Making a plan to taper off 3.75mg Valium

I am currently taking 3.75mg Valium nightly. I have been doing this about four years. I switched to 5mg of Valium from 0.25mg of Xanax so that I could taper off back then. My doc actually told me that I could go from 5 to 2.5 and then stop. I thought I was being cautious and started taking 3/4 of a 5mg pill (3.75mg). I had a really wild ride for about 3-4 weeks once w/d symptoms kicked in (which I was not expecting). I had sensory issues, dissociation, anxiety, muscle spasms. It was like a bad trip in a fun house, but I got through it. Since then I've been too scared to cut my dose again, and there was never a "good time" to do it. Now I'm at a point in my life where I'm ready to come off of it. I'm trying to figure out my best option for tapering. My doc. will work with me and help me get what I need even though he thinks I could just stop CT. I see three possible routes:

 

1. I cut the dose by .25mg as I am able (every 2-3 weeks to start?). I would do this by breaking 5mg and 2mg pills into halves and quarters as needed to reach the target number. 3.75>3.5>3.25>3.0 etc. It seems to me this method would be the easiest logistically.

 

2. I crush the pills with a mortar and pestle and micro taper using the Gemini scale and capsules. I like the idea of a micro taper, but I have some questions. When you crush the pills is the medication evenly distributed throughout the powder? Will a pile that weighs 1mg contain exactly the same amount of medication as another pile that weighs 1mg? Is the Gemini scale accurate enough to micro taper from such a low dose? I don't imagine 3/4 of a pill weighs very much.

 

3. I get a prescription for liquid diazepam and use it to micro taper. While seemingly ideal from a tapering perspective, I'd rather not do this because of the uncertainty of switching to a different form of medication. I've found that I can only take the TEVA brand of diazepam tablets. I discovered this when one time the pharmacy gave me Mylan tablets, and I didn't think anything of it until I started having withdrawal symptoms several days later and realized that was why.

 

Any feedback or experience is appreciated!

I think all three of those are viable options for you right now, but option 1 won't get you all the way to zero. So even if you start with 1, you will end your taper with 2 or 3. Fyi, though, you can dry microtaper without having to crush and capsule your pills. You just cut and weight, it's super simple. But liquid is a good option, too. You are right, there is a chance you would have an "adjustment period" making the switch, but after that it would be easy. Either way works.

Fyi, though, you can dry microtaper without having to crush and capsule your pills. You just cut and weight, it's super simple.

 

Interesting, thanks! Do you have any thoughts on my questions regarding such a method. Is the medication uniformly distributed throughout the tablet, and is the Gemini scale accurate enough to micro taper by weighing?

From what I understand about the way tablets are manufactured, the active ingredient is "more or less" evenly distributed through the pill. It's not perfect, but neither is the amount of active ingredient in the pill, as anywhere from 80-100% is allowable by the FDA. However, once you crush the pill with a bunch of other pills, there is no way of knowing where that active ingredient is and isn't. I think that is the least accurate way to dose, aside from maybe dosing from an improperly prepared liquid solution.

And yes, you should be able to microtaper daily with a Gemini scale, if that is the method you choose. I am doing it successfully, myself.

Thanks for your help! So you just shave off some of the pill with something like an X-ACTO knife and then weight it?

 

Some of the reviews of the Gemini on amazon say that it isn't accurate below 5mg, but maybe I should just give it a go myself? What has your experience been?

Yep, that's what I do. The cheap gem20 scales are finicky, but there are tricks to make sure that your measurements are accurate down to 0.001, give or take maybe 0.001. I bought the one that Bella always recommends, I think it's "American Weigh" brand on amazon?

#3 is clearly the easiest, most comfortable way to do a taper.

#3 is clearly the easiest, most comfortable way to do a taper.

 

Thanks for your input. Do you know if all of the liquid diazepam solutions contain alcohol?