Tapering off Ativan Support Thread

[[sh...]]

Thank you Challis!! I'm having a very difficult time because I get really bad interdose withdrawals. So I can't figure out how to taper it  off from here. I take 0.25 mg every 8h but today I had to take it every 6h so that would make 1mg for total a day. I wouldn't go over 1mg a day but I don't know how much or how often I should taper it off :'(

[[Ho...]]

Bumping up to check in to see how all us Ativaners are doing this week.  Sending virtual ((Hugs)) to everybody.

 

I've had a rough last 4-5 days with bad headaches and lots of dizziness.  I was actually partially functional the last two weeks, now I'm having trouble getting myself out of bed.  Grrr.  Think the cuts caught up with me.  So, I'm going to hold for the week and then start cutting again next week if all goes well, with the goal of cutting .1 mg each week until I'm off in mid-July.  Just want to be rid of this poison and the havoc it is wreaking in my life. 

[[ce...]]

Just keep swimming just keep swimming.............   

[[Ma...]]

Shorty, maybe you could look up how to do titration.  Maybe start with 5 % of the dose adn divide that into 4 equal doses.  Its recommended to hold for 10 days to two weeks.  The withdrawal feelings should ease up after 10 days.

 

Just a suggestion.  Or you could try 10% of the dose, it will not be easy but you will get off faster.

[[ce...]]

Thought I'd repast this again in hopes it will help someone out there...........

____________________________________________________________________________

I just saw this thread and decided I'd share my Ativan taper experience.  I had been on and off benzo's over 13 years and came to tolerance withdrawal.  My doctor for whatever reason thought I should use Ativan to taper. If I'd known how hard this was going be I'd have opted for a longer acting benzo like Valium.  But if others are in the same boat and decide to taper Ativan, here are some suggestions. 

 

1. If you can take doses 4 times a day (rather than 2 or 3) it's better, as to avoid interdose withdrawals.

 

2. I suggest taking your largest dose at bedtime for sleep.

 

3. A Compounding Pharmacy can be your best friend.  Every city has a compounding pharmacy, so just ask your doctor about where the nearest one is, or google your city name and compounding pharmacy.

 

4. Spread your doses out evenly.  For instance 7 a.m.  12 p.m.  5 p.m. and 10 p.m.  (OR)  7 a.m. 1 p.m.  6 p.m. and 11 p.m.  This is important so as to avoid interdose withdrawals.

 

Note: if you choose to taper Ativan you'll have to watch the clock closely everyday to make sure you take your dose on time.

 

5. Get a calendar and map out your taper plan.  This was so helpful to me to know how much to take at what time of day. Otherwise it's too easy to forget what it was that you are doing.  There's enough pain and confusion with withdrawal anyhow.

 

Here's what a "possible" Ativan taper can look like.  You may choose to slow it down or speed it up depending on what your symptoms are.  Many people find that the lower you get on the doses the harder it is, so make it slower as you get to those low doses.  Try to make the cuts every 10-14 days for the best results:

 

Possible Ativan taper:

 

.50          .50        .50        .50                  Total:  2 mgs

.25          .50        .50        .50                  Total:  1.75

.25          .25          .50        .50                  Total:  1.50

.25          .25          .25        .50                  Total:  1.25

.25          .125        .25        .50                  Total:  1.125

.25          .125        .125      .50                  Total:  1

.25          .125        .125      .375                Total:  .875

.25          .125        .125      .25                  Total:  .75

.125        .125        .125      .25                  Total:  .625

.125        .125        .125      .125                Total:  .50

.125        .0625      .125      .125                Total:  .4375

.125        .0625      .0625    .125                Total:  .375

.0625      .0625      .0625    .125                Total:    .3125

.0625      .0625      .0625    .0625              Total:    .25

.0625      .0312      .0625    .0625              Total:    .2187

.0625      .0312      .0312    .0625              Total:    .1874

.0312      .0312      .0312    .0625              Total:    .1561

.0312      .0312      .0312    .0312              Total:    .1248

                .0312      .0312    .0312            Total:    .0936

                                .0312    .0312            Total:    .0625

                                            .0312            Total:    .0312

                                                                  Off!

 

Hope this helps someone out there!

 

Don't lose hope you can recover from this.  I have!

 

Cedar

 

[[sh...]]

Thank you Mairin, I was thinking about doing titration. I'm so nervous. Can I just buy a 10ml syringe from Rite Aid and mix crushed pill with milk?

[[sh...]]

Hello cedar! Thank you so much for sharing your experience!! That Ativan taper plan I can definitely use!

[[ce...]]

Hello cedar! Thank you so much for sharing your experience!! That Ativan taper plan I can definitely use!

Great Shortie.  Just know that you don't have to do exactly that way.  You can make it accomodate your personal needs. You can speed up or slow it down even more if you want to.

 

I hope it goes well for you!

 

Hugs,

Cedar

[[Ho...]]

Cedar, thanks for the response.  It's always so frustrating when you feel like you are making progress, and then you hit a bump.  But, I'm trying to remember that it is just a bump, and not a black hole.    I'm grateful for all the support that is here...it keeps me going! 

 

Shortie, I echo all the good advice that Cedar has, including the 4 dosing a day.  In the middle of my taper I tried to switch to 3 times a day and the interdose withdrawals were just killer (for example, I got so anxious sitting at lunch that I couldn't even sit and talk with my family).  I do so much better on 4 doses per day, although I do have some interdose w/d in the morning because my last dose is at 9 p.m, and I don't get my morning dose until 5 or 6 a.m.  But I need to do it that way to get 5 hours in between doses during the day, which I've figured out is how my metabolism works.  Ugggghhh, Ativan is such a pain.

[[Ma...]]

