Need Help Getting Off 0.5mg of Klonopin - Failed First Taper Attempt

Dose and Length of Time Taken

I've been on 0.5mg of Klonopin once a day every night before bed for the last 3 months.

Quick medical background:

21 y/o male with dysautonomia (autonomic nervous system issues). I got dysautonomia 1 year ago after multiple infections traveling. Left me with severe anxiety, low BP, tachycardia, orthostatic intolerance, GI issues, breathlessness, and more. I was put on Florinef (a steroid) to expand blood volume which allowed me to walk again and start lightly exercising. Was also put on Lexapro, Xanax, and Ambien to cope until steroid started working better.

Was able to get off Xanax and Ambien quickly due to low and infrequent dosage. Was also told to cold turkey off Lexapro, but went through withdrawal with nausea and dizziness, plus brain zaps for months later.

Why I started Klonopin

I was given Klonopin as a rescue pill ever since I got off Xanax, just in case my dysautonomia symptoms ever got really bad and I needed relief.

Back in late February, I pushed my exercise regimen way too hard, and my dysautonomia symptoms came back in full swing. I took Klonopin, as it was the only thing that gave me a good amount of relief. I've not been able to see my dysautonomia specialist in Dallas since the pandemic began to finish medical testing.

Since then, I've been taking Kpin every night at 0.5 mg for the last 3 months almost. It helps my physical symptoms a lot. I tried not taking it one night (about 1.5 months ago) and woke up with a terrible panic attack. So I just kept on it and figured I'd try to get off later on.

My First Taper Attempt - a Complete Fail, and a Pretty Traumatic Experience

I tend to be very sensitive to drugs due to my current condition to begin with. But I felt like 0.5 mg was so low, and I haven't been taking it for long at all. One week ago, I decided I was ready to get off. Here's how my first taper at a 25% reduction of a 0.5mg pill (taking 3/4th) went:

Days 1 - 2: Almost no noticeable withdrawal symptoms. I slept maybe an hour shorter than usual. But I felt pretty much ok.

Day 3: Around late afternoon I started getting slight air hunger out of nowhere. This lasted maybe a couple of hours then got better. Throughout the day, I also noticed I was hypersensitive to sound. A family member knocking on my bedroom door would scare the hell out of me. That night, I felt pretty anxious - definitely more anxious than I have any night in the last 3 months.

Day 4: Woke up in the morning with insane anxiety at around 5:30am. Only slept 4 hours. Heart was pounding, and I felt so anxious I thought I was going to puke. As the day went on I got extremely sad. Thoughts of self harm entered my mind (which was pretty scary). Lasted for a few hours, then sadness turned into fear.

I felt an intense fear in my head, almost like my head would explode. Tried to wait it out for a few hours but it was too much. I was on the verge of freaking out, and was scared I was going to have a seizure or something. So I upped my dose back to what I was originally taking.

Day 5: I slept 10 hours last night after my whole ordeal. I woke up this morning definitely "feeling better," but I've felt extremely tired and hungover all day. I also feel a bit nauseous.

I did a lot of research on benzos, and found out quite a lot. I learned my 25% dose reduction seemed to be way too much for me to handle.

Why I'd Like Your Help

I want to come off Klonopin. It does help my dysautonomia symptoms but is not good for anyone at all long term. Even my dysautonomia specialist said he wanted me to come off Klonopin whenever I could, as it would mess up my nervous system further long term despite giving me relief from symptoms.

Quite frankly, I'm terrified to try and wean off on my own again. And I don't think my Psych can really help given his past history of cold turkey suggestions. He also told me he's never heard of anyone having bad reactions to anyone weaning off benzos...

I'm at a loss for how I became dependant. I truly thought 0.5mg of Kpin was such a low dose, and only once a day for 3 months. Never abused it, never felt like I "needed" to take it.

I'd like any help I can get in figuring out a taper plan. I have read through the Ashton manual, but am a little confused on what I should do. I don't know how I'd be able to accurately take 5 - 10% off of such a tiny Kpin pill each week. And I'm nervous that I'll mess up trying to substitute valium (if I can even get it).

