XANAX Support Blog: If you're tapering Xanax/alprazolam, join in the discussion!

[[Re...]]

[[...]]

I called my psych like right now and didn't wanna go to his office again. He says drowsiness is a sign that the Librium 10 mg is working, and wants me to start Remeron 7.5 mg tonight along with Librium 20 mg. I'm so so worried, how in heaven am I gonna let go of my daily 2.5- 3 mg Xanax fix (he wants me to quit TODAY). He's Czech-american, maybe they do the withdrawal thing differently in Europe. I'm still worried!

[[ma...]]

question I take alprazolam not xanax I know i have read that sometimes these meds will make you have more anxiety which I think may very well be happening to me one day i am fine the next awful,so is there a difference in these 2 i mean i know one is the generic brand but I also read that the generic can make it even worse? I am taking 1/2 of a 0.5mg every 4 hours 3 times a day steady for the last 4 days before that i was all over the place but never more than a pill and a 1/2 a day. It almost seems like it is making it worse as someone said on here,I go to my PCP Dr on Wednesday so I am wondering what to discuss with her. I did take one Celexa 20mg on day at 1pm felt great all day til i took a alprazolam at night to sleep and got this hot feeling with in minutes of taking it dr and pharmacist said no way related to the meds???should i try a SSRI don't really want to but at the end of my rope with feeling NERVOUS and JITTERY 24/7 and how will that react to the Alprazolam will i feel worse at first so many question and I feel you all are better to ask your experience since the dr will be like try this and who knows what will happen i am healthy no medical problems at all ever total cardiac work up a little over a year ago any suggestions what i should do would be great thanks

[[ma...]]

I called my psych like right now and didn't wanna go to his office again. He says drowsiness is a sign that the Librium 10 mg is working, and wants me to start Remeron 7.5 mg tonight along with Librium 20 mg. I'm so so worried, how in heaven am I gonna let go of my daily 2.5- 3 mg Xanax fix (he wants me to quit TODAY). He's Czech-american, maybe they do the withdrawal thing differently in Europe. I'm still worried!

 

Is there a reason you aren't doing a slow taper from your xanax?

[[VC...]]

Benzy, the adrenaline surges all last year caused me to lose appetite, have nausea, and lost 25 lbs. I'm still not crazy about food so much.

 

Wish someone could help me. I woke up at 4:30 am again, this time could not fall back asleep. Slept 1:10am - 4:30 am...not so good. About to cry, I'm so tired.

 

Also, I need to ask again...are these constant irregular heartbeats on my BP machine benzo w/d?? Or is this just adrenal exhaustion and HPA axis problems? Are they one and the same? How in the world am I ever gonna find a doctor to help me? Some of those here weren't on benzos that long, I've been on them for over a dozen years, prn and everything in between. Guess I'm freaking out again. I can't keep going like this. The chiro/health coach is trying to get me set up with adrenal supps, but I'm afraid it'll worsen everything. Plus, I just read we shouldn't take hormones if our HPA axis is messed up, and I'm on a patch and progesterone. Crap. I don't have money to keep looking around for doctors. I'm so afraid, so exhausted, so abandoned by family and people who don't understand how sick I feel. I've been walking like this since last January (2013)....all year, with little let up.

 

Somebody help - if you can. Is it true that most folks never reach a stabile benzo dose, that it's either up-dose or taper through the w/d? Again, if anyone's around this morning, my question continues to be - are these adrenaline surges a part of benzo w/d or are my adrenals just wrecked, period?  Bear in mind this didn't just start happening...it was periodic all last year since Jan. If my doctor can't figure it out, what in the world am I supposed to do....

 

Messed up my dosing already. Was gonna tweak my dosing schedule from 10 pm & 1 pm ...to try for more stability (with these irregular heartbeats and BP surges). But goofed. Meant to split 0.50 into 1/4ths and take TWO smaller dosings (0.125mg) at 10 am & 4 pm, save 0.5mg for the usual bedtime dose (10pm).  I screwed up and took 0.25 just now. OMG. I so wish someone would help me. Only slept 3 hours. Panicky. Depressed. Worried. BP up 165/93 & pulse is 60 (irregular). Thanks for bearing with me.

