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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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Welcome, @harrison690. I moved your message about tapering off clonzepam and whether you can stop after tapering to 0.01250 to this existing message:
- Tapering off clonazepam (Klonopin, Rivotril): https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/tapering-off-clorazapam/
I did this so you can click the link to read previous posts and connect easily with other members like @mmussak @thankful @elwooodsdad @doorman @skymaxed @jakedduck1 @jennylw and others.
Harrison, you are taking a very low dose. Did your doctor suggest when you can stop?
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2 Reactions@harrison690
It’s curious you’d take Klonopin, a “poison” according to you for “a long time.”
I'm guessing your having withdrawal symptoms.
No one can say whether or not you can stop at the dosage you mentioned.
Even if I didn’t have any side effects, I probably wouldn’t stop it at that dose based on my experience. I chipped off infinitesimally tiny pieces at the end of my taper. But you may be fine stopping although if your having any withdrawal symptoms I wouldn't try it.
Just my two cents worth.
Jake
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1 Reactionno help ever
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1 ReactionHi
I weaned myself off clonazepam. After several weeks at .0125 I just stopped taking it. This is a pre therapeutic dose. I doubt that it’s actually doing anything. But I always just check with my doctor first.
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1 Reactionthank you
Hi, I am 63 and I have been on Clonazepam (.05 mg) twice a day for six years. I have been on a (six month) taper down to get off this drug. I am on my last taper at .0125 once a day. I take it for the next three weeks and I will be done! I will be praising the Lord.
This drug is great for short term use (5 days max) based on my doctor but not great for long term use.
I was put on this drug for nerve pain due to a tumor in my spine. Pain Mgt. left me on this medication after surgery and I tried coming off several times but too quickly and needed up in the E/R. So I gave up. This time under a doctors care and a six month plan I have done a slow taper which seems to have worked well. I am still under a doctors care while I taper off completely. I will be off in three weeks! This drug went from being a miracle drug when I first began taking it, stopped my horrible pain to my enemy that caused emotional mood swings, caused pain and robbed me of quality of life for years. I took the same (.05) mg the entire six years. I am taking back control of my life with the Lord in prayer.
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4 ReactionsSorry your doctors can’t help you. You’re not alone. The vast majority of doctors do not know how to effectively taper these medications. Out of curiosity why are you attempting a taper at age 80? I do know some older folks just try to maintain at the lowest dose possible if they’re having a hard time withdrawing.
@mmussak It's been 3 years (Wow how time flys!) since we posted and I would be curious how things are working for you? No changes here with regards to taking 1mg of clonazepam daily. Some other health issues have popped up but things are on a good track at this point.
I've been thinking especially now as we have come through this Covid time. Fear is very real as I have witnessed in many of my friends. I have taken the vaccines and boosters, and it hard to escape all the input out there on both sides of these issues. We will find this is also true when it comes to other medications. For me I am at peace with continuing my 1mg of clonazepam daily.
Hope you are well! Happy New Year! Jim@thankful
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1 ReactionI have been taking clonazepam for 30 years. I am 73 years old and I have multiple health issues. I’ve had CFS for 26 years along with arthritis in every joint, neuropathy, GI issues and anxiety and depression. We moved from Vermont to Pittsburgh hoping for better healthcare. My new doctor immediately told me that I had to get off the clonazepam. I was taking two.5mg pills in the morning and three more at bedtime. She cut me down to one pill in the morning and three at night. I’m just two days in and already the side effects of withdrawal are awful. I have ringing in my ears, a horrible headache, I can’t concentrate. I can’t do this. My medication schedule was worked out by a nationally recognized CFS specialist. Then five years later another CFS specialist at Harvard reviewed my medications and he too said they were completely appropriate. My doctors in Vermont had no problem with this. We lived there for 22 years.
How do I convince my new doctor to let me keep taking it? I get no support from my husband. My kids all live far away. Also I took medical marijuana in Vermont. We lived with my husband’s sister in Gloucester and all I could get was very low dose edible gummies. I have tried to register for it here in Pennsylvania but the website doesn’t recognize my address. We have had this problem since we moved into a 55+ community. It’s beyond annoying. What am I going to do?
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1 ReactionUgh! Klonopin is an awful drug and the taper is truly a living nightmare, but you can get through it and come out on the other side with meditation and CBT therapy. It is extremely difficult though. This drug should be outlawed! It is a shame that the medical professionals do not educate us patients the dangers of taking this ahead of time.