was switched from ativan to xanax

[[pa...]]

Hey sweetpea! I answered your email, did you get it? Hope your feeling better! I personally dont think I had dizziness on abilify but I'm so foggy headed I couldnt remember if I did! I'll have to look back through my thread. Why do you think it's from the Abilify if you've had this problem on and off? I dislike psych meds immensely but I wouldnt blame all the problems we end up with on them, especially until you have the other possible causes ruled out.. Dizziness was/is a very common symptom of my anxiety.

When your having racing thoughts and feeling like your losing your mind (I myself am at that point right now! Dont feel alone!) take a couple minutes to sit and breath (lol I need to practice what I preach!!!), use your coping techniques. Getting scared of it just feeds it! It's natural that we think we're going crazy and get scared but if we sit and really try to calm ourselves down it will get better.

Take it easy. Your going to be fine!

 

Amanda

[[sw...]]

HI Paxton,yes i got your email,i think it might be the abilify because i got kinda this way on risperdal and since they are simalar i thoought maybe thats the problem,Imnot sure,I know about the foggy feeling its awful,Im trying to cut from 2 pills(O5 mg) to 1  1.2 pills of klonopin today,Hope I can do it,Im having pain in my chest kinda,,,I just want off these drugs,Are you doing better now u are off the benzo? Yes i get racing thoughts,

[[sw...]]

So i was reading back in april 08 i was on .05 klonopin 4 times a day that would have been 2 mg right,Now i have been on .05 2 times a day equals 1 mg right,tried to cut to 1 1/2 pills yesterday i think its too soon from dropping from 2 1/2 pills a day...any thoughts.and how many hours would a 1/2 a pill last,,,,i dont want to be taking to close together..when i first begain the klono in jan i was on 2 pills1 every 12 hours,,,,that is to far apart for me....but i would like to strecth then out,I have kinda got off my schedule for some reason not by much but still i have been sleeping in and my diziness is making me afraid .....I have no clue whats up..the first few weeks i was on klono and my abilify  was happy and doing good now not so happy...i have backed the abilify down to 2 mg from 5 mg

[[Th...]]

So i was reading back in april 08 i was on .05 klonopin 4 times a day that would have been 2 mg right,Now i have been on .05 2 times a day equals 1 mg right,tried to cut to 1 1/2 pills yesterday i think its too soon from dropping from 2 1/2 pills a day...any thoughts.and how many hours would a 1/2 a pill last,,,,i dont want to be taking to close together..when i first begain the klono in jan i was on 2 pills1 every 12 hours,,,,that is to far apart for me....but i would like to strecth then out,I have kinda got off my schedule for some reason not by much but still i have been sleeping in and my diziness is making me afraid .....I have no clue whats up..the first few weeks i was on klono and my abilify  was happy and doing good now not so happy...i have backed the abilify down to 2 mg from 5 mg

 

Cutting from 1.0mg (2 pills a day) to .75mg (1 1/2 pills a day) is a 25% cut. We only recommend cutting about 10% off your total daily dose. You may want to re-instate to 1.0mg/day and stabilize and next time only cut 1/4 off your .50mg pill and hold there for a week or two before cutting again.

[[sw...]]

so u mean cut a 1/2 pill in half when i do cut again

[[Th...]]

so u mean cut a 1/2 pill in half when i do cut again

 

Yes, that would be tapering by .125mg which would be a 12.5% cut vs. 25%! 

[[tr...]]

when i do cut again

 

7-14 days from your last cut.  How often have you been cutting?

 

Thanks for adding your signature line! 

[[sw...]]

its been about 7 days since i cut from 2 1/2 to 2 pillsi believe

[[sw...]]

hi im back on the rollar coaster again............i had got down to 1 1/2 mg of klnopin and got so depressed my dr had me stop it and go on ativan 1 1/2 mg said i would not have withdrawal from the klonopin,,,,,,,,,,,,,,im wondering,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,i couldnt get off it an i was so depressed.........will i go thru withdrawals from the klonopin with going straight over to ativan

[[sw...]]

Hoping someone will answer me on above post

[[pa...]]

