Klonopin dependent

I have been taking 1-2mg Klonopin a day for a long time. Lately I notice I am uncomfortable without the 2nd one that I take during the day. I’ve been taking the 2nd mg probably for 6 months.

Now that I’ve realized I’m dependent I’m scared. But it really helps me. My first thought was to taper to 1.5mg but I am uncomfortable until I take the extra bit.

Can I stay on 2mg for life? I hate the idea of being addicted but I’m also addicted to nicotine and want to cut that down first.

Is anyone cool with being on Klonopin for life / many years? Should I panic now I know I have a higher dependence?

My psychiatrist doesn’t have any problem with it, telling me some people take 20mg a day for life for epilepsy.

Yeah it’s dependant on you and your body but it’s one of those things. Benzos are addictive and I had a gran mal after stopping xanax abrubtly. Like that woke me up so I titrated slowly off after months and do other things to relieve my anxiety/it’s improved heaps…

It’s still a pretty low dose so it’s probably not so bad but maybe start investing in strategies like diet and exercise. Both can help in the long run and get you by. I wouldn’t be too worried about 2 mgs a day but we are all different and respond to meds differently.

Yeah. They do cause dependance and you’d probably feel the withdrawal coming off that sort of dose even but if you do go so slow if your going to get off but you can get better strategies over the medical model for anxiety I would say.

2 Likes

Wow too much to read, wish you all the best!

1 Like

Thanks heaps for the response @rogueone

It’s comforting to have you say 2mg isn’t too much. I exercise heaps and eat very healthy.

Sorry you went through what you went through. They are so hard to come off!

I really appreciate you writing back so fast as I’m feeling like :poop:. Daylight saving ending also has stuffed me up!

1 Like

Yeah I wouldn’t be too worried but approach why you still need them. I used xanax wrongly to help me nap and get to sleep. I didn’t take too much but benzo’s are really poor sleepers due to the dependance issues.

I’d say if you’ve bad anxiety though one under the tongue can be effective and help heaps. It’s one of those things as we humans tend to rely on things like chemicals too much. It’s hard…I didn’t really drink a lot but regularly and giving up beer was a hard thing for me as I guess I moved off xanax to that for my anxiety.

1 Like

While i’ve never taken Klonopin, there was a time I took large amounts of Ativan daily.

I quit and went through living hell withdrawals. To the point I almost commited suicide.

Please be careful. Benzo’s are serious!

2 Likes

@rogueone
Thanks man. They are powerful. It’s good you got off it, even though you had to go via beer.

Xanax is much harder to get off than clonazepam too!!

All of a sudden it’s gone from summer to winter and that’s stuffing me up too. Sza sucks as well as anxiety and depression. Maybe I’ll just let the 2mg fly and just won’t increase it.

1 Like

@TheCanuk thanks dude.

As long as I don’t increase the dose I think it will be ok.

Sorry you had to go through those hellish withdrawals! It sucks.

1 Like

Yeah like they can be good tools but look short term. That dependance can be an issue but if you don’t abuse them they can really help. Xanax really helped me accomplish a lot but if your ready to move on then get off them slowly…like really slowly!

1 Like

I probably have enough ■■■■ going on in my life to not get off them anytime soon, but now I am aware I am dependent, so I will definitely stop using any more mgs as PRN.

I’d love to take 25% less but now is not the time :heart_hands:

1 Like

Yeah. Your not abusing the dose so look for those healthy outlets and you’ll be ok. I think the problem comes from stopping abruptly. I wasn’t really taking too much xanax but stopped suddenly. Like a couple of days in had a gran mal.

We are all different but file it away to titrate off slowly if you get there. I still think they are really effective meds and short acting if you’ve problems with the anxiety.

1 Like

I was on 2mg Clonazepam for about 4 years about 16 years ago and was cold-turkeyed off it so I could get ECT treatments (it can make increase the seizure threshold) and had no serious withdrawal issues. But everyone is different…

1 Like

I been on Clonazepam for 10-11 years now
I take 0.75mg a day
If I miss it I usually feel it relatively fast

I tried cold turkey once and that wasn’t a smart idea.

Pdoc wants to slowly wean off it. Very slow process. But yes I can say I neen very dependent on it for a long time

1 Like

I take up to 2mg of klonopin daily and have been for years.

I don’t love being dependent on a pill either.

I was able to cut my dose in half with no problem.

Benzo withdrawal is bad,

But doable over time.

A lot of time.

Give yourself a break.

All the members here even on APs are physically dependent too.

Everyone gets sick of they don’t take their meds.

I understand wanting to cut back or be free of them,

Just don’t feel bad.

2 Likes

When I told my pdoc that I had given a couple of Klonopins to this girl who was jonesing for heroin he took me off of it. He did taper me off, so coming off of it was managable…

1 Like

I’m taking 0.75mg a day and if I skip like half of it I already begin feeling it

Yes a long time of getting off it extremely slowly
I wish I knew more about benzos before being prescribed them 11 years ago

1 Like

Thanks everyone. It’s really comforting to know others take them or have successfully weaned off or lowered the dose. :orange_heart:

1 Like

I’m 4 days into a slow taper and I feel totally dizzy and disoriented and psychosis. I went down to 1.875mg. I’m feeling so unable to cope!

I’ve just taken some APs to see if they help.

I feel like throwing in the towel and going back to 2mg. I can’t function. But I want to push through if tomorrow might be better?

Any advice is appreciated :pray:t2:

I think if you only went from 2mg to 1.875mg and are having issues,

It’s likely not the klonopin.

That’s an insanely small taper.

You may want to talk to your doctor.

i guess im lucky. i always cold turkied those drugs with no problem. ativan, klonapin, xanax. i took klonapin everyday in school for a while. i took Ativan for a while. and took the max does of Xanax for prob a few months. maybe i didnt take them long enough. idk.