[[ma...]]

No other than dr wanted me on celexa I am not sure weather to do that or not? And she wanted me to stabilize in the xanax since I have been all over with it. Won't I feel worse if I taper now? Or not at this dose so confused on what to do what to take just want to feel like Myself again thanks

[[Ju...]]

 

Wish someone could help me. I woke up at 4:30 am again, this time could not fall back asleep. Slept 1:10am - 4:30 am...not so good. About to cry, I'm so tired.

 

Also, I need to ask again...are these constant irregular heartbeats on my BP machine benzo w/d?? Or is this just adrenal exhaustion and HPA axis problems? Are they one and the same? How in the world am I ever gonna find a doctor to help me? Some of those here weren't on benzos that long, I've been on them for over a dozen years, prn and everything in between. Guess I'm freaking out again. I can't keep going like this. The chiro/health coach is trying to get me set up with adrenal supps, but I'm afraid it'll worsen everything. Plus, I just read we shouldn't take hormones if our HPA axis is messed up, and I'm on a patch and progesterone. Crap. I don't have money to keep looking around for doctors. I'm so afraid, so exhausted, so abandoned by family and people who don't understand how sick I feel. I've been walking like this since last January (2013)....all year, with little let up.

Since all of the symptoms that you are having are very common to benzo withdrawal, this is what it sounds like to me -- but of course, I'm no doctor.  As you know, benzos cause HPA axis problems in many people.  I know very little about this type of problem, but I probably had the problem too and just didn't know the cause.  My heart acted up at night.  I also got the AM uglies, but as the day moved forward, I felt better.  The thing is that we who are accustomed to taking medication for these types of problems, believe doctors can prescribe something to help us.  That might be true in some cases.  However, the main cure for what is wrong with us is to get safely off of the benzo and wait for healing.

 

I could list a group of symptoms a mile long that I was having the last little while I was taking Xanax and even more symptoms were added to the list as I tapered.  After researching, I made the decision that my problems were due to the Xanax.  A doctor did not diagnose me with Xanax problems. I did, lol.  I was right because everything, (and I mean 99% of it all), has now cleared up at 8 months off.

 

I believe the important thing for you right now is to get as stable as possible.  If I was unable to stabilize on Xanax, I would consider a slow Valium cross over.  I would probably do my very best to avoid Klonopin. US doctors seem to love Klonopin.  But even the Ashton Manual speaks of the difficulty of tapering Klonopin.  The smallest tablet regular Klonopin comes in is .5.  The tablets are also very, very hard and difficult to cut.  For these reasons, I would push for Valium if I decided it was best to cross over.  There are however, no guarantees that a cross over will help a person feel better.  For this reason, I didn't even consider this in my case.

 

You asked about Melatonin a few posts back.  I regularly took Melatonin when I decided to taper down from 6 mg to 3 prior to starting my taper.  Regular Melatonin did not seem to help me much, but a brand called Melatonix did.  This was available on drugstore.com.

 

As far as the hormones, we have a member named Diaz-Pam who knows a lot about hormones.  She posts on the Valium support thread.  You might consider posting on that thread and asking her about hormones and benzos.  I believe that I know enough that if I were taking hormones prior to starting a taper, and I was not stable, I do not believe I would stop taking them.

 

I wish I could help you more. 

 

 

[[ma...]]

question I take alprazolam not xanax I know i have read that sometimes these meds will make you have more anxiety which I think may very well be happening to me one day i am fine the next awful,so is there a difference in these 2 i mean i know one is the generic brand but I also read that the generic can make it even worse?

I am taking 1/2 of a 0.5mg every 4 hours 3 times a day steady for the last 4 days before that i was all over the place but never more than a pill and a 1/2 a day. It almost seems like it is making it worse as someone said on here,I go to my PCP Dr on Wednesday so I am wondering what to discuss with her. I did take one Celexa 20mg on day at 1pm felt great all day til i took a alprazolam at night to sleep and got this hot feeling with in minutes of taking it dr and pharmacist said no way related to the meds???should i try a SSRI don't really want to but at the end of my rope with feeling NERVOUS and JITTERY 24/7 and how will that react to the Alprazolam will i feel worse at first so many question and I feel you all are better to ask your experience since the dr will be like try this and who knows what will happen i am healthy no medical problems at all ever total cardiac work up a little over a year ago any suggestions what i should do would be great thanks

 

I can pretty much only take Greenstone generic. Although people report good luck with Sandoz. You have to call around to your LOCAL, mom n pop type pharmacies to find the good generics usually. CVS, etc usually carries the cheapest. You can also have your dr. write a rx for XANAX non-generic but you'll pay out the nose for it. Do some google searches. A lot of people have pretty strong opinions about what generic works for them. What brand are you using now?

