Using either CBD and/or THC during Clonazepam discontinuance

Posted by lisabass @lisabass, Mar 19, 2019

Hello Everyone - I’m presently tapering off of Clonazepam. I was taking 1mg twice a day for years. Over the course of the last several months, I have gradually moved down to 0.5 mg, once a day. My last decrement was two days ago and I am now feeling moderate discontinuation symptoms. Does anyone have experience and advice using either or both CBD and THC to help lessen the discomfort? My heart is racing. I am sweating have a headache, and my head is in some kind of fog. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

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I am currently withdrawing from clonazepam as well. I was originally on 2mg (1mg twice a day) and I'm down to just over 1mg in total, split into three times a day. Horrendous side effects like headache, flu-like feeling, extreme fatigue and the list goes on. Would be interested also if anyone has used CBD to help with the withdrawal symptoms. Good Luck with your taper. And thank you for bringing up this topic. Blessings

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how are u tapering off

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I am also tapering off clonazepam - presently at .25mg from 1mg at bedtime (occasional .5 if I woke at 2 or 3am). This last taper has been the worst by far. I'm sleeping poorly about half the time, sweating, jittery. My biggest frustration is that my psychiatrist offers nothing to help the problems that were managed with this medication for 20 years. I asked about CBD and he gave me a resounding no. He said it is intoxicating and will eventually make me more anxious. He gave me an antihistamine that doesn't help and offered a very low dose of Remeron, but that is an antidepressant and I am not depressed. It also causes weight gain, had to be taken every night and also requires a taper to get off of it. I am hoping these issues improve. His advice is to just rip the bandaid off and stop taking it now. I feel like I need to adjust to the dose and do a final taper at .0125mg.

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@falon

I am currently withdrawing from clonazepam as well. I was originally on 2mg (1mg twice a day) and I'm down to just over 1mg in total, split into three times a day. Horrendous side effects like headache, flu-like feeling, extreme fatigue and the list goes on. Would be interested also if anyone has used CBD to help with the withdrawal symptoms. Good Luck with your taper. And thank you for bringing up this topic. Blessings

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Wondering how long you tapered from 2 mg to 1? Months, weeks?

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I’m also taking Ativan for over 20 years, I take 0.5 mornings and bedtime…I stopped them twice when I hadn’t used them for long and it does work however it is not so easy anymore. I also use gummy’s with both THC and CBD, without them I don’t eat much and I’m thin, also I sleep better too. I feel like they work well with the Ativan instead of antidepressants. I’m not saying it works for everyone, it’s a slow process but aside from the cost I am glad I found something without my doctor..he is aware that I use this because you have to let them know what is in your system in case of interaction. We all have very similar problems give or take some differences and it’s a real challenge to find what helps you, before now I have never been online sharing information with other people and it has been mostly rewarding for me but I also feel tremendous sadness when I hear how many people are suffering and a lot of it is due to bad doctors and bad drugs, it’s seriously time for changes to provide better care for all of us. We all need hope because it helps us to persevere in life, amen.

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@frouke

I’m also taking Ativan for over 20 years, I take 0.5 mornings and bedtime…I stopped them twice when I hadn’t used them for long and it does work however it is not so easy anymore. I also use gummy’s with both THC and CBD, without them I don’t eat much and I’m thin, also I sleep better too. I feel like they work well with the Ativan instead of antidepressants. I’m not saying it works for everyone, it’s a slow process but aside from the cost I am glad I found something without my doctor..he is aware that I use this because you have to let them know what is in your system in case of interaction. We all have very similar problems give or take some differences and it’s a real challenge to find what helps you, before now I have never been online sharing information with other people and it has been mostly rewarding for me but I also feel tremendous sadness when I hear how many people are suffering and a lot of it is due to bad doctors and bad drugs, it’s seriously time for changes to provide better care for all of us. We all need hope because it helps us to persevere in life, amen.

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Hello. Cannabis based drugs for depression and anxiety are coming. Drug trials at major hospitals, in states that allow it, are, or have been done. After the presidential election, the federal laws regarding Cannabis will be changed, to allow these drugs.

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That’s good news for some…I know that there’s a lot of testing going on with cannabis, they need to know what it can interact with especially if you’re on meds..I don’t know what the future will hold for cannabis in our lives but it’s natural and classified as a weed, my concern is that they don’t start adding things to it otherwise it’s just another drug

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@con123

I am also tapering off clonazepam - presently at .25mg from 1mg at bedtime (occasional .5 if I woke at 2 or 3am). This last taper has been the worst by far. I'm sleeping poorly about half the time, sweating, jittery. My biggest frustration is that my psychiatrist offers nothing to help the problems that were managed with this medication for 20 years. I asked about CBD and he gave me a resounding no. He said it is intoxicating and will eventually make me more anxious. He gave me an antihistamine that doesn't help and offered a very low dose of Remeron, but that is an antidepressant and I am not depressed. It also causes weight gain, had to be taken every night and also requires a taper to get off of it. I am hoping these issues improve. His advice is to just rip the bandaid off and stop taking it now. I feel like I need to adjust to the dose and do a final taper at .0125mg.

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I was put on Clonaszepam over 40 years ago by a Doctor when I admitted myself to a clinic for a week for exaustion and depression and continure with help long distanse for two years due to a very nasty divorce. I've been told that I MUST continue this for the rest of my life or I will have serious reprocusions. I am still taking one tablet every night at bedtime and will continue forever. My persoanl physician understands this and I have no problems getting refills at the appropriate time. I am taking 2mgs.

At one point while fighting with the opposing attorneys I had to take 5 or 6 pills just to get through the trauma that I created. Happy to say I am down to one 2mg per day. Is sounds as though you are having withdrawal systems? Can you talk with your doctor about this?

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@olderdiva12345

I was put on Clonaszepam over 40 years ago by a Doctor when I admitted myself to a clinic for a week for exaustion and depression and continure with help long distanse for two years due to a very nasty divorce. I've been told that I MUST continue this for the rest of my life or I will have serious reprocusions. I am still taking one tablet every night at bedtime and will continue forever. My persoanl physician understands this and I have no problems getting refills at the appropriate time. I am taking 2mgs.

At one point while fighting with the opposing attorneys I had to take 5 or 6 pills just to get through the trauma that I created. Happy to say I am down to one 2mg per day. Is sounds as though you are having withdrawal systems? Can you talk with your doctor about this?

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There are very few doctors these days that will prescribe clonazepam. They all convince us it is a bad drug and we need to be off of it. I get it, but yet, what do we do then - with the anxiety and insomnia? I've done a year of psychoanalysis. Did not help much but to deal with detaching from narcissistic mom and dealing with death of my dad (suicide) and my son (MVA). Still have some anxiety and insomnia. It is only getting better because of my own research and trying herbal supplements, NLP tapping program. I'm considering acupuncture. I am pretty sure I won't be continuing with psychiatric drugs. I have little faith in mainstream medicine. I am thankful, in a weird way, of having Klonopin for 20 years at bedtime so I knew I would sleep. Now it is a crap shoot. I may sleep or not.

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You are correct...few doctors will allow you to continue with this. I am lucky that he is one of them. Klonopin is what this is called in Europe and before I returned to the US I hoarded about one years supply and glad I did as it took a while to readjust to what used to be a reliaeble, governed country. Today? I wish I had never left France. I lived sur la coline in the country) Thanks for the note and good luck. There are other drugs out there with the same properties. It is a question of finding one that will cooperate.

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