Considering a taper off of Xanaz

[Victor322]

I too am taking Benzo's. Started with Klonopin in 1995 @ about 1 mg /day. Switched over to Xanax earlier this year and currently taking about 1.25~1.5mg/day. Will soon(?) begin a tapering program once I'm off of Tramadol. I've tapered down from 12 tabs per day to 3 per day, been tapering since the first week of November. I wont even try tapering off both drugs at the same time. Perhaps by the start of Feb 08 i will be ready for the Xanax taper.
Will keep you all posted, more later!

It does not seem that 1~1.5/mg per day is a lot, but i've been doing Benzo's since 1995.

Is this wd going to be nasty, similar to the current tramadol wd?

TIA!

[Victor322]

Thank you for your concern and the time you took to reply back. Much appreciated!

Happy New Year!
-Vic

[JSGeare]

Ah ha! You have a special agenda -that explains the situation. My concern is the same as your concern: I do not KNOW what the impact will be. That said, what I think I DO know is that changes in meds without at least an informed medical opinion are not usually a good idea. You, evidently, are willing to let those sleeping dogs lie in order to qualify for an insurance policy. So now, I am nervous simply because I hope you don't suffer -same as you. I understand the motive and that you've done some homework.

I suppose that if someone else were to answer and say they had a good, bad, or indifferent experience doing what you are going to do, you could guess that maybe your reaction would be like theirs -ALL OTHER THINGS BEING EQUAL, which we know they are not. On the other hand, it is also true that people who take exactly the same dosage of exactly the same med have entirely different reactions, so I would not be surprised if people would react differently when cutting back, too. I suppose, at least, you might have some idea of what is possible based on reports of others.

Good luck!

[Victor322]

Well, I'm not clear where your concern may lie. The Tramadol tapering is going as well as can be expected, minimal depression with manageable anxiety.  Also using the Thomas recipe. Please help me understand  your concern regarding my tapering plan, thanks!

But yes, I haven't informed my doc because i don't want any Red Flags in my medical record since I will be looking for insurance in late 2008 and don't want to be labeled as an addict. It's already going to be almost impossible to get authorization for an insurance policy, so I have no choice but to go it on my own...and with my research and prior experience, it's going well and I remain optimistic.

[JSGeare]

I'll confess that your post makes me a bit nervous, and for two reasons: First, are you just making this up as you go along -or is your tapering with the advice and consent of a doctor? It's your life, so you can do what you want, but, if you are changing anything, I would at least ADVISE my doctor/therapist about it. You don't have to ask permission -just let 'em know.

Second, you're asking me (us) if its going to be nasty. Until such time as someone exactly like you does the taper (before you do) that's kinda hard for anyone here to say. So, I don't know if it is going to be nasty. But the fact that you're wondering strongly suggests to me you've NOT been in touch with your doctor about it, for surely he/she would have told you something about what to expect.

So, my opinion is that your first source of info should be the people who are trained up in all this and have dozens or hundreds of cases from which to judge -as well as all the literature close at hand. With that information at hand, you might THEN ask individuals for some background on what they experienced.

Just a thought. Whatever you do -I hope for the best.