New guy, just started Klonopin taper

Hi Everybody,

I hope you are doing well. I am 26 years old. To be honest with you, my story since late 2007 has been so miserable I don't really feel like laying out every little detail, so let me just tell you the basics and then I have a question that I hope someone with some experience could help me with. Any additional advice would be much appeciated and invaluable.

In October of 2007, I presented with a bullseye rash on my left bicep. I live in a Lyme Disease endemic area. However, crappy lyme disease tests and ignorant medical professionals resulted in a misdiagnosis by almost twenty doctors until late May of 2008, when an Infectious disease doctor in New York saved my life and a near bankrupcy. NEEDLESS TO SAY, I WAS PUT ON XANAX AND THEN KLONOPIN 1.5 MG PER DAY IN FEBRUARY OF '08 FOR A PRESUMED PSYCHIATRIC ILLNESS and I dropped down to 0.5 MG a day after a month. Since March of 2008 I have been on 0.5 MG everyday in the morning and an occasional small bite whenever i get nervous. I began Lyme treatment immediately upon diagnosis in May of 08 and it took another 6 months of hell, good nutrition, antibiotics and fighting with doctors to become functional again. SO HERE I AM, FINALLY READY TO GET OFF THE REMAINER OF THIS GARBAGE THAT WAS WRONGLY PERSCRIBED TO ME. My last step to recovery, i hope. I am addicted. I have built up a tolerance I need the pill every morning just to feel normal.

I have a psychiatrist who won't give me valuum and is typical of most American doctors in his elitism, insensitivity and ignorance. I am out of money and can't go to anyone else or really afford any more pills.

Today is January 12, 2008. i cut the pill in half yesterday. So far alot of anxiety and brain fog but tolerable. Is cutting a .5 in half going too fast here? Has anyone managed this rate? Should I add a quarter back on before things get really bad?

Help. I don't know what to expect here.Thanks and a healthy peace of mind to all of you.

Hi Leben,

Welcome to BenzoBuddies!! We usually recommend cutting approximately 10% off your total daily dose every 7-14 days depending on how you are feeling. Cutting your .50mg dose in half would be a 50% cut and is not recommended unless you are not able to get any more pills and a rapid taper is necessary.  Most here would take the .50mg tablet and cut into 1/4s (.125) and reduce by that amount usually every 14 days. Let us know if you have access to more pills and we can help you with a slower taper.

T2

Welcome to BenzoBuddies, Leben.   

It sounds like you have been through the medical mill.  I know Lyme disease can cause a lot of symptoms and can be difficult to treat.  You have been through so much and it won't be long before you are free of the klonopin.  Most people here - including me - did not cross over to valium but tapered directly off the benzo we were on by dry cutting the tablets with a pill splitter or razor.  When I was at 0.5mg lorazepam, I reduced my daily dose by 0.125mg (1/4 pill) about every 2 weeks until I was off.  You can do it too.  Let us know how we can help support you and if you have any questions. 

Hi Leben,

sorry about your rough times, this forum is supportive of those that want to get off the benzos , good luck on your journey!!

Hi everyone,

I can't believe that I received such a quick responses! Thank you so much. It seems that the consensus is that I should be tapering a bit slower. I can still get probably another 30 day supply of pills (30 0.5 mg tablets) if I need them from the psychiatrist that i am seeing but very soon after I will have no insurance and will be on my own. What a great country this is! 

I took half a pill yesterday (.25 mg) and took half this morning. I guess what I will do now is add one more quarter before I go to bed. Therefore, I will take .25 mg every morning and .125 mg in the evening. Then I will reduce the evening dose again after 2 weeks. What do you think, does this sound more reasonable?

Do you really think that cutting down by 50 percent is dangerous?

I really wanted to get this over with quicker. My psychiatrist provided that I do a 50 percent reduction twice to get off the .50 mg. However, I have grown highly suspicious of doctors as you might imagine. So I will side with your wisdom if you think it's the right way to go...

