Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Anxiety Community
This patient support community is for discussions relating to generalized anxiety, anxiety and eating, anxiety and sleeping, mood swings, and phobias.
How to take Klonopin
by Angel13, Apr 30, 2007 12:00AM
Hello everyone I am new here. I have social anxiety and general anxiety. My doc. has me on Klonopin 1mg twice a day. How should I take it? Right now I am taking it 1mg in the morning and 1mg at bedtime. Should I take 1mg in the morning .5mg in the afternoon and .5mg at bedtime? I don't know????? I am also on Wellbutrin SR 150mg a day, Inderal 40mg twice a day and Elavil 25mg a day. I can't talk to my doc. about it because he is out of town for a while so I will ask you guys. Any advice would really help. Thanks for reading my post.
Angel
Angel
Post Comment
I'm on .5 mg Klonopin bid, which means twice a day. I take it in the morning as I leave for work and again at 8 o'clock at night (when I remember to -- haha).
But your pharmacist is qualified to answer the question about dosing and also about those other drugs you mention.
1 mg BID for Klonopin is an unusual starting dose. Generally, the drug is started at 0.25 mg BID, and increased to 0.5 mg BID after the third day (0.5 mg BID is the target dose).
The prescribing information should be printed on the bottle. In general, Klonopin is taken BID (twice a day), every 12 hours.
Elavil is a good antidepressant, and is also very helpful for social phobia. It is a Tricyclic. However, the Wellbutrin may negate some or all of the Elavil's positive effects. Combining the two is uncommon. Combining the two may increase anxiety, which is probably why the doctor prescribed the Klonopin. Eliminating the Wellbutrin would likely improve your symptoms, and reduce anxiety.
Inderal (Propranolol) is a beta-blocker. It is used to treat high blood pressure, rapid heart rate, and rarely, for performance anxiety. Inderal works by blocking the effects of Catecholamines (Adrenaline) on the myocardium of the heart.
Unless you have an elevated pulse rate or high blood pressure, this is not the best drug to be taking.
Of the drugs you list, the Klonopin and Elavil would be the most effective at treating your symptoms. The other two aren't so great. The Inderal will limit your excersise tolerance, as it reduces the heart rate. It may also place you at a greater risk of type II diabetes in the future. The development of asthma is also fairly common, as Inderal in non-selective, and blocks bronchial beta as well. The Inderal is "off label" use. 80 mg daily in an otherwise normal person is excessive.
-Ryan
Angel