Any/all help would be appreciated. I am determined to come off this. Thank you.

Generally, we advise cuts of no more than 10%.  Many people cut less than that.  25% is a big cut.  It's no wonder you reacted so strongly.  You're not alone.  A lot of people try to cut 25% and hit a wall.

I think you might want to look into a daily micro-taper.  The cuts are very small (usually less than 1%), and you can adjust the size of the cut to match how you are feeling that day.  There are a few ways to do it, so I'd suggest looking around the forum to get a feel for what's involved.  Can be done solid (with a scale) or liquid (with syringes or grad cylinders).  There's decent expertise to help guide you (I own an analytical testing lab, fwiw).

You've gotten a feel for what withdrawal feels like.  It sucks, but it's temporary.  Do some homework.  Ask more questions.  Figure out a reasonable plan for yourself then try to stick to it.

Anxiety is probably going to happen, so get some coping skills under your belt.  Generally, it's good to keep your mind busy with a simple desirable task so it doesn't spend time worrying about things.

Hope this helps.  Feel free to PM me if you wish.

Generally, we advise cuts of no more than 10%.  Many people cut less than that.  25% is a big cut.  It's no wonder you reacted so strongly.  You're not alone.  A lot of people try to cut 25% and hit a wall.

 

I think you might want to look into a daily micro-taper.  The cuts are very small (usually less than 1%), and you can adjust the size of the cut to match how you are feeling that day.  There are a few ways to do it, so I'd suggest looking around the forum to get a feel for what's involved.  Can be done solid (with a scale) or liquid (with syringes or grad cylinders).  There's decent expertise to help guide you (I own an analytical testing lab, fwiw).

 

You've gotten a feel for what withdrawal feels like.  It sucks, but it's temporary.  Do some homework.  Ask more questions.  Figure out a reasonable plan for yourself then try to stick to it.

 

Anxiety is probably going to happen, so get some coping skills under your belt.  Generally, it's good to keep your mind busy with a simple desirable task so it doesn't spend time worrying about things.

 

Hope this helps.  Feel free to PM me if you wish.

Thank you for your response. This is something I'll look into. I originally did not think 25% was a big cut considering the "low" dose. Even my psychiatrist said I would be fine, and that he's never heard of anyone withdrawing at this dose.

Unfortunately I don't think he'll be of much help. A micro-taper sounds reasonable. Thanks!

I wouldn't say that your p-doc lied, but he gave you a generic answer for withdrawal that doesn't adequately cover a significant group of people (including you).  I don't blame him.  Why worry people when most of them will have little or no withdrawal?  However, upon realizing that you have become tolerant/dependent, he should have had a 'Plan-B' for you (e.g. a nice slow taper).

The claim of a low dose always befuddles me.  I've been on this list a long time and have seen people really struggle getting off 2mg of valium (which is like 0.1mg klonopin).  These meds are potent - klonopin especially so.

I did a klonopin taper some years back. Never got off it completely but I had other issues (short term very high dose abuse stupidly trying to counter effects from imipramine taper). What worked well for me was titrating using whole milk and doing small cuts. I started around 5% IIRC. Took me years but as I said I had other issues. I started a 3 mg and stopped at .5mg. I also waited about three weeks between each cut a huge portion of my taper by toward the end I just did a month and was cutting maybe 3%.

Titration is probably one of the safer ways to cut. What I discovered was that between cuts I had to hold longer as I wouldn't even notice a cut for maybe well into a week if not a week and a half or maybe two weeks. So if I cut ever two weeks, I would get hit with a lot of withdrawal almost like a double cut. I would recommend titration with whole milk (the fat binds to the molecules better IIRC as to being the reason why whole milk is preferable). And I would suggest maybe 10% or less and waiting over 2 weeks before you do another cut.

The rule of thumb I followed was I wanted to have symptoms abate before cutting again, and usually for a few days. I think at one point I was trying to do 18 or less days, but that seemed to be pushing it for me. You might be different. But starting at 10% or less and holding a little past two weeks might be very safe to test it.