Tapering off Ativan Support Thread

[[Fi...]]

wow powerball, 100% is great!  i don't think i ever slept 100% throughout my taper and even til now after jump! i hope i can reach that milestone soon!

ativan has a pretty short half life.  i usually feel my cut the night of the reduction. if you feel pretty good in the past days, you're certainly doing something right! 

 

 

[[...]]

Hi Everyone,

 

With a little bit of trepidation, I started using DLMT again on Sunday, with a calculated rate of 5% every 14 days.  Going on day number three, I have been feeling good with minimal symptoms.

 

I am retired so have the luxury of not having to confirm to a schedule. Its still very important that I get out of bed and do something active!  On Sunday I went for a two hour leisurely hike in the mountains with a friend and today worked hard in my garden for two hours.  It's amazing I actually felt "normal," better than I have in a long time.  It was a beautiful spring day and I enjoyed it.

 

Powerball thanks for asking about sleep and maybe this could help Tech too who has been having sleep difficulties. I have been taking a low dose, 0.9mg., dual release melatonin each night an hour before I want to sleep. I started taking the melatonin last week when I dropped my night dose to 1.5mg. and for the first time had difficulty falling and staying asleep.

 

If I wake up in the early a.m., and it has been six hours since my evening dose,  I take the first third of my 1.5mg day time dose.  I prepare the liquid solution the evening before so its there waiting for me if I wake up early and seems to help me fall back asleep.  Doing these two things, the melatonin and the dose in the early a.m., I have been getting between five and eight hours of sleep which seems to be working well for me.

 

I'm feeling hopeful that this window will last.  I think it helped me to hold at 3mg for a month to stabilize.

 

Thanks for staying around Fisher and Sierra, so happy you are healing!  And staying here to support us!

 

Wishing you all well and thanks for the mutual support.

 

Luey

 

 

[[Fi...]]

luey, agree on the melatonin. it helped me tremendously during my taper.

 

luey and powerball, happy for both of you that youre feeling great!  wish the windows stay wide open for you!

 

tech, i wish the sleep returns for you in no time.

 

sierra, how is my benzo twin doing?

[[si...]]

Hi Ativan Friends!

 

Now in week 2 since jumping, overall sxs continue decreasing and I'm finding I can do more.  Sleep continues to be broken, though I'm in bed for 8 hours, so would consider that an improvement.  I've also been able to push harder exercising, which has felt really good and definitely accelerates the healing process.

 

I haven't gotten close to 8 full hours of sleep for over 4 months, so consider yourselves fortunate, Luey & powerball.  So much healing happens during sleep.  And you both are doing great!  It's awesome to watch your progress and confidence grow with each of your tapers!  The DLMT was a game changer for me and made tapering so much smoother.

 

I'm hoping sleep returns for you, tech21!  Are you doing a cut & hold?  If still doing c&h, is sleep worse right after your cut?  I know you were planning to begin a DLMT.  Have you begun?  If not, I've seen this help so many people, myself included.  It decreases the intensity of sxs because you're just removing a tiny amount more each day rather than a much larger amount periodically.  It's the difference between jumping down the whole staircase (c&h) versus walking down each step (dlmt).  A DLMT doesn't necessarily take longer to arrive at the same place and you get there with less pain, IMO.  Want you to feel better, tech21! 

 

Sounds like we have twin experiences post jump too, FisherK!    Things continue to improve, so I'm cautiously optimistic and will keep up the good habits we adopted while tapering.

 

Have a great day everyone!

 

xo,

sierra 

 

 

[[te...]]

Sierra and Fisher

Thanks for the kind words . Glad you are both doing well .

 

I have not changed to liquid . Still cutting every 10 days .

If the pills get too small to shave it will make the choice for me to liquid .

Sleep it tough off and on . Yes sometimes the cut does that to me for a few days and sometimes there is no rhythm or reason for the inability to fall asleep or stay asleep . It has been off and on for almost a full year . Not going to complain things were so much worst when I went to fast .

Lisa

[[...]]

Hi Fisher and Others,

 

What you said about not focusing on the scary stories on BB's is so important.  Today I spent too much time on this site and started digging and found some people with very severe symptoms and health problems that never seemed to go away.  I have great compassion for these people, but realize its not helping me to focus on the terrible symptoms that are possible and hopefully unlikely for most of us.  So far so good.  I have had some difficulties but minor compared to what I have read on here.

 

I have a question for any of you.  This afternoon while mixing my solution for early a.m and tomorrow with several jars on the counter, I might have accident taken tomorrow's dose of 1.5mg.  Has anyone every accidentally mixed up their doses?  Recommendations?  I guess if I have any serious problems tomorrow, I could take a one time small "rescue" dose.  What do you think?

 

Thanks for the support and I want to stay positive as much as I can.

 

Feedback appreciated,

 

Luey

[[...]]

Hi all,

 

I'm interested in getting your feedback on an approach I am considering to tapering off my current daily dose of 2.75 mg liquid lorazepam.  My current prescription is Lorazepam Oral Concentrate 2 mg/ mL,  so it's impossible to taper from.

