I have been in Clonazepam 0.5mg TID for 18 years
My psychiatrist retired and I was left to find a replacement. It seems there are a majority of nurse practitioners these days taking patients as providers, many do not take insurance. I found a nurse practitioner with a very good educational background. I saw her in person and she renewed the medications I was in for 6 months. Next month we had a zoom meeting and she told me she wanted me off the Ambien and Clonazepam because I would get dementia or Alzheimer’s with long term use. She insisted I start tapering against my will. I had school phobia in grade school, began having depression symptoms in my 20’s, and in my late 20’s had two major panic attacks. I have been depressed with anxiety most of my adult life. I have been hospitalized twice because of this. I have never asked for an increase in dosage of Ambien or Clonazepam fur 18 years after I found a wonderful psychiatrist who was so good at medication management.
Now, tapering Ambien and Clonazepam I have started self mutilating by picking my fingers raw until they bleed. I can’t sleep at night, I have become socially phobic. I have become isolative and often think of suicide with no plan. I am 73 years old and I think it is so cruel to put me through this when all I want is to have quality of life, not quantity. I live with my husband in adult senior living which I have not adjusted to. Taking these meds away has decreased my desire to exercise and my endurance is decreasing. My new provider told me if I didn’t want to taper my medication that I should find a new one provider. I did manage to taper the Ambien but I am down to half of the Clonazepam and feel like I can’t go on. Please help me. I am on Paxil and Wellbutrin for depression but it is anxiety and insomnia making my life miserable. I am not the same person I was a year ago.
I feel miserable, she has destroyed any quality of life I had. I really don’t want to live anymore.
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Thank you, it is so logical. I agree, don’t start people on benzodiazepines today. They have other meds that help anxiety plus all the new modalities. But for someone who has been on them long term, taking them as prescribed, and not asking for increases in dosage, it is cruel to try to decease the dosage or stop prescribing them. When my psychiatrist retired is when I began to deteriorate physically, mentally and emotionally. I no longer want to live. The “system “has ruined the quality of my life, what little there was left with major depression and anxiety.
OMG sweetheart I feel so bad for you I wish I could help you. My prayers and thoughts are with you. You really should find a different Dr. What she's doing to you is just cruel and unfair. I'm so sorry, if you ever just want to chat you may private message me if you like.
My provider consulted with the psychiatrist and they decided to increase my Clonazepam to three times a day. It has taken me over a year+ to overcome their resistance, started by the first provider I saw. So today I decided to get off the Ambien and take Clonazepam TID. My Paxil dosage was also increased. It seems to be the only antidepressant that helps my drug resistant depression. Yay 😀