toxic fake sleep crap nights, then it got very waves and windows with much better to okish nights for years with still many crap ones too... 33 months off i sometimes can go weeks with mostly decent but still get crap too, i guess kinda less crap... overal its better but its not near my old normal pre benzo sleep. I was on clonazepam only 19 days, for some of us it slays or sleep for a long time. Push through and it will at least get a bit better in some months.

Your story sounds similar to mine - previously good sleep ruined by short term Benzo use. Did you CT like me or taper?

im two months into withdrawal and getting 30mins to six hours of toxic light sleep with an empty occasional hour burst of restorative sleep. 

it’s both comforting and scary to hear the timeframe for the recovery of your sleep 

[[he...]]

16 minutes ago, [[B...] said:

Your story sounds similar to mine - previously good sleep ruined by short term Benzo use. Did you CT like me or taper?

im two months into withdrawal and getting 30mins to six hours of toxic light sleep with an empty occasional hour burst of restorative sleep. 

it’s both comforting and scary to hear the timeframe for the recovery of your sleep 

I cold turkeyed... i had a very very severe acute, over 35 symptoms... went from independent single mom travelling the world with my then small kid to thinking id have to give her up to foster care (luckily didnt)... it was so horrific i dont know how i made it, so unnatural and chemical and toxic.

I hope you will recover faster than i did, its true overal i still got a lot of horror for 1,5 years but there were aboslutely  lot of ok and super fine and almost back to normalish and 7 or even hrs of very well rested good sleep (still broken tho). After the 2 year mark i got longer and better windows (always still with a little crap days here and there). Like id feel so well for weeks (except for an off day here or there), and generally better for months and then think of writing a succes story. The last year my good days are 95 to 100%, it weird when you feel so well again you almost cant imagine anymore what the crap felt like.

Just came down in a terrible wave, mostly sleep.related, was sleeping so well id sign for it to stay like that even if it wasnt my pre benzo sleep. I was getting 7 to 8 hrs most nights, fell asleep quickly only a few brief wake ups and so well rested... then i dont go to benzobuddies for months.

Past 3 weeks it was hit and niss again with sleep and last 8 days i have not gotten 1 ok night and day which is scaring me because post acute id always get a good night and day after the most 6 bad ones, so what the hell... at 33 months out back to not falling asleep, super broken fake toxic sleep... it does make ne realise how well i was doing for months overal.

When my sleep is messed up its nothing like a non benzo bad night, like my brain feels messed up, burning, drained, toxic super scary weird. I think on my bad nights the sleep cycles are so messed up andots of light sleep and often lots of endless dreams.

I feel the toxic feeling in my brain is really from the upregulared glutamate receptors at this point.

Anyway hope it helps to know clo azepam can slay your sleep and today i am all gloom and doom because of my wave but all in all i have been living my life and on my good days its super super good and i havw tons of fun with my kid and i am super active. All in all i must have had tons of good nights by now.

Strugglle through acute and hopefully you will get windows soon even if at first its just a night here or there, i am pretty sure it will come.

[[Bu...]]

29 minutes ago, [[h...] said:

I cold turkeyed... i had a very very severe acute, over 35 symptoms... went from independent single mom travelling the world with my then small kid to thinking id have to give her up to foster care (luckily didnt)... it was so horrific i dont know how i made it, so unnatural and chemical and toxic.

I hope you will recover faster than i did, its true overal i still got a lot of horror for 1,5 years but there were aboslutely  lot of ok and super fine and almost back to normalish and 7 or even hrs of very well rested good sleep (still broken tho). After the 2 year mark i got longer and better windows (always still with a little crap days here and there). Like id feel so well for weeks (except for an off day here or there), and generally better for months and then think of writing a succes story. The last year my good days are 95 to 100%, it weird when you feel so well again you almost cant imagine anymore what the crap felt like.

Just came down in a terrible wave, mostly sleep.related, was sleeping so well id sign for it to stay like that even if it wasnt my pre benzo sleep. I was getting 7 to 8 hrs most nights, fell asleep quickly only a few brief wake ups and so well rested... then i dont go to benzobuddies for months.

Past 3 weeks it was hit and niss again with sleep and last 8 days i have not gotten 1 ok night and day which is scaring me because post acute id always get a good night and day after the most 6 bad ones, so what the hell... at 33 months out back to not falling asleep, super broken fake toxic sleep... it does make ne realise how well i was doing for months overal.

When my sleep is messed up its nothing like a non benzo bad night, like my brain feels messed up, burning, drained, toxic super scary weird. I think on my bad nights the sleep cycles are so messed up andots of light sleep and often lots of endless dreams.

I feel the toxic feeling in my brain is really from the upregulared glutamate receptors at this point.

Anyway hope it helps to know clo azepam can slay your sleep and today i am all gloom and doom because of my wave but all in all i have been living my life and on my good days its super super good and i havw tons of fun with my kid and i am super active. All in all i must have had tons of good nights by now.

Strugglle through acute and hopefully you will get windows soon even if at first its just a night here or there, i am pretty sure it will come.

Thanks for your reply. My husband looks after my daughter mainly now thank god. No way I could manage it. 

i have a crazy number of symptoms (haven’t counted them yet)and it’s hard to cope as I was already suffering from long covid fatigue. I can really identity with what you said about the toxic feeling in your brain. 

i find each 24 hours  is different with a different combo of symptoms . Did you find that or were your symptoms more predictable? 

last night was a window of sorts. 
I didn’t get any of my usual chemical anxiety attack/terror attack/akathisia. This marks a change from the other nights this week. Sleep was light and toxic but less interrupted than usual and I had some skin itching at point of sleep and some muscle jerks. 

it brings me great hope to hear that you recovered such good function for so long.  

do you think there was a trigger for the bad sleep? Sorry things aren’t going as well for you now as they were before. 
Please message me if you would like to as the start of our stories do seem similar. I’m finding that chatting with people who understand the pressures of Benzo withdrawal makes me feel less isolated. Obviously two months down the line is very different to 33! I admire your strength.