I think ativan disolves in water.  check out the titration thread, I don't know much about titration.

[[Ma...]]

I'm so scared too Shorty.  I think you can probably get a syringe at a drug store, but I've noticed people order cylinders from amazon.

[[sh...]]

Hi Mairin!  I'll get a oral syringe in the morning! I hope the pill dissolves in the water!

[[sh...]]

Thanks, cedar! I don't know what's got into me but I tried to C/T today.  It only lasted 28h. I guess I was so overwhelmed and I thought I should just quit. It didn't work for me. I have to remind myself to go slow and steady.....

[[ce...]]

Thanks, cedar! I don't know what's got into me but I tried to C/T today.  It only lasted 28h. I guess I was so overwhelmed and I thought I should just quit. It didn't work for me. I have to remind myself to go slow and steady.....

Oh no Shortie.  It doesn't really work for anyone, that's why tapering is essential.  Don't beat yourself up, we've all felt this way and done this at one point or another.  I actually c/t at my doctors recommendation if you can believe that!  No worries, you're going to get through this just as others have.

 

Hugs,

Cedar

[[Ma...]]

Shorty I'm on 7.5 mgs.  This time cutting I took .5 out of my morning dose.  I figure next cut I will take .5 out of my third dose.  I don't know if this helps but that's my plan.

 

I don't advise you take out .5, I'm on a way higher dose.  I'm just saying the order of the doses to cut from.  That's what I'm doing.

[[sh...]]

Thank you, Cedar! Your kind words mean a lot to me! I'm still trying to figure out how to taper off and I get discouraged. I hope I can get through this phase.

 

Wow, I didn't know you c/t! How did you deal with w/d?

 

 

Hi Marin! Thank you for sharing your taper plan! It makes me feel that I'm not alone. Hope you're having a good day!

[[ce...]]

Hi Shortie.  Yes, I cold turkeyed for three days and wound up in the ER.  They put me on Ativan and that's how I ended up tapering that instead of Klonopin. 

 

Wow, how did I deal with withdrawal?  I guess one minute at a time. 

 

It's scary trying to figure out the best way to taper, but once you have a good taper plan in place with calendar and supplies all ready to go, you'll do okay.  Just remember you have good support here and to take it slow.  You're going to make it! 

[[Ho...]]

Shortie,  Cedar has an excellent plan.  I've modified it a little bit (I do equal doses during the day), and a bit faster only because I've been on Ativan a shorter amount of time (only since the end of April).  If you are curious, here's the schedule I'm shooting for.  Of course you know what they say about the best laid plans!! 

 

4/24 - 5/5:  .5 3 x day (1.5 total)

5/6 - 5/21:  .25 4 x day (1.0 total)

5/22 - 5/28:  .2152 4 x day (.85 total)  (had some jitteriness for the first two days, then evened out)

5/29 - 6/5:  .17 4 x day (.68 total) (ditto from the last cut)

6/6 - 6/18:  .1375 4 x day (.55 total) (hitting some really nasty headaches and fatigue, so holding here a bit)

6/19 - 6/24:  .1125 4 x day (.45 total)

6/25 - 7/2:  .0875 4 x day (.35 total)

7/3 - 7/8:  .075 4 x day (.3 total)

7/9 - 7/15:  .05 4 x day (.2 total)

7/16 - 7/22:  .025 4 x day (.1 total)

(Might jump after this, may spend another week going down to .05 total per day and then off; all of this is subject to my Pdoc's input and my body's tolerance!!)

[[Ma...]]

Hoosier, just wondering if you are titrating?

[[Ho...]]

I am titrating, but by using a compouding pharmacy.  Don't trust myself to do the daily math in making up my own titration, knowing the "Ativan brain" I have right now.    My PDoc just calls in a script, and I get a 30 day supply of refrigerated liquid Ativan.  Right now I'm working with a .5 mg / ml compound liquid.  I'm not daily titrating (or micro titrating some call it), but on a weekly basis.

[[sh...]]

Thank you, Hoosierfans!!! I'm just about to start titration in like 2h!!! Your plan along with Cedar's will help me immensely

Right now my doses are every 8h, is it better to make it 4 x a day as it gets lower?

[[ce...]]

Thank you, Hoosierfans!!! I'm just about to start titration in like 2h!!! Your plan along with Cedar's will help me immensely

Right now my doses are every 8h, is it better to make it 4 x a day as it gets lower?

4-5 times a day is best to avoid interdose withdrawals.  I found that 4 times a day worked for me. 

 

Happy to hear you've got a taper plan ready to go!  That's the very first step.  You're on your way to benzo freedom!   

[[sh...]]

Hi Cedar!! I'll modify my dose from 3 to 4 x day, tomorrow! Thank you for supporting and encouraging me 

[[Ho...]]

Shortie, I'll echo (for the 50th time) what Cedar says.  4 times a day is what works for me also (I tried 3 and it was Capital U-G-L-Y), although some days I even think 5 may be better (with my metabolism, 5 hours between doses is the best for me, and I take my last dose at 9 p.m., and first one in the morning at 6:00 a.m., so I get some interdose w/d until I take my 2nd dose at 11 a.m.), but I ain't waking up at 2 a.m. for anybody....much less to put more of this poison in my body when I've only got another 6 weeks or so of this crud. 

 

Best wishes as you taper, let us know what you are planning to do schedule wise so we can be there to encourage you through.  We can all win this race! 

[[ce...]]

Awesome post Hoosierfans!  I like the idea of 5 times a day if 4 times a day doesn't work.  I was in serious tolerance withdrawal, so it didn't matter too much either way.

 

Sounds like you're near the end of your taper.  I hope it goes well and I'm wishing you benzo freedom!!!