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What is the best way to taper off Klonopin?
Depression & Anxiety | Last Active: May 16 6:16pm | Replies (271)Comment receiving replies
I am on .5 mg clonazepam and have been for about 20 years. I take it at bedtime. I can't say I have any negative stuff going on, but my Dr retired and my new one doesn't want to continue it. I started it for panic and, oftentimes, wonder if I even need it anymore, so I'm open to stopping. I see a psychiatrist that my new dr set me up with next week. I'm hoping she will make a plan for a slow tapering, but am anxious at the idea of all of it and hearing horror stories about how hard it is to come off. To think, 6 months ago, I was living life large the way I always have, feeling great and now I've been thrust into all of these unknowns and fears. Panic is what I started the meds for and now I'm panicking at the thought of horrible withdrawal.
Replies to "I am on .5 mg clonazepam and have been for about 20 years. I take it..."
This happened to me as well. My primary care doc stopped prescribing it and referred me to a young psychiatrist who was very against any benzos, especially taken for a long time (almost 20 years for me) and in the elderly (I am a young, active 64 year old). I took it only for sleep and nocturnal panic attacks and it worked like a charm. Never increased the dose - 1 mg at night with occasional half if I woke at 2:00 or 3am. I am down to .25mg and we have tapered very slowly. The first few tapers were fairly uneventful but when I went from .5 to .25, it has been really hard. I have felt more daytime anxiety and irritability, night sweats, insomnia about one night a week. I'm determined to see this through and I do think I will be better in the long run and allow my CNS to heal from years of dependence on Klonopin. But I will miss it. I have been tapering for 7 months and have about another month to go. The doctor thinks that at this low of a dose, I could just quit. But I think I need to cut my 1/2 pill into a 1/4pill for the final taper. They do make a .0125 dissolvable tablet but I'm told it is hard to find. Good luck - I don't think it has to be horrible for you if taken very slowly.
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I so get your panic. My prior psychiatrist prescribed me .5 clonazepam and 5 mg ambien for 6 years. Now I have to get off these drugs. My new doctor is giving me trazadone and slowly tapering me off ambien first. I am sure the new MD will make you a plan but go slowly. I have also read that at an older age, I am 71, it might just be ok to not mess with .5 as it is hard to titrate off this. What will replace the clonazepam for sleep?
Best of luck. I have develpoed dry eyes and need to come off these drugs.