.3750 Clonazopram 2x's daily taper planning for March-Suggestions??

Hi.  My story is available on here.  Paxil bridge to Prozac AD led to miscalculation of benzo dose, script refusal from doctor and need to drop 2/3's of my clonazopram dose for a week and then drop the last 5 mgs of prozac due to the anxiety it caused without the benzo which  led me to this site.

 

Anyway my point to this recent post is that I was about 3 weeks completed from weaning off the prozac and stable on the clonazapram again.  But my clinical depression was getting bad so I began Sertraline (12.50 to start for a few days then just 25mgs a day for now) a very small dose to help me some again and maybe smooth the clonazopram withdrawal some.  Though in the past this medicine has not helped my depression as much as my anxiety and panic-thus the reason I chose it, as in March I want to begin the clonazopram taper.

 

By march I should be well enough to begin the taper.  It is a relatively low dose that is only 2x's a day.  I am having a bit of a time creating a taper plan that includes the substitution of another such as diazepam.  The Ashtom model has the doses spread out during the day more than 2 times.  I wonder if I should divide my doses up more first before the substitution and taper.  Any Ideas??

 

PS..The sertraline already helps and I forgot to take my morning clonazopram till now as I put it off so I could get some things done before I felt too unmotivated. 

 

 

 

 

Note.  Sertaline is causing irritability to be worse.  I was only on 12mg for three days.  Stopping it and hoping to survive the depression piece that I don't believe is associated with the clonazopram. 

Hi.  My story is available on here.  Paxil bridge to Prozac AD led to miscalculation of benzo dose, script refusal from doctor and need to drop 2/3's of my clonazopram dose for a week and then drop the last 5 mgs of prozac due to the anxiety it caused without the benzo which  led me to this site.

 

Anyway my point to this recent post is that I was about 3 weeks completed from weaning off the prozac and stable on the clonazapram again.  But my clinical depression was getting bad so I began Sertraline (12.50 to start for a few days then just 25mgs a day for now) a very small dose to help me some again and maybe smooth the clonazopram withdrawal some.  Though in the past this medicine has not helped my depression as much as my anxiety and panic-thus the reason I chose it, as in March I want to begin the clonazopram taper.

 

By march I should be well enough to begin the taper.  It is a relatively low dose that is only 2x's a day.  I am having a bit of a time creating a taper plan that includes the substitution of another such as diazepam.  The Ashtom model has the doses spread out during the day more than 2 times.  I wonder if I should divide my doses up more first before the substitution and taper.  Any Ideas??

PS..The sertraline already helps and I forgot to take my morning clonazopram till now as I put it off so I could get some things done before I felt too unmotivated.

 

Hello triestoohard-

 

If you are use to dosing 2x a day I would stick with that. Ashton crossover is only a guideline. It can be tailored  individually. 

 

 

Bella Here is my latest response in reference to that  idea and other options,

 

Hi.  I can't give a definitive answer to what is really going to work myself.  But, from past experience of any medicine, hormone or even supplement dose changing; if I did not go slow and steady I failed with uncomfortable symptoms. Thus is the case for me again.

 

I myself am  only weaning off of .75 a day and have yet to find a truly smooth schedule of dosing. I most likely won't.  I tried the split dose of .3750 2x's a day but felt the anxious withdrawals half way before the next dose.  I then recently referred to the ashton's taper plan outline, and tried the .25 3x's a day to spread it out in preparation for a drop in dose. That was worse for me.  I am presently  trying the .50mg during the day and .25 at night, as the reverse of .50 at night that I also tried  made me slow moving or unmotivated in the am. 

 

However due to not being steady on my dose, this morning I was very dizzy and nauseaus as I skipped my .25 dose last night due to a late dose of the .50 in the afternoon.  Today I am back to assessing my symptoms and re-adjusting the dosing plan to that same regiment and schedule again. 

 

As a result of each of these switches and the withdrawal anxiety symptoms I experience I think I am getting some sort of nerve damage or irritation; as I have been experiencing painful soreness around my lower rib cage, along with the anxiety in between any of the dose plans I make.

 

I am noting though that several years ago I was diagnosed with shingles minus the rash do to the severity of this same discomfort.  As a result I was prescribed gabapentin at night time and maybe day (I can't remember).  That helped a great deal.  I only stayed on the gabapentin for 2 weeks for fear of withdrawals though. Now looking back I think it was withdrawals and not shingles as I was weaning off of benzos then also, and had maybe even completed the weaning process way too fast and jumped. 

 

I am now doing my own research of studies and have found some interesting studies on using Gabepentin for benzo withdrawals for inpatients which I am going to bring up to my doctor this week.