Clonazapam Making Me Sick - Help

Hey Buddies,

I am back on Clonazapam 1 mg.  I dose .5mg 2x day.  Every morning I wake up with the doom and gloom. Pretty much bed-ridden until noon.

Anybody experience this?  Would I be better switching to another benzo to taper off?  Please help.

I don't think another benzo is the answer, you've been on a few of them and they all have their downsides, is the 1 mg enough or do you need to raise your dose to stabilize before considering another taper?

Hi Pamster,

I was on 2mg and have tapered down to 1mg.  I have been holding now for 3 weeks.  But every morning I get that cortisol thing,

just feel awful and in withdrawal.  Is this common with people tapering off benzos?  Thank You.

Anybody else sick in the am when you wake up from tapering benzos?

I've only been tapering for a short while now (maybe 1 month combined). I take my dose at 8pm every evening. I feel some symptoms starting late afternoon - but for sure I feel the worst when I get up at 4AM (my normal time). I get out of bed, take care of the cats, have breakfast and I am a different person. For some reason my body just prefers to be vertical. Last night (my worst so far - I slept a good part of the night in my recliner). I walk every morning from 6:30 - 7:30 (more or less). That helps a lot and I am almost forcing food in whether I am hungry or not (but I have lost 25 lbs this year and I am too thin).

ive also experienced that cortasil thing in the mornings for the first year of my tapper.  awful feeling of anxiety with like a hot flash comming on.  id have to get right up and start my morning routine for it to stop.  i dont feel that anymore when i wake up in the morning, but if i were to take a nap in the afternoon, i wake right up after maybe 5 minutes with that feeling.  i hope to enjoy a nice nap in the yard again some day.  best wishes to you.  jill

Hi Nomorebenzos2,

 

the most common way to taper Benzo's I know is crossing over to Diazepam (Valium). 1mg. of Clonazapam equils a whopping 20mg. of Diazepam! I recommend reading The Ashton Manual.

 

https://www.benzo.org.uk/manual/bzsched.htm#s6

(Schedule 6)

https://www.drbeeker.nl/benzoconversie.pdf

(Dutch table)

 

Hi Pamster,

I was on 2mg and have tapered down to 1mg.  I have been holding now for 3 weeks.  But every morning I get that cortisol thing,

just feel awful and in withdrawal.  Is this common with people tapering off benzos?  Thank You.