zanax addiction HELP

[01234abcde]

Been taking zanax for about 15 years and up to sometimes 2  one milagrams pills at night before bedtime. No doctors have an alternative medicine not so addicting that I can take and then work off that.  I'm sick of taking zanax for sleep and of course now addicted.

Please make suggestions that might work.

[oxygirl487]

hi and welcome to the forum...i dont know much about xanax addiction but i do know this it is hell to w/d from as u probably know...i just wanted to let u know that someone with more info will chime in ..the forum is slow right now ..i have saw alot of xanax addictions on here lately ......u r in the right place...if u need to talk im here....just wanna let u know that...love u and god bless u

[mintz]

I have taken Rozerim and it worked great for me.  The only downside was I was fogged in for about an hour the next morning.  Now as far as the withdrawals, I have not tried Rozerim because nothing seems to help with sleep (at least I have not found anything) while you are w/ding.

Ambian time release is another that I am told that works.

Now on the addiction side, you may want to taper instead of going Cold Turkey, either way you will not sleep for a while but I have found tapering has been a smoother w/d transition.(for me)

Look up the Thomas Recipe to aid with withdrawals.

Hope this helped

[lostmarbles]

I  have recently cleaned up from using xanax and I can tell you that you CANNOT under any circumstances stop taking it cold turkey as it can lead to seizures. There are several people here that can give you the names of alternate medications that may help you sleep. Withdrawing from xanax is pretty dire but in the long run I feel so much better for it. If you go to your doctor and tell him/her that you do not want to take xanax anymore, they will help you with a taper plan. As and when you go through your withdrawels, I will be here to support you in any way... I wish you well and welcome you to this forum.. there are alot of great people here who are very supportive..

[Needhelp59]

Hi,

DO NOT stop taking them cold turkey - you have to taper.  Going c/t can cause seizures and even death.  I have been off for a year and was on about the same dose as you are.  I feel tons better!!  Just tell the doc and he can let you try ambien - it works great.  Also, you might want to give vaerian root and/or melatonin a try.  They seem to work pretty good also.  Good luck and God bless!  Here if you need me.

[NautyOne]

What were Xanax withdrawals like.  No one ever really talks about it much.  Does anyone know why seizures or death from abrupt stopping?  Are the withdrawals similar to opiates?  Just curious, because doc put me on it and I hated! it, so I take ativan because it saved my life because I have severe pmdd and did not want to go on the pill, because i am uh, um 45.....and I do smoke.  Not worried about getting pregnant cause I don't have sex.......lol.  although, I've never taken birth control.....I've never gotten pregnant.....so I assume by now that I just can't.  Probably TMI.........anyway, Is ativan as bad as Xanax? I don't think I'll stop taking it anytime soon.  Although, I've heard there are more natural things out there for the pmdd, or peri-menopause that I am looking into.  Also, it was very interesting that when I went on the Ativan my desire to take opiates decreased a lot which made quitting not so bad.  I think anxiety and the 14 plus days of misery from the pmdd is what kept me on the opiates.  I am a true case for why someone needs anti-anxiety meds.  I think doc's hand them out like candy even worse than the opiates.

nauty................

[flmagi]

Xanax and Ativan are both benzos and absolutley should NOT be stopped cold turkey. They must be tappered off of.

[PharmGirl75]

Nauty- I replied to your other post about PMDD- I hope it helps. I didn't know you were taking anti-anxiety meds as well for this- as PMDD is what drove me to become very recently addicted to Xanax (that and Chantix to quit smoking- since you smoke, let me issue the warning now- DO NOT USE Chantix if you have PMDD and are otherwise prone to irrational behavior because of it. I almost gave up my life this past Sunday- which is why I found this forum. My doctor got the new FDA bulletin the following day- so by the time I broke down and went to him about my psychotic behavior, he knew to have me quit the Chantix).
I first only used Xanax about 4 or 5 times a year- in order to fly. I have severe anxiety about flying- and yes, have gotten up and run off the plane just before the doors closed before and missed the fligh- I've refused to board, and missed the flight-- and I've had a full blown panick attack during the flight which caused Alaska airlines to make an abrupt landing short of our destination, and I was carted off the plane on the tarmac by ambulance.)
When my PMDD started to really impact my life, my doctor told me it was OK to use my Xanax during those moments prior to my period where I couldn't take the irritation anymore. I found I only needed it a few times when things got really bad. I then started taking Chantix on Feb 2nd to quit smoking. It caused such a disruption in my sleeping, (and Lunesta didn't work) that my doctor said I could use my Xanax at bedtime to sleep.

After my episode last Sunday, I started searching online to eductate myself- and realized I'd better get off the Xanax as well. (I did NOT know it was addictive- my doctor said it could only cause problems if taken at a high dose several times a day for a long period of time).
Guess what? I can NOT sleep without it. In fact, I'm so desperate in the middle of the night, that I've nearly OD'd myself w/o knowing it- because I'm not lucid enough to recall what I've taken that night- and will add a Xanax to my Lunesta in the middle of the night, and then a Unisom or two and hour later, then maybe some more Lunesta- that was a bad day.

My doctor said to drop my Xanax to half a pill (which would be .50 mg) for 3 nights (and take 1 mg Lunesta) then move to a .25mg Xanax for 3 nights, then break those in half for .125 mg for 3 days. Then, I'm supposed to continue Lunesta for a while- or forever I guess, if I still have trouble falling asleep.

That's my withdrawl plan- maybe you can modify it to work for you. Don't quit cold turkey- I have a friend who did that and things got very ugly for her. She was taking it daily for anxiety problems. She didn't know you shouldn't quit CT, and made the decision herself to simply quit using it. She was on Lexipro as well, and did the same with that. Perhaps that made things worse.

[cocobeanlisa]

My husband is doing the taper from benzo's...

Check out benzoisland.org...they will really give you great help..they will break it down for you in amounts, help you find a doctor to do the taper...they also have a book called the ASTON MANUEL...You should read it..DETOXING FROM XANAX CAN BE VERY PAINFULL IF NOT DONE RIGHT...

PLEASE CHECK IT OUT''''''''benzoisland.org""""""""


This site is great and helps with hydor and vics oxy's and such, but I found that when it came to benzo's I knew nothing...My husband swears by this site...SAYS IT SAVED HIS LIFE...he is now just about done with the taper...

1mg of xanax is something = to 50mg's valium...so see it's alot of drug...

So see you need to do it right....some people have no problem with detox from benzo, others have a hell of a time...so please speak with somebody who has done it.

I can not advise you on something I have not done..

Wish you great luck....and yes it can be done...do not give up hope...

cocobean