Interdose withdrawals looking to get off of Klonopin

Hi, I recently came off of an antidepressant and was doing fine until having bad withdrawals starting 2 months later. New onset anxiety which I did not have before and an intense need to move, akathisia. I was prescribed emergency Xanax which gave some relief but afterwards made me even more restless. After looking into this I read that this could be something known as interdose withdrawals, but I could not find much more information about apart from a couple of websites.

 

I really wanted to know if anyone else here has experienced this, notably akathisia in between doses. I was only on Xanax for a week and got off and was given Klonopin instead. This time it worked longer but the same thing had happened. It started at 0.5mg a day on April 21st 2023 and has now gone up to 1.5mg a day and it still is not enough. I really don't know what to do. I have reinstated Zoloft in hopes of reducing those withdrawals and am still unsure if it has been working yet but I also desperately want to get off of Klonopin because of the horror stories I've read about people trying to come off.

 

If I get interdose withdrawals from just one dose then just how bad will withdrawal be now? I have been on it for 5 weeks now and I already believe I am dependent on it for relief and even then that relief is not enough. Stuck between a rock and a hard place.

 

Any users with experiences or advice that could help, I would really appreciate it. Things have been very hard. I have never walked this much in my life and I have never taken benzodiazepines prior because I was scared to take them. I was glad to get the relief when I needed it but now feel like I have dug myself into an even deeper hole.

 

Thank you for reading my post.

Hi Whelmet!

 

Welcome to BenzoBuddies!

 

I'm sorry you find yourself in this position. I'm trying to understand your situation better. Did the symptoms go away each time you increased your dose and then they flared up again or did the increase not really help? How much did you increase your dose each time you went up with the Klonopin?

 

I know this is scary but you've come to the right place. We know what you're going through and we will help you through this. 

I'm sorry you find yourself in this position. I'm trying to understand your situation better. Did the symptoms go away each time you increased your dose and then they flared up again or did the increase not really help? How much did you increase your dose each time you went up with the Klonopin?

 

I know this is scary but you've come to the right place. We know what you're going through and we will help you through this. 

 

Hi Jelly Baby, yes, each time I increased my dose the symptoms went away. For the first couple of days it felt amazing and then it slowly began to lose its effect. Every time I increased it I went up by 0.5. . I don't know if I should try and reduce slowly to get myself out of this mess but I don't know how much worse the withdrawals will be, especially after stopping the last dose.

 

I was reading some posts here and was seeing that Valium would be more ideal to taper off of but my doctor insisted on Klonopin because Valium would be too sedating. Thank you for replying.

 

 

Thanks for clarifying. From what you've explained it sounds like you might be experiencing tolerance withdrawal. This basically means your body developed a tolerance against the drug and it continuously needs more of the drug in order to have the same effect. If not, then you'll start having withdrawal symptoms even though you're not tapering. Here's some more information on Tolerance Withdrawal. The only way to address this situation is to either keep increasing the dose (but as you've discovered, you'll develop tolerance to the higher dose again) or to taper the drug.

 

Generally we find if people reduce between 5-10% every two weeks or so, their symptoms are manageable i.e. they remain functional. There's no guarantee, and some people have to go slower than this, but generally this is the best approach. Fast and rapid tapers are pretty much guaranteed to result in severe withdrawal symptoms if you have become physically dependent on the drug.

 

Valium could be an option, but generally we don't recommend switching to Valium unless you have really tough interdose withdrawal (but I doubt that's what you're experiencing). Crossing to another benzo can be just as difficult with many other problems and side effects, so we usually just stick to the "devil we know". But we can always keep this option open.

Thanks for clarifying. From what you've explained it sounds like you might be experiencing tolerance withdrawal. This basically means your body developed a tolerance against the drug and it continuously needs more of the drug in order to have the same effect. If not, then you'll start having withdrawal symptoms even though you're not tapering. Here's some more information on Tolerance Withdrawal. The only way to address this situation is to either keep increasing the dose (but as you've discovered, you'll develop tolerance to the higher dose again) or to taper the drug.

 

Generally we find if people reduce between 5-10% every two weeks or so, their symptoms are manageable i.e. they remain functional. There's no guarantee, and some people have to go slower than this, but generally this is the best approach. Fast and rapid tapers are pretty much guaranteed to result in severe withdrawal symptoms if you have become physically dependent on the drug.

