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Yes, the reason benzos are so insidious is that they almost invariably lose their effectiveness over time and require progressive increases in dosage, an unsustainable situation. Withdrawal then becomes necessary and extremely difficult, as I can attest. It's frustrating, and perhaps unconscionable, that many prescribing physicians have disregarded this problem. I would be wary of taking them as needed because many who start out under that protocol progress to daily use.
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I took 1mg of klonopin for 20 years and had no problem with tolerance. It worked for me. But as I age, and deal with autoimmune issues, getting off as many drugs as possible became necessary. I also had severe issues with antihypertensives, so cleaning up my diet and getting off of any drugs absolutely not necessary was essential.
I started taking a few nootropics that have helped me since tapering down to .5mg of klonopin. The withdrawals were horrible even going down .25mg at a time. .75mg was much easier to do than .50mg. And .25mg was an absolute nightmare.
I am back up to .5mg with a few nootropics and am feeling better than I have in a very long time. I want to stay comfortable for a while before trying to go down again from .5mg of klonopin.
Whether to take a benzo or not is a personal decision. Living a hellish existence inside is not worth it. Taking what we need to be comfortable and not "gorked" is healthy.
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@cperaino, I get all of the negatives, but there are quality of life issues if your are paralyzed by anxiety. I realize there are many other non-drug treatments for anxiety, but in my case, I need meditation, CBT, and a drug to hold off the demonic forces of mental health disease. I have a brother who has been on the same dosage of Ativan for about 20 years and it is still very effective for him. I am content to live five years less, if that is the end result, and being a happy, functional husband, Dad, and Grandpa. Others will choose to do otherwise and I am at ease with them making that decision. It sounds as if you have been through w/d and I guess that means you don't currently take a benzo? What have you found that allows you to slay the anxiety dragons, or at least hold them at bay?