I've only taken it for less than a year but I have sisters who've taken it (lorazepam) for many years....and still take take the same dosage they started with and it's still very effective. Ambien is just as addictive and bad withdrawals but for some reason, it doesn't get the bad rap that benzos do. Sleep is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT!! And if something helps me get the sleep I need....that is helping my overall health.

As you know....Bad Anxiety is HORRIBLE!! So anything I can take that will help that is worth it to me. And sleep is also Sooooo important!! I would love to find something else for sleep that works good....but haven't so far. Because yes... I would love to take the lorazepam only occasionally so it works better. Good luck to you and wish me luck finding something else. Have you tried Lunesta or Trazodone? Or Unisom which is sold over the counter?

My heart goes out to you.... may I ask what daily dosage you take? I would think the higher dose you take, the harder withdrawal would be. Have you tried tapering down off of it?

What you’ve said is so true! Doctors should either stop prescribing or not allow refills. Took me two tries to get off lorazepam and so glad I’ve been successful.

I was able to taper off Klonopin - 1 mg after about 12 years of using 1mg every night for sleep. It was not easy, but I will never go back. I was a happy camper all the years I was on it, not aware of anything other than it worked great and I was able to sleep. Never increased the dose or took it during the daytime. Only when I was forced off of it because I was turning 65 did I even entertain the idea. The problem was, the doctor doing the taper minimized my reaction to getting off the medication. He did not offer anything else, and discharged me at the end of the taper, when the withdrawals were terrible. The taper was over 9 months, and at the end of it, I did not sleep much at all for another 9 months, trying everything behavioral, OTC meds, antihistamines, even cannabis gummies - which was the only thing that helped somewhat for awhile. A sleep medicine doctor finally affirmed my sleep problems were as damaging as any drug - chronic insomnia changes your brain and affects all aspects of your life. The side effects of chronic insomnia are similar to those of sleep meds - memory issues, increased falls, etc. Sleep is important, and if your brain won't allow you to sleep, then taking a medication is better. Lunesta works for me, thankfully, and I'm a better, less anxious person sleeping. She had an arsenal of drugs to try if it didn't work. Ambien caused increased anxiety for me. My advice would be to work with a Neurologist specializing in sleep. Allow your taper to be as gradual as you need it to be and understand that your brain is altered, yes, but our brains are amazingly adept at re-organizing through neuroplasticity. Norman Doidge has written some great books on the subject. Since Lunesta does not help with anxiety, I am able to use the behavioral tools I've learned and breathe through the anxiety. I stay active, and do things like birding and puzzling to keep my mind calm busy. Best of luck. I believe in you!