The Klonopin Klub

[[Di...]]

Disney Girl -

 

Thank you for your support.  I appreciate it. 

Sorry to hear that your daughter suffers from this.

 

Lizie

 

I've never had kidney stones but know what she goes through when she has them and it makes me realize that they can be awfully painful.  Many people have them.  I hope you don't have anymore.

[[ho...]]

Hi Everyone,

 

I've been doing some reading on the forum today and came across a tread that developed into a very sad and unfortunate set of circumstances. Accusations, name calling etc. I won't mention the name of the thread because I think this one is best left to wither on the vine and go away.

 

I did learn some things:

 

1. We are all in a highly emotional state during withdrawal. I myself don't always feel that I am yet, I can bite my husbands head off (just snap) without realizing I was about to do it.

2. We are all so different with our symptoms, some of them very strange, and we just want to be understood. For most of us our doctors think we have to be making some of this stuff up.

3. We must be careful to state that we are not doctors and that the advice we give is only our opinion.

4. We must always show love and respect to each other, after all, no one can understand benzo withdrawal like we can. Some times the kindest thing that we can do, is to do (or say) nothing at all.

5. For me personally, never respond to a post if I am upset. I'll save that for my blog, if I ever write one, lol.

 

hopeful2013

 

 

 

 

[[Go...]]

Hopeful, I'm sure that you are mentioning the thread that I was involved in.  I learned a very important lesson from what took place.  There is NO reason to mistreat anyone here at all.  I will keep my comments positive and if I see anything that is not right, I will report it to the moderators.

 

GG

[[Ju...]]

Emotional is the word of the day. I watched les mis last night and have been dissolving into tears ever since. Hopeful- very nice quote from wizard of oz. don't know if you just added it or I just noticed it, but thank you.

[[Le...]]

Hope everyone is doing well.

 

I've been on my first taper for about 2 weeks now. I want to take it slow, so I'm going to stay on this initial one (.25 mg - a big cut apparently) for 2 more weeks.

 

I still don't know how I'll taper down from .75 mg a pill to .625 mg a pill. Gonna be tough with just a pill cutter!

[[ho...]]

Hi Letsgobirds,

 

Glad you're here. I understand the questioning of pill cutting at lower doses. I bought a pill cutter and made a mess of the pills. Luckily I found here how to liquid titrate and am able to make very small accurate cuts.

 

My first attempt at cutting was to reduce my klonopin by .5 ml. It was a disaster. I did not experience any withdrawal for 2 weeks and thought there would be no problems. Well, I discovered that that was WAY to much to cut. Thankfully I found BB and the info. I needed to move forward in a much safer and less symptomatic way.

 

Wishing you all the best. Let us know how you are doing.

 

hopeful2013

[[Go...]]

Oh my goodness, does anyone have the painful leg sx?  Tonight I feel like my legs have been through an extensive workout.  I have not had this sx in a long time.

 

GG

[[Mo...]]

Window day for me! Awake for 16 hours and had symptoms for 90 minutes. 30 minutes of fog and anxiety upon waking, hours later some anxiety again, and some GI stuff for a few minutes before eating. Rest of the day was productive and symptom free .

 

GG- I had leg pain during my taper but not since I jumped. It was bad though when I had it. I am no stranger to leg pain too, knee problems since I was 13, now im 23. The leg pains I had during taper felt more muscular though while my usual leg pain is skeletal microfracturing.

 

Just curious, any other guys around the Klonny Klub? I feel BB as a whole is mostly female but when you are going thru something as bad as benzo withdrawal I really could not care less about sexual orientation lol. Just wondering though. For the record female friends, I do not envy going thru w/ds and also having monthly "visits" you gals have haha.

[[Ju...]]

Mogeii dont take this the wrong way but I assumed you were a woman (with no gender specified in your profile)! No worries, I still like you and I am super glad you had a great window. With all this talk of babies and kidney stones the estrogen can get a little high 

 

I got a stark reminder over the last couple of days that the valium crossover doesnt make you have no symptoms, just makes them easier to handle. I've had sizzling anxiety but I have been able to say "wow, that anxiety is a really challenging symptom" instead of going off the cliff. Actually I am curious ellen2012 why you decided to do what looks like a partial crossover?

 

If there has been progressive chaos in my life it is probably a good thing because I was too "organized" to start with. What I have noticed is a dulling of life. I realized that I used to draw a lot, found some old sketches. Now when my daughter asks me to draw with her I impatiently scribble some shapes and a tree/sun/house... it used to be something I really enjoyed. I want that back.