 

I'd suggest taking your dose every 4-6 hours, minimum amount bearable. I think you are having interdose withdrawals. Half life of Xanax is 6 hrs.  A signature in your profile would help us understand your situation better. I'm having to updose quite a bit before tapering. It's the like drug just stopped working and made me deathly ill. Bonus!  I had to almost double my usual dosage, and then tweak it from there. I'm finding smaller doses every 4-5 hrs not exceeding .80mg daily is working out not too badly for me. Like Mrsalw says, stable will be where it's consistent for at least a week, even if consistent is icky. Then you can taper. A lot of us do forget, myself included, that this is a drug your body gets used to. You have to up your dose to feel relief. And xanax is the strongest, fastest and leaves the quickest. No wonder people cross to Valium, more mellow and lasts longest.

 

You said you tried a celexa but don't want to take SSRIs? That is an SSRI. I wouldn't tangle with adding that, personally. You aren't depressed, you are in benzo withdrawals. That would just be one more brain chemical changing drug to taper off of. You don't need more drugs in your system.

 

I'd updose a bit, dose more often, give it 2-3 days and see if you can stabilize on that. Then start your slow taper from there. The only thing I'd talk to the dr about is tapering and seeing if they would support a Valium crossover if necessary.

 

Good luck!

 

 

 

[[ho...]]

Benzy, the adrenaline surges all last year caused me to lose appetite, have nausea, and lost 25 lbs. I'm still not crazy about food so much.

 

Wish someone could help me. I woke up at 4:30 am again, this time could not fall back asleep. Slept 1:10am - 4:30 am...not so good. About to cry, I'm so tired.

 

Also, I need to ask again...are these constant irregular heartbeats on my BP machine benzo w/d?? Or is this just adrenal exhaustion and HPA axis problems? Are they one and the same? How in the world am I ever gonna find a doctor to help me? Some of those here weren't on benzos that long, I've been on them for over a dozen years, prn and everything in between. Guess I'm freaking out again. I can't keep going like this. The chiro/health coach is trying to get me set up with adrenal supps, but I'm afraid it'll worsen everything. Plus, I just read we shouldn't take hormones if our HPA axis is messed up, and I'm on a patch and progesterone. Crap. I don't have money to keep looking around for doctors. I'm so afraid, so exhausted, so abandoned by family and people who don't understand how sick I feel. I've been walking like this since last January (2013)....all year, with little let up.

 

Somebody help - if you can. Is it true that most folks never reach a stabile benzo dose, that it's either up-dose or taper through the w/d? Again, if anyone's around this morning, my question continues to be - are these adrenaline surges a part of benzo w/d or are my adrenals just wrecked, period?  Bear in mind this didn't just start happening...it was periodic all last year since Jan. If my doctor can't figure it out, what in the world am I supposed to do....

 

Messed up my dosing already. Was gonna tweak my dosing schedule from 10 pm & 1 pm ...to try for more stability (with these irregular heartbeats and BP surges). But goofed. Meant to split 0.50 into 1/4ths and take TWO smaller dosings (0.125mg) at 10 am & 4 pm, save 0.5mg for the usual bedtime dose (10pm).  I screwed up and took 0.25 just now. OMG. I so wish someone would help me. Only slept 3 hours. Panicky. Depressed. Worried. BP up 165/93 & pulse is 60 (irregular). Thanks for bearing with me.

 

Hi There,

I'm so sorry you are feeling so awful. I have a couple of suggestions...

