It sounds like you are having tolerance issues and you are needing more of the drug. Ativan is short acting and highly addictive. In 1999 I took 1mg ativan and it turned into 3mg a day. I didn't know they were addictive. Just needed them to feel "normal" again. When tried to stop I went into severe withdrawals. Xanax it even shorter acting and highly addictive. It doesn't take long to get addicted to these benzodiazepine drugs. Do some research and you may further understand why you are feeling this way. www.ashtonbenzomanual.com
abby
ive been on xanax, clonopin and ativan all with slightly different effects. I had to take the xanax every couple of hours to stay calm, the clonopin knocked me out cold..and the ativan 1mg 3x day it doesnt sound like you are double dosing i get dizzy when the ativan wears off but when i take another i feel better. The difference is supposed to be short acting - intermediate acting and long acting..but i find more differences in the benzos than that..they all have semi the same effect though. hope it helps.
They are both fairly short acting benzos....stronger and work faster than many others. One can build a tolerance to them and Ativan is usually prescribed for the short term. There are longer acting benzos like Klonopin that are used more long term. Also, please don't self medicate...ensure you are following your doctor's instructions on your prescriptions. I would go back to your doc to express your concerns....keep us posted.