involuntary cold turkey

Hi. I'm new at the forum.

 

I've been on Klonopin for the last 16 years. Except for an occasional adjustment in my dosage(up and down not more than .5mg.), I've been on 1mg. all this time. 

 

For reasons unknown to me, my doctor has been unreachable for the last 8 days, and has not called in a refill for my prescription, so I've been out of my pills.

 

I understand that going off this medication 'cold turkey' can be dangerous. I've been wondering if I'm in any danger myself given the circumstances. Thank you. 

Hi,

 

The risks are usually associated with high dose (1mg of Klonopin is modest dose). However, some people are bound to be more prone to seizures than others. I imagine, that some might be borderline epileptic, for example, and something that would not cause a seizure in one person, sends another over the edge.

 

The very high chances are that you will be fine (as far as seizures go), but really, you should have to go without your Klonopin. If you have been taking Klonopin for an extended period of time, you will probably feel pretty rotten with the sudden withdrawal.

 

Is there no one else at the practice you talk with? What contacting another doctor for an emergency short script?

Thank you for answering. Your reply put me somewhat at ease since I'm not on a high dose, and I'm not epileptic.

 

Unfortunately, my only option is the ER, which is more trouble than it's worth, and no guarantee that I'll get the refill. I do have an appointment with said doctor tomorrow, so I'll take it up with him then. I just wanted an unbiased opinion. My withdrawal symptoms haven't been too severe, I've just been concerned about the whole 'seizure' thing, which is very scary. 

 

 

How long have you been without any pills? Klonopin has an averagely long half-life (18-50 hours), so it might take a few days before the withdrawal fully hits you. 'Half-life' is how long it takes for half of the drug to be metabolised. Then, the same amount time again to metabolise half of the remaining half (so that just a quarter of the Klonopin is left in your system), and so on.

8 days with no pills. Longest I've ever gone.

That's not good. However, if you don't feel too bad by now, you will probably be OK - it could still hit you though!

 

Have you been considering giving up benzos? If you read around our forum and website, you will soon realise that benzos are bad news in the long run. The longer you stay on them, the more problems you are likely to encounter. Besides, they work only for a very limited amount of time in the treatment of anxiety and insomnia. And yes, problems (side effects, and something called tolerance withdrawal) can suddenly occur after 16 years!

 

Why were you prescribed Klonopin anyway?

 

I'll catch you tomorrow - it's very late here. I'm sure others will reply though.

 

G'nite.