 

First, blood pressure readers are AWFUL at deciphering a regular/irregular heart rhythm. You simply cannot trust them. I have dealt with arrhythmias since 2002 and have even had two heart surgeries to correct them. I used to be obsessive about checking my BP as it was very low and it frequently would freak me out because it would show irregular beats. In working with 4 different cardiologists they have all told me the same thing...those machines are great at reading bp but do not rely on them for rhythm-they will give a false irregularity about 50 percent of the time. You can also have benign PVCs (extra beats) and it will show up-everyone has several of these everyday. So my recommendation would be to stop using this. I think you are causing yourself undo stress with it. If you are feeling like you are having arrhythmias or your rate is surging about 120bpm then I'd go to the doc and/or try some natural supplements to treat this. Otherwise, just breathe and relax about this. Also, just about every person on here has heart "funkiness" from Xanax. It is a very common symptom. Because Xanax messes with our nervous system all the issues you speak of are common in w/d and even prior to w/d due to tolerance. Benzos alter the HPA Axis, they mess with heart rate and rhythm, they cause fluctuations in blood pressure, they cause adrenal surges. Just about anyone in tolerance or w/d will test wacky with all of these. The solution is to get off the drug. For me that was the only thing that worked. In my opinion, all of these issues are just symptoms of the benzo and so trying to treat them is just putting a bandaid on and not treating the root issue. I hope that makes sense. Hang in there. All this is temporary. If I were you, I'd map out a slow, strategic, taper and just get going.  I had to tell myself everyday, the only way out is through!

Hang in there!

Hopeful Girl

[[ho...]]

Thank you everyone for the positive and encouraging posts in response to my update. Man these waves are still so nasty and so I reread my own post and all of yours several times last night to remind myself of my own healing! You all are a gift to me and such an important part of my recovery. I'm off to see a client. Thank you to each of you who also PM'd me. I don't have time to respond now but know it is much appreciated and touches my heart! 

 

Love,

 

hopefulgirl

[[Ju...]]

I called my psych like right now and didn't wanna go to his office again. He says drowsiness is a sign that the Librium 10 mg is working, and wants me to start Remeron 7.5 mg tonight along with Librium 20 mg. I'm so so worried, how in heaven am I gonna let go of my daily 2.5- 3 mg Xanax fix (he wants me to quit TODAY). He's Czech-american, maybe they do the withdrawal thing differently in Europe. I'm still worried!

Hi ashh. 

 

I would NOT stop my full dose of Xanax.  Also, Remeron is NOT a substitution for a benzo.  The amount of Librium that your doctor gave you is minuscule and NO WHERE NEAR the equivalency you would need for a cross over from 2.5-3mg of Xanax, according to the Ashton Manual.  Librium is a good benzo for a cross over, but it is much, much weaker than Valium. 

 

25mg of Librium equals .5mg of Xanax according to the Ashton Manual.

 

2.5mg of Xanax equals 125mg of Librium

3mg of Xanax equals 150mg of Librium

 

So you can see, the 20mg of Librium that your doctor gave you is but a 'tiny drop in the bucket' of what you would need to do a proper cross over.  Plus, cross overs must be done slowly, in stages to be successful, usually, according to Ashton.

 

Can you continue to get the Xanax until you convince your doctor of the equivalencies or find another doctor?

[[ma...]]

I did add a signature hope it works. I have been in xanax for a year never more than a pill and 1/2 of the 0.5 mg now dr wants me taking a pill in am then a 1/2 at noon and a 1/2 at night I did this and felt awful so I just don't know do I stick to that of take some through out the day and tapering off not sure i feel worse then when I started. How do I get thaws nerves under control I know they will push a ssri and like u said my only symptom is nervousness a year ago I did have anxiety when I drove but that seems to under control now it's just I can't function daily with out freaking out about little things can't stand to listen to kids argue so on edge dr just don't understand

[[ma...]]

I did add a signature hope it works. I have been in xanax for a year never more than a pill and 1/2 of the 0.5 mg now dr wants me taking a pill in am then a 1/2 at noon and a 1/2 at night I did this and felt awful so I just don't know do I stick to that of take some through out the day and tapering off not sure i feel worse then when I started. How do I get thaws nerves under control I know they will push a ssri and like u said my only symptom is nervousness a year ago I did have anxiety when I drove but that seems to under control now it's just I can't function daily with out freaking out about little things can't stand to listen to kids argue so on edge dr just don't understand

 

Try to just take the .75 spread out a bit more. Like every 5-6 hrs. Holding the bigger split for whenever you feel worse. You know those pills never cut equally! The mornings and afternoons are a nightmare for me; so more often, bigger dose then.

