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Who has improved during your taper? Who has gotten worse?


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Hello All

 

I'm interested in getting an idea of how many start to feel better during their taper. Hopefully this will help me as I manage my taper. I might slow my taper down a bit since I felt this last cut a little more than usual. I cut one MG from 9.75 to 8.75, which happened to entirely eliminate the midday dose. Now I only dose in the morning and evening. Thinking of cutting in .25 increments now. Curious to hear who sees improvement through the taper process and who doesn't. Thanks!

 

Tom

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I cut too quickly initially and had some bad symptoms.

 

I'm 50 years old and had been taking .5mg of Ativan for a little over 3 years. It was prescribed for anxiety during a very stressful time in my life and I took one pill at bedtime to help me sleep.

 

I started by cutting the pill and taking 3/4 of it starting on October 28. November 10 and 11 were the worst with extreme muscle pain and fatigue.

 

November 25, I cut back to half of a pill. The headaches have been bad along with joint pain. Even my fingers and toes hurt.

 

I stayed at half a pill until last night. I've started my taper again now that I've stabilized but this time I'm going to use the liquid prescription. I started to feel much better in January. The most noticeable benefit was improved memory.

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Hello All

 

I'm interested in getting an idea of how many start to feel better during their taper. Hopefully this will help me as I manage my taper. I might slow my taper down a bit since I felt this last cut a little more than usual. I cut one MG from 9.75 to 8.75, which happened to entirely eliminate the midday dose. Now I only dose in the morning and evening. Thinking of cutting in .25 increments now. Curious to hear who sees improvement through the taper process and who doesn't. Thanks!

 

Tom

Hi Tom- once I got below 0.5mg of Xanax I can honestly say I felt MUCH better. It really does depend on the person and length of time you’ve been on the meds. Take it slow and you might surprise yourself.

 

Also, stay off this site during your taper as much as you can. There’s going to be days where you want support which is cool, but dwelling on this process does not help it at all. Get outside, do stuff to distract you.

 

I wish you well.

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I felt awful during my early cuts but had no idea that it was the tapering. I'd only been warned about possible seizures and did black out twice (but don't know what that was about - maybe low BP).

 

At close the same time I got a new GP (old one retired) and found BB and realized what was going on somewhat. After being all over the place on dosage including a horrible two weeks of cold turkey, I started a liquid taper. It was hard to do that due to confusion related to lower amounts.

 

My experience was that the unorganized drop from 3 mg to .5 (and all over the map) was horrific; the slow taper on liquid has been okay. Some days are rough but not all of them. I'm taking walks and doing some writing now and look forward to more improvements.

 

I hope you will have an easy taper. Some people do which is great.

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Hi Tom,

Cut and hold was bumpy for me but once I got onto liquid + pill things evened out for me.  Issues I didn't anticipate getting better did get better on the way down. Sleep was the first to begin the healing process.  In the last week, I had four and a half days straight free of anxiety.  It's back, but not as strong.  As I go lower I notice that healing cycles more tightly and the intensity continues to reduce.  I also notice that sxs when they do kick up follow a pattern -- imperfect but it's there.  Physical  --> emotional and then I sleep a long period. At that point a sx falls away for a long period of time. Yesterday my shoulders and neck relaxed completely like a rag doll - it's been about 4 years since they were completely relaxed (long story).

 

Have faith in the process, build confidence in your taper.  :thumbsup:

-PH

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Morning to all,

I am tapering from ativan , It was very difficult at first as I didn't know what I was doing and lowered way to fast.

Was sick for weeks , had every symptom you could imagine.

Up dosed to 0.75 and stayed there for about 3 weeks. Felt better then started to dry cut and weigh. 

Just started liquid about 5 days ago... Still don't feel great but nothing like when I went too fast.

My symptoms also come in cycles seems like every 2 weeks. No sleep , intrusive thoughts, pain everywere, ringing in ears

Hope we all get more and more good days.

Lisa

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I definitely got better as I tapered. Since getting low in dose I have had symptoms completely vanish: no more tinnitus ever, no more brain fog, mo more chemical anxiety/cortisol surges in the morning.

 

Sleep is still not great but I have test driven Melatonin the past 3 nights and it's given me more sleep but I did have a little bit of a hangover from it the 2nd day. So it's a trade off: more sleep and a Melatonin hangover or waking up at 3am and trying to push through on 3 hours of sleep.

 

But I will say that tapering has helped me heal. I used to have tinnitus and now I never do. Ditto with the brain fog.

 

Exercise has helped - I do as much as I can. And also getting out and doing as much "real life" things as possible.

 

hang in there - things do get better.  :thumbsup:

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Definitely better as I DLMT.

2/3 of my initial symptoms are gone from basically being in acute with a dozen unpleasant sxs. 