Hi everyone,

 

I can't believe that I received such a quick responses! Thank you so much. It seems that the consensus is that I should be tapering a bit slower. I can still get probably another 30 day supply of pills (30 0.5 mg tablets) if I need them from the psychiatrist that i am seeing but very soon after I will have no insurance and will be on my own. What a great country this is! 

 

I took half a pill yesterday (.25 mg) and took half this morning. I guess what I will do now is add one more quarter before I go to bed. Therefore, I will take .25 mg every morning and .125 mg in the evening. Then I will reduce the evening dose again after 2 weeks. What do you think, does this sound more reasonable?

 

Do you really think that cutting down by 50 percent is dangerous?

 

I really wanted to get this over with quicker. My psychiatrist provided that I do a 50 percent reduction twice to get off the .50 mg. However, I have grown highly suspicious of doctors as you might imagine. So I will side with your wisdom if you think it's the right way to go...

Hi Leben,

I think your plan is a good one, but you may want to reduce the morning dosage after two weeks instead of dropping the evening dose altogether. That way you are still keeping the blood levels steady for the day. After the end of one or two weeks, it is up to you if you want to drop the morning or evening dose.

At that dosage (.50mg), I don't think it would be dangerous to cut 50% but the withdrawal symptoms could get intense (not everybody has a problem quitting benzos) but if you can do it slower, you can minimize withdrawal symptoms. Our motto is slow and steady wins the race.

If you have any more questions, just ask. We'll be here!!

T2

Hi there! welcome to the board.

I have a doctor who will not prescribe valium either, so I'm tapering xanax, and so far I think I'm doing just fine without having to make a cross over.

For me, going slower makes it a bit easier. It doesn't take away the symptoms, but I think it makes it more tolerable.

 

In October of 2007, I presented with a bullseye rash on my left bicep. I live in a Lyme Disease endemic area. However, crappy lyme disease tests and ignorant medical professionals resulted in a misdiagnosis by almost twenty doctors until late May of 2008, when an Infectious disease doctor in New York saved my life and a near bankrupcy. NEEDLESS TO SAY, I WAS PUT ON XANAX AND THEN KLONOPIN 1.5 MG PER DAY IN FEBRUARY OF '08 FOR A PRESUMED PSYCHIATRIC ILLNESS and I dropped down to 0.5 MG a day after a month. Since March of 2008 I have been on 0.5 MG everyday in the morning and an occasional small bite whenever i get nervous. I began Lyme treatment immediately upon diagnosis in May of 08 and it took another 6 months of hell, good nutrition, antibiotics and fighting with doctors to become functional again. SO HERE I AM, FINALLY READY TO GET OFF THE REMAINER OF THIS GARBAGE THAT WAS WRONGLY PERSCRIBED TO ME. My last step to recovery, i hope. I am addicted. I have built up a tolerance I need the pill every morning just to feel normal.

 

I have a psychiatrist who won't give me valuum and is typical of most American doctors in his elitism, insensitivity and ignorance. I am out of money and can't go to anyone else or really afford any more pills.

 

Hi Leben,

You have my sympathy about the Lyme, the problems getting treated, and the mistrust of doctors it causes.  Twelve years ago I started having mysterious peripheral nerve problems.  I live in a Lyme endemic area and was tested but the blood tests were negative.  After two years of increasing symptoms and no diagnosis I started having acute neurological problems - difficulty walking and talking.  At that point I was diagnosed with stage 3 Lyme (CNS infection) by spinal tap.  My doctor had handed me off to a psychiatrist after the first year because tests were all negative.  I started Klonopin during the two years that I was treated with IV antibiotics.  The Lyme had caused damage to my vestibular nerve and I was so dizzy that I had trouble functioning.  Konopin works well for treating this type of balance problem.  Fast forward 10 years - I was still taking Klonopin but having tolerance withdrawal, depression and memory problems.  I didn't know if I still needed the Klonopin for the balance disorder and worried that it was contributing to my other problems.  I decided to try getting off to see if I still needed it.  It has been difficult but I'm doing it.  I was taking 1.5 mg a day and am now down to less than 0.5 mg a day.  I was cutting pills initially and recently switched to a titration taper.  I will be finished in about three months.  It is clear from reading posts that everyone has a different experience getting off of benzos.  Fortunately you took a relatively low dose for a relatively short time.  You can definitely get off the stuff.  If the withdrawal symptoms are too rough, ask your doctor for another month or two of Klonopin so you can reduce at a lower rate.  The generic stuff is cheap and a request for and additional month or two supply to do a more gradual taper seems reasonable.  My psychiatrist estimated that it would take me 6-12 months to get off and she was correct.  The smallest cut you can make conveniently with a pill cutter is a 1/4 tablet.  If that amount of reduction is too difficult, consider doing the milk titration where you are cutting a much smaller amount more frequently.  You can find the instructions on this board.  Keep us posted. 