 

I'm sorry that the dr gave you a crazy strong drug for mild driving anxiety that probably could've been helped with some CBT/therapy. And now pushing an SSRI? Because the dumb xanax is what's making you nervous? Lord help us!

 

You need to give the new dosing a few days. It's so hard, I know because I'm going through it myself. But your body will adjust. Then you'll feel a bit more stable and you will be able to work on a taper. Long long walks seem to help for me very much when I am feeling anxious and jittery.  Hopefully you have a support system of people around you who can help. I don't know where I'd be without my husband.

 

[[ma...]]

Thank you an I am the type if person to look up what drug reviews are but I felt so bad I did not xanax til after the fact dr also said tapering .75 will not be hard sunce it is a small dose so take a 1/2 pill every 5-6 I am worse in the am and through the day nights are ok usually lol thanks again

[[VC...]]

Juliea, thanks. Here's my other question, though:

 

<<Is it true that most folks never reach a stabile benzo dose, that it's either up-dose or taper through the w/d?>>

 

Not sure my new primary doc will want to prescribe Valium for crossover, and since I think I remembering you saying it builds in the tissue anyway, I was willing to stick with alprazolam/xanax. I still can't believe my PRN dosing messed me up so bad...I had done so well at times last year although insomnia was always a problem.

 

I'm tired of waking up and going to sleep with all this crap on my mind. My husband threatened to call the white coats on me when I had a meltdown again awhile ago....I'd laugh, but it's not funny. He says I'm paranoid, which feels like minimizing my experience (no support here).  :'(

 

THanks for your response. I really am feeling a lot of anger towards doctors right now. Don't know who to trust.

 

 

[[VC...]]

Hopefulgirl,

 

Thanks for your kind note. You're right, the BP machine is stressing me out. My husband's readings never show irregularity, though. Part of my anxiety is from having A-fib so I do recognize the symptoms, although my cardiologist said you could still have A-fib with lower heart rate. Last year my heart rate went to 160-180...BP machine just confirmed it. (I'm on medication for A-fib). Scared these irregularities may lead to something worse - that's all. The doctor told me to keep a log/reading. What I've noticed is that the irregular HR only happens when my BP goes up. I see a pattern, so I don't think the machine is wrong. In some ways the BP machine is useful for a type of bio-feedback. If I stop, rest, do my calming adrenal exercises (breathing from the belly slowly) I can usually help lower the BP and the arrhythmia stops. So the BP machine  reminds me to do that. But on my worse days, I get stuck in panic when I might otherwise shake it off.

 

I don't plan to stop my bio-hormones just yet but I've read with adrenal exhaustion you shouldn't be on them. But here I am.

 

Yes, ready to taper, not sure when. Still not feeling stable. Seems I should've just stuck with my bedtime dose and rode it out...this adding doses is just making things worse. Think I'm gonna go back to bed. THanks again,

Hopefulgirl. Hope you're doing well today. - VCharis

[[Ju...]]

question I take alprazolam not xanax I know i have read that sometimes these meds will make you have more anxiety which I think may very well be happening to me one day i am fine the next awful,so is there a difference in these 2 i mean i know one is the generic brand but I also read that the generic can make it even worse? I am taking 1/2 of a 0.5mg every 4 hours 3 times a day steady for the last 4 days before that i was all over the place but never more than a pill and a 1/2 a day. It almost seems like it is making it worse as someone said on here,I go to my PCP Dr on Wednesday so I am wondering what to discuss with her. I did take one Celexa 20mg on day at 1pm felt great all day til i took a alprazolam at night to sleep and got this hot feeling with in minutes of taking it dr and pharmacist said no way related to the meds???should i try a SSRI don't really want to but at the end of my rope with feeling NERVOUS and JITTERY 24/7 and how will that react to the Alprazolam will i feel worse at first so many question and I feel you all are better to ask your experience since the dr will be like try this and who knows what will happen i am healthy no medical problems at all ever total cardiac work up a little over a year ago any suggestions what i should do would be great thanks

I have taken both regular and generic Xanax, including many different brands of the generic.  I noticed no difference between the generics and brand name.  I don't know what is happening in your case.  I did not use any adjunct meds during my taper, so I can't speak to any advantages of adding another med.

