Weaned off of lorazapam

[Jimbo49]

Dear Dr Gould, I have weaned off of lorazapam 10 days ago, I was on it for 5 months. I weaned down to 1/2 mg once a day for one month and then stopped. My problem is all was well until a couple of days ago. I have been starting to feel like the anxiety is coming back but I am not sure. I feel kind of out of it at times like in a fog, my heart is racing, and I feel nervous. Is this normal withdrawls or do you think it is the anxiety. How do you tell if it is withdrawls or return of anxiety. I am almost on the verge of taking a lorazapam just to feel better, but have come this far and don't want to go back if I don't have to.
I also have been on Buspar for 3 months, 5 mg twice a day. I started weaning off of that 6 days ago and went down to 2 1/2 mg twice a day. Could this what is causing the symptoms?
I guess I would like your advice on if I am going to fast and maybe should go back to the 5mg of Buspar twice a day for awhile as I may be trying to come off the meds to fast.
My biggest questions are does the lorazapam stay in your system for a long time and if the symptoms are from that how long do they last? Does Buspar cause these kind of withdrawls? If I stopped the Buspar cold turkey now would I have severe withdrawls?
I know I am asking alot but I am scared of the way I am feeling and want some reassurance on what to expect or do. My doc is not of much help, he just said to wean off and didn't say much more than that.

Thanks, Jimbo49

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

I think it would be a very good idea to stay on the buspar for another few weeks before trying to wean yourself from that.  It is not possible to sort out which is which right now because of too many changes at the same time, so do one at a time, and getting off of Lorazapam first is a good strategy.  And don't stop the Buspar cold turkey....every one of these medications affects your brain, and your brain needs time to readapt.