 

Valium could be an option, but generally we don't recommend switching to Valium unless you have really tough interdose withdrawal (but I doubt that's what you're experiencing). Crossing to another benzo can be just as difficult with many other problems and side effects, so we usually just stick to the "devil we know". But we can always keep this option open.

 

Just how hard will it be to reduce by 10% every two weeks until I am completely off? Do you know how long akathisia generally lasts after stopping completely? A couple of months ago I think I would have been up to the task but after all these withdrawals I am completely exhausted.

 

Since I take 0.5 three times a day currently I am thinking of reducing by 0.125 on my evening dose, I know it doses have to be consistent but I don't know how to divide that three ways. Being as unmanageable as it is now I am desperate to get off but don't want to put myself in a situation where it gets so bad I try to go back to the same dose and it does not work as well.

 

Thank you for your response Jelly Belly

Hey Whelmet

 

Unfortunately I cannot predict how you will react to reductions and cuts. Each person has their individual journey, there is no one size fits all. The best advice I can give you is to educate yourself on this process. I spent hours on this forum especially on the tapering boards, reading how different people tapered, reacted, how the different drugs work, understanding half-lives etc. I went through hell at the start of my taper when I didn't know what benzo's were and do to us and I sure wasn't going to let my fate ever be in somebody else's hands.

 

I personally don't have experience with akathisia. We do have many members with akathisia unfortunately and I know many of them are sensitive to other medications and supplements as well (i.e. the akathisia gets worse with these). I know it's tough, but I don't think you have any other choice but to taper when you're in tolerance. The symptoms will likely increase. I have also read for some people in tolerance, their symptoms got better when they got lower in dose. I really hope this is the case for you.

 

When you decrease your dose, most people cut from a single dose only at a time, and then rotate i.e. they'll cut their morning dose, then after two weeks, the noon dose, then the next time the evening dose. You don't have to spread the 10% across all 3 doses simultaneously, if that makes sense. For your first cut, if you want to reduce by 0.125mg it should be okay. If my calculations are correct it will be an 8% reduction. But you can't keep reducing by 0.125mg as these linear reductions will then increase your percentages. Every time you reduce, you need to re-calculate your percentage on your new combined dose.

 

I can see you are really exhausted and normally I would suggest holding and taking a break, but with tolerance when the drug stops working, your condition could get worse. Sometimes we just have to find the power to push through this. You have our support, we know what you're going through, you're not alone in this.

Hey Whelmet

I can see you are really exhausted and normally I would suggest holding and taking a break, but with tolerance when the drug stops working, your condition could get worse. Sometimes we just have to find the power to push through this. You have our support, we know what you're going through, you're not alone in this.

 

Yes, this was is what I was thinking too. I'm going to try and power my way through this. Is it possible to reduce from evening to morning? Morning is when my symptoms are usually the worse and are the reason I wake up. I get really bad restlessness.

 

Right now I can easily cut 0.125 but as I get closer how do I make incrementally small doses? Can I a make a liquid taper or will I have to weigh them? If I keep reducing by this much is there a chance that my tolerance gets even worse in the process from tapering slower?

 

Thank you so much for your reply, I really appreciate it.

You're welcome Whelmet.

 

When you reduce you can either dry cut (shave and weigh) or you can make a liquid, whatever you prefer. Most people start out by weighing it. Generally tolerance should not get worse if you taper. You'll have an increase in symptoms when you cut, but that increase is not from tolerance, it's from reducing your dose. So normally when you cut, you'll have an increase in symptoms around day 3-5 and then the symptoms level out again at around day 10.

 

Is it possible to reduce from evening to morning?

 

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by this. Can you explain?

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by this. Can you explain?

 

Rotate and reduce from evening to morning instead of reducing the morning dose first, then the afternoon and evening dose.

 

It's two days into reduction now, don't feel much different apart from some adrenal rushes. Withdrawal effects begin around day 3-5 so bracing and hoping for the best.

Yes you can start with whatever dose you want first. Your 24hr period will then stretch from evening to evening to evening. Can I suggest you keep a taper journal where you keep track of your daily symptoms. You rate all your symptoms on a scale of 1-10 each day and record new symptoms. This way you're able to see how you react to cuts and track patterns and waves.

