I've been on Xanax since age 15 I'm 54 :( help

It works very well and that’s why we have been using it, sometimes I feel so frustrated and scared because it’s horrible to hear how many people are going through the same thing. Honestly if we analyzed most drugs they give to us it would be scary to hear what each medication has the potential to do but we still use them for help and doctors rarely do anything about it until it’s brought to our attention, this is compounded by the fact that they are so very addictive. I mentioned earlier that all the attention came out with benzodiazepines when the opioid addiction problems started, the poor people who were given this drug were told it wasn’t addictive but that was a lie and then the doctors had to reduce and even discontinue giving them to patients. Now we are hearing about all the suffering they are going through and even buying drugs online that are killing them. This is a proverbial nightmare that wasn’t their fault but they are the ones paying for it, my fear is that this sad situation will and is happening to the people who use benzodiazepines. We are told that we learn from our mistakes but this is one very big mistake and now we are hearing about it,

@frouke
I took the seizure medication Klonopin along with the powerful opiod fentanyl without any problems.
The benzodiazepines Midazolam, Lorazepam Valium and sometimes Klonopin are essential in the treatment of a potentially deadly seizure disorder known as status epilepticus. A condition which I've had numerous times.
Don't let the fact that opioids and benzodiazepines are often abused and the cause of their addiction. There are legitimate medical reasons to use these drugs.
Jake

I agree with you but both meds are highly addictive and usage escalates in both cases causing problems like overdose. My deepest sympathies go out to the many victims of opioid and the benzodiazepines that they treat you with are just as bad hence an epidemic of overdoses. It’s just a major injustice to treat addicted people with another highly addictive drug that is also creating another huge problem for those of us who use it, I have had personal experiences with these meds so I can speak for myself but if you look into benzodiazepines discussions you can get a clear idea of why I made my comment.

Hi...I know where you're coming from. I am in my 60's and have been on Xanax for almost 30 yrs. I wish they would NEVER have prescribed this....long story short, I was prescribed it because of panic attacks from taking me off another prescription. My situation should have been handled COMPLETELY different, but here I am and it is what it is. No ethical doctor will 'yank' this med from anyone....my God, you CAN die. Your system will 'speed up', your BP will go up & you could possible also have a heart attack. You would have to be very slowly weaned off, and not by yourself. Monitored carefully. That's a pretty big dosage. My prescription has been 0.5 mg., twice a day, so 1 mg. total daily, for all these yrs. Much lower than yours...I will more than likely stay on it. I have 2 sons and 6 grandchildren (2 passed away)....I want to be around for longer, also. If ANYTHING, you'd think maybe a dr. would suggest slowly reducing the dosage....VERY slowly, because you WILL go through withdrawal....which is of course, anxiety. It's hard. Many yrs. ago, a dr. prescribed Xanax to me....started out at a low dosage....I later found out that he was doing this with many women (one was a neighbor), he always attributed any problems we had to 'nerves'. Every time I left his office, I'd sit in my vehicle and look at the prescription he had written out.....every one of them would be MORE PILLS.....he always said to me, "Don't worry...if you need more, take more....if you can't sleep, take another one"....on & on. (he was nothing but a 'legal' drug dealer) I became addicted. How could I not? Yes.....some may say, well....it was up to me to take it or not....and that is true. BUT, I trusted him when he said I 'needed' it and that everything would be 'fine'. So did other women. MANY women! Well...we all eventually saw why he was doing this....to get more 'customers'....that's what we were....'customers'. I finally had it...I called him & asked him to please help me wean off of it. Do you know what he said? His exact words...."Uh...there's a nurse waving at me...I have to go." And....he hung up on me. My God, instead of weaning me off....he YANKED the prescription! Before I knew it, I had a call from my pharmacy...with another med. he had called in. I can't remember the name of it now....but they said he was prescribing it as a 'maintenance' drug....all I remember was that it was HORRIBLE. I was having tremors, horrendous anxiety, I was scared....called my neighbor, she went through withdrawal, also (he had been her dr., too)....but she said she wasn't on the huge dosage I was given. The reason he was prescribing all of this was to make more money and open his own practice, which he did. He didn't care what he did to people....he was only trying to 'get ahead'. He left a lot of people in limbo and in mental pain. I soon got a new Dr., I was still VERY anxious (shaking badly, almost crying) when I went in, told her the whole story, she was pissed & knew who he was, she was the one who put me on THIS dosage....it has remained the same, she retired 5 yrs. ago, after 15 yrs. going to her. Best Dr. I ever had! Like I said, wish I DIDN'T need it....on the other hand, she saved me. I was an emotional mess when I went in to her. She had said she would help me wean off the new prescription, if I ever wanted to....but what she prescribed me was a tiny fraction of what the other dr. had prescribed me. It's been a rough road. Wow....sorry, didn't mean to go on & on. Guess it just reminded me of what I went through because of a very unethical dr. My new dr. said it was a miracle I did not go into seizures, possibly have a heart attack, etc. But....it was HORRIBLE. Do you have any rehab centers close to you, where you could call & speak to someone about this? Maybe a center that takes regular insurance and Medicaid, also? Do you have any refills on your Xanax prescription now? I should scroll up and see, but am so tired....but also worried about you. Even a counselor at a rehab center can give you information (I called one)....maybe have you come in to see another dr., and he could do this in a very safe environment.....or even as an out-patient. You would not have to be COMPLETELY off of it, if you feel a small dosage would help you. You know how you feel....only you can know this. And, I very much agree with you.....to yank a prescription on Xanax on anyone IS murder....or it could be. I was lucky...I made it through. Please keep us updated....the dr. who did this to me should have been disbarred (sp.?), but he wasn't.....he made enough $$$$ on customers to open his own practice. I hope there is such a thing as Karma!! Take care now and let me know how you're doing....hugs!!

Sounds exactly like me - I turn 64 in 2 weeks & been on it since 2002 , my dosage is the the smallest there is -- My panic attacks have gotten worse & I have no idea what to do now - Nobody cares

I care , I'm getting ready to start a law suit , I have a case number and I'm gonna fight , I fighting for my right to stay on it no matter what state I'm in ,my current state started me on it 15 years ago I'm 55 so 40 years on xanex and I've been told by many different places I could die trying to come off of it ,this wasn't supposed to be addicting but obviously it is ,so my law suit is because no Dr will prescribe this to me which is why I travel 14 hrs 1 way every 3 months just to get it , I do care and I feel your concern,your anger and desperation , sending hugs 🤗 and I'll always chat if ya wanna talk

I have terrible anxiety and I have been on klonopin for many years and I am 57 . I am scared ! The small dose used to work and now I need to take more . Have you had any memory issues ? I also need a sleep benzo . My husband has cancer and I can’t get through this terrible feeling . I have terrible health anxiety. 😢

I care , I'm getting ready to start a law suit , I have a case number and I'm gonna fight , I fighting for my right to stay on it no matter what state I'm in ,my current state started me on it 15 years ago I'm 55 so 40 years on xanex and I've been told by many different places I could die trying to come off of it ,this wasn't supposed to be addicting but obviously it is ,so my law suit is because no Dr will prescribe this to me which is why I travel 14 hrs 1 way every 3 months just to get it , I do care and I feel your concern,your anger and desperation , sending hugs 🤗 and I'll always chat if ya wanna talk