Best wishes.

Steve

Hey Leben,

A belated welcome to BenzoBuddies! I am so sorry about all that you have been thru in regards to the Lyme disease. I just got done tapering off of 2mg of klonopin. You can check out my tapering schedule below my post. My psychiatrist told me to do my first cut of .5mg; it was very difficult! I decided to cut .25mg for my second cut, and it was only a little bit better. Glad you will be able to get another refill of 30 .5mg pills. Taking .25mg in the am and .125mg in the pm sounds good. I definately would recommend waiting 14 days on this cut (and on each one if you can). It's nice to be on a forum with others who have been or are going thru the tapering process; so much support and encouragement. Let us know if you have any other questions and know that we are here for you if you just need to vent...

Lori

Thanks for the support everyone. I feel like I can finally go into this with a clear head. I thought that I had paid my psychiatrist for that but I guess not...

The withdrawal is starting to accelerate. This morning I woke up in a mild mutiny until I took my .25 mg. Now I am somewhat calmed down but a mental mess. Just very (and probably irrationally) worried about everything. 

Hey T2. Thanks for the advice on the taper schedule. I will go with it. I guess I should be more patient and slow it down some. I just want it to be over with, but I guess it doesn't work that way.

HEY MIA. Is it possible that your Doc will give you klonopin instead of Valuum? I was originally on Xanax and they switched me to Klonopin after only a couple weeks because it has a longer half life. This may be a bit easier to get off of than Xanax. I know docs can be difficult.

HEY STEVE. Your story sounds similar to mine. I had peripheral neuropathy as well. I remember slowly losing my ability to walk and the doctors just taking it as an opportunity to give me more psych drugs. You wouldn't believe how hard they tried to convince me over and over again that I was depressed. I could have walked in there with an arm growing out of my head and they would have told me that it was just another symptom of depression. The neuropathy was just one of the symptoms that continued to get worse until I finally received antibiotic treatment, then it slowly improved. Lyme disease is really something else. The prospect of being misdiagnosed is all too common and I feel that this is just a symptom of a much greater problem in our healthcare system.

HEY LORI LEE. It is nice to hear a success story from a Klonopin taper and your take on a slower taper. Congrats on getting off. I am looking forward to joining you soon.

Will keep everyone updated. Take it easy!

The withdrawal is starting to accelerate. This morning I woke up in a mild mutiny until I took my .25 mg. Now I am somewhat calmed down but a mental mess. Just very (and probably irrationally) worried about everything. 

 

 

Hey Leben,

You will get a TON of support on here! Isn't it great??! Your above statement is very typical to the tapering process. It's not always fun, but if you stay determined, focused, and positive, it will really go a long way.  Waiting 14 days between my cuts gave me some days of windows, when I felt really good. It made the harder days more bearable, just knowing that a "window" was around the corner. Just a warning, worrying about "everything" will only rev up symptoms, I know first hand. Try to stay calm and try to view these symptoms as "healing" going on in your body. If you can, try to keep busy, both physically and mentally. Exercising is a great way to burn up excess adrenaline. Learning to take it one day at a time has become so real to me in this journey. Trying to be thankful for the "little things." Take care...

Lori

Thanks Lori Lee...

