I am on .125 after a long time coming down to that dose. I am getting ready to jump after Christmas. I have taken some time off of work to be able to cope a little better, I hope it does not take more than a few weeks for the initial side affects and I hope 2 months is all it takes. I am also on 20 mg of Lexapro, so I hope that helps with the enxiety after the first 2 weeks. I expect to be resturn back to work after 10 days. Does any one have any experience with comming off completely and taking lexapro as well???/
That is completely completely wrong. I have found as many pepple have mentioned that doctors are full of c**p.The doctor I had said the same thing and thought there was a smaller dose but found that .5 was the lowest. She did not mention to me that I could go to a compound pharmacy. .5 is way to high to jump off. I would go back to .250 daily and give it 3-4 weekd to level off. Then go to .125 using a compound pharmacy, and then go think about jumping off after about a month. You could go even lower. 062 if you feel like it. Most people are ready to get off and lower dosages will not give you big benifit from jumping at .125. I got off of Effexor many years ago and almost lost my life. I had to go in to the hospital and they put me on kolonopin which is a even more pain the in ass to get off, which you don't realize until many years later and you have get off. To say the least, I have been fighting to keep my job. I pass many people in the downtown areas who are homeless and think to myself that could be me. I am jumping off after the holidays for good so I am almost there. I have been extremely lucky. For everyone out there trying to get off, please stay the course and never look back. Think how terrible it would be if you were on this stuff and something happen like a naturual or many made disaster that you could not get a perscription or to a pharmacy. it could happen very easily. In that case most people still on Kolonopin will not make it. They certianly would not be able to think their way out of a survival situation and would regretfully parish. If tyou mention this fear to a doctor, they will most likely lable you paranoid and try to give you another drug. Good luck and for god sakes, get off of this stuff.
I have been off of Klonopin for a year. Anyway, I was put on Zyprexa and now I read that is even more difficult to get off of than Klonopin....although, I can't imagine what could be worse!! I went through hell for many months coming off of klonopin, but I was taken off of 3 mg daily cold turkey in the hsp. I have lost all trust and faith with doctors. I am going to be seeing a new Psych/Doc next month and dread a new med coctail they may want to put me on. I think a lot of my anxiety actually came from being on Klonopin.....My nerves were worse while on it...weird huh? I will run for the hills if a doc every tries to get me to take a benzo again. I was on Klonopin and meds like it for 30 years. I am still going through memory problems and brain fog, etc.
Yes, I am not sure about long term dammage using Kolonopin. I have nt been running on all cylendars in the brain department. I know it is hell on the liver. I hope the brain functions come back to me over time. I do feel like after I get to the level off period between drops like I am now, I am more alert. I work in the IT field which is high pace and stressful, so not being on my game has been difficult. I a hoping the jump is not that back. I am going to use the the Road back method for the jump.
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. I am just so releived to be at this point. It has been tough. I throughing this stuff int he toilet and not looking back.
For me, Clonazepam (Klonopin) was a living hell while taking it and more of a hell to get off of it. It is a physical dependency and not so much a mental one which makes it 10 times worse to get off of it.
The first time I got off of it I was on it for about 2 years. I weaned and weaned to the point that I was down to a sliver a day and it is quite amazing what that sliver can do for a person who is addicted. I finally caught a major stomach flu and was down and out for 9 days and the flu killed all traces of Clonazepam in my body. I thanked god and swore I would never ever go back on it.
A few months later something had happened in my life (not a good excuse .... I know!) and I ran back to the Clonazepam and got readdicted for the second time for another 2 years. Of course I gave it up once again and weaned off it to the point of a sliver a day. But the withdrawls and anxiety when I finally took the last sliver was amazing. I was debilitated. Anxiety wouldn't allow me to brush my hair let alone go out of the house, among other physical withdrawals. I went to my Doctor and I told him I had major anxiety that was holding me back from doing everything in my life, (as the anxiety was about the number one concern for me.) I did not tell him that I weaned off clones and needed something to aleviate my distress, in fear I wouldn't get anything. He put me on 75 mg of Effexor for anxiety and I can tell you that Effexor is a wrecking ball for anxiety and withdrawals of Clonazepam. I haven't had a withdrawal symptom since the first week of taking Effexor.
I read quite a few posts about the "side effects" of coming off Effexor. People are complaining about the "so called" withdrawal symptoms of coming off Effexor and what they are saying about it is no different than coming off Paxil (which I came off of cold turkey) most antidepressants aren't addictive. They have side effects. No one knows addiction to a pill til they have felt the addiction of clonazepam among other pills out there. Antidepressants like Effexor and Paxil takes about 2 weeks to feel normal again and no chance of it ever lasting longer than that. It just isn't addictive. Point is, I would not want to feel the withdrawals of clones for a week let alone a year or more. I wouldn't be able to bare it and Effexor is a miracle for me.
I am off now for 4 days and feel great. I originally was at 2mg and went down most of the way with out any help. However, the good news is that i found the road back program and have been on the suppliments for 11 days. You start the suppliments 7 days before you go down or jump. In my case I jumped and went down to nothing on Chrismas night. I have had horriblye side affects before, but none on this system. I highly recommend it, but read the info before you do and make your own decision. I have also lost a good 10 lbs in 11 days. No problem sleeping, no anxuiety or aches and pains, and no brain zaps, all of which I had before. I feel great at day 4 and for everyone, trying to get off, you know that is a cruical point. Here is the link.
I felt great too for the first week and then got sick after it got out of my system. I have been off of it for 11 months and I am finally feeling the benefits of stopping. Now that I am off of it my anxiety is not as bad while on it...what supplements do you take ?
Just take it slow....it can be along process.
Check into the road back system. That may help.
JNK, which was the bases for the program, relax day and relax night. look in to the road back program.
The time frame that my Dr. suggested for getting off of Klonopin was way to short. Having experienced the symptoms of cold turkey withdrawal for 8 days, I know that it will take a LONG time. I was taking 2 or 4 MG a night for Restless Leg, and am now being switched to Gabapentin. Unfortunately the Dr. had me stepping down a MG at a time every week. I changed it to 1/4 MG every 4 weeks, and thats the point where I up my Gabapentin 100MG until I'm on 400 MG a night. Right now I'm taking 100 MG Gabapentin, and 2MG Klonopin every night. It's been that way for 2 weeks, and I notice some slight withdrawal symptoms, but not disabling.
Even .250 might be difficult. Before making that step, please look at the road back program. I have been there and will not do that again. If you take a week to take the suppliments before starting you niught be ok. I would consider .125 steps.
I've been on clonazapam for almost 10 years for anxiety. It got so bad that the last year I was prescribed to take 1-3mg/day everyday. Then I saw my doctor 2 months ago and she decides she'll only give me 1 month and I need to make an appointment which I've been trying to do for 2 months now. During this time I've been taking 1mg/day as instructed but 2 weeks ago I finally got an appointment for after the holidays but only had a few pills so I took .5mg/day for 5 days and have been off completely about a week. I've been having severe headaches, especially at night, when I close my eyes the room spins, loss of appetite, and just off. I have to go back to work in a week and after reading everything on here have no idea how to do it. How do you deal when you feel worse everyday and nothing takes the pain and sleeplessness away? I'm trying to find a new dr because mine apparently doesn't know how to ween me off.
I would surly try to find a new doc.