Need help with daily dose of 0.5mg Ativan taper

I hope this makes sense- my mind is a mess .....

I have been taking 0.5mg of Lorazepam for the past 2 years. I took the dose daily around 5 pm. I would occasionally take 1mg ( maybe a few times a month) but overall was consistent with 0.5mg daily.  About a month ago, I noticed my mouth was really dry, and around 3-4 pm every day, I would become very dizzy and didn't feel well. I even passed out once while sitting at my desk ( not sure if this is related, I had a full workup and no other issues were found). I would check my Blood pressure and heart rate during these times and they were always normal. I drink a lot of water, so I know I am not dehydrated. I also started to notice numbness and tingling in the feet, which is quite painful. I couldn't understand why these episodes were at the same time every day- Until I realized that the dose was running out and my body wanted more- I was experiencing withdrawal despite no decrease or missed dose!  I WANT off of this poison. SO my issue is...what is the best way to do this? For the past 2 days, I have been experimenting with cutting the med in 2 doses of 0.25mg ( one at 11 and one at 5ish)- but I am experiencing discomfort, numbness, tingling, anxiety, restlessness, etc. ( its pretty awful )- is this to be expected even if I am taking the 0.5 dose just in smaller increments? I am wondering if it's best to go back to the 0.5mg at night and slowly taper down from that once-a-day dose ( slowly) - I worry that I will need to take more closer to the 5pm mark and really don't want to do that. And... I am starting a new job in one a week and need to be " normal" - I don't know what to do.  What is the best way to get this poison out of my body? Thank you so much for your help!

Hi Kris10, I moved your post from withdrawal support because it looks like you'd like to discuss tapering, so here we are.

 

I thought Hardy66 gave you excellent advice on your introductory thread to wait until after you get settled into your new job to taper.  You're going to need to be functional and tapering typically introduces cognitive issues plus a host of other symptoms, but we need to solve your interdose issues, correct?

 

Your body will see any change in dosing as a reduction, it's craving that full dose at 5pm but you should begin to see some stability when your body acclimates to this new schedule but it may take a few more days. 

 

If you're still interested in tapering off of the Ativan now we can talk about that if you'd like.

Yes! Thank you- that is what I need. I read what hardy Wrote and I completely understand that idea. After reading the post …i ttook the .5 mg dose around 5pm (- earlier in the day I had already taken two 1/3 doses so I’m actually over .5 mg for the day.)I hope that doesn’t mess things up. I think I might just need a little more time to figure out the best way to do this. It’s been a few hours since I took that. Five dose and although I feel more calm I still notice the numbness and tingling in my feet, I hope that’s normal. Also… If I start to get withdrawal symptoms say around two or 3 PM … should I just ride it out till five? I really want to do this right and I’m shocked at how uncomfortable this has been. I’m very scared about starting a new job and having this hanging over my head. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate everyone’s input! This is very scary for me.

A one time up-dose shouldn't be a problem but try not to do it again unless you make an informed decision to raise your dose.  Once withdrawals start its difficult to pull them back but it's important to give the drug time to work before raising your dose again. I know you've probably benefited from immediate relief in the past but what we're looking at now is your blood serum levels and it takes a few days for them to reach optimum, so please be patient.

 

In the meantime, I suggest you learn as much as you can about what you're facing so you can prepare.  This is a long and painful process for those of us who will be afflicted with this syndrome, not everyone goes through what we do so learning what to expect is important. 

 

I still think it's a good idea to take at least two doses of your Ativan a day, most of our members who take Ativan will dose 3 times because of it's short half life.  I would stick to a schedule when dosing, your brain is craving consistency right now so however and whenever you decide to dose, please try to be consistent.

So you would recommend that I split the doses.? It was very uncomfortable in between the doses but is that just to be expected?

I believe splitting the doses will help once your body has gotten used to the change, you can go back to dosing once a day but I expect your body will start expecting that dose earlier each day.  Once our bodies become dependent on and tolerant to these drugs we either have to increase the amount or taper from them.

 

The only thing I'm concerned about with your .5 mg dose is your sporadic updose to 1 mg, your body may already be expecting more of the drug, even dosing PRN can cause dependence.