 

I hope the first cut will be nothing to report!

Yes you can start with whatever dose you want first. Your 24hr period will then stretch from evening to evening to evening. Can I suggest you keep a taper journal where you keep track of your daily symptoms. You rate all your symptoms on a scale of 1-10 each day and record new symptoms. This way you're able to see how you react to cuts and track patterns and waves.

 

I hope the first cut will be nothing to report!

 

I will do that. I hope so too, thank you.

Went and tried to drop a larger dose first before going small. Not ideal but I want to be upfront about it. I am now currently at 1mg and on day 3, no adverse effects yet. Getting strange moods but nothing out of the ordinary. Going to hold this and drop again Wednesday next week.

This is your taper Whelmet, so how much you want to cut is up to you and we will support your decisions.

 

I just need to inform you that cuts and symptoms have an accummulation effect. If your cuts are too big it will accummulate and even if you slow down later you can get hit with much worse and intense symptoms down the track because all the cuts build up. It helps to be aware of this so we can make informed decisions. Let us know how it goes.

Because symptoms are so unbearable, I have gone down from 1 to 0.75 and am on day two of 0.5. I plan to get off on the 25th. Have not noticed anything worsening, had worse tension headaches for awhile but it has gotten better. Still have some mix of brain fog, fatigue and restlessness that does not allow me to fully relax that has been present even before the taper.

 

I know this could turn out very bad but I am desperate. I am very desperate to get off of this medication. This is the hardest time in my life right now. I am so afraid of the jump, I cannot dwell on it and let that anxiety worsen everything else. I worry I will wake up and it will all hit me at once. I have been like this for so long that this was my last ditch effort. Trying so hard to not make it fate but be cautious while still maintaining sanity. How do you do it. Really not looking forward to the next couple of weeks ahead. Had a trip planned next month but will likely need to cancel it.

Because symptoms are so unbearable, I have gone down from 1 to 0.75 and am on day two of 0.5. I plan to get off on the 25th. Have not noticed anything worsening, had worse tension headaches for awhile but it has gotten better. Still have some mix of brain fog, fatigue and restlessness that does not allow me to fully relax that has been present even before the taper.

 

I know this could turn out very bad but I am desperate. I am very desperate to get off of this medication. This is the hardest time in my life right now. I am so afraid of the jump, I cannot dwell on it and let that anxiety worsen everything else. I worry I will wake up and it will all hit me at once. I have been like this for so long that this was my last ditch effort. Trying so hard to not make it fate but be cautious while still maintaining sanity. How do you do it. Really not looking forward to the next couple of weeks ahead. Had a trip planned next month but will likely need to cancel it.

 

Hi Whelmet

 

I am extremely concerned about your reductions. You started out at 1.5mg and within a week you made 50% cuts. I understand your urgency to get off - we were all there at one stage, but rushing this could lead to very excruciating withdrawal symptoms. I had rapid cuts just like yours and I became increasingly more severe. By day 15 I was bedridden with acute withdrawal - vomiting, diarrhea, sweating, heart palpitations, dizziness etc. I could barely lift myself off the bed. I couldn't care for myself at all.

 

Often times people think it cannot get worse, so they jump or they make a cut but believe me, benzo withdrawal can and will get much worse than you can imagine. Getting off the drug is only the first step, it doesn't mean you're out of the woods. Then recovery awaits. When you jump you still have months, more likely a year and a half of recovery waiting for you. If you taper too fast, this recovery period can be extremely difficult. The gentler your taper, the better you set yourself up for recovery.

 

Please give yourself enough time between cuts to recover because Klonopin has a long half-life and doesn't always show symptoms immediately. I really think you need to hold at least for a couple of weeks to see how your body reacts to these big cuts.

Hi Whelmet,

 

I’ve been reading about your taper, not sure we can call it that, its more like a cold turkey, which is how I quit.  jelly baby is right, after you’re off the drug there is recovery, mine took 14 months which is about the average recovery time once you’re off the drug.  Cold turkey and rapid withdrawals are brutal and just when you think it can’t get worse, it does.

