Low Dose, Still Cross Over?

Hello, I’m currently taking a total dose of .75 mg Ativan. I take .25 mg in the morning and .5 in the evening. Withdrawal has been up and down but nothing truly crippling so far. However, I’m becoming more and more aware of the fact that this may take longer than I want. My question is this, if I’m planning a longer term taper, would crossing over to Valium make sense? It’d mean I could make more gradual cuts over a longer time frame. On the other hand, it’d take time for the Valium to become an effective replacement right? Is there such a thing as crossover withdrawal? Please help! I feel really sad and stuck right now.

Standard Ashton crossover takes a couple of months.  Some people do it faster.

 

There is no guarantee that you'll like valium.  It does offer a bit more stability compared to the variation in effective dose that Ativan provides (because of Ativan's short half-life).  I recall some people feeling that valium makes them feel more drugged.  On the other hand, it obviously has worked for many people.  Whether to cross-over or not is one of those decisions each person must make.

 

fwiw - 0.75 is not that low of a dose.  Benzos are pretty powerful.  It doesn't take much to have a strong effect. 

You’re right, it’s not a low dose. Sorry, I guess it feels lower compared to what I see from other people. I knew nothing about Benzos when I started, now I have to present myself with these difficult questions. It really does feel like I’m trapped in a nightmare sometimes. Sometimes I just wanna say screw it and throw all my pills away, but I’m too scared.

Hi MozeKing,

 

Hey, I agree, .75mg of Lorazepam (Ativan) is pretty much toward the lower end, (I'm speaking in "relative" terms here), especially when you look at Dr Ashton's Schedule 3 Reduction Schedule. Have you stabilized on this dose? Ashton states it has a half-life of between 10 and 20 hours, whilst Diazepam has a half-life of 20 to 100 hours. I read somewhere (I think it was Outis)  that since Lorazepam is an intermediate acting benzo,it could possibly be managed without substitution for Diazepam. However, I hear your frustration and I understand why you might like to crossover, especially since you take the majority of your dose at night. I'm sure someone will pick me up if I'm wrong, but isn't 1mg of Ativan equivalent to 10mg of Valium so .75 is "only" 7.5mg of Valium (not small but to be fair not huge either!).  Perhaps someone much better at Math than me could help our fellow Buddie convert Ashton's reduction  table to reflect this lower dose?

 

Wishing you luck MozeKing  Harnonee

Thanks for the kind words Harmonee! I don’t see the doctor until Tuesday, so I’ll try not to ruminate on it too much until then. In the meantime, I’ll just keep on moving forward. Who knows, I’m getting ready for my next cut so the cross over might be even less or not even necessary. Just gotta hang on to positive thinking right?

I would try directly tapering from Ativan.  Crossovers can be complicated and you will still go through Ativan withdrawal, but it will be buffered by the new benzo.  Then you will go through withdrawal again.  One of the main reasons for crossovers is because people feel very unwell on the short acting benzo that they are currently on.

Wise words! Thank you, that was my number one worry about it. More dependence and more withdrawal.