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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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It is not working at that dose. Need more!
Did you have trouble sleeping?
Pharmacist suggested I take 3mg of melatonin at night.
I took 5 mg melatonin and it did nothing.
Same here. If anything it caused anxiety
I am a 81 year old man who has been on Lorazepam (1mg x 3times daily as needed) for 40 years. This has been prescribed by the same Primary Care Doctor during this time. It has helped me greatly with anxiety, essential tremors, neuropathy, hiatal hernia, insomnia, and still does to this day. In June, I requested a prescription refill & when picked, The label read 1 tab daily @ bedtime. That is my notice of Lorazepam reduction from 3mgs to 1 daily. Having a pre-op exam for cataract surgery in a few days , I confronted him then. His explanation was the associates were required to ween anyone over 65 off benzos. His plan for me was "Breaking them (1mg) in half & taking half a milligram 3 or 4 times a day would be a decent decrease. We will also start you on Lexapro. My goal is to get you off Lorazepam before I retire in 6 months". He also told me that the new doctor would not prescribe 3 mgs/daily
I was in shock & told him that I would not do any tapering off until my cataract surgeries were over in mid August. I have never abused Lorazepam but am dependent. I live alone & this thought of no more Lorazepam is consuming me. I have scheduled an appointment with him in mid August to give me time to find options
I have never written to a forum or ask for advice, but I need it now.
Thank you
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1 ReactionMy primary care physician gave me Lexapro to help in weaning off Ativan.
I took it for 3 days along with my .5 mg of Ativan.
Horrible experience. Climbing the walls Couldn’t sleep.
Since these benzodiazepines are a controlled substance I think they are wanting us mature folks off of them. The do affect brain and memory.
Good luck.
Did not notice any. I was on Remeron as I tapered to help with sleep. My slow tapering made a difference
Exactly. I really wanted nothing to do with benzos
I am so sorry your doctor is dealing with this issue like this. If it’s working for you, at your age, doctor should accommodate you.
My doctor also got gunshot about prescribing .5 once a day. Told me he’d only support taking it every other day. I was relying on it for sleep and it wasn’t working anyway anymore, so I tapered
I was very careful and monitored my weight. I gained a couple pounds. I can sleep now and it was well worth it.
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