Xanax XR

[JeepJessy79]

Is anyone out there on Xanax XR or know of anyone on it?  I'm thinking about asking my Doctor to put me on it.  Let me know please.

[bbuhbowler]

u dont have to sween off a benzo before switching to another u just have to make sure u take an equivelent dose...i.e. u can stop taking 2 mgs a day of klonopin and awitch to 2 mg of xanax becaue techically they are the same strenth, although i know this is kind of a bad example since, because their half-life's are so different. but another example which i read in the original posts was about switching to valiuum. klonopin(clonazepam) and xanax are both 4 times stronger than valiuum based on recommended dosing. u would have to take 40Mgs of valium to equal .5 mgs of the other 2. but on the plus side of valium it has the longest half-life of any benzo (up to dont quote me on this but i know its close to 140 to 200 hrs!!! klonopin being 30-60 and Xanax 5 to 8 hrs!!!!!

[DianneA]

I'm assuming that since the Xanax XR can't be cut, that I have to go back to the regular Xanax in order to wean.  I've been attempting to change to regular Xanax for 3 days and feel pretty bad.  I've been on .5 XR in the morning and one at night for a total of 1.0 per day.  Any advice?

[PhD420]

Help, beginning to Taper... and I have a really post, but it acceded the limit.  

Morning – 7AM – 8AM
-Adderal XR: 20MG (recently added (October 28th 2009) to pull me out of a depression and calm anxiety)
-Adderal: 5MG  (recently added (September 9th 2009, if needed to pull me out of bed)
-Klonopin: 1MG
-Prolosec Generic: 40MG (Have always been on this since the SSRI’s were prescribed because of acid reflux)
Vitamins: Recently Added on November 23rd 2009
-L-Glutamine Powder: 5 grams (Taken on empty stomach at night)
-SuperFoods Supreme Powder: (1 Scoop during dinner per day)
-Pre-Ground Flax Seed:  (1 Tablespoon mixed in Oatmeal for breakfast)
-Vitamin C 1000mg

MidDay: - 2-3PM
-Adderal XR: 20MG
-Adderal: 5MG (if needed at all)

Night: - 9 – 10PM
Xanax XR: 2MG twice a day, at the same time.  4MG
Klonopin: 1MG, two of them (Total 1.5MG)
Pristiq XR: 50MG (switched from Lexapro 5mg to 10mg in July 2009)


-The next process is to begin the taper and being in VT and that I suffer from SAD I am scared out of my mind.  Dr E. would like to eliminate the Klonopin first, which I am doing by now only taking 1.5mgs of Klonopin at night.

-I’m also a full time student who just changed careers to get my PhD in Clinical Psychology and am working on finishing up some credits as a senior prior to entering Grad school, as not all of my credits transferred into the School of Arts and Sciences from Computer Information Science.

-And realized my Migraines and Depression were misdiagnosed from when I was younger, as I had ADD to family situations and not Depression, although a DR put me on SSRI's when I was 14 when my family moved, which triggered my anxiety, which is how I ended up on Xanax since the age of 27 and am now tapering off of these meds.  The Migraines were missed by four doctors and turned out to be related to Degenerate Disc Disease in my Neck, which was causing me to have a form of sleep apnea too.  I see a PT twice a week, and use a home traction unit everyday and I no longer wake up gasping for breath.

-Which brings me to 2010 as my Cobra insurance will run out in July, and UVM’s insurance doesn’t cover much of anything and they force you to see their doctors, and I really don’t want to change doctors again as I trust my doctor and we are doing our best by using Adderal as an augmenter.  So my hands are up in the air, while I crunch for finals when I can cognitively think straight as there is so much going on at once.

-I’m also a bit freaked out because I also have apparently ground my teeth down so bad that I need over 12k worth of restorative work to fix them.  Which, my father is not happy about and I am on a budget so tight that I can barely afford to drive.

[MysticSymphony]

I just wanted to say I'm very grateful to see both sides of the Xanax XR story.  I was diagnosed with Panic Disorder 2 years ago, where many of my panic attacks were very situational, but so frequent and unpredictable and debilitating that I landed in the ER more times than I wanted to and also spent a week on inpatient care.  During my inpatient stay, I was switched from Lexapro to Klonopin and it was the Klonopin that seemed to only provide short term relief.  I tried to wean off it after 9 months of being on the medication and experiencing side effects where I felt as though I was "walking dead" and had such a violent relapse that I hesitate to ever go near the drug again.  My psychiatrist put me on Xanax XR a year ago now and with the combination of Zoloft, I find that I can experience much less "drug paranoia" (the bad experience with Klonopin caused me to quit treatment altogether until I was completely incapacitated by panic attacks, having them 3 or 4 times daily) and just live a somewhat normal life.

I'm wondering, though...if you have panic disorder, are you condemned to be on medication for life?  My before Xanax XR days were horrifying but I've always wanted to come off of medication entirely.  My psychiatrist has to keep reminding me that treatment is a one day at a time thing but I'm all about the big picture.  I'm assuming I should just listen to my psychiatrist- she is pretty excellent and has really helped me through- but I'm just curious.

[LadyLuck77]

I have been reading all of everyone's posts on Xanax and Xanax XR.  I hae been on Xanax for over 5 years.  My doctor put me on Xanax XR when it first came out and I was kind of excited not having to take them all the time, but after two days of taking it the time release did not work as planned, it dissolved to quickly in my system and was released all at once (well I should say gradually over about an hours time).  So for me it did not work well at all.  I have been taking 1mg 3x a day for some time now (that is what I was prescribed, it was higher 2mg 3x a day but asked for smaller dose) I try not to take this much a day as I use it when I have any panic attacks and for anxiety attacks, plus I have insomnia so I kill two birds with one stone.  I have never been dependant on Xanax and have stopped taking it many times by tapering my dose over a few weeks thinking it was all stressed related but apparently in my case its not just stress.   My doc now wants me to start trying new medications that are out like Buspar and some others but after reading side effects (which I am extremely sensitive to most meds) I am scared to try them.  I finally broke down two days ago and tried one called Seroquel 100mg.  This medication just totally threw me, I was hallucinating could not talk or walk.  I was not functional at all by any means and all I took was 25mg of it.  After this I decided I was not comfortable changing my meds and my doc does not agree and does not want to continue my Xanax that I normally take.  I am kind of confused why my doc would want to change a medication that is working perfectly for me with no side effects and I can function properly on and I have never had to increase my dosage, I use it as needed for attacks but .5mg at night for sleep.  Does anyone else seem to be having the same pressure to change meds from their docs, to get them off of Xanax to other drugs that cause more harm?

I have tried most of them in the begining before trying Xanax and nothing was working for me that was not giving me worse side effects or having to take another pill to cover up another side effect.

~Just wondering

[johanni]

Xanax is certainly an "evil" drug!It destroyed my friends life.RCA7591 is providing you with very good advice.I myself am on valium 10mg daily,an it helps control my anxiety.It is very safe and my dose is very low.My friend started with 0.5mg of xanax and ended up taking 10mg daily.The anxiety became worse as the dose was increased and she ended up in a detox clinic.She is slowly recovering and has switched to valium.Avoid xanax at all costs!