Need Help With Klonopin To Valium Taper

I've got an appointment with two doctors soon.  One is supposedly able to treat PSSD finally but may require at some point to come off of Klonopin to maximize the treatment.  The other is one of the few doctors who claims to be benzo-wise in my area.  I want to make sure that the benzo wise doctor is actually going to adhere to the Ashton Manual rules because in the past, I've been lied to or the doctor was just misinformed.  So it would appear that since I take 3 mg of Klonopin, I can just follow Schedule 6 of the Ashton manual on https://benzo.org.uk/manual/bzsched.htm

 

Schedule 6. Withdrawal from clonazepam (Klonopin) 3mg

daily with substitution of diazepam (Valium).

(1 mg clonazepam is equivalent to 20mg diazepam)

 

Can someone please confirm this?  I don't want this doctor to claim that they are benzo wise based on the Ashton Manual and then they don't think that 1 mg of Klonopin is equal to 20 mg of Valium. Thanks.

Yep, I see schedule 6 is the one you'd use.  https://www.benzo.org.uk/manual/bzsched.htm#s6 and you're correct about the equivalency. https://www.benzo.org.uk/bzequiv.htm

 

When you talk to your Dr, make sure that he'll allow you to slow your taper down if need be, some feel even Professor Ashton's schedule is too fast, especially when getting down to the lower doses. 

 

Yep, I see schedule 6 is the one you'd use.  https://www.benzo.org.uk/manual/bzsched.htm#s6 and you're correct about the equivalency. https://www.benzo.org.uk/bzequiv.htm

 

When you talk to your Dr, make sure that he'll allow you to slow your taper down if need be, some feel even Professor Ashton's schedule is too fast, especially when getting down to the lower doses.

 

Hey Pamster,

 

Thank you very much for your quick reply.  I was about to get an appointment finalized with the supposed benzo wise doctor, but it isn't until the middle of August.  Whoever I spoke to on the phone verified that they do slow tapers off of benzos on an outpatient basis in additional to internal medicine but when I mentioned the Ashton Manual they didn't know what I was talking about...and that frightens me.  I'm going to bring the printed version of the Ashton Manual with me and just hope for the best.

I'm glad you're going in prepared, I find that writing down my questions for the Dr helps get me through an appointment but you're really smart to take the manual in.  Hopefully his method isn't the standard we see from so many Dr's who think they know their patients needs but don't really listen to their patients needs.  We're all different and tapers need to be symptom based, not some arbitrary time table. 

 

Please keep us posted. 

I'm glad you're going in prepared, I find that writing down my questions for the Dr helps get me through an appointment but you're really smart to take the manual in.  Hopefully his method isn't the standard we see from so many Dr's who think they know their patients needs but don't really listen to their patients needs.  We're all different and tapers need to be symptom based, not some arbitrary time table. 

 

Please keep us posted.

 

I'm also fortunate enough that my primary care physician has decided to also look into the Ashton Manual after years of not wanting to do anything with it, so hopefully having two doctors wanting to handle it will work out in my favor.

This is good news, its wonderful when we're heard. 

This is good news, its wonderful when we're heard.

 

Yes, you're definitely right.  I lost my ability to sleep when I went to see the PSSD specialist and now that I'm home, I'm only sleeping slightly better and now I'm on a whole other host of medications.  I suppose I should post more details about this in my buddy blog, but I'm just feeling very sad and hopeless now.

Oh dear, what medications are you on?  It's okay to talk about it here, please don't feel hopeless, I know lack of sleep makes that really difficult though. 

Oh dear, what medications are you on?  It's okay to talk about it here, please don't feel hopeless, I know lack of sleep makes that really difficult though. 

 

Hey Pamster,

 

I'm going to try and get the new list with all of the doses.  I'm crying uncontrollably now.  This is the second day I've been able to cry in many years and I'm guessing it's because of the meds.  I'm pretty sure I had a buddie blog along with a progress log.  Do you know how to find it?  My progress log only seems to show up in search.  If not, is it ok for me to create a new buddie blog?

Your progress log link is located in your signature, here it is:  http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=121692

 

Here is your Buddie Blog:  http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=199679.0

 

I couldn't cry while I was recovering but the one time I did I felt so much relief, I hope you feel that too.