Is clonazepam addiction worth it?

[Amber98]

I work as a police officer and my coworkers tell me to leave my work at work and don't take it home with me. It's impossible for me, I go home and still spend all my time thinking and worrying about work. Yet, I actually REALLY enjoy my job and it's what I envisioned for my life.

But as soon as I was in training for the job I started clonazepam, it was a life savor. As soon as I started taking it I became more confident and didn't have trouble concentrating. When I don't talk it, I can't concentrate on anything.

But I seem to have to keep increasing my Clonazepam after getting a tolerance for it. I see drug addicts all the time due to my profession, I've seen what drugs do to people. I think to myself, is being addicted to a drug really worth having this job? I have lived with mental illness for years, I've tried over 10 different anti-depressants for anxiety/depression. Nothing seems to help. Clonazepam is the only thing I feel allowing me to have a normal life.

My solution:
What I've started to do rather than take clonazepam everyday, is take it only on the days I know I have a stressful shift. Days i'm off or days when I know my workday will be easy, I don't take it. So i'm taking it about 3 to 4 days a week. Is this a good solution?

I really don't know what to do, I don't want to have to face withdrawls in the future. I don't want to give up my job but at least when I was at home I didn't need to take clonazepam. I am in therapy but still feel the need to take benzos.

[Paxiled]

I should have added, if something works and you've tried a lot of things, well, it's working.  But the fact you keep reaching tolerance is a problem that will have to be addressed at some point so I think you're doing the right thing by slowing down your use.  Just be careful about it, as you can go into withdrawal easily with this drug.

[Paxiled]

Just to correct the above post, all benzos are classified as addictive drugs, including clonazepam.  That doesn't mean you should never take it, but it's important to know this, if you take them on a regular daily basis they are addictive.  Not everyone has a terrible withdrawal from addictive drugs, that's a myth, but many do, maybe most do, so they have to be stopped very carefully.  They are also not like insulin -- insulin is what is the problem with diabetics, but antidepressants and benzos, while they can make us feel better, don't target anything that has anything to do with why we're sick.  If you have type 1 diabetes insulin is a must, but for mental illness there are alternatives precisely because nobody knows what causes it and the drugs don't address causes.  Which doesn't mean they aren't sometimes the best choice we have available, but it does mean there might be other things out there that might help just as well -- they aren't necessary for survival.  It's hard having a disease without a known cause or known cure, ain't it?  As to the poster, there is one thing that might make you feel able to come down from the stress part of it, and that's meditation and exercise.  These have been proven to work for some people, so it's always worth a try, but know that quitting clonazepam is a very difficult thing.

[michigan07]

Having worked in law enforcement and corrections I understand where you are coming from. I was and I am still taking clonezapam in addition to a SSRI. Stress can bring anxiety and I know the stress you are going through. Being at home may alleviate anxiety but what's to say if you get another job that the anxiety may go away ? It comes down at least in my opinion to how debilitating the anxiety is. If it is to the point where you can not do your job effectively and can't provide for the safety of yourself and others then you should consider other options. However, if with medication and therapy you are able to function I would stick with it. In terms of addiction clonezapam really is not looked at as an addicting drug though any drug can be abused. If you're taking it even daily and able to function I think you're fine. Just make sure you are communicating with your doctor on your dosage. Tolerance will change with time but you have to make the decision when anxiety comes to whether you can handle it with or with out medication. Sometimes we have to take medicine for the rest of our lives and that is ok. To me it's no different than a diabetic taking insulin. Let me know how things go and hang in there. You just started in the field and with time you will be able to adjust or at least develop ways to handle the stress you will have.