Hi Sweetpea! What you are probably feeling is the difference and doses. Your klono dose was equal to 30mg of valium, your ativan dose is 15mg of valium. That;s basically a 50% cut.

Can you call your doctor and ask if you can go a little higher on Ativan? Why did he switch you to ativan anyway?

 

Amanda 

[[sw...]]

switched me because the klono was making me depressed.................i was on 1 1/2 mg klon and now on 1 1/2 mg ativan dr said it was equal...so i called her she said i could up dose till i get stable again

[[pa...]]

Hi Sweetpea.

By Ashton's equivalency's 1mg ativan is equal to 10 valium while .5mg of klono is equal to 10mg valium.

 

Take care

 

Amanda 

[[sk...]]

Sweetpea,

 

how long have you been going through the same thing over and over now??? You continue to switch drugs because of w/d s/x's which no matter what benzo you're w/d'ing from, there is nothing that's going to take away the w/d effects. So all you're doing is continuing to switch over, causing your brain to get so much more confused and I'm sure it's going to make you continue to suffer, whether it be the dizziness, depression, or the 100's of many other s/x's a person can feel during w/d. So all you've been doing to yourself is prolonging your recovery period. And nothings going to change at all until you stay on one benzo and get off of it completely as there's no stopping any w/d's from all of the switching you continue to do to get away from whichever s/x you seem to be having a problem with at the time and then do another switch. Nor does adding another psychotropic to the mixture to try and take away s/x's help either as this too is only prolonging any recovery you're trying to get to.

 

I don't know how much more people can tell you as you continue to do this over and over and have gotten nowhere. We all understand how bad it gets, but this is where we have to grit our teeth, find different coping mechanisms, and if spiritual (which I find helps trememdously) do a lot of praying. I hope all of this makes sense and you will finally begin to realize this and start sticking to a taper and stop changing your drugs. I'm sorry to be so blunt, but you could have been done a long time ago if you'd of calmed yourself down, realizing these are just s/x's which are all listed and it seems once we come to terns that they aren't going anywhere until we get off of these toxins, nothing's going to change.

 

(I know I'm one to talk, because I've done this also a couple of times and have finally learned to accept them, not happily nor easily, but enough to just whine in my blog and know there's nothing that's going to change them for long at least except time) Sorry for going on and on, I only want to see you finally accept all of this and start your way to recovery

 

God Bless you

[[sw...]]

im on abilify for depression,not as a added med to cover withdrawal..............and i have tried klonopon so many times and find it causes depression,so im sorry i had to be changed i was just wondering what amount of ativan is equal to 1 mg of klonopin,,,i was taking a 1/2 of a .05 mg klonopin 4 times a day to equal one mg..........i had misread my instructions of my ativan i just got last week im to take 1/2 mg in the morning and 1  mg at noon and 1 mg at bedtime and to me that seems more to me dr wanted me to be on equal amount of ativan as klonopin im thinking she misunderstood that i was only on 1 mg klonopin............as i had been on more and had cut down............so if any one knows the comparison that would be helpful

[[Th...]]

i was just wondering what amount of ativan is equal to 1 mg of klonopin,,

 

1mg of Ativan is equal to .50mg of Klonopin per Dr. Ashton.

[[sw...]]

so if i was taking .05 mg klonopin cut in half 4 times a day then 2 1/2 mg of ativan is too much..Right

[[Th...]]

so if i was taking .05 mg klonopin cut in half 4 times a day then 2 1/2 mg of ativan is too much..Right

 

If you were taking .50mg of Klonopin cut in half 4X/day, that would be 1.0mg of Klonopin per day (or .25mg 4X/day). So, 2.0mg of Ativan is equal to 1mg. of Klonopin per Dr. Ashton.

[[sw...]]

thanks so much for some reason my mind is racing i guess i have toget use to ativan

[[sw...]]

ok yesterday and today i feel so druggged out and yesterday is when i realized i had read insctructions wrong on ativan bottle since wed the 13th i had beeen taking 1 1/2 mg yesterday i did as bottle said and toon 2 1/2 mg...................wow would thats drug me out,,,,,,,,,,im gonna take less today as i spoke to my dr ,.................my goal is to get off these meds i guess it takes some of us longer than others to do this,,,,,,,,,and to u that have got off benzos how is life afterwaards..................... will ativan drug me out at first

[[sw...]]