 

JKS

[[Go...]]

Mogeii,

 

That is wonderful! 

 

GG

[[de...]]

Can anyone explain to me about "tolerance?" I reinstated clonizipam one month ago because I got to the point where I couldn't handle no sleeping one more day and I also felt suicidal. So, I went back on the 1 mg. I was tapering, it did not help me sleep and 2 mgs. did not either. I went to a new Dr. to help and she put me on serequol to sleep. I am having really weird sleep.....dreaming a lot, feeling like I'm not sleeping and severe muscle twitching. If the clonizipam is no longer helping me sleep does that mean another taper would be easier as it's not helping anyway and I feel like I need to get off of the serequol. I have never been more scared in my life as I don't even know if I'm mentally "up" for another taper but I don't know what to do. I don't see any good coming from taking the serequol. Thank you!

[[el...]]

Hi JKS,

 

I did start a crossover to valium when I first started the taper.  But, another member of the forum I was on at the time did a complete c/o to valium from k.  She was about my age, was on k about the same length of time with the same dosage.  She had such terrible problems involving muscles and nerve pain and still is in a bad situation.  This scared me quite a bit so I instead decided to slowly reduce k by dry cutting, using v as a 'buffer'.  I was on 4 mg of v at one time but went back to 2mg.  I will get rid of k first then titrate v (current plan).  My goal was and is to remain as functional as possible thru this whole mess.

 

Ellen

[[In...]]

debbers,

 

I will try to explain tolerance as I understand it to be. From my understanding, it means that your GABA receptors have reached a point where what you have been taking is not enough anymore.

 

At this point, there are sx of withdrawl that start to happen like not sleeping very well, feeling anxious and nervous and the list is extensive as you probably know.

 

And many people, without a break in what they are taking already, will up dose, or simply put, take an increase of their medication to alleviate those sx, which I believe, it generally does.

 

But from what I am reading here, you had already been involved in tapering your med, so the sx you describe of not sleeping well and feeling "suicidal" are most likely related to withdrawl due to your tapering. And often, "reinstating" as you say after a month will or will not work due to changing of receptors, and other factors that may or may not be pertinent to your benzo situation.

 

In fact, you were up dosing when you went back up to 1 mg after tapering. And also when you went up to 2 mgs. Since these up doses did not help you, you may need to taper again to get off the med. It's possible to have your receptors acclimated to a new level of benzo and yet it is not as effective as it once was. I say this because this happened to me.

 

Your doctor probably gave you seroquel to help you sleep as it is really an anti psychotic, but does have a well known side effect of making one sleepy and be able to sleep.

 

Everyone is so individual with these benzos that it's hard to say whether another taper started again will be as easy or easier or harder than the one you were on. And I'm not sure about continuing the seroquel either. My instinct tells me, however, that you should not just drop it in total. It also most likely requires a taper unless you've been on it a really short period of time, like maybe a week.

 

Others with seroquel experience will perhaps comment.

 

Intend

[[bo...]]

i'm 51, been experiencing anxiety/panic for 30 years. i used to abuse alcohol, been sober for over 16 years. drugs were never my thing. i did use xanax with alcohol to get rid of anzxiety in the last year of my drinking. after quitting drinking, the anxiety went away. go figure. i then got married, had kids, the usual, and the anxiety returned. i attend a 12 step based group, and their opinion is that we aren't doctors. 15 years ago i went to a psychiatrist and was put on 1 mg of klonipin, as needed, no more than 3 mg in a 24 hour period. some days i never needed it. weeks even. some days, i would take all 3 mg's and still be feeling bad. i managed for a long time in making the 2 mg tablets, broken in half, last at least two months or more. now, another life change, and the symptoms are back, worse than ever. i eat pretty well, exercise, and get plenty of sleep, and it's worse. i have been told by others that cymbalta would help. i am not sure. the funny thing is, that exercise is recommended for anxiety, but when i go surfing, my preferred exercise, my anxiety is at its highest.

i have taken as much as 10 mg in a 24 hour period. i don't want to keep on doing this. surely there is something better. any and all good help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Anyways, my Dr. has agreed to a long taper from Klonopin and a start of Cymbalta. Has anyone done this? I am expecting that some of you have. I am scared, but ready to be off of benzo's. Thank you,

B5F

[[Ju...]]

Thanks Ellen and I am glad it is working out for you. Without large clinical trials we dont really have good information to make decisions on and that makes this whole process all the more difficult. my doctor suggested that I aim for more like 1:10 than 1:20 and it is working so far. Taper starts this weekend so fingers crossed!

