was switched from ativan to xanax

[[ha...]]

The shaking is gone now its just the deep pit of depression i cant even get the natural stuff till christmas eve when we go to a bigger town we dont have it here,,im so depressed and i dont know if it wass the depakote i stopped i think it was sat night,,,,or maybe its the xanx im going to lose my hubby and im scared the drnurse wont call me back im sure she will tell me the same thing she told me yesterday...im having such problems concentrating i wonder if any of you could look up the 5htp and the gabba i would appreaciate it

[[ha...]]

my counsler had me start cymbalta today 30 mg at 2 pm im feeling very drowsy

[[Lo...]]

Petey, one of our Administrators also started on Cymbalta. I hope this one works better for you than the depakote. Please keep us updated. Hope you have a wonderful Christmas!

 

Lori

[[ha...]]

oh im  asick person shortly after taking the cymbalta my eyes got itchy and my throat started itching and my neck felt funy and im fulll of fear and my hands feel funny why do i always think im allergic to my meds

 

i was on it before i think this makes the 4th time for me to try it the first time i was on it it was a higher dose im just a sick person i called my pharmaist and he said you r not allergic u are just talking yourself into this

[[Be...]]

I believe your pharmacist is right, hazy.  You even said you had been on it several times before but weren't allergic then.  I think we talked about this before, but anxiety and panic can produce a lot of physical symptoms.  If you want to see a partial list again, I'll dig it up for you.  You do need to find a way to relax and get your mind off yourself.  The Cymbalta may take 2-3 weeks to be really effective so you need to give it a chance.  Continuing to change medicines every week or so has your body very confused. 

[[ha...]]

woke up this morning very anxious and confused my head is burning inside it on the upper left side and my skin seems to be burning from the inside out im scared and dont know what to do

[[Be...]]

Waking up anxious is very common, especially when withdrawing from benzos.  It's important to calm yourself and nip that in the bud or you will feel all kinds of unpleasant sensations.  Here is an article about morning anxiety...

 

"Yes, depression and anxiety are worse in the morning. That is when your body's cortisol level is the hightest(cortisol is stimulating) and that accounts for probably part of what you are feeling. Cortisol is the stress hormone, your body produces when you are under stress.

 

The paradox of stress/cortisol is that anxiety produces cortisol, which produces anxiety which produces more cortisol, which causes you to feel more anxious...etc....

 

Soon you find yourself in this never ending cycle of anxiety and depression.

 

What you must do to get well is ACCEPT your anxiety. You must ACCEPT your feelings and not try to fight them. Do this long enough and an interesting thing happens, the anxiety goes away."

 

Deanne Repich from her article Understanding Early Morning Anxiety says,

 

"Another reason why symptoms can be worse in the morning is because your blood sugar is low when you first wake up. You have gone all night without food.

 

It's important to maintain a constant blood sugar level because the brain uses sugar, also known as glucose, as its fuel. If blood sugar levels are too low or drop too fast, then the brain starts running out of fuel.

 

This causes the brain to trigger the "fight or flight" response. The "fight or flight" response sends a rush of adrenaline, cortisol, and other neurotransmitters through your body to prepare you to fight or flee the perceived threat (low fuel).

 

This process can trigger physical reactions ("symptoms") such as trembling, rapid heartbeat, sweating, panic attacks, fatigue, insomnia, mental confusion, nervousness, dizziness, and more."

 

[[ha...]]

you know i never had dinner last night and thn i couldnt eat breakfast because i had to go get my blood taken so it was noon before i ate today i was feeliing kinda faint and blamed it on the cymbalta...im still feeling out of it but i just dont have much appetite and i dont knw if i want to take the cymbalta as its christmas eve tommorwo and i dont want to feel out of it but i guess i should try it i do need something im so scared of meds and dwish i wasnt the cymbata also cause me tummy ache and my hubby wants to go out of town tommorw shopping so i need to feel the best i can

[[Be...]]

You could be experiencing low blood sugar from not eating.  You need eat even if you don't feel like it; food can be like medicine that you have to take to get well.  I would think your stomach could get upset taking pills without some food in it as well.  I hope you get out of the house and forget about your worries about your health for a while.  But eat a little something first, okay?

[[ha...]]

i did get out of the house this mornign had to go have blood taking and also wnet to medical dr as i feel like im getting a uti and he did a urine and said it showed a bit but he dint feel its too bad but wrote me a script and i get home and look it up and u cant take it (cipro) with cymbalta so i called pharmacy and he asked i fi have some  bactrim antibotic and i said yes and he said just take it if i get worse  u know my fear of pills so im trying to hang in there and not havve to take it and me and hubby will be going out when he gets home at 6 and of course he will get drunk so i need to feel ok so we dodnt argue and im still scared about taking the cymbalta

 

such is my life i need to get up and exercise

[[Be...]]

Good for you looking up the cipro!  You shouldn't take it with benzos either.  Bactrim should be okay, though.

 

Exercise is a very good idea.  I am so lazy about it.  I used to walk my dog but haven't walked since I had to put him down on Nov. 28th.  Do you do a set routine or walk or what?

 

I'm sorry to hear that you expect your husband get drunk when you go out.  I don't think I would do very good in that situation.  I hope he lets you drive home if he does get drunk. 

 

Good luck.