Someone from chat told  me to ask this here.......................how long after stoppiong klonopin will it be in my body,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and on the mg i am on of ativan could i overdose could that be why im so drugged and kinda nauseated..............and does my body have to adjust to the ativan from the klonopin and how long before i can start my taper off it

[[pa...]]

Life after benzo's is good! I still have a couple rough days but nothing really compared to when tapering.

 

No you havent overdosed! How long ago did you switch from klono to ativan? Your probably feeling the effects from taking the wrong dose. Get stabilized on the right dose and give yourself 7-14 days before attempting any taper.

 

Hang in there

 

Amanda 

[[sw...]]

i started the ativan on May 13 09 and stopped the klonopin,,,,,,,,,,,,,,im not sure waht the right dose is of ativan,,,,,,,,,,,,,i had took 1 1/2 mg of it up till yesterday and i read the bottle and it called for 2 1/2 mg so took that yesterday and im all drugged today so dr said to experiment till i find where i feel comfortable..im thinking im taking the dose to close together im a drug addict for benzos i know

[[Be...]]

Someone from chat told  me to ask this here.......................how long after stoppiong klonopin will it be in my body,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and on the mg i am on of ativan could i overdose could that be why im so drugged and kinda nauseated..............and does my body have to adjust to the ativan from the klonopin and how long before i can start my taper off it

 

I think the answer to your question about the drugged feeling is in your earlier post about taking too much ativan:

 

ok yesterday and today i feel so druggged out and yesterday is when i realized i had read insctructions wrong on ativan bottle since wed the 13th i had beeen taking 1 1/2 mg yesterday i did as bottle said and toon 2 1/2 mg...................wow would thats drug me out,,,,,,,,,,im gonna take less today as i spoke to my dr ,.................my goal is to get off these meds i guess it takes some of us longer than others to do this,,,,,,,,,and to u that have got off benzos how is life afterwaards..................... will ativan drug me out at first

 

As to the question about how long klonopin stays in your body, I don't think anyone can give you an answer because we all metabolize the drug differently.  This is in the Ashton Manual about benzos in general to give you a general timeframe:

 

How long do benzodiazepines stay in the body after withdrawal? This question is often asked by people with long-term symptoms. Is it possible that one cause of protracted symptoms is that benzodiazepines remain in the body even after months, lurking perhaps deep in such tissues as brain and bones? Could slow elimination from these sites keep the withdrawal symptoms going?

 

Like many other issues concerning benzodiazepines, the answers to these questions are still unclear. Benzodiazepine concentrations in the blood have been measured and shown to reach undetectable levels in 3-4 weeks after cessation of use in people withdrawn from clinical doses. Information on benzodiazepine concentrations in the brain and other tissues is difficult to obtain, especially in humans. Benzodiazepines certainly enter the brain and also dissolve in all fatty (lipid-containing) tissues including fat deposits all over the body. It is possible that they linger in such tissues for some time after blood levels have become undetectable. However, most body tissues are in equilibrium with the blood that constantly perfuses them, and there is no known mechanism whereby benzodiazepines could be "locked up" in tissues such as the brain. There is no data on how long benzodiazepines remain in bones, which have a lower fat content but also a slower rate of cell turnover.

 

Nevertheless, the concentration of benzodiazepines remaining in body tissues after withdrawal must be very low, otherwise the drugs would leak back into the blood in discernible amounts. It is difficult to imagine that such concentrations would be sufficient to produce clinical effects or that any direct effects could last for months or years.

 

You should discuss with your doctor when you can begin to taper off the ativan.  I imagine he/she will say you can start as soon as you feel stable on the ativan and I would tend to agree. You have been going back and forth between those two benzos since you first came here and I know you want to do it right and be done with it.  Slow and steady, remember? 

[[sw...]]

Do some people take more than one benzo at a time....i have a friend on both klono and ativan sounds strange to me