 

When I was in tolerance withdrawal, I sometimes did not feel better when I dosed.  The only thing that helped me was a slow taper off.  Xanax can make us feel like we are a rapid cycling bipolar person when we are not.  Feel ok one hour, awful the next and then back to being ok.  If someone asked me how I felt during my taper, I always said all I can tell you is for this minute, the next minute things may completely change.

[[mr...]]

When I was in tolerance withdrawal, I sometimes did not feel better when I dosed.  The only thing that helped me was a slow taper off.  Xanax can make us feel like we are a rapid cycling bipolar person when we are not.  Feel ok one hour, awful the next and then back to being ok.  If someone asked me how I felt during my taper, I always said all I can tell you is for this minute, the next minute things may completely change.

 

I will second Juliea here, Mar...she puts it perfectly.

[[ma...]]

question I take alprazolam not xanax I know i have read that sometimes these meds will make you have more anxiety which I think may very well be happening to me one day i am fine the next awful,so is there a difference in these 2 i mean i know one is the generic brand but I also read that the generic can make it even worse? I am taking 1/2 of a 0.5mg every 4 hours 3 times a day steady for the last 4 days before that i was all over the place but never more than a pill and a 1/2 a day. It almost seems like it is making it worse as someone said on here,I go to my PCP Dr on Wednesday so I am wondering what to discuss with her. I did take one Celexa 20mg on day at 1pm felt great all day til i took a alprazolam at night to sleep and got this hot feeling with in minutes of taking it dr and pharmacist said no way related to the meds???should i try a SSRI don't really want to but at the end of my rope with feeling NERVOUS and JITTERY 24/7 and how will that react to the Alprazolam will i feel worse at first so many question and I feel you all are better to ask your experience since the dr will be like try this and who knows what will happen i am healthy no medical problems at all ever total cardiac work up a little over a year ago any suggestions what i should do would be great thanks

I have taken both regular and generic Xanax, including many different brands of the generic.  I noticed no difference between the generics and brand name.  I don't know what is happening in your case.  I did not use any adjunct meds during my taper, so I can't speak to any advantages of adding another med.

 

When I was in tolerance withdrawal, I sometimes did not feel better when I dosed.  The only thing that helped me was a slow taper off.  Xanax can make us feel like we are a rapid cycling bipolar person when we are not.  Feel ok one hour, awful the next and then back to being ok.  If someone asked me how I felt during my taper, I always said all I can tell you is for this minute, the next minute things may completely change.

 

Amen to that! You described exactly how I feel.

[[Bl...]]

Thank you everyone for the positive and encouraging posts in response to my update. Man these waves are still so nasty and so I reread my own post and all of yours several times last night to remind myself of my own healing! You all are a gift to me and such an important part of my recovery. I'm off to see a client. Thank you to each of you who also PM'd me. I don't have time to respond now but know it is much appreciated and touches my heart! 

 

Love,

 

hopefulgirl

You are healing. Soon there will be more windows than waves

 

Blue

[[Ju...]]

Juliea, thanks. Here's my other question, though:

 

<<Is it true that most folks never reach a stabile benzo dose, that it's either up-dose or taper through the w/d?>>

I started my taper having tolerance withdrawals.  And yes, I have read many people say that when starting in tolerance, a person will stay feeling really bad all the way down.  However, this was definitely not the case with me.  I believe that if the benzos are slowly removed, that this forces the body to begin the up regulation process with the GABA receptors.  At least this was the case with me.  So, I did not begin my taper at a point of real stability and I was able to regain the stability as I slowly lowered my dose.  My experience may be unusual, I'm not certain.  But Bart, (a member who I respect a great deal), said that my cut rate closely matched my healing rate and this is why I felt better as I got lower in dose.

