cold turkey

[Jdyhelp]

I want to go cold turkey from klonopin 3mg/day, 4 months. I tried tapering and was in withdrawal the whole time. Has anyone gone cold turkey and have advice to get through. I feel like I would rather bite the bullet  than spread it out over time.

[nursegirl6572]

3mg a day is pretty significant dose, and although a few months may not seem like a long time, it is long enough that you have reached a steady state of the Klonopin in your system.

Like Lydia explained above, Klonopin is a long acting benzo...it isn't something you can assume will be out of your system in a couple days with no problems.  Klonopin requires a deliberate doctor guided taper.  Please do NOT attempt to d/c this drug on your own.  Have people done it?  Sure.  Is it recommended?  Heck no!  Like Lydia also stated, it can be dangerous, putting you at risk for seizures and other problems.  You're making assumptions that b/c you haven't taken it in two days, things are okay.  That's not true.  See Lydia's post above...she explained it beautifully.

Please call your doctor right away and discuss this with him/her.  A proper taper shouldn't leave you with unbearable w/ds.  That isn't to say it is 100% smooth sailing, you'll likely have some symptoms, including an increase in anxiety, insomnia, etc.  But again, a doc who KNOWS how to do this properly will help you do this the right and SAFE way with minimal side effects.

Please update us!

[RubyWitch]

The half-life of Klonopin has quite a range between 18-50 hours. I don't know if you know what a "half-life" means, many people don't and I don't mean to talk down to you. A half-life is the amount of time it takes for 1/2 the amount of Klonopin to be excreted from your body. Let's take the high end of 50 hours as an example. You were taking 3mg of Klonopin and stopped two days ago. Two days equals 48 hours. You still have a full dose of Klonopin in your body and won't begin to feel any w/d effects at this point. In a few more hours, 1/2 of the 3 mg will be out of your body. 50 hours from that time, another 1/2 of the dose left in your body (1.5mg) will be excreted. 50 hours later another 1/2 will be gone, and so on until it is all finally excreted.
Since the half-life varies so much, you can do the math and figure out all the possibilities. But without blood tests, there's no way of knowing for certain when it's all been excreted.

Try to find a Psychiatrict Medication Manager. Many p-doc offices either have one on staff or can refer you. They deal almost exclusively with psychotropic meds and know how to get people off them virtually "pain" free.

Talk with your local pharmacist. They are DOCTORS of Pharmacology and can give you advice and the most up to date thinking on withdrawal. They are a sadly underutilized resource.

Or, as you said, you could do the "bite the bullet" method. I don't recommend it, but many people have done it with various degrees of success and safety.

I wish you the best. Please stay safe.
Peace
Greenlydia

[Jdyhelp]

I have been off now 2 days. I really don't want to be on meds. I have been unsuccessful in finding a doctor to help with my taper. I am hoping to get through a week  and then i feel like I can deal with the withdrawals.

[RubyWitch]

If you were in withdrawals the whole time, then you were not being tapered correctly. Find a doctor who understands psycotropic meds and how to w/d. Most GPs are too stupid.
Cold turkey off Klonopin? REALLY bad idea and possibly dangerous.
Don't do it.
Peace
Greenlydia