Tapering off Ativan Support Thread

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AF1: I use the Gemini 20 microgram scale. But since individual pills have such variability, you may very well not get the correct dose (up or down) each time. So I physiologically try and control for this variation. I weigh every pill in EACH NEW BOTTLE  - actually I stack them as high as I can in three equal piles and come up with an average pill weight. In my current bottle, the average pill weighs 0.122mg. To show you the variation, my previous bottle weight had an average pill weight of 0.119mg. So with my current bottle every night I cut from a pill with a 0.122mg average. I never have to weigh any pill each night. My body recognizes each dose as cut from 0.122mg. Get it?

 

Tonight I cut my pill until the shavings on my scale weighed 0.023mg (I save all my shavings because I will get at least 4 more doses off that one pill). Tonight's Math: 0.023 /.122 =.188mg or in my book 0.18mg dose, and so forth. Since I am on a micro taper, I will stay on this dose for three nights and then cut to 0.022mg and so forth. One night I imagine I will not sleep with a very low dose. But who really knows what will happen as I taper off. I hope this helps.

 

Tech, what is your current dose? I looked at your tag...I was away in SC for a few days visiting my mom. Good night all. Powerball.

[[Ha...]]

Sigh, I get stuck on the math, and also stuck in sleeplessness, and so here I sit stuck in my taper.  At least I haven't updosed!

 

Once in a while I get a good night's (or at least an okay night's) sleep and I get hopeful, then the next night it's up every hour again.  Anyway, I'm still here.  Sending strength to all of us as we head into another Monday.

 

Haimona

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Welcome Faith! I too tried crossing over to Valium but knew pretty quickly that it wasn’t going to work for me so I decided to just taper directly from Ativan. Maybe someone on the Valium Support thread could tell you if your depression and crying are symptoms during a cross over.

 

Best Wishes,

Committed

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Powerball

I am at 18.2 liquid mg

 

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Thanks, Powerball!  I'm attempting to taper 0.5 mg Risperdal.  I took some shavings off the pill then weighed the pill, but the weight didn't always change when I did that. I had to press the scale and let it bounce back to get it to move. I wasn't sure if that was normal or if I'm doing something wrong although it doesn't seem any different from weighing stuff in a Chemistry class. I  I appreciate all your help, though!

 

Someone on an Amazon review said scales are more accurate in the middle of their range and to put the calibration weight on the scale and add the pill to that, so I think I will try that.

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Af1 ,

I used to do that when I was weighing it works better .

Lisa

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Hi Tech (Lisa),

 

Your signature might be confusing to some people who haven't followed your progress.  I'm pretty sure you are listing the amount of diluted liquid solution you are current taking.  I (we) know you are not taking 18mg. of Ativan.

 

You are down to .18mg.  As you mentioned to Powerball, you both are at very similar amounts.

 

Maybe you could change your signature to show the actual mg. amount of a tablet. 

 

I hope you are doing well!

 

Luey

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Luey

Thanks how do I figure that out?

 

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Luey

I deleted it all , I am probably confusing people

. Yes you are right I am on mls  liquid

[[Iz...]]

Sorry- I’m jumping in here. And maybe I should post this somewhere else. I think I might be the only one tapering off of Ativan concentrate. I’m worried my taper is looking pretty lopsided. I take .23 in the morning and at noon, but then a full mg in the evening. I’m very nervous to change that evening dose. I’m happy for everyone who is sleeping

 

 

 

 

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Af1 ,

I used to do that when I was weighing it works better .

Lisa

 

Good, I'm glad to hear that it works so I don't have to buy another scale.

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Hi Lisa,

 

I hope you didn't think that I meant to delete your whole history.  I hope you have it written down somewhere else.  I was just thinking it would be easier to understand if you listed it in mg. rather than ml.

 

From what I remember your solution is  1mg ativan :2ml vodka :98 ml water = 100ml liquid.  Correct?

 

So if you are currently at 18.8ml of liquid solution that would be .18mg of ativan.  Just move the decimal point two places to the left.  You can do the same with all of your previous numbers since you started liquid.

 

Let me know if that helps.  I hope you'll put your history back up.  I think it really helps to see your progress.

 

Luey

 

 

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Hi Izzy,

 

I also take more in the evening to preserve my sleep as much as possible.  I take half of my total dose before bed and divide the remaining half into three doses.  I am, however, simultaneously reducing all of my doses which I think is a good idea.  I want my body to slowly get used to lower amounts throughout the day and night. My current doses are

 

7pm. .66mg

1am  .22mg. (I take this dose whenever I wake up not at 1am if I'm sleeping)

7am  .22mg

1pm  .22mg

 

That's great you were able to get a prescription for ativan in liquid form. Let us know what you decide about reducing your evening dose.

 

Luey

 

 

 

 

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No Luey ,

My ativan pill is 0.5 mg and I use 1 ml of vodka and 49 ml of water

And I deleted the entire thing and did not save it

[[...]]

No Luey ,

My ativan pill is 0.5 mg and I use 1 ml of vodka and 49 ml of water

And I deleted the entire thing and did not save it

 

Hi Lisa, 

 

Oh, ok so you use a 0.5mg tablet and make half the amount of solution (same proportions) I mentioned above.  So the conversion from ml to mg is still the same:

 

18.8ml (liquid solution)  =  .18mg (Ativan tablet)

 

I hope you can make a new signature from the records you keep at home.  Please let me know if I can help.  And I'm sorry if I caused any confusion.  I'm going to send you a private msg.

 

The most important thing is you know your current dose, you have a good system that works for you and you are making steady progress!

 

Let me know how you're doing,

 

Luey

 

 

 

 

 

 

[[po...]]