 

I called a local compounding pharmacy and they told me that they could make a compounded liquid prescription as small as 0.25 mg/mL. It would have to be refrigerated (though it would be OK out of the fridge for a couple of hours).  I wouldn't have to add it to water like I have to do with my current prescription.  If I want to go somewhere, I could just measure out the appropriate amount with a syringe, add it to a vial, and carry it in a cooler or Yeti with ice packs if needed. 

 

I'm scared to death of making my own concoction (and I doubt my doctor would support that).  I'm also scared of changing over to Valium and cutting pills into tiny pieces.  This seems like a good alternative.  Thoughts?  Advantages? Disadvantages?  Considerations? I've read that sometimes compounding pharmacies are inconsistent in how they make it.

 

Thanks all.

 

[[si...]]

Hi all,

 

I'm interested in getting your feedback on an approach I am considering to tapering off my current daily dose of 2.75 mg liquid lorazepam.  My current prescription is Lorazepam Oral Concentrate 2 mg/ mL,  so it's impossible to taper from.

 

I called a local compounding pharmacy and they told me that they could make a compounded liquid prescription as small as 0.25 mg/mL. It would have to be refrigerated (though it would be OK out of the fridge for a couple of hours).  I wouldn't have to add it to water like I have to do with my current prescription.  If I want to go somewhere, I could just measure out the appropriate amount with a syringe, add it to a vial, and carry it in a cooler or Yeti with ice packs if needed. 

 

I'm scared to death of making my own concoction (and I doubt my doctor would support that).  I'm also scared of changing over to Valium and cutting pills into tiny pieces.  This seems like a good alternative.  Thoughts?  Advantages? Disadvantages?  Considerations? I've read that sometimes compounding pharmacies are inconsistent in how they make it.

 

Thanks all.

 

Hi kjt,

 

Given all your options, I'd go with the compounding pharmacy's .25 mg/ml lorazepam liquid. 

 

Advantages are your body's already accustomed to lorazepam, not valium, and there's lots of people who can't tolerate valium plus there's a lot of time involved in transitioning.  Pill cutting & weighing is really inaccurate, especially at the very low end of the scale while liquid measuring is very accurate at small increments.  Even if the compounding pharmacy is a little inconsistent, it's a good idea to give your body time to adjust to that specific compound, holding for a few days to a week, before resuming your taper.  That way, you'll have adapted to any potential inconsistencies.  You can make your diluted dose daily and travel with it as described (ask the pharmacist if the ice pack is necessary because it may be ok at room temp if just for the day).

 

I think your plan sounds great!

 

Following step will be to get you set up on a DLMT - tiny daily reductions make tapering much smoother than weekly or biweekly cuts, while not impacting the overall taper rate.

 

You're really fortunate to have a doctor willing to work with you on a slower taper! 

 

xo,

sierra 

[[...]]

Thanks so much Sierra!  I really appreciate your feedback!!

[[Fi...]]

kjt,

i also advice against switching to valium.  have no fear, tapering via ativan is very doable!

I think at your dosage, 0.25mg/ml solution will work great for you.

 

best wishes!

[[...]]

Thanks FisherK!

[[po...]]

Tech, this sounds crazy, but I cut on a small cutting board. When I cut I have many tiny shreds that I use tweezers to get on the microgram scale. Like tonight when I cut exactly .025 on a microgram scale I just licked the tiny pieces off the cutting board to make sure I was getting my full  dose. Sounds weird, but it works. I bet when I get down to a small piece of a 2mg pill I hope to do the same thing. I adjust every cut based on the weight of the pill I am cutting but now that I am thinking about it maybe I should be cutting off the combined weight of both pills! I will think about that tomorrow. This is a science, much unknown, and incredibly and meticulously individualized. I also cup my hand over the cut so that the shreds do not fly away. Powerball

[[te...]]

Hi all , powerball it’s whTever works I guess . Glad it’s working for you . I am still cutting and weighing also.

Lucy glad to hear you are having windows that’s great !

Hope everyone has a peaceful day .

Lisa

Thanks to everyone for being a part of getting thru every day .

[[...]]

Hi Friends,

 

A question:  Do you keep going on your taper if you have a rough day???  I am on day four of returning to DLMT, trying to taper off 5% in fourteen days after holding at 3.0mg for a month.

 

After such a nice window of several days, I ran out of energy and also felt nauseous (my worst symptom) today.

 

I feel compelled to try to continue so I can cut another .125 (1/8) off my dose to get down to 2& 7/8.  It seems if I stop tapering every time I have a rough day, I would start holding two or three times every week. Do I need to be 100% symptoms free to keep going?

 

Are there times when you push through to make another small drop?  I would prefer not to be doing this for the next three years.  Shall I wait and see how I feel tomorrow and if I feel bad again, hold?

 

Personal experiences appreciated,

 

Thanks!

 

Luey.   

