Taper ending soon - need support

Hi Buddies -

 

Looking for some support today.  I am doing a pretty quick taper and based on my schedule will take my last dose tomorrow night.  You can see the details in my signature.  The first two weeks of the taper I didn't have many problems.  Insomnia and tinnitus have been constant, but those are both left over from a withdrawal from c/t Zyprexa which put me on klonopin.  I've been managing the insomnia with magnesium and melatonin along with the occasional zzzquil.  I've recently decreased from the 10mg melatonin that my doc recommended down to 1.5mg based on some things that I read on these boards.  I never sleep more than 5-6 hours but I'll take that over the 0-2 hours I was getting back in January!  I use an air purifier to drown out the tinnitus.  Tinnitus isn't constant but I keep music or TV on so that I don't focus on it.  Luckily it's only one ear 

 

My symptoms this past week have included tingling in my face, arms and hands, tremors, hot and cold flashes, anxiety, upset stomach.  Most have come and gone pretty quickly but today the chills, anxiety and upset stomach have been the worst that I've had in the past few weeks.  I was bedridden when I was withdrawing from Zyprexa but luckily it was over the Christmas holiday so I was able to not do much.  I have two teenagers that have activities everyday plus I work from home so I'm not able to be non-functioning.  My hope is that since I've tapered, I won't have a horrible time, but as my last day draws near, I'm scared of what the next few days/weeks/months will bring.

 

I've been on so many meds over the past 10 years for chronic migraines and this experience with zyprexa and now klonopin has convinced me that I need to find another solution.  I'm currently doing massage therapy and acupuncture and I think both may be successful in helping me.  I just need to get through getting off of klonopin.

 

Just looking for some support and encouragement to get through the day!

Well done Heather any withdrawals will pass with time.You have been on the K for a very short time so hopefully you will be fine.Well done again

Heather.....you seem to have it pretty much under control, planned out and well on course to being free. Just a side note on Melatonin, most of which you may already know. I've been told by several Physicians (non-PDocs) and a few Pharmacists that with Melatonin, most of the time, "less is more". That means for each individual there is an ideal dose where it assists you in initiating, achieving and maintaining restful sleep. But a dose too high actually interrupts sleep and a dose too low isn't effective. I think my ideal dose is around 2.5mg.

 

As for things to block out Tinnitus, I found something that works wonders. Google the term "Marpac Dohm". It's a white noise machine that is perfect for blocking noise and negating the ring of tinnitus. It's amazing. I've ran one on my nightstand for five years. I used one in my child's nursery and it blocked noise so well that I could vacuum outside his door while he napped. If you happen to have an Amazon Alexa, there are "skills" on there that you can activate that also helps. My latest favorite is called "Space Deck".

 

Congratulation with your progress and good luck with the progression.

Thank you!  I just ordered the white noise machine.

 

I had read similar things regarding melatonin.  I was initially on 3mg when my doc said to up to 10.  At that point I was only getting a couple of hours of sleep and was desperate.  I’ve read that it can affect hormone levels so after reading a couple of articles and noticing that it wasn’t helping me sleep decided to reduce to 1.5mg.

 

I plan to move forward with my tapering even though today has been the worst day so far.  I just don’t want to taper longer than I’ve been in Klonopin at the original dose.