T2? I have a question for you. I noticed that in another post you mentioned you were mildly hypoglycemic. So am I. I have the type of hypoglycemia which entails a drop in blood sugar after high carb or high sugar meals rather than during a period of fasting. This is a recent phenomenon that has come about from when I had lyme disease, or maybe it is from the Klonopin, who knows but it was never a problem until the last year. I am hoping it will fade over time.

I was just curious. How does withdrawal effect your blood sugar situation?

Thanks again.

Thanks Lori Lee...

 

T2? I have a question for you. I noticed that in another post you mentioned you were mildly hypoglycemic. So am I. I have the type of hypoglycemia which entails a drop in blood sugar after high carb or high sugar meals rather than during a period of fasting. This is a recent phenomenon that has come about from when I had lyme disease, or maybe it is from the Klonopin, who knows but it was never a problem until the last year. I am hoping it will fade over time.

 

I was just curious. How does withdrawal effect your blood sugar situation?

 

Thanks again.

 

 

Hi Leben,

My hypoglycemia is always worse when not eating and I did find it worse during withdrawal but to be honest it also could have been worse because of my thyroid being out of whack. It is better now that I am benzo free. I have heard others say it is important to eat regularly during withdrawal as low blood sugar can make w/d s/x worse??

T2

Hi Theresa,

Yeah i figured as much. I am hoping that being off the klonopin with enable me to eat pizza again! 

Thanks and good luck.

Hi Theresa,

 

Yeah i figured as much. I am hoping that being off the klonopin with enable me to eat pizza again! 

 

Thanks and good luck.

I would die if I couldn't eat pizza. When I was really sick with thyroid and withdrawals, I craved mostly protein and didn't want sugars or carbs as much. I still get shaky if I don't eat regularly but not near as bad as before. Take heart, it will get better!

Hi Leben,

it was a pleasure chatting with you yesterday, I wish you a smooth taper my friend 

HI Leben,

Sounds like you been through it. You will get off this stuff. I also tapered .5 Klono. I did really well. I hope your journey is not to difficult. It's not horrible for everyone.  We are all here to help any way we can. I'm glad you are here. I'm wishing you all the best. Kel

It was a pleasure speaking with you as well recover. I also with you the best.

Hi Kel. Thanks for the additional encouragement. You went pretty quick. When would you say that your withdrawal symptoms went away?

Hi everyone,

I hate to intrude on this posting with a plea for some support but I couldn't figure out how to start my own forum because my brain is just not working at the moment. I can't seem to do the simplest things. 

Today is the first day that I have thought about backtracking since i started my taper. I started tapering from Clonazapam two weeks ago. I cut the pill in quarters and weaned off one quarter, stabling in about seven days. Three days later I went down to a half (.25). That was Wednesday. The withdrawl symptoms have been so erratic on this cut. The first time I cut, they peaked steadily and then gradually declined. Now they are just popping up at weird times and it is driving me crazy. I mean, yesterday I was totally fine and thought i was stablizing and now today I am completely screwed up. I almost lost in on the subway. What is going on?

I also have had these blood sugar problems for the past year, reactive hypoglycemia to be specific, that have been going on since I have been on Clonazapam. I had originally attributed this condition to the reason I originally went on Clonazapam, a misdiagnosed case of Lyme Disease. I thought the hypoglycemia was a lasting affect of this and some nutritional deficiencies that went with it. Now I am thinking the blood sugar problems could just be from Clonazapam because, prior to my taper, the hypoglycemia was consistent and predictable. Now its unpredictable and seems to go when I am withdrawing and return when i stablize.

I AM SO STRESSED AND WORRIED I FEEL LIKE I AM BEING TORTURED. MAYBE I AM THINKING TOO MUCH! Somebody throw some thoughts my way and any shared experiences. Thanks Thanks Thanks!

I also have had these blood sugar problems for the past year, reactive hypoglycemia to be specific, that have been going on since I have been on Clonazapam. I had originally attributed this condition to the reason I originally went on Clonazapam, a misdiagnosed case of Lyme Disease. I thought the hypoglycemia was a lasting affect of this and some nutritional deficiencies that went with it. Now I am thinking the blood sugar problems could just be from Clonazapam because, prior to my taper, the hypoglycemia was consistent and predictable. Now its unpredictable and seems to go when I am withdrawing and return when i stablize.