 

I was not wiling to up dose since I knew that I'd only have to taper off of that dose increase.  I was willing to taper having started in tolerance if this is what it took to get off of the benzo.  It just didn't work out that the lower I got the worse I felt, in my case.  I felt better as I slowly got lower.

 

Tolerance is something that happens before we begin to reduce our dose.  It happens when we are on a steady dose of a benzo, (and begin to have withdrawals even though we have not reduced our dose).  Some people can take a benzo for a very long time and never become tolerant to their regular dose.  After a taper has begun, tolerance withdrawals become known as regular withdrawals.  All of this is just semantics.  I believe as-needed dosing and frequent dose changes can cause tolerance problems.  This is what finally happened to me.

 

There is no firm answer to your question that I have.

 

 

Not sure my new primary doc will want to prescribe Valium for crossover, and since I think I remembering you saying it builds in the tissue anyway.

 

I would certainly not let that deter me if I felt interdose withdrawal was a major concern for me that could not be alleviated by breaking up my dose of Xanax.  This is just Valium's mechanism of action, (building up in tissue).

 

I believe that in another post you asked about a GABA supplement?  Not certain it was you.  From what I understand supplementing GABA will not help.  It's our GABA receptors that are messed up from benzo use.  We likely have plenty of GABA floating around in our bodies with nothing to bind to, because GABA binds to a GABA receptor.  Adding a GABA supplement is like pouring gas on a closed gas lid, from what I have read.  None of the gas, (GABA), will be able to get to the engine, (the malfunctioning GABA receptor).

 

[[Be...]]

VCharis,, maybe you read the same thing I did once... it said "stabilize" isnt a word we should use during withdrawal/tapering simply because "technically" it doesnt apply... because in tapering/withdrawals things are always changinig....

 

we can however "level out" at different points where we need to, like after cutting we wait until things level out awhile before proceeding... we just always use the word stabilize because we know what each other is meaning....

 

as far as the adrenal surges, you said its been going on awhile, do you mean pre-benzo?

I have what I can only describe as adrenal surges, but I dont know if thats the correct term either, Ive always had them, mostly at night while trying to go to bed, its like a full body "zoom" is what I always called it,,, I think it must be what it feels like to go through a time warp or something, tickles, but it tickles to the point of not being enjoyable at all, mostly starts somewhere low in the body but within a second it goes all over, ending up in my brain it feels like, with a big "vVVVVVooooMMM".... kinda like a "lights out" feeling, then its over....its never hurt me....

 

ps. I guess if ones in bad tolerance they say you never "stabilize" as you taper,, but I was in tolerance and I got mucho better and better as I tapered, at about the 3 or 4th  cut.....

[[VC...]]

Juliea, thanks. Here's my other question, though:

 

<<Is it true that most folks never reach a stabile benzo dose, that it's either up-dose or taper through the w/d?>>

I started my taper having tolerance withdrawals.  And yes, I have read many people say that when starting in tolerance, a person will stay feeling really bad all the way down.  However, this was definitely not the case with me.  I believe that if the benzos are slowly removed, that this forces the body to begin the up regulation process with the GABA receptors.  At least this was the case with me.  So, I did not begin my taper at a point of real stability and I was able to regain the stability as I slowly lowered my dose.  My experience may be unusual, I'm not certain.  But Bart, (a member who I respect a great deal), said that my cut rate closely matched my healing rate and this is why I felt better as I got lower in dose.

 

I was not wiling to up dose since I knew that I'd only have to taper off of that dose increase.  I was willing to taper having started in tolerance if this is what it took to get off of the benzo.  It just didn't work out that the lower I got the worse I felt, in my case.  I felt better as I slowly got lower.

 

Tolerance is something that happens before we begin to reduce our dose.  It happens when we are on a steady dose of a benzo, (and begin to have withdrawals even though we have not reduced our dose).  Some people can take a benzo for a very long time and never become tolerant to their regular dose.  After a taper has begun, tolerance withdrawals become known as regular withdrawals.  All of this is just semantics.  I believe as-needed dosing and frequent dose changes can cause tolerance problems.  This is what finally happened to me.

 

There is no firm answer to your question that I have.

 

 

Not sure my new primary doc will want to prescribe Valium for crossover, and since I think I remembering you saying it builds in the tissue anyway.