[[ha...]]

im still having such problmes and blame the xanx,i know i as never thsi depressed on the ativan does anyone else out there think the xanax could be making me feel worse becaue i know i wasnt this bad when i went to teh f]dr onnov 13 anad she switched me and i think the cymbalta is causing bad headaches and nausea,,,i need help and cant talk to hubby he is so fed up with me,,,,any ideas

[[ha...]]

and if dr switches me back will i need to taper off the xanax i wonder if thats been part of my problem i never tapered off the ativan?

[[Be...]]

im still having such problmes and blame the xanx,i know i as never thsi depressed on the ativan does anyone else out there think the xanax could be making me feel worse becaue i know i wasnt this bad when i went to teh f]dr onnov 13 anad she switched me and i think the cymbalta is causing bad headaches and nausea,,,i need help and cant talk to hubby he is so fed up with me,,,,any ideas

 

Hazyworld 

 

Benzos in general can cause depression but xanax isn't know to be any worse than any of the others.  For cymbalta to help your depression, you need to be on a therapeutic dose for 2-4 weeks or so.  Often times the side effects will lessen after  \you take it a few weeks but you should talk to your doctor if it becomes unbearable. 

 

I see that you are worrying again about whether you should have tapered when you were switched from ativan to xanax.  We have all told you repeatedly that there is no tapering involved when you switch from ativan to xanax.  That hasn't changed. 

 

How much xanax are you taking daily and when and how much was your last dose reduction?  It may be time for another cut.  You will feel better after you are off the benzo.

 

Hang in there.

[[ha...]]

Well i believe the xanx is making me horribly sick and its like drying me out also im having some breathing problmens i haven sleep good sincce being put n the xanax and my hubby is pissed because i have lost all interest in sex i was not thi way on ativan dr said she will research things and see but doubts she will switch me..im on 3 0.5 mg of xanax a day...i do have mild sleep apnea and i read where u shouldnt be on benzos if u have it but pharmaist said since im mild its ok  i was never this bad on ativan i need to get switcehd back and then see about geting off the ativan i haven ttaaken cymbalta in 3 days cause im scared of the bad headaches and nasea  any more ideas

[[ha...]]

Also very nausated every day and i havent taking the cymbalta in 3 days and major body soresness from being so uptight i guess,burning eyes low back pain u name it i got it

[[Be...]]

You didn't answer my question from my last post:

 

 

How much xanax are you taking daily and when and how much was your last dose reduction?  It may be time for another cut.  You will feel better after you are off the benzo.

 

Hang in there.

 

I believe that if you keep switching drugs or trying some for a few days and then dropping them, like the depakote and cymbalta, you will continue to feel worse.  All I have as advice is the same thing we all have been saying since you first joined as sweetpea: taper off the benzo.  The one good thing is you are on just one benzo now whereas you were on 2 when you started here.  Now you just have to get it down to -0-.

[[ha...]]

I am on 0.5 mg of xanax 3 times a day for about 2 weeks now,but i will be witching to ativan to try to get out of this pit and how i feel and i will then need to taper of it also,when i switch i dont know if i need to taper the xanax or just drop it and go on the ativan I know i need off these drugs  i dont even know what i was on when i posted as sweetpea my memory is that messed up

[[Be...]]

You were on xanax and klonopin.  Here's link back to your sweetpea thread for you and anyone else who is interested in your history:

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=8554.msg103964#msg103964

 

As far as switching back to ativan, as I said, I think it's a mistake but you do what you think is best for you.  Ativan stays in your system a little bit longer than xanax so 3x/day should work well. You wouldn't do any tapering while you are switching over to ativan.  BTW, ativan is much weaker than xanax so you may need to take more of it to feel the same effect.  Prof Ashton used .5mg = 1mg ativan with her patients.  Good luck.

[[ha...]]

I know u think itsa  mistake but if you knew how bad i feel since being on the xanax its nothing like i have felt before except last year may 07 when i started going off the xanax after all those years because it was making me feel this way and i ended up in the hospital the first time they said xanx is like poison to me i should never have eve thought it would work for me again so no taper off xanax while going on ativan

[[ha...]]

I was just told by two differnt phaymiests that it sounds like y problem is ativan withdrawlas even though im on xnax now im soscared and i feel there is no hope as dr in my town will not help me with my mental issues and i cant get out of town and my hubby thinks im just playing games will i die if it is withdrawlas i dont know what to do

[[Be...]]

You really need a doctor's support, hazy.  We are just regular people, not doctors, so all we can do is tell you how we got off benzos.  Withdrawal symptoms can be very uncomfortable and often cause a lot of fear but they are not life-threatening.  You can make yourself very ill by getting caught up in the fear; I know we've talked about this many, many times in the past.  I don't know what else I can tell you except I wish you well and hope you find the help you need. 

 

 

[[ha...]]

Ok how can i get off the darn things im off ativan and look how i am do u all feel like your dying

 

Could it be withdrawal from the ativan i have felt bad every since being switched I know you arent drs and i so apprecaite your advise

[[st...]]

Yup, it is the ativan.  Just continue to taper.

 

Patty  xo

[[ha...]]

Stoney you said yes its the ativan but all else on here said i wouldnt have withdrawals from it since i was put right on the xanx..i want off the xanax and back on the ativan because i was not so down on the ativan i fear im goiing crazy