[[Fi...]]

i was never sxs free the whole way down. i tapered at a speed that allow the sxs to be manageable, as fast as it can be while allowing me to be still functioning. it turned out to be pretty good for me. if the sxs are mild and tolerable, i would suggest to continue on.  take a few days off is always a option if going gets tough.

[[te...]]

Lucy I have the same I have symptoms when I cut usually it just insomnia but this last week has been racing thoughts  and insomnia . I just keep going unless it gets real bad . I have a scale that lets me make really small cuts but I think I will have to go to liquid soon

[[si...]]

Hi Luey,

 

I'm sorry the nausea has returned.  When tapering, if I had a rough day, I would try to give myself a little extra TLC to sooth my way through it. 

 

Like tech21 & FisherK, I typically didn't slow down my taper, as I figured it may not be taper-related or, if it was, it was something I just had to go through and that ultimately self-resolved as I got lower in dose.  As FisherK suggested, if it gets intolerable, you could always hold for a few days.

 

There wasn't a time in my taper that I was sxs free.  There were just times the sxs were more tolerable than others.  And now, post-jump, while sxs have let up, I am still not 100%.

 

I know how hard this is and my heart goes out to you.  Keep doing what you can to distract and accept as you weave your way through.  You will get there soon enough.  Stay strong!

 

xo,

sierra 

 

 

[[...]]

Fisher, Tech and Sierra,

 

Thanks for sharing your experiences.  I think I will follow your examples and continue tapering and moving forward, even if I don't feel great, but at least not terrible. 

 

Thanks for your support, it helps!

 

Best wishes to all of you,

 

Luey

 

[[po...]]

To my friends here, I am going to up my taper a little bit. My symptoms are very manageable except I was doing so good the last two days I let myself have a cup a coffee in the morning but coming off the caffeine and Ativan simultaneously caused a bigger afternoon slump than usual. I am a little bit stressed since I have a lot on my plate with my new job but my #1 thing is getting to bed on time to get the 9 hrs I really need. I know my sxs sound  very minor here, but my obsession is to maintain my sleep. I will post how my upped taper is going  it is scary though. Powerball

[[te...]]

Wish you well powerball

[[...]]

Powerball,

 

I wish you much ease and freedom from fear as you try to speed up your pace a little bit. 

 

If you have any kind of experience like me, I was able to make bigger cuts and go faster at the beginning without losing any sleep, really I didn't feel very many symptoms until I got down to 3.25mg.

 

Now I seem to have ups and downs every week and have had to slow down considerably.  (Luckily not the extreme symptoms I have read of others here).  Take good care of yourself and let us know how it goes in the upcoming days.

 

Tech, KJT, Sierra and Fisher,

 

How have you been feeling?

 

Wishing you all many moments of peace, freedom from suffering, celebrating even the little things...

 

Hugs to all,

 

Luey. 

[[po...]]

Luey,

that was very nice. I cannot wait until I get to 3.5 mg so I can start a little taper on my 1 mg Xanax I take 1 hr before my Ativan. I don't think I need it, but my body probably thinks otherwise. Peace be with you. Powerball

[[si...]]

Hi Ativan Friends!

 

Thanks for the well wishes.  Healing post-jump continues at almost 2 weeks out. 

 

My most challenging sxs is sleep and afternoon fatigue.  Crazy, right?  I mean, those 2 seemingly opposite sxs - like, why couldn't I push that afternoon fatigue to bedtime and add it to my sleep?  Then, problem solved!  But noooooo.....   

I guess benzo healing has a weird sense of humor.

 

Though, I really can't complain.  Overall, sxs continue diminishing.  Hopefully FisherK will check in soon too, as I know his healing is following a similar trajectory.

 

I would caution everyone not to read too much into the horror stories.  The majority of folks heal and leave BB, so we don't have a fair representation of post-jump experiences remaining.  Rather, this remaining population is heavily skewed to the worst case scenarios.

 

Think rationally about it - you've been healing on the way down, as you taper.  No way could you have tolerated the dose you're currently taking a month ago, right?  I mean, that would have sent you into horrible sxs orbit.  But today you're mostly ok, still annoyed with sxs, but you can tolerate them.  So, when you jump, you've been healing all the way down and your body is ready - you've prepared it - to jump.  To just be done with the poison and move on to more healing.  It makes no sense for it to get worse, unless your CNS gets rattled.  Then it would make sense for a wave to happen, right?  Anyway, I think you guys get my point.  It does get better. 

 

Wishing everyone love & light!  Happy Saturday!

 

xo,

sierra 

 

[[te...]]

Hi to all my Ativan friends , thank you for always sharing .

Sierra7 you always have a way of making me feel like there is hope , looking on the bright side instead of worrying about the unknown . Thank you

Lisa

[Guest [...]]

Need advice, For the last 2 weeks I have held at .5 mg twice a day. I take .5 in the morning and .5 in the mid afternoon. (3:00)  How do i go about eliminating the afternoon dose? That is the one i hope to get rid of first....