Denise K Posted March 21, 2017 Share Posted March 21, 2017 A little back story...I am 42, survived a massive heart attack at 29, and have been on a 1.5 MG dose of Klonopin a day for about 25 years. They were given to me by a doctor who misdiagnosed my thyroid problem as an anxiety disorder. By the time that was figured out my doctor told me my body was dependent on Klonopin and I would have to take it for the rest of my life. Fast forward two decades and I now have a physician who told me I need to be off Klonopin because it may be linked to Alzheimer's. He referred me to a P Doc and washed his hands of the problem. The taper went smoothly for awhile. I went down to 0.75 the first month then to 0.5 the second month without withdrawal symptoms. About five days ago I tried to go down to .25 and had no problems until the third day. That's when I had a pain in the back of my head like an ice pick being twisted into my bones. Muscle spasms and a general feeling of delirium followed. I went back on the 0.5 dose and became better by day three. Today I called the P Doc and she told me she will not taper any slower, and that I had better get the dosage down because she is only giving me 25 0.5 pills next month. She said she's not sure if the withdrawal will go away and if something bad happens to me I need to check into the ER. I have to stick with her because I have crap insurance and can't afford anyone better. I've read the Benzo Buddies forums and nearly died when people said they have been in withdrawal for years. It looks like this is what will happen to me. Any advice on how I should taper with the pills I am being given is appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted March 21, 2017 Share Posted March 21, 2017 3 hours ago, Denise K said: Today I called the P Doc and she told me she will not taper any slower, and that I had better get the dosage down because she is only giving me 25 0.5 pills next month. She said she's not sure if the withdrawal will go away and if something bad happens to me I need to check into the ER. Welcome to CB! I'm sorry you have to stick with this pdoc. It took me tapering off klonopin for awhile. Like wean off by 0.25 mg every 2 weeks. So for 2 weeks I'd take 0.25 less than what I was on. Then the next 2 weeks was another 0.25 mg etc, until I reached 0.5 mg 2x/day (target dose for me). Any faster than this, I felt the withdrawal symptoms. And once I was finally on my target dose, I had no withdrawal symptoms. Any chance you can come to an agreement with your pdoc to stay on a lower dose instead of going off of it all the way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denise K Posted March 21, 2017 Author Share Posted March 21, 2017 Thank you for your replies. I really did get a clueless pdoc I hope I can taper down by May. I'm going to have an advanced directive drawn up just in case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyRedhead Posted March 21, 2017 Share Posted March 21, 2017 (edited) @Denise K, I think .5mg Klon is way too much to cut at one time, especially if you've been taking it for that long....... I wish you had a more benzo-wise pdoc........Is there any way at all you could get another doc that would taper you more slowly, or do a crossover to Valium like someone else mentioned? Do you have a GP doc that you trust?.....If so, I would suggest discussing it with them, since your current pdoc obviously doesn't know much about tapering someone off benzos. Edited March 21, 2017 by CrazyRedhead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notloki Posted March 21, 2017 Share Posted March 21, 2017 There are .5, .25, and .125 Klonopin generic tabs on the market to assist with tapering. You could ask for some .125 mg tabs to help with tapering but your doc seems more motivated that you not take benzos at all rather than do it in a way that is comfortable for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denise K Posted March 21, 2017 Author Share Posted March 21, 2017 The pdoc wants me off of it so she isn't sued by someone who became ill due to benzos. She told me that. My GP says 25 years of being on it is too long. He won't do the taper. I'm at 0.5 and need to be completely off klonopin by the end of April. I have Medicaid so my chances at finding a doctor to help are pretty much at zero. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyRedhead Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 (edited) @Denise K, Would your pdoc at least be willing to give you something to help you through this so-called "taper"?...........You are going to be having some strong anxiety symptoms and probably insomnia problems, too. Gabapentin might help...Some possible other meds that come to mind are Remeron, Trazodone, or maybe even a low dose anti-psychotic like Seroquel. I hope she is at least open to giving you a helper med to make it through this.......Really sucks that she won't taper you more slowly.....So sorry you have been placed in this predicament, and it's not even your fault...... Edited March 22, 2017 by CrazyRedhead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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