My Xanax Taper Plan - Too Fast, Too Slow, or Just Right

New to the board though I have read it for years as a non-member.

 

I have been on Xanax 0.25 twice a day for 22 years. It hasn't worked for many years BUT it does take the edge off for a few hours a day. I always refused to increase. My history - I am post seizure disorder but haven't taken seizure meds since 2004 when I had to withdraw due to liver issues at that time. I have NOT had seizures since 1997, and I am NOT on seizure meds now. With that said, I have been told that my seizure threshold is lower than most and THAT is my greatest concern.

 

I started a taper this past Sunday. I cut one 0.25 into halves then cut one of the halves in half. I am taking basically 3/4 of a 0.25 each morning then a full 0.25 each night. Even on that small of a taper, I really felt it the first two days, not so much yesterday, but big time again today. I know that is a 0.0625 mg dose reduction but is that OK? Both the doctor and pharmacist wanted me to reduce by .125 once a month and finish things up in 4 months. I do not feel comfortable doing such a huge cut so I decided to start reducing by the .0625 dose instead.

 

I thought to try the first cut for 2 weeks then see how I feel before attempting another .0625 cut for another 2 weeks - so on, and so forth. IF I wasn't successful with 2 weeks, I was then aiming for that reduction each month - which would put me at about 8 months instead of the advised 4 months. I am OK with 4 or 8 but I want to do it safely. If I am feeling the tension and increased anxiety with a .0625, Lord help me on a .125 reduction though I DID think things were easing yesterday - not so much today.

 

I was planning the next cut for the PM dose - to try to balance each cut - morning and evening - instead of reducing all the morning then working on the evenings. I felt that by balancing the morning/evening doses over time that it would help keep a doses semi steady - if that is possible. So, my thought was to reduce the evening dose by 0.0625 - making me take 3/4 of a 0.25 each morning and 3/4 one each evening for 2 weeks then proceed on as I have been at such reductions.

 

I am also wondering about as one gets down to the last morning dose and the last evening dose THEN finally the last evening dose before jumping. Will the jump be a bit easier from a .0625 evening dose (at the end of several months), or will I still experience several days of withdrawal? Too many thoughts particularly since I am just beginning the taper.

 

I know I am on a super low dose but I have been on it a long time, AND I have a previous seizure history though I will say that I have weathered many stressful situations over the years that could have easily triggered a stress seizure but the situations did NOT trigger any. Thoughts or opinions appreciated.

No replies - I am surprised.

 

There are probably no replies because no one can judge what's an appropriate taper rate for someone else.

 

All tapers should be 1) symptom-based, and 2) unique to each individual.

Hi DeeJan,

 

Your initial .0625 cut would be a 12.5% cut, which is a bit over the recommended 5-10%, but it might work and you will know symptomatically if its too big of a cut.  Each subsequent cut of .0625 will create a bigger % cut each time, and this might be problematic.  Your second cut of .0625 would be a 14% cut and a third would be a 16% cut and so forth.  Xanax can present difficulties to dry cut because of the small tablets and short half life.  Have you considered a liquid taper, which would allow you to taper with more accuracy?  You can learn more about this method over on the Titration Taper Plans board.  Whatever you decide to do, SLOW and CONSISTENT is the key.

 

She

I did just this week consider the liquid titration but some commented that it worked, other stated that it didn't.

 

My reduction is fairly large but I went over to the Xanax support group that is on here, and several simply made these 0.0625 mg cuts every 2 or 3 weeks until they jumped. They indicated they did really well but some did do smaller cuts towards the end when they were feeling the withdrawals more - I will definitely do that - either dry or wet - haven't decided yet which.

 

I did another 0.625 cut Sunday night, and at 4:30 AM, I was awakened to the feeling of warm water being thrown on me - I was completely covered in heavy sweat. Unusual for me because I do not sweat. I had some mild to moderate discomfort in the sternum area - I have an old spinal injury and sometimes issues radiate into the sternum area. I simply laid in bed for the next 4 hours, resting and meditating - that helped with the anxiety though I carried the sternum discomfort into the whole day.

 

I debated whether to go back to my 0.25 evening dose for a few but decided to try one more night at the reduction of another 0.0625 mg - I did good last night though I have noticed that if stressed today (via telephone on family health issues) - I am a bit jittery. If I sit down to work at the computer, I am once again relaxed and calm. Didn't notice the jitteriness yesterday but it is here today. So, I am just practicing avoidance of stressors. If the next cut proves an issue, I will reduce the next dose cut.

 

I spoke with one of my pharmacists yesterday - that a joke. He commented that on the super low dose that I was on, there was NO WAY that I was experiencing withdrawals particularly on removing only those baby cuts. I told him about being awaken in the night with the massive sweats, and he just commented that I was having a panic attack (which I have not had any of those for many years). I commented that I was sound asleep then he said that it was the sub conscious causing the attack since I was concerned about it. He then recommended that I speak to my doctor to which I replied that I DID have an appointment this week. He then suggested that I request a prescription of Buspar to help with my anxiety if need be. I smiled, thanked him, and stalked off. That is why I am here - doctors or other medical people who have never been on such are only quoting literature and what they are taught in school.

I did just this week consider the liquid titration but some commented that it worked, other stated that it didn't.

 

 

 

Why would it not "work"?  It's simply a procedure that enables you to measure out much smaller quantities so your taper will be smoother and more gradual.

I, personally, agree it would work. I simply commented that various comments that I read here on the board stated that it didn't work for them. I want to get to a certain point then I will probably move over to liquid aspect - simply because the cuts would be easier. So far withdrawals have been mild but again, from reading here on the board, I think towards the end of the taper, it may get harder - hence, the liquid taper.