Please Help!

[[Buddie]]

Hello. I did a successful taper off of clonazepam that took almost a year. My jump was last year in May. I was pregnant during the last 3 months of my taper. After I had my baby in November, I got severe postpartum anxiety not to mention I had a very traumatic birth. Since then I have been reinstated on the clonazepam and have been trying different antidepressants. I don’t take the clonazepam everyday. I started off taking .25mg everyday for one month and then I started taking .25mg twice a week until last week and my prescriber had me take a three day break from antidepressants while switching (which I shouldn’t have listened to her because I know what can happen) and I started to get pretty bad discontinuation syndrome Sunday. I ended up having to take 1mg on Sunday and .5mg on Monday and today. Hopefully I don’t have to take anything tomorrow. I am having some weird symptoms. Itching, twitching, tingling and burning. I basically feel like I’m in withdrawal but I’m on the medication. Don’t know what that is. Please don’t scare me.

My question is, can I just stop taking the clonazepam or do I have to taper it? If I have to taper it, what do you suggest? .25mg twice a week and then once a week and then .125mg twice a week and then once a week or something else? Thanks in advance.

[[Buddie]]

Congratulations on your baby but I’m sorry to hear it was traumatic and you’re dealing with postpartum.  I believe you may need to do a slow taper from the Clonazepam given your previous use and the fact that you took it every day for a month.  Even sporadic use can cause dependence so to be on the safe side, I think a taper would be best.  Of course, if you find your symptoms are mild then you can speed it up but I’d sure err on the side of caution.

[[Buddie]]

Thank you! Do you have advice on how I should taper? Maybe keep taking .25mg twice a week for a month and then .125mg twice a week for a month and so on?

[[Buddie]]

Typically we’ll suggest finding a comparable dose and take it every day before beginning a taper but if you think you can taper the dose you’re taking twice a week then you can certainly try that out first. 

I hope you’ll keep us posted on your progress because if you can taper this way it will be helpful if other members want to take this approach.

[[Buddie]]

Thank you. I think that I will take .25mg for two weeks or until my current symptoms level out and then slow taper 12% every month.

[[Buddie]]

Hi [...]

I hope I haven’t jumped in with a lack of understanding the context by rushing myself, but why not taper 6% every 14 days or so, rather than doing a whole 12% reduction monthly. Symptoms will be much more intense from a 12% reduction (all at once) than 6% fortnightly.

[[Buddie]]

It would make it a lot harder for me to figure out how to take 6% off of my pills.

I have been having really loud tinnitus lately. I didn’t get this the first time that I tapered or was on benzos. Is this normal and will it go away?

[[Buddie]]

It would make it a lot harder for me to figure out how to take 6% off of my pills.

I have been having really loud tinnitus lately. I didn’t get this the first time that I tapered or was on benzos. Is this normal and will it go away?

Going by your signature, you jumped from the Zoloft when you should’ve tapered slowly, as ADs can pose similar withdrawals to benzodiazepines. This is probably the reason you had to reinstate the clonazepam. I understand it may be more difficult for you to taper at 6%, so you could try the 12% and if you find withdrawal too difficult from the 12%, we can help you devise a method and plan for the smaller reductions.

The tinnitus is very normal, one of the most common symptoms.

Also, it’s common for withdrawal from these medications to become more symptomatically intense if we’ve been on them before, which is why once we’re off them, we should avoid reinstating in the future.

[[Buddie]]

Ok thank you. Do you think that the tinnitus will get better? I’m tempted to not taper and just stop because it’s so screeching.

[[Buddie]]

I certainly think it’s possible that holding your taper for now may help alleviate your tinnitus to a degree, but I wouldn’t expect the tinnitus to vanish altogether. It’s a common symptom, and my own personal experience is that there is often some level of tinnitus through this process. I’ve experienced the very same symptom from ADs. Only you know how severe your tinnitus is, so if it’s very bad, holding your dose steady for a time may (like I said) lessen its severity. It may also be a symptom you can follow to help guide you with your taper reductions… it’s intensity possibly being a guide by which you would know when you’re ready to make another reduction. Also keep in mind that overexertion and stress can cause an increase in symptom severity.