Klonopin Taper Using Valium per Ashton Protocol

[[de...]]

I am in my second day using the Ashton Protocol to taper from .5mg Klonopin three times day. Per the protocol I have decreased the night dose of Klonopin to .25mg and have started 5 mg Valium.  It has been horrible......very vivid dreams, frequent awakenings, restless leg syndrome, nervousness.  Functioniong poorly without any sleep.  Can anyone help??  Has anyone had similar experience?  I have been on Klonopin for 8 years.  All advice is greatly appreciated.

[[Be...]]

I didn't use that method to taper from lorazepam so take my suggestions with a grain of salt and lots of common sense.  If last night was no better, maybe go back on the full Klono dose at bedtime and make the first substitution from the mid-day dose.  That's all I can think of.    Good luck.

[[de...]]

How do you dry cut klonopin into such small doses that you describe here??

[[Be...]]

I'm not suggesting cutting Klonopin in smaller than half of a .5mg tablet (.25mg piceces).  You can use a sharp knife, razor blade or pill splitter available at the drug store.

[Guest [de...]]

I am at the end of a .75K to 15 V c/o. I have experienced several mild short lived withdrawals. To minimize w/d, I did my c/o in six segments, each time subbing 2.5 V for .125 K. It is easy to break the .5mg tablets into quarters.

 

Because of differing halflives, the K leaves the system faster than the V builds up. This is why there might be a day or 2 of discomfort. Try crossing over .125mg at a time rather than .25mg. You will find less of a stress on your system. Also, I found that spacing the subs 6 days apart was the magic number (for me) for getting minimal (or no) w/d. I am now on 13.5V and .125 K. I realize that it is not totally mathematically correct, but I felt I needed to bribe my brain with an extra mg of V just so it would go along with the program. So I will actually be on 16V on March 18.

 

Speaking for myself, the K to V c/o works, just take it slow like you will your taper.

 

Administrator: Please do not scold me for being prescriptive. I am just tyring to help.

 

DS

[Guest [de...]]

If the .125 mg at a time sub works for you, you will have a total of 12 substitutions. There should be fewer w/d symptoms as the K gets lower and the V gets higher. This co may take about 2 months, but the dry cutting of the K is a serious science project with little room for error. Some people succeed with it but I think the c/o to V is easier and better in the long run.

[[Bi...]]

Many people taper directly off the Klonopin, if I could go back.. I would have just went through it. I could not directly cut the Klonopin after so many doses. I kept getting Margin of Errors - ± and this went on for a while.

I c/o to Valium, and it made it more manageable, although yes, you can do a direct taper.

 

Billy.