 

Bonzer5fin ADs can be helpful, they can also be a whole new circus of trying to find the right drug and the right dose. You have already quit alcohol, so you know how much your life can change. Can you tell us what your doctor recommends as a "slow" taper? Everyone has a different idea of slow. Why not try the taper first and add Cymbalta if you need it?

[[ja...]]

Hey guys,

 

Just a quick note from one of Ye Olde Timers (me) - who, I think, was a member of the KK before any o' yous - I really, really value you. I value this thread so much and the way we treat each other with respect. (GG, I'm sure you know why I'm saying this)

 

Let's always, always keep the Klub a safe place to rest our heads!

 

jaxy

[[Go...]]

Debbers,

 

I am tapering Klonopin and I also take Seroquel 50mg.  You can have weird and vivid dreams from benzo wd but one of the side effects of Seroquel is vivid and weird dreams.  The drug Seroquel is an anti-psychotic.  First, I never want to give advice about anyone's medication.  I will only say that you should read the side effects of Seroquel and discuss them with your doctor.  There are some pretty dangerous and permanent side effects from taking and anti-psychotic medication which include, diabetes, and permanent body movement. 

 

GG

[[Ju...]]

Jaxnj- thanks for being an olde timer. We need you!

[[Mo...]]

haha Keepswimming! No offense taken. I am indeed a guy. Perhaps it is the way I write that makes me seem female? I am a heterosexual 23 year old male who types like a woman I guess! Kidding of course, you women can't own a writing style sorry . I have had a kidney stone though! If that is what child birth is like...I would be hard to convince to have children lol.

 

My window continued mostly today, unfortunately last night I must have slept odd my shoulder and pinched a nerve or something. Numbness and shooting pains when shifting positions. Icy Hot pads are keeping the pain minor though so its no big deal. I move tomorrow and Friday into a new apartment so I might not be back on BB till Saturday. Be well friends.

[[ja...]]

Yeah, Mogeii - the time when I realized you were a guy was when you talked about shaving your face. I had to read that a few times. Anyway...

[[pa...]]

did anyone get their sleep back?

if so, when did you get it back?

praying for my sleep to return now.

[[pa...]]

had too many severe symptoms while on klonopin, during taper, and during w/d.

also, have many symptoms that are not severe.

has been 63 days free so far. at this stage, will i continue to have new severe symptoms?

just do not want to face anymore severe new ones. they scare the hell out of me.

[[re...]]

Hey, folks -

 

I'm sort of an old-timer, too; Jax (hi, Jax!) and I are of roughly the same vintage, but she's been steadier here than I have.  She's the salt of the earth, is our Jax!  But I want to let you know I do check in, and am still here on the sidelines cheering for you all, even if, these days, I'm mostly invisible.  Have been dealing with some stuff of my own here, no need to go into it.

 

I do want to say, Pacific, that, yes, sleep came back.  It comes and goes some even now, but that's because as an adult I've always had sleep issues--I'm still working on that one!  I would say that I was sleeping more or less normally again about two months out from kicking clonazepam, and things had been gradually improving during the interval, so there was a sense of progress.  Meditation helped, I believe, as well as deep breathing, visualization, that sort of thing.  Getting enough exercise, too.  Hang in there.

 

Hang in there, everyone, and be careful if you're in one of the areas in the country that are being hit by storms (I'm jumping at the loud cracks of thunder, and am about to go offline, I think).

 

Peace,

 

Rek

[[...]]

absolutely, Jaxy... (how's the yoga?)...we need to keep it positive in how we treat each other or we won't feel comfortable sharing the worst of it and this isthe place  to do it... I can see where some people need to move on and others suffer so much, I don't want anyone feeling they can't share ...it is so true about this being such an emotionally vulnerable  experience.  I overreact to everything... I try to respond positively or not at all... Moge.ii i knew you were a guy by how you relate to your world... you are the same age as my son.  Its so good to hear things are continuing to go well for you. My sweet young one has just reenlisted...  you'd a thought he could of waited till I was through w/ this... but your lives are not for us"old tymers" to live, we can visit, we cannot stay... fortunately we have our own lives and I got alittle back today... the first 5 days of this most recent cut was a little loopy... w/ the worst yesterday but I finally fell asleep last night and woke this morning like a new person...  Njoy

[[...]]

thanks for the check in Rek, good to hearfrm you... we're on edge of the storm system... lots of just steady rain here. We're supposedto get 3 ".  Ithink you're infor 5".  H ope you brought your swimsuit :laugh:Njoy