New doctor pulls Xanax after 8 years of use

[Stelco]

Hi, Mark here.  My doctor of more than 10 years gave up his practice.  I had a 20+ year history of hypertension that was uncontrollable with conventional medication.  I began taking .5mg of Xanax 4 times a day about 8 years ago and my blood pressure has been fine since.  I went to a new doctor to establish a new family physician relationship and get needed refills.  Every refill, including lower back pain muscle relaxers and pain medication, was filled exactly as they had been with the exception of Xanax.  This new doctor arbitrarily reduced the prescription to 3 times per day.  I didn't find out until Medco mailed my prescription to me.  He never mentioned that he was going to reduce my daily dosage at our first and only half hour meeting.

I find this to be unethical (he could have discussed it with me), irresponsible (he doesn't know me or my history well enough after meeting for 30 minutes) and a poor judjement call (he does not know what the reduction in dosage will do to my blood pressure).

Do I:
1 - Give him the benefit of doubt and try to work this out?
2 - Tell him to jump off a cliff?
3 - Just grab my records and run to another new doctor?

My main concern is that since he has done this during my first visit another poor judjement call could cause a misdiagnosis resulting in anything from an extended period of improper treatment to a serious or fatal outcome.

Thanks for any thoughts.

[xanweaner]

Very interesting stuff in your post...I still can't believe that Dr.'s rx an antipsychotic for anxiety, etc. That's like using a hammer to kill a fly.
The pharmaceutical companies are heavily promoting classes of drugs that belong in psychiatry to other specialties to increase market share, sales, etc. It's simply not right...many patients just don't understand how serious this class of drugs are and the potential risk factors. It should always comes down to a risk/benefit ratio when a drug is selected to be used on a patient.

Very sad about the risk of metabolic syndrome....is it reversible after discontinuation of the med?

[sumihari]

Hi all,

I note a mention of Trazadone as being less addicting and helps blood pressure. I'm sure Summer123 wanted to share this information in good faith as Trazadone has been very helpful in her case.

But my understanding from reliable sources is that it is in the same class as Serzone which was pulled off the market due to liver toxicity. Just because Trazadone is still out there I don't believe it is completely safe for everyone. If Serzone is in the same class and pulled off the market, wouldn't you be cautious with the others in the group and drug companies have a tendency at times to withold data. For instance Zyprexa (an anti psychotic) was being given for many conditions amongst others panic disorders, anxiety. What they did not disclose was there was a risk of metabolic syndrome especially diabetes and I believe they had to settle huge lawsuits. Please discuss with your doctor and have necessary liver function tests or any others to be safe.

[Summer123]

Perhaps the doctor just made a mistake and didn't read what you were taking.   I do think that the drop is drastic if he did it on purpose.  If he and YOU want to decrease your xanex dosage, I would think he would give you the .25 mg pills where you could break them down in quarters and drop by a tiny bit couple of weeks or until you were comfortable.  It would be best if you asked for an explanation.  Perhaps he is a doctor who just doesn't like xanex or believe in it for long term.  However, some people (like me) find that xanex is the only drug that helps for anxiety and panic attacks.  

Are you saying that you are taking this medication strictly for blood pressure? If that is the case, the doctor might want to wean you SLOWLY off this medication and use something else that you haven't tried before to help your blood pressure.  One thing that I find that helps blood pressure and is less addicting is Trazadone.  Either way, you should have some input into how slowly you come off the xanex if it is the doctors and your intention to get off of the med.  However, maybe you have tried all the meds before and xanex is the only thing that controls your bp.   Perhaps if you explain it to him, he will reconsider.  Good luck!

[barfer]

If I were in your position, I'd start with your plan 1 and if that doesn't work then go with plan 2 if and only if you have a new understanding doctor already in place and all you need from the "A hole" (excuse my french)  are your past records.  We know that these new doctors are up on all the new medications and procedures but sometimes, as the saying goes, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".  It is not the time for a new doctor to start playing hero when he doesn't know you well enough yet.  If, at a later date when you can establish a relationship with him and a trust, then he may suggest something else and you may be more open to it, but to arbitrarily cut your dose without really knowing you, is irresponsible, in my humble opinion.

[xanweaner]

I'm sorry to hear about your situation. I would definitely contact the Dr.'s office to discuss this. A .5 mg. reduction is too large if he feels you need to take less xanax. You would need to taper down more slowly.

More importantly, if he does not agree with utilizing xanax for your condition and you feel strongly that you want to continue, you may need to find another physician. A well-qualified psychiatrist will have more training in managing anxiety, but they may also want to explore other options for you since this seems to be a long-term drug that helps you with your condition.

Good luck, and call right away. You can do a search on this forum under xanax tapering or reduction to get a better idea on the amount you should be reducing by. Dropping by .5 mg. when you've been taking a total of 2 mg./day is a bit too aggressive, in my opinion.

[MMomma]

I choose B , but thats probably not the logical thing to do...I  completly  agree with AJWS6.. Call him and explain...If that doesn't work find a better doctor that understands what ur going through

[AJWS6]

Call the doctor concerning your med dose, explain your current situation to him, many doctors overlook important aspects in patients needs there first visit.  Doctor needs to build a history with the patient, to fully provide treatment.    

In the mean time search for another doctor, in case the doctor does not help.