Good evening all. My taper is going well. I am at 0.18mg. It is my 5th day at this dose as shaving off 0.001 kept me at the same dose per no decimal averaging. I was tempted to cut off 0.002 but thought it best to stay with my very successful micro-taper. My nausea has disappeared and it is strange how it comes and goes. As a Registered Nurse I am preparing myself for optimal COVID-19 prevention. If you want me to share my best recommendations I will. Trump's press conference was a disaster and misleading. I spent most of my FB time last night educating my FB friends. I co-published the first article on SARS in the nursing literature and so virology is sort of a hobby of mine. My area of study in my post-doc was studying the correlation between depression and sleep disruption in with women with HIV infection. Something tells me that with our symptomology from benzos we may be at an additional risk. Let's pray for each other and our families, keep abreast of the news, go to the CDC website frequently, and follow he best knows evidenced-based practices (as we learn them!) to protect ourselves. Good night. Powerball.

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So Happy for you Powerball .

Any insight to help with prevention would be most appreciated . I worry so my son lives in Manhattan and works in the stock exchange . Always telling him to wash his hands and don’t touch your face .

I have slept better for the most part for a good week now getting 4 straight hours at one time . I am very thankful for that . I also am cutting very slowly not to ruin my much needed sleep . Wishing everyone better days ahead .

Lisa

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Hi Powerball and Lisa and everyone here,

 

Powerball, I would love to see your recommendations for dealing with COVID-19.  My particular fear is that we are recommended to keep a two-week supply of medications, but at least in my state, we are not allowed to get more than one refill at a time and my doctor will not allow me to refill the prescription until I am down to the last three days.  So I am being kept from following that recommendation and it worries me that I could run out if a disruption in the supply of medications occurs, which we are told can happen if and when we reach a pandemic state.

 

To the best of my knowledge, the best thing we can do to protect ourselves from this virus is to get good sleep (hahahahahahaha), eat well, exercise, keep stress down (bwahahahaha), wash hands often (which I do), and probably avoid any unnecessary travel for a while.  Any other recommendations would be most welcomed.

 

I am struggling hard with sleep, and it's really taking a toll on everthing, mood, thinking, memory, all of it.  Praying for better days.

 

Haimona

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Haimona

 

 

I have struggled with sleep for this entire taper, and it is a terrible feeling. It takes a toll on everything but try to remember you wont die from it .... You will get better and it may  not last but as it comes and goes you get closer to feeling better longer.

The more you worry about sleep the less you get, and I dont say that lightly , I understand how upsetting it all is.

I too hope you get some much rested sleep soon.

Lisa

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Hey guys hope all is well . I haven't been on as I havent been great . I increased the Zoloft im on so hoping that'll help. Also I know it was against many of the members advice but I had to switch to clonazepam the Ativan interdose withdrawls were killing me . . Once I stabilize hope I'll be able to get off the clonazepam. Hope you guys are going well .

All the best one day at a time

[[Co...]]

Hello All,

 

Haimona - So sorry to hear you are struggling so badly with sleep. Please know you are in my prayers. Hopefully you find a bit of relief in the coming week.

 

Lisa - How fantastic that you are getting a bit more sleep! Hooray!! Praying that sleep only continues to get better for you!

 

Blkhawks - hoping the switch to K will make things easier on you. That would be fantastic! Keep us posted on how it goes.

 

I am in a wave but hanging in there. I started gradually changing my dosage times in preparation for the time change and I think it is making things a bit rough. Will be glad when it is done and hopefully things will settle back down a bit. As we know, no way around, only through. Hoping the coming week brings periods of peace and rest for us all.

 

Take Care,

Committed

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hey committed i definitely feel abit more stable but have the side effects of increasing zoloft so ill wait for those to start fading and start tapering. Sorry to hear your in abit of a rut. hopefully as you get used to the new times you take your doses things will even out.

 

all the best

[[po...]]

Hey all, tonight is my last night at 0.18 and then I go to .17mg tomorrow. So far my low Ativan knocks hell out of me and for some reason my night eating has gone away. My nausea has been absent for about a week or so. Where did that come from? I think I attribute most of my tapering success to my micro taper but I admit at higher doses the ultra slow taper would have been too discouraging. I began this journey at 4mg the last day of March last year. Every fourth night I cut off another 0.01mg. My bottle is about is about out and I now have a bottle of 10 pills so I will have recalculate my "standard weight." Someone needs to do a study on benzo tapering and sleep preservation. When I was younger in career maybe that is something I would have tackled.

 

Maybe we all could try and update our profiles over the next 10 days. That would be very helpful to all of is and I aim to do this. Luey has good advice to calculate to total mg per day.  Good night and peace be with you all. Powerball

[[he...]]

Hi friends -- It's good to check in and see how everyone is doing. I've been absent for awhile, knocked down for a week with influenza A and a slow recovery from there. It was a dark time. I went back to .5 mg because I didn't have the energy and brain power to cut/calculate. I was nearly non-functional. A couple days ago I resumed the taper and I'm holding steady for now. My strength is coming back and I'm going attempt running today (training for distant half marathon).

 

Where I live and work there is a lot of anxiety about COVID-19. I've been taking a break from obsessively reading the news. I'm trying to insulate myself from the anxiety triggers -- I know what they are -- and focus on self-care, looking forward to feeling like I'm making progress again, even if so slow.

 

Hope everyone has a good week with moments of peace and good rest.

 

[[Fa...]]

I have posted that I am thinking about going back to ativan, 1.2mg, after crossing over

to 12mg of valium.

Committed to be free-I saw in your signature that you c/o back to ativan.

Could you share what problems you experienced that led to that? I am

experiencing severe depression and crying spells.

Also, how fast did you make the switch back to ativan? I’m not sure I want to spend

another 5 weeks going back? Thanks-Faith