Klonopin vs Other anxiety meds

[nylonkgirl]

My question is regarding my experience with anziety medication. My first was Valium a very low dose, it worked great, on a as needed basis. I was also taking Zoloft and the two combined was perfect. That doctor ended her practice and I ended up at a different dr. who prescribed me ativan and Zoloft, would not prescribe me the valium. Adventually I came off the Zoloft due to the side effects.  The Ativan did its job for awhile but i was taking "too" much a day according to him so he just put me on Klonopin 4mg per day. It seems to be fine keeping me calm and not too many side effects but it is not helping with random anxiety onsets nor is it helping me with sleep. He said to just take another one of the Klonopin if that happens but It does not sound right to me because the Klonopin does not work immediatly, it takes awhile. I would just like some feed back on his recommendation.

[Summer123]

It's too bad your dr. won't prescribe you the valium if it works for you.  Xanex is the med that seems to work for panic attacks immediately but is short acting (can get you through a panic attack).   For some reason, valium got a bad rap, and doctors are reluctant to prescribe it (perhaps it's easier to overdose on).

[Psyc786]

hey,
what reason did your doc give for not wanting to prescribe valium to you as it worked so great in the past?  is he a primary care doctor or a psychiatrist?  its sad that he think you can simply take an extra dose of klonopin to help you get to sleep as you and i both know, it doesn't work that way at all. do u have the option to find another doctor willing to restart valium for you?

klonopin is a great medicaiton for anxiety but for those random episodes you need to restart a SSRI medication such as zoloft. if zoloft worked great for you but you have side effects, get your doc to prescribe another medication in its class and you may be surprised to find out that you have no side effects from it.

another option is to get your doctor to prescribe something specifically for insomnia such as ambien, sonata or trazodone.  discuss over the counter options with him such as benadryl and others available.

lastly, its great to hear YOU know what works best for YOU. don't discount that. and i appreciate that you have tired to learn a little about your medications and how they work:)

God Bless,
Psyc786

[Slappy3243]

See a different doctor. Xanax XR works the best for me and I have been taking it daily for over a year. If you know what works for you and your doctor is not willing to compromise or not even give a good reason as to why he/she prefers you take a different benzo, then a new doctor is in order.

-Adam