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Has anybody successfully tapered off of lorazepam (Ativan)?
Has anybody successfully managed to successfully wean off of Lorazepam?
If so how was it done?
And if it was by way of switching to other drugs, were you then able to taper off of those entirely under a doctor's guidance?
My husband has been on Lorazepam for 16 years
He did well for 14 years, but dragged his feet about trying to withdraw while he was feeling better.
In May he had a relapse of anxiety, and insomnia, with brain fog, heart palpitations, and more.
Currently he's doing better, thinking better, but still feels like crap a large part of the time, can't sleep without the drug, can't nap.and still struggles with anxiety.
At this point, I believe it's the drug that is actually causing the problem. Currently he's doing 1 mg at bedtime and 3/4 mg when he wakes up at 2:30 am.
I know it takes 2 years for the brains GABA receptors to normalize after taking Benzodiazepines.
Also know it's really hard to withdraw, has to be done extremely slowly, and the side effects are exactly the same as the symptoms it is meant to help.
My goal is to eventually wean him off of all drugs as functional health tests show they block his nutritional absorption and may be damaging his intestinal lining. I would like to be able to repair his health using nutrition, supplements, and neurotransmitter amino acids.
All feedback is welcomed!
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I believe there’s a lot more to it than we know about, perhaps even the doctor’s who prescribe these meds didn’t have all the necessary facts. In the past several years I’ve been in a constant struggle with my doctor about the Ativan, he was reducing my dosage without discussing it with me, this action set me back a lot. I was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2020 and combined with the pandemic I was a total wreck. I sometimes stressed more about what he was doing to me than everything else because the Ativan was my anchor, even more so now. I feel my relationship with my php is not working and I feel trapped. We have a serious shortage of doctors and nurses in Ontario, Canada not to mention the doctors today won’t easily prescribe these meds and rightfully so but what is going to happen to those of us who have already become victims of this drug. I wish to point out that there are many who have gotten off Ativan but it’s like you said, we have this drug imprinted in our brain and so we must always protect ourselves from getting involved with drugs like this…for those of us that are using them, all I can really say is don’t give up on yourself and do not be too hard on yourself, you had help getting into it and you will find help getting rid of them. I’d also like to confess that I prefer to use them since I have tried so many other choices with no success…
How do you water titrate? This is the first I have heard of it. I am on 1 mg of Valium for the past 6 months and told to cut 2 mg in half which is impossible to get proper size pill for a proper dose
Hi Linda: The Ashton Manuel is the best way to learn water titration. However, my withdrawals were so intense that I couldn't read it, due to poor concentration at that time. There are several videos on YouTube about water titration. I am attaching the video that worked for me. It might not work for everyone, but it did work for me. Also, in my last message, I meant to say that I titrated off of the Clonezapam--sorry about that goof-up.
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3 ReactionsThank you so very very much. This is what I am looking for--simple instructions. I googled water titration after I read your blog and the cost of 'what you need' and the many steps were exhausting to read let alone do this! So I gave up on the idea until I got the reply from you. I can do this! How long have you been off the meds?
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1 ReactionYou are welcome. Close to four years.
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2 ReactionsNow you give me hope . . . ty and congrats of over 3 years
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1 ReactionThank you. Sometimes, I do miss Xanax. It did help with stress for a very long time. I worked in hospitals and was under a lot of pressure and it was a help to me. When I hit tolerance, it started causing me anxiety instead of relieving it. I felt like it was time for me to try a new way to deal with stress. It is a humbling experience, for sure. I guess adversity really does build character and character defines who we are. It is hard to be positive in these challenging times but try to stay positive and be a help to people whenever you can. It gives new meaning to life and helps at staying free from addiction and having a greater sense of purpose. Don't forget to love yourself and be your own best friend. Best wishes.
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4 ReactionsValium does come in liquid form which may be easier. You can have your doctor prescribe this at a compounding pharmacy.
Ty. I did learn of this type of Valium, and I asked my doctor if he would prescribe this for me and he said no, he wasn't comfortable doing this. Also, this is in central Arizona and there are no compounding pharmacies that we knew of.
I did it and it wasn’t a difficult as I expected. For me I started with a quarter less per day for several weeks and so on. I have it for emergencies but I am very careful with it.
I also took any stress class I could find. I also took a meditation course. They were incredibly helpful over time. If he can start the classes ASAP and do it in tandem I think worked the best for me.
When I started I was a non believer but I chose to give it a honest try and I have integrated over years. I don’t know if has meditated before, we can meditate for 15 seconds to start.