Help please

[[Li...]]

Hi, everyone. I'm in deep distress and was wondering if someone could help me. I have been on Ativan anywhere from 1 to 2 Mil a day for the past 5 weeks due to having a massive panick attack while driving. The anxiety is still spiraling even with the ativan. I'm so nerveous to stop taking them because my anxiety is off the roof and even more scared of withdrawal symptoms. If anyone can help with how taper or how bad this experience will be? Thank you so much 

[[Pa...]]

Hello @[Li...], welcome!

If you want to stop taking the Ativan because its not helping then now is the time.  Short term users are much more likely to have a reasonable recovery over long term users, now let me explain.  These medications are only recommended to be taken for between 2 to 4 weeks by the manufacturer but this is largely ignored by the medical community.  After that time, serious dependence is possible making it difficult to taper with a long road to recovery, lasting between 1 and 2 years on average.

You have a good chance of escaping this fate is you taper off now, and it really makes sense since its not helping you.  How often are you taking the Ativan and do you feel any odd symptoms in between your doses? 

Try not to worry, we'll help you figure this out and let me also say this.  Not everyone will have a difficult time tapering these medications, so you may be one of the lucky ones.  Either way, we'll help you do this as safely as possible. 

@[Pa...]

[[Li...]]

Thank you for your response. I've been taking 1 MG in the morning and sometimes I will cut a .5 and take it at night. The only thing I feel in-between doses is anxiety and depression. 

[[Li...]]

I also never want to leave the house. I'm wondering if I built a tolerance because the 1st two weeks of extreme panick attacks they worked. 

[[vo...]]

30 minutes ago, [[L...] said:

 

@[Li...] I would strongly encourage you to heed @[Pa...]'s advice. If you hang on to continuing to take the Ativan, I would guess that when you DO decide to stop taking the Ativan (and I really hope you do), you may face a much worse outcome. It's definitely not healthy for your brain to continue to stay on it. Since you've only been on it a little while, you should be able to get off of it rather quickly. Find another way to deal with your anxiety and panic attacks - these meds are NOT the solution for dealing with anxiety and panic attacks long term.

[[Li...]]

Thank you.  I'm ready to get off of it asap. Not sure how if I should taper 

[[Pa...]]

@[Li...], I'm happy you're considering our suggestion, now lets get down to practical matters.  We'll need to know exactly what your average dose has been, is it 1.5 or 2 mgs Ativan?  The reason I ask is because it matters, your body has come to expect a certain amount of the drug at certain times every day, we'll need to determine what that is before you begin to taper. 

If its mostly 1.5 and some 2, I would suggest taking 1.5 for a few days to establish that as your baseline dose then begin a taper from there. 

[[Li...]]

I would say 1.5 daily I have gone up certain days because of extreme anxiety. 

[[On...]]

I can't help with taper advice, listen to your body, and just be safe. 

But i can with coping skills, I'm 90 days benzo free, and have used all in my power to get through some tough times, but so worth it. 

Fans, using ice cubes, music, nature, podcasts, de stimulating as much as possible and avoiding stress triggers.  

Insomnia is tough, so it working in nice sleep hygiene like clean bedding, pyjamas,  sensory stuff if Like. You tube or other meditation for sleep can help. Prefer non voice personally .

Keep reaching out. ❤️ 

[[Re...]]

@[Li...]Ativan can increase both anxiety and depression and cause it. Doctors don't tell you this because the bulk of them are uneducated on prescription drug effects. If you get lower on the dose, the symptoms could get better. Are you taking any other prescriptions, supplements, vitamins, etc?

[[Li...]]

Just vitamins 

[[Cr...]]

37 minutes ago, [[L...] said:

Just vitamins 

Certain vitamins can become too stimulating if taken when not needed or in doses that are too high.

[[Le...]]

33 minutes ago, [[C...] said:

Certain vitamins can become too stimulating if taken when not needed or in doses that are too high.

Do you remember some that you have seen give people a lot of issues?

[[Cr...]]

27 minutes ago, [[L...] said:

Do you remember some that you have seen give people a lot of issues?

Besides my own experience of B vitamins being more stimulating than calming in withdrawal, my sister tried to correct an issue with low vitamin D by supplementing but she took too much and her kidneys started to fail. Iron is another supplement that can cause issues in excess. I do not have any firsthand accounts, but it is well documented.

Many vitamins (like some B) you do not need to worry if you take too much as your body will just excrete the excess and use as much as it needs. Other vitamins and supplements can cause an excess buildup (depending on dose).

Unless people are deficient in a particular vitamin/mineral, supplements should not be necessary. It is better to eat healthy foods for our nutritional needs rather than eat unhealthy foods and try to balance it by taking a multivitamin.

If someone in wd is not able to eat properly, then obviously reasonable supplementation would be preferable to becoming deficient.

[[Pa...]]

12 hours ago, [[L...] said:

I would say 1.5 daily I have gone up certain days because of extreme anxiety. 

Sticking to 1.5 may be challenging if you've been bumping that up when faced with extreme anxiety, do you think 1.75 might be a better starting place?  I don't want you to start your taper from a tough spot but we also don't want raise your dose much higher, what goes up, must come down. 

[[Li...]]

Pamster do you have an email that we can talk more privately.? I so appreciate your help because I'm so scared. I can barely sleep and I wake up sweating wanting to throw up.  I don't even know at this point when to take doses and how much. I'm assuming I have my interdose withdrawal during the night because I went 12 hours yesterday without a dose because  I  was semi ok during the day and usually dose in the AM. 

[[Li...]]

Now I am vomiting when I take the ativan? Not sure what this is. I'm also not sleeping 

[[Li...]]

I don't feel well from the moment I go to sleep. I wake up every hour, up by 5 am. And things lift a little as the day goes on. The cycle will start all over again at night once I fall asleep for 1 hour or 2 at most. 

[[Pa...]]

Hi @[Li...], I can't share my personal information with you, its against platform policy but I'm happy to help you here.

I wonder if you vomited because of the interdose, you're waiting too long to dose again and by the time you do, you're in severe withdrawal.  You might want to start dosing more often, most Ativan users will take it 3 times a day and you may need to go up to 1.75 mg. 

[[Li...]]

I feel like I'm on withdrawal all day

[[Pa...]]

28 minutes ago, [[L...] said:

I feel like I'm on withdrawal all day

Are you thinking about dosing more often?  I think its probably time. 

[[Li...]]

Thank you so much for helping and responding. Yes I just took a .5 not sure when to take the other now . It's 4:16 EST 

[[Pa...]]

Are you going to stick with 1.5 or raise it to 1.75?  As for the timing, you'll want to take your doses at the same time each day.  You can arrange your doses to best suit your lifestyle.  Some will take the biggest dose at night to aid in sleep, some will make the morning dose bigger to deal with our morning rush of cortisol, it really doesn't matter how you arrange your doses as long as you're consistent.

Give yourself time to stabilize after changing your dosing schedule, because any change will be felt. 

[[Li...]]

1.75. I don't think I can handle lower as I really can't function. How long will it take to stabilize? and then I taper after that? 

[[Pa...]]

I'd give it a few days at least, but I'm sure you'll know, but I need to make you aware of what we deem to be stable, it doesn't mean feeling good.  It means you can do your basic tasks like shower and prepare a simple meal and your symptoms have stopped changing drastically, they're settled somewhat.

Be sure to write down your doses, when you take them and what symptoms you're dealing with and please label them by intensity.  This documentation will help you determine when and how much to taper, this will be your guide.