from klonopin to Ativan?

[skat]

Hey All,

I'm a 40 yr old male. I've been on a small amount of Klonopin - 0.25mg for about 3 months only.  Taken at bedtime. I'm very sensitive to med changes and I had been on it previously. Anyhoo, my doc gave me a 1 month supply of the lowest dose of Ativan yesterday to help me get off Klonopin. My question is: Do I abruptly start the Ativan tonight or try to cut the Klonopin into a fragment or... ? I'm confused and need guidance.

Side note: He also prescribed a low dose of Wellbutrin SR in an attempt to determine if my decades of anxiety suffering are the result of Adult ADD. I haven't started that yet. I want to get this benzo thing straightened out first.

Thanks for any guidance!!!

[Alisonj29]

I was on Ativan and given Klonopin to get off the ativan. It didnt work and I ended up taking both of them for about 3 years. I finally was able to get off the ativan. We opted for that one as it is much shorter lasting. I am still on Klonopin and likely will be for a very long time. I had issues with Wellbutrin but everyone is different.
Are you doing well enough that you feel you are good to come off the Benzos? I would like to be off them but I know that I am not at that point at all. I have been tried on every.other.medication available. Benzos work the best

[skat]

I also need to mention that I cannot afford a psychiatrist, as my insurance doesn't cover mental health at all. And I seem to know more than my internist about this stuff. He's shooting from the hip and generally clueless. sigh.

[skat]

All, thanks for the replies. I'm not getting an email notification so I'm just now seeing this. I appreciate the thoughtful responses.

A couple of things...

- I forgot to mention that I'm also taking 5mg of Lexapro every night and have been for a long time. I feel that it's causing me anxiety in the mornings. But I'm not sure what to do about this. I wake up every morning with disturbing dreams.

- Do I need to be concerned about the Wellbutrin aggravating my anxiety? It's a starting does of 100mg of the SR (which I guess is timed release).

[Rich99]

""""0.25mg for about 3 months"""" is really a small dose and I don't understand why your doctor felt you needed to be weaned off of that by making a switch.    You could just as well begun taking it every other day then every third day,  etc.      I also don't understand why your doctor would switch you from a longer acting med to a shorter acting one which is even tougher to wean off from.      This is from my own past experience using these meds.

[sgately11]

Hi Skat,

I am also on .25 but a little longer than you about a year and a half. It would really depend on what type of grip the benzo has on your mind. I know the first time I quit .5 when I was younger (18) it was easy, the second time was rough, and now I get withdrawal between doses and its a nightmare. I to want to get off and will use the Ashton method and take as long as I need, you should do the same, no need to rush if your not addicted or a risk to up your dosage.

Good Luck

[soehler]

With regard to the Ativan and Klonopin, yes, you should start taking the Ativan as your psychiatrist prescribed this evening.  The idea is to ween you off of the Klonopin and the Ativan was likely prescribed in order to minimize any withdrawal symptoms you might experience from the weening process.  The dose of Klonopin that you have been on is quite low, however, it is still very important that you do not abruptly stop taking it since you have been regularly taking it for more than 1 week.  Typically, individuals are weened off of Klonopin by slowly tapering the dose over about four weeks (which is why your doctor gave you a 30 day supply of Ativan).  I would encourage you to begin taking the Wellbutrin SR immediately. In order to continue to provide you with immediate relief from your anxiety, it is often useful to begin an antidepressant and an anti-anxiety simultaneously due to the fact that the antidepressant (i.e., Wellbutrin SR in your case) will take about four weeks to get in to your system and start working. While my guess is that your doctor would like to see you perhaps halve your current dose of 0.25mg Klonopin in addition to beginning 0.5mg Ativan twice a day (which is what I am guessing you were prescribed) as well as the Wellbutrin SR, I would recommend clarifying with your doctor how he/she plans to taper you off of Klonopin.  Good luck and let me know if you have any additional questions!

[naynay363]

hi skat. i myself am trying to figure out the same thing (the difference is im female, 29 years old and 33 weeks pregnant) so im under extreme watch with the baby and being on benzos, but the anxiety and stress would probably be worse for the baby.

but...my dr prescribed me ativan 1mg to take when needed ...... my friend takes klonopin 2mg. i ran out of ativan, so grabbed a couple of those from her, broke them in half (after consulting with a pharmicist) and i took that and actually felt better. i know mine is reversed ativan to klonopin vs. the klonopin to ativan that your doing. but im sure its the same, both meds are in the same family of benzos. good luck, and ask your dr what he/she thinks