1. < Depression & Anxiety

I have been in Clonazepam 0.5mg TID for 18 years

Posted by jeanne51 @jeanne51, Jan 7 4:49pm

My psychiatrist retired and I was left to find a replacement. It seems there are a majority of nurse practitioners these days taking patients as providers, many do not take insurance. I found a nurse practitioner with a very good educational background. I saw her in person and she renewed the medications I was in for 6 months. Next month we had a zoom meeting and she told me she wanted me off the Ambien and Clonazepam because I would get dementia or Alzheimer’s with long term use. She insisted I start tapering against my will. I had school phobia in grade school, began having depression symptoms in my 20’s, and in my late 20’s had two major panic attacks. I have been depressed with anxiety most of my adult life. I have been hospitalized twice because of this. I have never asked for an increase in dosage of Ambien or Clonazepam fur 18 years after I found a wonderful psychiatrist who was so good at medication management.
Now, tapering Ambien and Clonazepam I have started self mutilating by picking my fingers raw until they bleed. I can’t sleep at night, I have become socially phobic. I have become isolative and often think of suicide with no plan. I am 73 years old and I think it is so cruel to put me through this when all I want is to have quality of life, not quantity. I live with my husband in adult senior living which I have not adjusted to. Taking these meds away has decreased my desire to exercise and my endurance is decreasing. My new provider told me if I didn’t want to taper my medication that I should find a new one provider. I did manage to taper the Ambien but I am down to half of the Clonazepam and feel like I can’t go on. Please help me. I am on Paxil and Wellbutrin for depression but it is anxiety and insomnia making my life miserable. I am not the same person I was a year ago.
I feel miserable, she has destroyed any quality of life I had. I really don’t want to live anymore.

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suefree | @suefree | Jan 27 7:04pm

I do not have any good answers . Just want you to know I care and understand how you feel. And I pray you can find a doctor that respects your age and works with you to get your quality of life back. My functional doctor suggested I try Inositol 500-1000mg to replace the .5 mg clonazepam I have taken for 10+ years. Do not know if this will help but I am going to try.

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1 reply
jeanne51 | @jeanne51 | Jan 27 7:53pm
In reply to @suefree "I do not have any good answers . Just want you to know I care and..." + (show)
@suefree

I do not have any good answers . Just want you to know I care and understand how you feel. And I pray you can find a doctor that respects your age and works with you to get your quality of life back. My functional doctor suggested I try Inositol 500-1000mg to replace the .5 mg clonazepam I have taken for 10+ years. Do not know if this will help but I am going to try.

Jump to this post

I haven’t heard of inositol but would like to know if it helps you. Thanks for your concern and reaching out to me. I see my new provider i tomorrow and I hope she reorders my Clonazepam

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2 replies
suefree | @suefree | Jan 28 7:09am
In reply to @jeanne51 "I haven’t heard of inositol but would like to know if it helps you. Thanks for..." + (show)
@jeanne51

I haven’t heard of inositol but would like to know if it helps you. Thanks for your concern and reaching out to me. I see my new provider i tomorrow and I hope she reorders my Clonazepam

Jump to this post

Unfortunately it take’s awhile to tell any difference. But I will let you know. Prayers you get the medicine your body needs.

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kb2014 | @kb2014 | Jan 28 2:39pm

I have posted before about my experience being tapered off of clonazepam. I did request it. I got very ill with bacterial meningitis of my brain in 2014. As I recovered I became proactive and requested to be taken off many prescriptions. Each taper including the clonazepam was d9ne under medical supervision. I am a retired nurse was RN. So my experience was different.Psychiatry over medicated way too many people. I understand there are people who probably are not candidates for this. I hope you can resolve this.

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1 reply
jeanne51 | @jeanne51 | Jan 28 4:41pm

I saw my new Provider today and she was a breath of fresh air. She admitted that the overprescribing of opiates and benzodiazepines by physicians in the past is causing the closer monitoring and dispensing these drugs. I will be continuing my Clonazepam at my current dose of 0.75 mg per day and will be starting a new medication for sleep. I don’t know the name as it is fairly new.

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2 replies
mary0829 | @mary0829 | Jan 28 5:20pm

Same As me, I take it more than 4 yrs.I understand the things happened to us ,just focus on the Good things will happen , become a person of faith- of Hope.All things going from Glory to Glory and Love.I expect that life will get better become happier and become healthy. God bless always.

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daveshaw | @daveshaw | Jan 29 10:26am
In reply to @kb2014 "I have posted before about my experience being tapered off of clonazepam. I did request it...." + (show)
@kb2014

I have posted before about my experience being tapered off of clonazepam. I did request it. I got very ill with bacterial meningitis of my brain in 2014. As I recovered I became proactive and requested to be taken off many prescriptions. Each taper including the clonazepam was d9ne under medical supervision. I am a retired nurse was RN. So my experience was different.Psychiatry over medicated way too many people. I understand there are people who probably are not candidates for this. I hope you can resolve this.

Jump to this post

I agree about people being prescribed drugs for depression that might not need them.
That being said depression is real and unfortunately can run in families. If someone truly suffers from clinical depression they will live a far better life if they are treated for it.
Good luck to all of you out there.

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wisco50 | @wisco50 | Jan 29 3:15pm
In reply to @jeanne51 "I haven’t heard of inositol but would like to know if it helps you. Thanks for..." + (show)
@jeanne51

I haven’t heard of inositol but would like to know if it helps you. Thanks for your concern and reaching out to me. I see my new provider i tomorrow and I hope she reorders my Clonazepam

Jump to this post

Here’s hoping your new provider will help you!

REPLY
wisco50 | @wisco50 | Jan 29 3:18pm
In reply to @jeanne51 "I saw my new Provider today and she was a breath of fresh air. She admitted..." + (show)
@jeanne51

I saw my new Provider today and she was a breath of fresh air. She admitted that the overprescribing of opiates and benzodiazepines by physicians in the past is causing the closer monitoring and dispensing these drugs. I will be continuing my Clonazepam at my current dose of 0.75 mg per day and will be starting a new medication for sleep. I don’t know the name as it is fairly new.

Jump to this post

I have the same type of issue with opioid use. I take 2-3 Vicodin daily for pain. Usually later in day as after moving around, things can hurt.
I live in fear my MD will leave and I will have to get a new one.

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