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Tapering off clonazepam (Klonopin, Rivotril)
Hi my name is Mary and I am a first time user of ever using a discussion blog online but have felt in my heart I need some advice and help with an issue I am having. My dr I have seen for many years moved out of state and referred me to another phychiatrist within his office. At the time of his moving away he had me weaning off clorazapam slowly and doing it as slow to not make it not so difficult as you all know , and I was doing well at it until I was having extreme chest pain and they put me in the hospital for 2 days to check to make sure it wasn't my heart, with all this happening I knew it was the weaning off the meds that was causing it so i went back up in dosage and it all went away again, and I was almost off it...My old dr started me on this med 27 years ago and I had no idea what it was but my body anxiety was shutting down my body and it helped it all go away so i didnt question it, well not until I went to school for nursing did I find out what it was all about. He put me on .5 mg three times a day and that stayed that way for 27 years not knowing what It does later in years, so I asked my dr to help me with the weaning off it, so our weaning process was as follows: Take .5 in a.m. ,25 afternoon and ,5 evening dose for 2 weeks then cut morning dose to .25 afternoon to .25 and evening .5 for 2 weeks then finally .25 three times a day for 6 weeks and then starting the last of the wean at this point the same as we did the first .25 till i was off. My new dr went from .50 3 times daily to .25 two times a day starting right away to get off it, that is over 1.0 mg a day off it all in one day and forward , I am already sad and crying because I dont know what to do, I have been there and I know how hard it was just to get off the way my old dr did slowly.....anyone out there that can help me with what to do I am so scared and I don't think she knows how extremely hard it is to get off this stupid stuff or that I really do want to do it, but please make it as painless as possible if there is such a thing with these meds. At 56 I didnt think I would have to go through menapause and this hell(sorry about the word but so true) all at once...at times I think it would be easier to just get cancer or something and die. Sorry but its true if you have been there you will understand. PLease help me!!!
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I’m thinking that I must have been using Klonopin more often than I thought. I have already gotten off Klonopin once last year. I’ve been using it irregularly since then. I was on a small dose (I thought) and didn’t expect this level of anxiety. I have more meds, but I don’t want to take them. I’m going to talk to a Psychiatrist on Wed. Thanks for your concern.
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1 ReactionI am on .25mg clonazepam . I started on 2mg back in 2015 in 2018 I went down to 1mg in 2019 I went down to .75 and in 2020 been take .25mg daily
Since it’s a low dose can I just stop this cold turkey? I also take cbd oil at night to help with my sleep
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2 ReactionsHi @skymaxed, please accept a belated welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. It sounds like you have been doing a very gradual taper. Congratulations for getting down to .25mg this year.
I'd like to ask @doorman @jakedduck1 @1mountaingirl86 @johnhans @bookysue @gettingbetter75 @artscaping and @meka to share their experiences and thoughts with you as you consider going off clonazepam altogether, supported by taking cbd oil at night to help with sleep.
How are you doing today?
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2 ReactionsI take Klonopin very sparingly. One week off, 1-2 days on. My Psychiatrist says this is a good plan....no tolerance, and I have to live my life controlling my anxiety. Small doses——-.25mg, once or twice a day. I never do any more.
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2 Reactions@skymaxed
Hello,
I’m not sure I understand your taper for sure. Did you go from 2mg down to 1mg (a 50% reduction? Then reduced 25% a year later then 33% the next year?
If you only made three reductions in that five years I am curious if you had any withdrawls at any time. Withdrawl symptoms frequently worsen the lower your dose.
Personally I wouldn’t try it myself but if you’re that anxious to stop after five years I would at least cut it in half at the minimum. I took a huge amount of Klonopin just 2 mg less than the maximum dose so I took 18 mg a day, which never helped my seizures at all. At the end I was chipping off infinitesimally small pieces.
My guess is your doctor will tell you to just stop it And if you haven’t had any issues with withdrawal symptoms in the last five years you may be one of the lucky ones who can stop it. But if it were me I would try reducing it by 0.625 every several weeks which will take three months.
There’s no magic formula since people react differently. Klonopin has a half life of 30 hours which means it will be totally out of your system in approximately 6 days. Although this figure can vary in different people.
I do have a question, are you currently taking a .25 on a daily basis or .25 twice a day twice a week?
Good luck on the remainder of your taper,
Jake
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2 ReactionsAm curious to find out how Trintellix works or doesn't work for you as my doctor has suggested I try this med out.
@mmusak Just reading a post form 2018...it is now Feb 2021, did you get off the Clonazepam, sorry cant check as barely getting bytoday with ear pain and internal tremors and some other things. There is guidance for those who have ben on it for SIX WEEKS, what about 15 years? How about EVALUATING patients who have been on it a long time and or over say 65??? My older neighbours have fallen twice and broken bones but they didnt take it. I was NEVER EVER told it was addictive. We should do a group-law suit for pain and suffering, but I am in Canada and we dont sue very often! Yes, I feel like a drug addict now. J.
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2 ReactionsHi Ann,
\I know this post is old, but I wanted to ask if you have any specific advice (or what worked for you) regarding switching from pills to liquid. I have been told to just switch - boom. I started the liquid clonazepam this morning - .5 mg. I feel sedated, heavy, stomachachey, and a bit nauseous. Not sure what to do about tonight. Any advice appreciated if you get this message.
Many Thanks,
Jane
Hi Mary There are alternative solutions and tapering guides out there which can be really helpful and get to the root of a problem, not just deal with a drug for you. Ultimately its your health and whether you stay on the dose, lower it, or find another solution is ultimately up to you. Tapering can be hard. For a different approach Will Hall and Kelly Brogan (psychiatrist and author of A Mind of Your own) are professionals with a different approach that are having some grat results. They are not anti meds or pro meds more pro education and pro choice. I hope you are feeling better.
I AM 80 YRS OLD + HAVE TAKEN CLONZEPAM FOR A LONG TIME. I HAVE NEVER EXCEEDED MORE THAN 2 MGS DAILY. I HAVE TAPERED OFF FOR 6 MONTHS . CAN I STOP THIS POISON NOW, I AM AT .01250?