I've learned to accept the remaining symptoms as part of the process.

I've slept 8+ hours a night since I started and no anxiety flare up since about the second week.

 

Keep in mind, I do believe there is more to this than just the taper itself. Lifestyle, dietary changes, and personality are all key factors in this process.

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Hello All

 

I'm interested in getting an idea of how many start to feel better during their taper. Hopefully this will help me as I manage my taper. I might slow my taper down a bit since I felt this last cut a little more than usual. I cut one MG from 9.75 to 8.75, which happened to entirely eliminate the midday dose. Now I only dose in the morning and evening. Thinking of cutting in .25 increments now. Curious to hear who sees improvement through the taper process and who doesn't. Thanks!

 

Tom

Hi Tom- once I got below 0.5mg of Xanax I can honestly say I felt MUCH better. It really does depend on the person and length of time you’ve been on the meds. Take it slow and you might surprise yourself.

 

Also, stay off this site during your taper as much as you can. There’s going to be days where you want support which is cool, but dwelling on this process does not help it at all. Get outside, do stuff to distract you.

 

I wish you well.

 

Hi Tom,

 

My experience parallels Jimberland's - the lower I got, the better I felt.  Doesn't necessarily mean sxs disappeared, but they lessened in intensity. 

 

I also felt more myself - my thinking became clearer, I could function at a higher level, energy returned, sleep quality improved and - this one may sound really strange - I felt as if my soul came back.  Ativan had such a demonic effect on me, at a certain point, I honestly felt as if my soul was sucked out of my body.  Having it return has been pure joy.  There's a newfound appreciation for everything benzos had robbed me of.  Now that I've been given a second chance, I am ever so grateful.

 

I needed to hear Jimberland's advice to not spend too much time on this forum.  It's very wise.  Initially, BB was a lifesaver, and I've tried to pay it forward to the best of my ability, helping other buddies along the path.  But, at a certain point, it can adversely impact healing.  Finding a good balance is key.

 

As others have said, adopting healthy habits, being patient with the process and finding acceptance are all integral to healing.

 

At 3.5 weeks post jump, sxs continue to diminish as healing continues.

 

xo,

sierra  :smitten:

 

[modified to add]  Tom - you may be feeling your last cut more than usual because you've eliminated your midday dose.  With a short acting benzo like Xanax, what you're feeling may well be interdose withdrawals.  Ativan was like this too.  To avoid interdose withdrawals, my tapering strategy was to reduce, as equally as possible,  all doses rather than eliminate any.  The goal is to have consistent blood plasma levels instead of peaks and troughs.  HTH.

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Thank you everyone for responding.

 

I can relate to so much of what you have said as far as symptoms, what we have lost, and learning the taper process. Thanks also for telling me what things you started getting back first. That concept has intrigued me since I started having problems, I have always wondered what I will get back first or what symptoms will fall off first. So great to hear how it happened for you. Your responses really help me. Thanks again -

 

Tom

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I switched from 1.5 mg Xanax to 15 mg Valium, and have since tapered down to 8.6 mg. I have been sleeping a little better here and there and I'm hoping it's the beginning of some healing. Switching to liquid Valium has definitely made the dosing easier. Good luck everyone!

 

Tom

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When I stabilize after a reduction in dosage, I feel much better. My anxiety level decreases, I sleep better and I'm more clear headed. But, I'm still on a relatively high dose (2.25mgs of Klonopin) and I don't know if this will hold true as I move on to lower doses. I have learned to give myself a break and truly stabilize between reductions in dosage which has helped immensely. When I'm in the thick of withdrawal, I can remind myself that I will have a break from the symptoms once I stabilize. When I followed a set taper schedule (a reduction every one-two weeks) I had a brief respite from the withdrawal symptoms and then I was right back into the thick of withdrawal.
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Hello All

 

I'm interested in getting an idea of how many start to feel better during their taper. Hopefully this will help me as I manage my taper. I might slow my taper down a bit since I felt this last cut a little more than usual. I cut one MG from 9.75 to 8.75, which happened to entirely eliminate the midday dose. Now I only dose in the morning and evening. Thinking of cutting in .25 increments now. Curious to hear who sees improvement through the taper process and who doesn't. Thanks!

 

Tom

 

I’ve been trying to stabilize for two weeks. It’s not going well but I’m not going to up doses. I’ve made it this far although miserable. I’m hoping once I stabilize, the next cut won’t be so bad. George

Hi Tom- once I got below 0.5mg of Xanax I can honestly say I felt MUCH better. It really does depend on the person and length of time you’ve been on the meds. Take it slow and you might surprise yourself.

 

Also, stay off this site during your taper as much as you can. There’s going to be days where you want support which is cool, but dwelling on this process does not help it at all. Get outside, do stuff to distract you.

 

I wish you well.

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