xanax withdrawals / Emergency Room

[lisa20020]

I have been out of Xanax for a week now.  I have already been to the Emergency Room where I was given 10 Ativans.  That lasted for 5 days at 2 mg per day.  This is day one with no anti anxiety medications at all.  I was taking xanax for years at 3 mgs a day and moved to another state 2 months ago.  I have no money and no insurance yet and thought my body was going to give out yesterday as the withdrawals started again.  I feel like an animal that can get no help.  My blood pressure medication helps slightly (Clonidine), I feel a little better than yesterday but I don't know if I will make it.  I feel detached from my body, my heart is racing, every part of my body feels tingly with hot flashes, I am sweating and feel I will die. My body is exhausted from fighting this feeling. Will it be easier this time since I have been on Ativan for a week now with no Xanax.  Should I go yet again to the Emergency room or WAIT TILL I DIE FOR THE MEDICAL COMMUNITY TO HELP ME?????????????????????/  I have called NAMI, I have called all the numbers I have been given for medical help as referrals all with dead ends.  That was over 20 #'s.  Should I just tough this out ??? I am so embarrassed over this.  How many times can I go to the ER?  

[nursegirl6572]

Don't be scared by reading other's experiences.  Educate yourself, and YES, these types of meds need to be properly tapered.  This is something you should discuss with your doc ahead of time.....ask lots of questions...like..."How do you handle someone coming off Xanax, what do you recommend/prescribe?"

If it's done correctly, then withdrawals should be manageable.

[abby10]

No no no....way too fast. Get on a longer acting benzo and taper slow. The longer benzo stays in the system longer and you won't have the interdose withdrawals. Dry cuts are brutal with Xanax. Xanax is very potient.  A longer acting benzo would be klonopin or valium.

Get to benzo sites and learn about about the benzodiazepines. Someone can giive you a slow taper plan. Please don't be afraid. You are fortunate to have the internet and get information.

Hugs,

abby

[Anz428]

K thanks.  Should I wait and see what a doctor says.  The xanax does help me at night calm down.  Sorry i'm just talking about me now when this was someone elses forum.  I'm just trying to get the facts straight.

[jakegorzen]

abby is right,
The xanax 's active life is around...4 hours
Klonopin's active life is around 12.
So, when you make a transistion over to Klonopin dosed 2X "Sometimes 3" a day, it actualy builds up in your system.
so when you make your cuts, you dont feel the actual amount being cut, it "tricks" your body into thinking it was a even lower cut.

I tried explaining it as simple as possible for you "allot of people have a hard time understanding the differences between benzos"

your withdraw will BE SO MUCH SMOOTHER with a benzo that stays in your system longer.

as long as you take it slow, youll be fine:)

[abby10]

Agreed jake,

This information has been posted over and over and over. Thank you for your efforts.

abby

[strickendowngirl]

This happened to me, too!  After being on Xanax and Klonopin for 22 years!
I went to see him for my regular check up, and he yanked Three mgs./day right from under me with only one klonodine patch for the night.  I plead for a tapering of some kind.. begging him with tears.  He was mercinary.  I ended up shaking, throwing up, panicking out of my wits.  My daughter had to witness this.  She called 911,. The paramedics could hardly get me to sit in the chair that would take me down the stairs  I ended up in the ICU for Three days and Four nights, just shivering, with vertigo, nausea and feeling at the brink of a most sufferable death.  He never apologized.  Thank God, my brother is an attorney, who called up this doctor and reasoned with him.  I am still seeking another doctor.  Currently, I'm writing a small graphic arts novella on this;  with recurring nightmares and a damaged nervous system, I've been diagnosed with PTSD.  You have Got to get a doctor who has compassion.  Truly, you really do.  I wish you a lot of luck.