Help with sedoxil (mexazolam) taper

i take sedoxil for 5 years now, started with 3 mg in the beggining couse of panic attacks then almost all the years i only been on 1 mg take in the morning, never had sleep problems.

Sedoxil have a long half life so i need some advice on how can i taper from the 1 mg pill i take in the morning and also need to understand if a need to increase the dose feel better and only then start tappering or if i can star the tapper propgram even if i dont feel "normal" at the time?

Thanks and waiting for a plan...

Hello Arrojado,

Sedoxil is a new one on me.  i looked it up and it appears to be the name for generic mexazolam, which is also a new one to me.  i looked here...

http://www.benzo.org.uk/manual/bzcha01.htm#4

...to get an idea of its potency and half life, but it was not listed.  Perhaps others will know more.  I'm at a bit of a loss if I have no idea of how its potency compares to other benzos.

Wish I could help more. 

That's great information!  What we can do perhaps is to assume it is AS POTENT as diazepam to be safe and treat it like diazepam to start and once you get going you will learn what you can tolerate.  But that gives a good starting point.  The half life seems fine to taper.

Can I ask, what are your symptoms currently?  Are they mild?  Extreme?  How are you feeling?  If you are stable you can taper, you do not need to be symptoms free.

What is your dose?  How many pills and how often do you take them?

my doctor says that diazepam is more potent, mexazolam have a half life from 36 to 100 hours thats what i know :/

There's some information about mexazolam here. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/443062

Mexazolam is a 10-chloro-11b-(2-chlorophenyl)-2,3,7,11b-tetrahydro-3-methyloxazolo [3,2-d][1,4] benzodiazepine-6(5H)-one. It is an anxiolytic oxazolo-benzodiazepine developed by Sankyo Co. Ltd (Tokyo, Japan), demonstrating chemical similarities to oxazolam and cloxazolam. Chlornordiazepam (CND) is the main active metabolite. After oral administration of mexazolam, the unaltered drug is not detected in the blood, only its active metabolites, CND and chloroxazepam (COX). It is assumed that it is hydroxylated and conjugated in the liver through two different metabolic pathways. With a single oral dose of mexazolam the time to peak plasma concentration of CND is 1 to 2 hours. The applicable pharmacokinetic model is bicompartmental, with a biphasic plasma concentration curve, and a first half-life of 1.4 hours and a second of 76 hours. The binding of CND and COX to plasma proteins is approximately 90%. The majority of the drug is excreted through bile.

well my symptoms are mild, i have headche some days other days i dont have, i feel like my hands and feet are burning and sweaty, sometimes of the day i feel like a lack of energy like i even dont have strenght to walk or speak just wanna lay down but thats not every day, and i am constantly thinking about this like 24/7 and that sucks.

I only take 1 pill of 1mg at the morning, i dont have sleep problems etc, but i am considering split the pill in half and take half in the morning half in the afternoon and start taper from there, so i need your opinion

I think splitting the daily dose into two is a very good idea.  Take half every 12 hours.  If you have trouble with interdose symptoms this simple adjustment often takes care of it and you feel improved.

Here's what's bugging me about your dose - you say you take 1mg per day and that your doctor said the mexazolam is less potent than valium.  Let's say it is the same as valium - well 1mg per day is not even close to a theraputic dose.  The minimum I've seen seems to be around 5mg valium.  So I am concerned that your mexazolam is more potent than your doc told you.

I could be wrong and hope I am, but it stands to reason that this might be the case.  It would be good to find another source to determine the potency.  Maybe searching archives right here on BB?  I'll see what I can find.

Thank you so much for the reply.

I have info that 1mg of mexazolam it´s equal to 10mg of valium.

Okay, now we are getting somewhere.  So it is similar to ativan in potency.

Does it come in a smaller pill size or in liquid form?

I hit on this which is further evidence that it is equivalent to 10mg valium.

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/406221

It compares xanax and mexazolam and equates them at 1mg mexazolam to .5mg xanax.  We know .5mg xanax is equivalent to 10mg valium.  So that supports your info.

Smaller pills make tapering easier and more comfortable, so if it's available in smaller pill sizes you will be better off using those.  If not, there are ways to work with the 1mg pill.

You have choices.  I'd suggest forgetting about simple pill splitting as it cannot be done accurately enough for a pill this potent.  For example, if you tried to cut by 1/4 pills it would be like dropping down 2.5mg valium at a time.  This is too harsh for most here and there are much better ways.

Basically, you can suspend it in a liquid or you can "file and weigh."  You can also pulverize it and use Summermeadow's method.

I guess, if it were me, I'd invest in a scale and a file and follow the ativan or valium folks who are doing the same thing.

It is possible to do this and feel good all the way down if that is your goal. 

Oh, sorry.  Some people buy an accurate scale to weigh the pill and they file away tiny amounts at a time with a nail file.  I didn't do it this way, but in reading other posts they seem to be doing well using that method.

I'd recommend putting it in a liquid, but have no idea what mexazolam dissolves in.  If you can't dissolve it, to me that is a big detraction.  Others suspend the drug in a liquid successfully, but I myself would not put this as a first option.

Of coarse there is another option to just cross to a drug with known established tapering methods, like valium.  Crossing usually goes well, but it is a possible complication and takes several weeks.

well i prefer to taper from mexazolam, so i can reduce like 10% every 2 weeks for ex? and see how it goes

Other question, i will discuss this with my doctor but i ask here as well, is it vialable to switch from mexazolam to buspirone? my aunt is taking buspirone and she is better with that than xanax

There are two general ways to taper: Cut and Hold, or Daily Titration.

With Cut and Hold you make a larger step-down and hold until you feel better.  With Daily Titration you reduce a tiny amount each day and keep yourself feeling good by finding the amount that keeps you out of symptoms.  To me, the cut and hold is harsh and unnecessary, but there are others who still do it and prefer the simplicity.  In the end it is an individual choice.

I can't help you with the buspirone question.  That is not a benzo.  I'm afraid my knowledge is limited to tapering benzos.  Perhaps there is someone else who knows more.  I'd recommend posting the question on the main withdrawal board so more will see it.

what are the common symptoms?

im only at half a pill in the morning, will devide it by 5 pieces and reduce one piece every 2 weeks so i can feel good

There are many, many symptoms that are possible...physical pain, mental fog, loss of emotions, anxiety.

The thing is with splitting pills, it is very difficult, basically impossible to split them accurately.  I really don't recommend it.  What seems like small differences that should not matter actually matter a lot.  But, yes, 5-10% every 2-3 weeks is the general guide.  See how it goes and adjust from there.