clonazepam 0.5mgs withdrawal

[diamondgeezer65]

Hello ppl,
I've been taking clonazepam for nearly four weeks for anxiety and stopped 3 days ago. By the third day I've been experiencing sweating, muscle stiffness,headaches,tremors and anxiety shot through the roof. Could I have become addicted to them in this short time?

[Fishmanpa]

Stopping cold turkey is ill advised. Did your doctor tell you to do this?

Positive thoughts

[diamondgeezer65]

No my psychiatrist said nothing about addiction/withdrawals. I gave in and took some today as I felt so bad and felt better after. Will have too phone them Monday.

[venusbluejeans]

Hi

This is just a courtesy reply to let you know that your post was moved from its original place to a sub-forum that is more relevant to your problem.

This is nothing personal - it just enables us to keep posts about the same problems in the relevant forums so other members with any experience with the issues can find them more easily.

[Fishmanpa]

I can't believe your psych didn't recommend weaning off! Definitely call.

My wife has been on Seroquel and Klonopin for her illness. They've been slowly weaning her off. She was on 200mg of Seroquel (50mg 4x daily) and 1g of Klonopin (2x daily) back in September. They've weaned her down to 25mg 2X daily of the Seroquel and .5g of the Klonopin 1x daily which she's been on for about a week and a half. She's not complained of any issues. On the contrary, I'm seeing a bit more life in her as she's not so heavily medicated.

When I was on Zoloft, it was the same deal. I was weaned off over a period of a month or so. Went from 100mg a day to 75, to 50, to 25 and then out. While I did get a few head zaps and dizziness, it wasn't that bad at all.

Hope you feel better!

Positive thoughts

[diamondgeezer65]

Thanks

[ana]

Dependency develops after about a month of taking it. I was on 0.5 mg for 9 years (!) and I developed a psychological as well as a physiological dependency. Coming off Rivotril was the most difficult thing I'd ever done, but I did it.
Actually, just a p.s. here, my therapist told me Rivotril causes the least dependency compared to other medication from the group it belongs to. I'm sure you're experiencing these things because you fear you won't be able to function as well without the medication.

[diamondgeezer65]

I've been through a benzo withdrawal years ago so I am pretty sure its that and not just worrrying whether I'd cope without them.

[ana]

Oh I see. I didn't realise. In that case, you already know how difficult it is, and if you've done it once, you'll more than likely do really well this time round.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Is it rebound? So perhaps stabilisation and tapering is needed? Or even a switch to a longer half life Benzo to make it less harsh to withdraw from?