 

I would certainly not let that deter me if I felt interdose withdrawal was a major concern for me that could not be alleviated by breaking up my dose of Xanax.  This is just Valium's mechanism of action, (building up in tissue).

 

I believe that in another post you asked about a GABA supplement?  Not certain it was you.  From what I understand supplementing GABA will not help.  It's our GABA receptors that are messed up from benzo use.  We likely have plenty of GABA floating around in our bodies with nothing to bind to, because GABA binds to a GABA receptor.  Adding a GABA supplement is like pouring gas on a closed gas lid, from what I have read.  None of the gas, (GABA), will be able to get to the engine, (the malfunctioning GABA receptor).

 

 

Okay, 10-4 on the GABA. Won't do that...hehe. Your experience encourages me, though. I'll at least mention Valium for tapering to the new doc. He seemed compassionate enough but is checking out my other health issues while we wait on labs.

 

In case I didn't mention, my alprazolam use was PRN all these years, although certainly I took a daily dose for years. But last 2-3 years (that I can remember) it was very sporadic use, upping when my brother got sick/died, backing back down to minimal amounts just to sleep, occasionally increasing again - but never over 1 mg total; usually 0.5mg. So my job right now seems to just find a good stable-as-possible dose and stick with it a couple weeks, maybe 3, then begin dry cutting. THank you for helping me. Just wasn't sure if I should updose today due to the adrenal surges/irreg.heartbeats, or maybe it'll subside if I can hang with it. THANK YOU, Juliea. Your patience with me is so appreciated. I've started calming down but apparently my benzo brain keeps asking questions. 

[[Ju...]]

question I take alprazolam not xanax I know i have read that sometimes these meds will make you have more anxiety which I think may very well be happening to me one day i am fine the next awful,so is there a difference in these 2 i mean i know one is the generic brand but I also read that the generic can make it even worse? I am taking 1/2 of a 0.5mg every 4 hours 3 times a day steady for the last 4 days before that i was all over the place but never more than a pill and a 1/2 a day. It almost seems like it is making it worse as someone said on here,I go to my PCP Dr on Wednesday so I am wondering what to discuss with her. I did take one Celexa 20mg on day at 1pm felt great all day til i took a alprazolam at night to sleep and got this hot feeling with in minutes of taking it dr and pharmacist said no way related to the meds???should i try a SSRI don't really want to but at the end of my rope with feeling NERVOUS and JITTERY 24/7 and how will that react to the Alprazolam will i feel worse at first so many question and I feel you all are better to ask your experience since the dr will be like try this and who knows what will happen i am healthy no medical problems at all ever total cardiac work up a little over a year ago any suggestions what i should do would be great thanks

I have taken both regular and generic Xanax, including many different brands of the generic.  I noticed no difference between the generics and brand name.  I don't know what is happening in your case.  I did not use any adjunct meds during my taper, so I can't speak to any advantages of adding another med.

 

When I was in tolerance withdrawal, I sometimes did not feel better when I dosed.  The only thing that helped me was a slow taper off.  Xanax can make us feel like we are a rapid cycling bipolar person when we are not.  Feel ok one hour, awful the next and then back to being ok.  If someone asked me how I felt during my taper, I always said all I can tell you is for this minute, the next minute things may completely change.

 

Amen to that! You described exactly how I feel.

Mac, I thought I was losing my mind.  The anxiety was horrible.  Here, then gone, back again.  It was a vicious cycle.  I began seeing a CBT therapist and this did not help.  I even toyed with the idea of going inpatient because I thought I was going nuts.  It was the Xanax all along.  With Xanax we sometimes get a chemically induced anxiety that no matter how we try we cannot simply think or relax this away.  Soothing music helped a tiny bit and so did meditation.  Benzy likes the body scan meditation.  My only prayer for getting over this was my taper and it worked! 

[[Be...]]

I like the body scan meditation because when the withdrawals hit and Im by myself, my brain gets involved and takes it to a whole new level...

doing the body scan makes you calm down a bit, but mostly you go over your whole body and access better exactly how each part is feeling, and in the end I realize that I aint dying, and that its not really as bad as I thought, its do-able....

 

althought sometimes it still aint pleasant...