Advice - Getting Off Klonopin

[Ocean5]

Ok I was on a small doze of Klonopin in afternoon. It helped - doctor had me take larger 2nd dose at night to sleep. When I realized what it was doing to me I started to tamper down (I'm extremely sensitive to medicine.) I thought I did a good steady job of tampering...but started having all these withdrawals such as tremors/shaking, random bruises, small nicks/cuts for no reason...to the point I had a seizure for 1st time in life (2 more at hospital.) Hospital kept me 2 days, and said they were surprised how quickly I recovered. Hospital gave me Ativan for 2-3 weeks. That did help with tremors/shaking and other withdrawals.

So I decided to tamper down Ativan to save for emergencies (country I'm currently living in hard to get.) Then the shaking/tremors, dropping things, cloudy/foggy mind came back....

Can anyone suggest something natural, or not in Benzo family, to help get off Klonopin? Especially with tremors/shaking...

 

[shimmerz]

I tend towards natural and dietary cleanses. Have you tried a liver flush/cleanse/detox? I found this link and it seems to make good sense to me with the ingredients they use.

http://liveenergized.com/alkaline-c...e-recipe-4-the-ultimate-liver-cleanse-recipe/

Bentonite Clay may be a good thing to follow up with for heavy metal detoxing. Just a thought. Not for everyone.

 

[joeylittle]

So I decided to tamper down Ativan to save for emergencies (country I'm currently living in hard to get.) Then the shaking/tremors, dropping things, cloudy/foggy mind came back....

How quickly have you been tapering? Just in terms of the ativan.

And, are you looking for something to manage anxiety, or to manage the withdrawal symptoms of shaking/tremors, etc....?

 

[Deleted member 1860]

check out Link Removed

Unfortunately aside from a slow taper, it isn't recommended that you take anything to ease symptoms (med wise that is) You may have to do an extremely slow taper. Some people take up to a year to taper depending on the dose, and some people have withdrawal symptoms for up to a year.

I really do recommend a slow taper of no more than 10% every few weeks. A slow taper is designed to minimize withdrawal symptoms. When you get to the point where you're just crushing your pills, you may have to switch to a liquid taper. This is where you crush up your pills, dissolve them in water, and then literally reduce your dose drop by drop every day.

If you're withdrawal symptoms are really bad, your taper can be even less.

It sucks that these drugs are so hard to get off of for so many people.

 

[Ocean5]

Hmmm I'm sensitive to medicine. I was put on Ativan in hospital 2 weeks ago (was there for 2 days.) Not sure dosage, just know I had 2 IV bags. Then told to take Ativan (1 mg twice a day) to prevent seizures. Since I knew I'm sensitive. I took .5 in morning and 1 mg at night. Then lately stopped the morning doze. Then a couple days later stopped night dose (Monday I believe.) Then tremors/shaking came back.

@joeylittle Looking for something for tremors/shaking.

@Link Removed

 

[joeylittle]

I took .5 in morning and 1 mg at night. Then lately stopped the morning doze. Then a couple days later stopped night dose (Monday I believe.) Then tremors/shaking came back.

You stopped way, way too quickly. Best thing would be to consult a doctor. But - it should be safe to go back to your previous dosing (.5 and 1), and then shave them back slowly, slowly. The rule of thumb is to allow one week between levels of decrease, and to go down as slowly as you can. Also I would recommend keeping yourself on a morning and evening until each one is as low as you can go with it. What you want to do is maintain consistent levels of the drug in your plasma while you are tapering off of it, and that is a slow process to do without hitting withdrawal symptoms.

Also, because you have seizures in the mix - have the tremors been diagnosed properly? Are you medically cleared to discontinue the Ativan? I understand it's hard to get, but you need to be very careful and slow with this process, given that you already have been hospitalized once for benzo withdrawal.

 

[Ed Norton]

Yes, I would definitely follow the advice given above because benzodiazepine withdrawal can lead to coma or death. Get back to your doctor and get on a slow taper schedule. Benzodiazepines, alcohol and barbiturates are the three dangerous withdrawals.

 

[Ocean5]

I guess I didn't realize how quickly a Benzo changes you... going back to old dosage now...then reducing morning and night. But second Benzo was to counter affects of Klonopin.

Sadly, due to recent life circumstances I can't afford to go back to hospital/doctor for advice (not that they gave good advice anyways...) I'm in another country. And I can't afford proper testing for seizures. Even in Mexico close to 20k.

Why the hell don't these "doctors" warn you about this?!?

 

[joeylittle]

I'm glad you went back to your prescribed dose.

Were you originally on klonopin to help with anxiety?

 

[Ocean5]

I've been off Klonopin mostly for a couple weeks ( but probably reduced too fast.) Was given for anxiety, and then 2nd dose for better sleep.

Back to prescribed dose of Ativan.

 

[Marymickaela]

I'm kind of in the same boat, except I've been on Klonopin for years. Partly for anxiety and mostly for sleep, which it didn't help. I just saw my psychiatrist this week and he said the Klonopin has to go as it's no longer working. I was taking 1mg during the day for anxiety and 3mg at bedtime. He said to discontinue the 1mg daytime dose for a week and then cut 1mg of the 3mg night time dose so I would then be down to 2mg. I argued with him about the tapering saying I ended up in the hospital back in 2003 when I tried to get off of Klonopin. He doesn't agree and I said there are websites devoted to how to get off of benzos. So he said I could taper the 2nd cut by .5mg which would put my night time dose at 2 1/2mg. Do that for a week and make another .5mg cut still getting me down to 2mg.

Today I'm feeling really anxious and shaky inside, can't concentrate, irritable and just about killed the cat a couple times just for annoying me. I hate it. I feel like I'm at the doctor's mercy telling me how to get off of the Klonopin. His exact words were "it's going to be brutal".

I really sorry for what you are going thru, esp. the seizures. Do they have you on an anti-seizure med or just Ativan, which is still a benzo? I don't get it. Do these doctors have no clue what these benzos do to one's body?

 

[Ocean5]

@Marymickaela
I sympathize with you. Some of these doctors really don't understand. I'm using online information, but maybe you can find a sympathetic doctor to help you get off with reduced withdrawals?

His exact words were "it's going to be brutal".

WOW!

I had bookmarked this article that might help you, or at least relate.
kellybroganmd.com/article/confessions-of-a-renegade-psychiatrist/

For seizures it was different doctor. An ambulance had to take me to ER after people found me in front of grocery store (don't remember much....) Yes Ativan is another Benzo..... From my research it's used in bad cases at hospital for seizures. Now it's like which one are "withdrawals" from....I've read with Klonopin (I think) withdrawals can last several months, or years, for some people.

Do they have you on an anti-seizure med or just Ativan.

No just Ativan for now. Since seizures could have just been withdrawals. I'm too afraid of side-effects until I'm medicine free. I've never been on mental health medicine until June last year. They all make me so much worse. Once I was thinking clearly at hospital next day I told them how sensitive I was to medicine. Think that's why they didn't give me anything else. Too risky at this point.