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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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Absolutely agree with you. See my response above.
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1 ReactionAgreed - I took 1 mg at bedtime (Klonopin) for many years and when I started my taper off, the steps down to .75, .5 and .375mg were easy and I stayed at each dose for about 6 weeks. When I got to .25mg, my withdrawals started to show up, which were insomnia, jitters, startling easily, irritability. That was the hardest and when I went to .125mg, it was like taking nothing, so I stopped. Your body recognizes it when you don't have this drug in your system. I'm slowly feeling better after 1 month completely off. Insomnia is a problem but not every night, and I find that a CBD/THC gummy for sleep is very helpful. I also take 7.5mg of Remeron, but I don't think it does much for my sleep. I can still have a completely sleepless night on the Remeron. Good luck to you!
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1 ReactionThanks for the comments and advice. Just trying to get a handle on stopping at this time. Working on a taper schedule but it's hard to start. Worried if my doctor knows how meds affect the body/mind long term. I want to taper, will try to start after consulting with him. Hope he understands and doesn't tell me to just quit. I've heard horror stories about that.
Do not just quit! A taper will allow your brain to slowly adjust. If you abruptly stop benzos, you could have a seizure and the withdrawal can be really bad. Tell your doctor about this forum and any information you could provide for your case.
Six months sounds reasonable. I've been on 2 mg for quite a long time--decades, actually. Now, at 73 with Parkinson's, I'm not sure I even want to stop taking Benzos. My health's not good, although my psychotherapist gave me a homework assignment to work on updating my identity --surfer, tennis player, and martial arts expert and going over my state of health. Now, I'm afraid to leave the house, although being with others/socializing gives me all I need in life. When I don't exercise, my PD grows steadily worse. I feel better taking no anti-anxiety meds, but feel as if I need to have them handy to reduce my tremors which get much worse due to social anxiety while playing havoc with Bipolar mood disorder. My wife is concerned about me--says I appear to be sad most of the time; and my main reason to be is staying healthy enough to take care of her. Find myself wishing she wasn't around so that I could choose to make a hasty, radical move to exit this nightmare, having accomplished just about all I'd wanted from life and feeling as if eighty years old would be an appropriate age to check out. Overcoming depression, a mood disorder, PTSD (VN and USMC vet), drug withdrawal, and wanting to be left alone is an insurmountable, overwhelming group of tasks
to deal with. I'm not even able to walk without assistence--suffer falls several times/week, and can't journal or write out how I feel due to major tremors and arthritis. What's the point? I bounce from one issue to another and it's exhausting. At this point, I'd like to have at least some Benzos on hand to help me cope. My neurologist, pcp, and the VA offer little or no support. I did so much better when living oversease where healthcare is not simply a horrible, for profit business, and I was able to get the care and support I needed. I'm a disabled Vietnam vet who has no allegiance to this fascist theocracy here in the U.S. I just want Veteran's Evaluation Services to address my diagnosis, pay me the money I lost by coming back to th U.S.,--Social Security took out 10% of my Medicare money for each year I live abroad, didn't pay me for a full year after coming back here, and saving enough to move out of here--the U.S., where healthcare for profit means the working people in this county do not receive the care they deserve. I'm often angry and frustrated--not a good way to go through the final years of life.
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4 ReactionsI am 81 years old. Have been taking Ativan for 5 years for PTSD after open heart surgery. Started off with 1mg a day and have reduced it to .5 mg per day for about 4 years now.
I am now feeling anxious, jittery and dealing with insomnia. Do not want to increase dosage. I want off Ativan My
PCP prescribed Lexapro (small dosage) to take along with Ativan to start withdrawal. That was the worse 2weeks of my life. Insomnia, climbing the wall. Quit the lexapro. Still on .5 mg of Ativan.
Feel terrible. Any help would be appreciated.
@gmamrj , hi how are you, I just read your comment and I truly appreciate where you are coming from…being dependent on meds is not always easy to live with, I’ve been talking Ativan for over twenty years and I use 1 mg per day, .5 in the morning and.5 at bedtime…I did get off them twice but somehow with the help of my doctor, I ended up back on them again. I think the worst part was that later when I got cancer it made things worse, my anxiety was off the charts and that’s when my started putting all this pressure on me to stop them, he would even reduce my dose without talking to me about it. I did try many antidepressants but I too got sick from them, between the cancer and the doctor I started to have a meltdown. I truly believe you will do just fine, you’re on a very low dose and you said it has been five years that you have taken them. I did get off Ativan with Paxil and it worked out for me but I had not been on Ativan very long. With help from your doctor you can perhaps find another antidepressant to help you do so and then eventually cut your dosage in half, a 1 mg Ativan can easily be divided into four pieces. I wish you good luck with your journey, you must be doing something right to be 81 years young, good for you 👍😊
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4 ReactionsThank you for your positive response
You’re very welcome anytime
Eileen, are you still active on this forum? I'd love to connect with you, you seem to really know your stuff. The DAO, low glutamate, low histamine diets, all make total sense.