 

Our symptoms will wax and wane and the problem with this is it makes it very difficult to know if we’re doing the right thing.  Take what jelly baby said about holding for a couple of weeks.  I know it sounds counter intuitive to hold between reductions but thats the only way to know if your reductions are right for you.  Making rapid cuts over a small period of time means your body doesn’t have time to recover, so piling another one on top of that you run the risk of losing functionality and members will often have to go back up in dose.  The problem with that is, it takes awhile to get stable after that and members will sometimes have to go to a dose even higher than what they started at.

 

  I understand the fear of jumping off the drug, but if you do a slow taper, you can maybe have a soft landing.  I’ve been working with a member who has successfully jumped and it was no big deal, his taper was smooth and he took his time.  Like you, he was in a hurry at first and but after going through some painful symptoms decided he’d take his time and live his life while tapering off the drug. 

 

Okay, so now you’ve had both of us cautioning you but as jelly baby said, this is your taper and we’ll support you however you decide to do this. 

 

Pamster

Because symptoms are so unbearable, I have gone down from 1 to 0.75 and am on day two of 0.5. I plan to get off on the 25th. Have not noticed anything worsening, had worse tension headaches for awhile but it has gotten better. Still have some mix of brain fog, fatigue and restlessness that does not allow me to fully relax that has been present even before the taper.

 

I know this could turn out very bad but I am desperate. I am very desperate to get off of this medication. This is the hardest time in my life right now. I am so afraid of the jump, I cannot dwell on it and let that anxiety worsen everything else. I worry I will wake up and it will all hit me at once. I have been like this for so long that this was my last ditch effort. Trying so hard to not make it fate but be cautious while still maintaining sanity. How do you do it. Really not looking forward to the next couple of weeks ahead. Had a trip planned next month but will likely need to cancel it.

 

Hi Whelmet

 

I am extremely concerned about your reductions. You started out at 1.5mg and within a week you made 50% cuts. I understand your urgency to get off - we were all there at one stage, but rushing this could lead to very excruciating withdrawal symptoms. I had rapid cuts just like yours and I became increasingly more severe. By day 15 I was bedridden with acute withdrawal - vomiting, diarrhea, sweating, heart palpitations, dizziness etc. I could barely lift myself off the bed. I couldn't care for myself at all.

 

Often times people think it cannot get worse, so they jump or they make a cut but believe me, benzo withdrawal can and will get much worse than you can imagine. Getting off the drug is only the first step, it doesn't mean you're out of the woods. Then recovery awaits. When you jump you still have months, more likely a year and a half of recovery waiting for you. If you taper too fast, this recovery period can be extremely difficult. The gentler your taper, the better you set yourself up for recovery.

 

Please give yourself enough time between cuts to recover because Klonopin has a long half-life and doesn't always show symptoms immediately. I really think you need to hold at least for a couple of weeks to see how your body reacts to these big cuts.

 

When would symptoms show? I understand it is dependent on the person but I ask because of being on it for a short period of time. I started on the 7th and I have not experienced anything different from before when I had started, the brain fog and tension headaches got worse then improved, but I cannot see myself living like this for the next couple of weeks and being on them longer. Ultimately, this is not ideal, no sane person would say this is a good idea, but it is too much. I am sorry.

Hi Whelmet,

 

I’ve been reading about your taper, not sure we can call it that, its more like a cold turkey, which is how I quit.  jelly baby is right, after you’re off the drug there is recovery, mine took 14 months which is about the average recovery time once you’re off the drug.  Cold turkey and rapid withdrawals are brutal and just when you think it can’t get worse, it does.

 

Our symptoms will wax and wane and the problem with this is it makes it very difficult to know if we’re doing the right thing.  Take what jelly baby said about holding for a couple of weeks.  I know it sounds counter intuitive to hold between reductions but thats the only way to know if your reductions are right for you.  Making rapid cuts over a small period of time means your body doesn’t have time to recover, so piling another one on top of that you run the risk of losing functionality and members will often have to go back up in dose.  The problem with that is, it takes awhile to get stable after that and members will sometimes have to go to a dose even higher than what they started at.

 

  I understand the fear of jumping off the drug, but if you do a slow taper, you can maybe have a soft landing.  I’ve been working with a member who has successfully jumped and it was no big deal, his taper was smooth and he took his time.  Like you, he was in a hurry at first and but after going through some painful symptoms decided he’d take his time and live his life while tapering off the drug. 

