ON Xanax for 6 plus years,HELP ME:(

[NJshoreGirl]

I've been on Xanax for SO long,I cannot imagine getting off of it.i tried and it was just AWFUL.I won't even go there how awful,I'm sure many of you know exactly what it was like:(.I am scared now,My prior doctor is OUT of business,in other words is NOT around anymore.The doctor who prescribed me 60 2mgs per month.Now I do not know what to do.I am not into buying from the street.I do not know where to turn.I went to my OWN PRIMARY PHYSICIAN(a new one),and confided in him,that I've been on Xanax for this xyz ammount of time.He looks at me consescending:*( & than proceeds to tell me "here is a psychiatrist" @@ and do not come here in 2 weeks telling me you couldn't get an appointment with the psychiatrist.WELL HELLO.I could NOT get an appointment with the psychiatrist.They said the EARLIEST is JANUARY 5th,so Of course I took the appointment.I do not know what to do:( I am now seeking another physician,I am going to call every place and ask the secretary,if they prescribe Xanax.I simply cannot believe the doctor was not even going to prescribe it to me,it was like pulling teeth!I feel like a complete fool,and a victim as well.
When i was first on it,I was going through some severe panic attacks.The doctor gave me a prescription.I did NOT NOT NOT know it would cause a physical addiction.yes,that was so stupid on my part.Maybe denial??But the way my anxiety attack hits,I couldn't think so far ahead.I do not know if that makes sense.Alls I DO know is I'm scared to death.I do not know how I am going to get through this.The doctors gave it to me,and now the doctors take it away,wont prescribe me anymore.NOT TO MENTION,this doctor gave me .50mgs,when i always took 2mgs.It was NOT enough so I had to seek help ON THE STREET.I am SICK to my stomach about that.How is it that people can get it like nothing,but than somebody like me,who NEEDS it,can NOT get it all of a sudden!
:*(
Please help me.I am in the NJ shore area.Is there a doctor around that can help?What do you recommend I do?
I will be calling everybody (dr's).I am wonderign if a neurologist can help???Email me if u can help,***@****

[abby10]

First...Relax, just relax.   I was on 8mg xanax and 4mg klonopin along with a horse pill to sleep for over 2 years and smaller amounts since 1999. In 2 days I will take my final dose of valium and will at last be done. The withdrawals were horriffic and the physical pain has been undescribable. It is a crime how these pills are given out. You really do feel like a victim.  If you had gotten arrested while buying those pills on the street, you would of gone to jail and gone through cold turkey in jail and have been treated like a street addict. But the doctor in the white coat put you there. Xanax is increadably hard to come off of. You can have a seizure, the medical establishment dosn't know how to help people get off these benzodiazepines.  It takes a very long time, a year or more.

When I was cut off from my prescription in 1999, I went to the ER trying to get something to help me with the horrible withdrawals, but I was treated like a criminal. Part off the w/d that I'm having a hard time getting rid off is the intense hate I have for Dr. Gangio, the women that gave me 8mg of xanax a day.

See website benzo.uk.org there you will get the help you need. It tells everything about benzos and how to come off of them. benzobuddies.org is a good site for talking to others about this addiction. But people with doses like yours and mine are more rare.

Call every where and get an appointment to get some benzo's to come off of. But do it after you get a titration schedule from benzobuddies or benzo.uk.org.  Don't come off with Xanax. Valium is the best. Try klonopin first then switch to valium if you can. I did not tell the doctor who gave me the valium about being addicted, because I learned not to trust any doctors. You can decide how to talk to a doctor about it. Telling a doctor about your prior prescription will help you get another prescription. Stick to your titration schedule and never drink alcohol with them.

email me if you have any questions or need to talk. Yes I know what you are going through, but you can make it.

abby

[MrGreen]

One of Ryan's old posts. This is worth reading for a correct method of getting off xanax and most probably, as you will have to do, replace it with a longer acting Benzo. So have a good read.

Ideally, you shouldn't be on the full dose of Xanax while simultaneously implementing Klonopin as a substitute. Likewise, the Klonopin should NEVER be directly substituted for Xanax, as this induces a temporary withdrawal syndrome that may last for up to two weeks.

In order for Klonopin to replace Xanax, it must accumulate. Klonopin accumulates to steady-state within two weeks, at which point it will fully replace the Xanax from a potency standpoint. Xanax doesn't accumulate, therefore, simultaneously replacing it with Klonopin would lead to withdrawal phenomena. The Xanax plasma level would trough sharply, and there would be nothing to replace it.

Therefore, it would be advisable to "step" the Klonopin in, while simultaneously stepping out the Xanax. This is best done in 0.25 mg increments.

*Example* - You were formerly taking 0.5 mg of Xanax three times daily, and the goal is to transition to Klonopin, 0.5 mg, t.i.d....

Days 1-3: Take 0.5 mg of Xanax in the morning and afternoon. Take 0.25 mg of Xanax and 0.25 mg of Klonopin nightly.

Days 3-6: Take 0.5 mg of Xanax in the morning, and 0.25 mg of Xanax and 0.25 mg of Klonopin in the afternoon and nightly.

Days 6-9: Take 0.25 mg of Xanax and 0.25 mg of Klonopin in the morning, afternoon, and nightly.

Days 9-12: Take 0.25 mg of Xanax and 0.25 mg of Klonopin in the morning and afternoon. Take 0.5 mg of Klonopin nightly.

Days 12-15: Take 0.25 mg of Xanax and 0.25 mg of Klonopin in the morning. Take 0.5 mg of Klonopin in the afternoon and nightly.

Day 18: Take 0.5 mg of Klonopin, t.i.d. The Xanax is discontinued.

This is the accelerated method of transitioning from Xanax to Klonopin. The three day intervals may be extended to one or two weeks if necessary. This is rarely necessary.

You can discuss a similar schedule with your doctor. It is absolutely crucial that the Klonopin be taken at least twice daily. It depends on how many times/day you take Xanax. If you take it three or four times daily, the Klonopin should also be taken three or four times daily initially.