Bipolar Disorder Support Group

Bipolar disorder is not just a single disorder, but a category of mood disorders marked by periods of abnormally high energy and euphoria, often accompanied by bouts of clinical depression. This is the place to talk about your experience with bipolar disorder, learn from others' experiences, and find support.

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Getting off benzodiazepines

Halterbroke
Halterbroke
Urgh, been on 5 mg xanax at night for a long ol' time, (yeah, 5, not .5) (before that, valium, before that, klonapin...) and the pdoc decided to back off 1 mg a week since last hospital visit. Down to 2 mg and feeling like crap. They are bringing me back up because the bottom keeps falling out of my days. Then the idea is to go down .5 a week.

I thought 1 mg a week seemed reasonable, is anybody else this stupidly sensitive???
deleted_user
deleted_user
Ya got me.

I'm on my way up, not down. Nothing else gets me to sleep without giving me a migraine and my klonopin is crapping out on me...sometimes I take 4mg a night....God I hope I don't have to go into detox....that would suck!
feisty
feisty
Benzos are hard to taper off of. Xanax is especially difficult, something about the half life ....

Years ago I was on a high dose and was for about 5 years. They brought me down .25 mg a week. I was still uncomfortable. Follow your doctors orders, please. If not, it can cause jaundice, seizures, etc.

xoxo, Jen
BipolarPrincess
BipolarPrincess
they won't give me any benzos because they say that their addictive and that outweighs the benefits.....so I dunno.
BipolarPrincess
BipolarPrincess
My pdoc also says if you're bipolar you're not supposed to be on benzos you're supposed to be on mood stabilizers and anti psychotics....
deleted_user
deleted_user
If you re-name a horse Benzodiazepene...then you can get off and on it whenever you want.
Halterbroke
Halterbroke
HA!
deleted_user
deleted_user
bpPrincess different Drs have different opinions about benzos, I take bezos and so do most of the bpers that see the same clinic as me
BipolarPrincess
BipolarPrincess
Well the doctor that treated me in the psych unit when I was there has the same opinion as my pdoc. I guess their are old school pdocs and new school pdocs and both pdocs I have delt with recently are new school pdocs....
dancingd
dancingd
I'm on >05 mg of Xanax....I take it as needed.I've gone months w/o refilling the RX.
I also take Klonopin at night .

I tend towards the manic side of BP..Anti-D's do a trippy thing with my brain...so I don't take them.
Just the Benzo's
rubyblue
rubyblue
I was on 60mg of valium a day at one point.... the way I got off it was to take a metal file (the ones you do your nails with) and I reduced one tablet each day by 10 strokes of the file....when that tablet was finished I started on the next... it took a long time but I found it the best way to reduce/stop...
dancingd
dancingd
Very clever ruby..now I am correct ,you filed off 10 strokes off each pill,then took it.
Then the next day filed off 20 strokes,then took it?
deleted_user
deleted_user
Point taken on both sides.. it depends on the person. I myself cannot be trusted w/ a bottle of benzo.. I have an additive personality, hence.. benzo being an additive drug..leading to depression for which they are know to do..... ( ATIVAN ) for one that I know of for sure. Depression leading into Severe Clincal Depression.. to .. Well, you get my point... It's a hard battle to fight.. I wish you luck.
deleted_user
deleted_user
I take 2 klonopins 2x day and night, at night I am at my highest point, sometimes I can just take one at night.

I usually begin to get hypo late afternoon like clockwork, so I aways have left overs, cause hardly anxious during the day.

I take Seroquel for sleep and hallucinations.

I talked to doc about addiction and all but she didn't seen nervous about it.
deleted_user
deleted_user
I also suffer with headaches taking them, my pdoc doesn't want to increase the dosage and I feel they might be more effective?
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