Which Benzo for me?

[Alpam]

Hi all, going back to my doc soon and I am thinking of asking for a change in Benzo's.

I have been taking Valium 10mg twice a day for over a year now, I don't think that is any less effective than it used to be, but the problem is that it doesn't always help with my GAD. I am also taking Cymbalta 120mg, Dexamphetamine 30mg and 100mg of Seroquel at night.

I might first ask for an increase in Valium to 15mg twice a day, but my doc has said before that 20mg is a high dose and he doesn't want me going any higher. I am not too keen on Xanax for its short half life, my anxiety in constant all day, so I need something long lasting. The only other two that I could think of were Lorazepam and Clonazepam. The problem with those two is Lorazepam has a fairly short half life as well, and is 3x the price of Valium. Clonazepam here is not approved for Anxiety, only epilepsy so I might have a hard time convincing my doc to write a private script for me, plus strangly enough it's the only benzo to come with a stern warning about its abuse potential. The only other Benzo I have tried in the past is Temazepam which did nothing for me, no sedation in the slightest, Valium isn't sedating either.

So should I stay on 20mg of Valium a day because I know it helps, maybe add another benzo to take as needed when I am really anxious, or try for something like Lorazepam or Clonazepam?

[Phoenix_Rising]

I can only give you my experience and say that your mileage may vary.

I have GAD and took xanax for many years. As you said, it's short half life didn't make it very effective as an "all day" treatment. Before I switched benzos, I was taking 3-4 mg/day. I recently switched to clonazepam (2 mg at night) and feel much "smoother". I am calmer in general and don't experience break through anxiety. However, clonazepam isn't great as a prn, IMO. It does calm me down, but it also makes me feel sluggish and "slowed down" for the rest of the day. Xanax, on the other hand, was great for prn use.

I haven't taken valium, so I don't know what to tell you there.

Best of luck!

Peace,

Phoenix