 

Okay, so now you’ve had both of us cautioning you but as jelly baby said, this is your taper and we’ll support you however you decide to do this. 

 

Pamster

 

Thank you so much for the response Pamster, I really appreciate it. I want to hold and go slower but living is unbearable enough as it is right now and this brain fog and tension headaches are awful, to the point of having ideation every day. Rock and a hard place. I need to get off, I've gotten here now and nothing crazy has happened which is what scares me most, the uncertainty. Some I've read had it come 3 days after dropping, some 10, others longer, so I can't know. It's all so unclear and I have no good options of going about this. I am going to do it and do my absolute hardest to stay off, but I know that this Klonopin will not aid with the already very bad fatigue I am already dealing with to begin with and I cannot picture the nightmare that is taking it long term, it will inevitably lead to a much higher dose and I will not be able to function correctly. Scared. Really scared. Sorry. You and Jelly Baby have been giving such sound advice and I wish I was stronger right now, I really do. I do not have it in me. It's a last ditch attempt before I mess things up and accept my fate of doing this for the long haul because the pain right now was too unbearable. Then will look back here and wish I had just stuck with a slower taper, just a little longer.. just a little bit longer.. But I am weak. These days are empty, the two months prior have been empty, life has been on hold. I don't know what else I can do. I am sorry. I will try and keep this updated.

I don't know if not experiencing worsening symptoms is a good thing. When coming off of Zoloft I did not have much problems but 2 months later I got protracted withdrawal. I was expecting these past few days to be hell but they've mostly been the same. Either I expect something bad to happen soon, before or after the jump, or some months later. I don't know.

Please don’t apologize, each of us has to make the best decision for our situation.  We can’t begin to know your personal challenges, we give the standard advice but we’re all so different, what might not work for one will for another.

 

Learn all you can about this process so you won’t fear as much and follow your instincts, I’m sure they’ll lead you to success. 

If there's no change in your symptoms then so far so good. We don't wish bad withdrawal symptoms on anyone. Most of the time when people are dependent on benzo's their symptoms follow some sort of predictable path (such as getting worse with large cuts), but sometimes you get someone who reacts completely different. Benzo's are fickled. No single person has exactly the same reaction as someone else.

 

If you feel comfortable to reduce this way, then we'll be there for you regardless. Please keep checking in so we know how you're doing. 

Please don’t apologize, each of us has to make the best decision for our situation.  We can’t begin to know your personal challenges, we give the standard advice but we’re all so different, what might not work for one will for another.

 

Learn all you can about this process so you won’t fear as much and follow your instincts, I’m sure they’ll lead you to success. 

 

 

If there's no change in your symptoms then so far so good. We don't wish bad withdrawal symptoms on anyone. Most of the time when people are dependent on benzo's their symptoms follow some sort of predictable path (such as getting worse with large cuts), but sometimes you get someone who reacts completely different. Benzo's are fickled. No single person has exactly the same reaction as someone else.

 

If you feel comfortable to reduce this way, then we'll be there for you regardless. Please keep checking in so we know how you're doing. 

 

 

Thank you so much for the replies, they've given me some ease. Currently on Day 2 of 0.25, feel the same as I have before but I'm feeling a little more like myself. I hope this is a good sign. Don't want to overthink this. If it continues like this I think I can make it through this. Just waiting now. If I stop replying to this thread then I guess I'll be another tale of caution. Hoping for the best.

I am so happy for you that you are feeling more yourself! I really hope we see an update to this thread. It will so helpful for us to learn from you and to help others who might be in a similar position.

Day two of 0.125mg, tomorrow is going to be the last dose and then jump. Really hope this is all going well because of tapering and something lurking. Maybe I will get PAWS, who knows, it doesn't matter at this point. Since I have started taking it I had begun to develop MCAS like symptoms (brain fog, fatigue, palpitations, dizziness) and I react to high histamine foods now so I have to follow a diet, don't know how long this will follow me. All for a month of use. I hope this goes well. If not, then this thread will be a cautionary tale. Hoping isn't enough. I know how my body is. It's going too well right now, I am suspicious. Sick of the fatigue and brain fog most of all.

Thank you for documenting your journey, as jelly baby said, it helps us help others, and you just might bring hope to other short term users.