Hi Leben,

Just wanted to let you know that I have borderline hypoglycemia and during my taper the blood sugar symptoms seemed to be much worse, but now that I am off the poison things seem to back to the way they were. Also during my taper, I tried to eat something every few hours to keep things stable and ate higher protein foods. BTW, over thinking everything is very common during withdrawal.

T2

Hi Leben,

I tapered from .5 klono. I did well. i hope you will also. Stick with it. Take it slow and you will do great. I hope it's going OK for you. Kel

Hey Leben,

When I was in tolerance to the klonopin, I would "feel" like I had low blood sugar much of the time. I even bought one of the machines that you prick your own finger and put your blood on it to see your level. I would check it MANY times a day and it was always fine. But, I would feel and have symptoms of low blood sugar. I did change my diet and do still make sure that I eat something every 2-3 hours (I bring nuts and a power bar in my purse with me everyday). Have you had your blood sugar checked or have you checked it on your own? As far as tapering and withdrawals, each of my cuts were so different. Sometimes, it would gradually get worse and then better and other times, symptoms would just pop up. No two of my cuts were the exact same. In the beginning, I kept track of what days and what symptoms I got, but soon found out that what happened before and when, didn't do the same again. So, I just learned to take it a day at a time and just try to accept what symptoms or windows presented themselves. Not much advice, but knowing that others experienced the same thing and can relate has always helped me!!

Lori

Hi Everybody,

Thank you for the responses. Today is seven days since I made my last cut and I just feel weird. I don't know even know how to describe it. Just weird. I have a headache. I can't seem to stop urinating. My vision seems distorted. I am anxious and tired. I have obsessive thoughts about the direction my life has taken. Whenever I watch television or see someone on the street, living in a state of balance and physiological equilibrium, I marvel at them and wonder how they even do it. It's amazing all the things we take for granted before something like this happens. And, I am generally just depressed about the whole thing. I feel so uncomfortable.

I did get my blood sugar checked while going through tolerance withdrawal because i felt i was having symptoms of both high and low blood sugar. I had one abnormality, which showed below normal glucose 2 hours after a glucose tolerance test. This is suggestive for reactive hypoglycemia. Whenever I would eat high carb meals, anywhere between 1 and 3 hours after I would feel like a surge (almost like high sugar or adrenaline), my vision would become distorted, sometimes I would see smoke and often floaters, and then within an hour, I would feel hypoglycemic: weak, confused, etc. After some gatorade it would go away. I always had gatorade on me.

A change in diet has helped alot. And it seems that withdrawal has helped a bit too. But I still have problems with food.

In my desperate search for answers I have found proof that Klonopin and other benzos can cause glucose deregulation. I have posted a link for anyone who may be looking for the same answers. Here is a study done at a French hospital:

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=387833

I just hope that this all goes away. I never wanted to be on this garbage in the first place. I started getting sick on October 17, 2007 and I haven't felt normal since.  First Lyme disease, then this. I just need a break. You know what I mean?

Hey Leben,

I am glad that you have had your blood sugar level checked out and that a change in diet has helped with that.

 

Thank you for the responses. Today is seven days since I made my last cut and I just feel weird. I don't know even know how to describe it. Just weird. I have a headache. I can't seem to stop urinating.

 

 

I can soooo relate to this symptom!! I had some urine tests done and a CTScan on my kidneys because of pain, pressure, and urine frequency. Everything came back normal, other than the cyst and stone that I have known about for over a year. After 2 weeks, all the pain and pressure went away, but I do urinate a lot and very often still. Others on here have written about the same symptom. If it's not related to your blood sugar, than it is withdrawals. I also know what you mean about waking up and just feeling weird; not knowing how to describe it. Hate to say it, but it is comforting to know that others experience the same things; makes me not feel like I am going crazy or have some major disease! Usually after these times with withdrawal symptoms, they pass and the windows come, so hold onto that thought. This too shall pass....

Lori