Originally Posted by liveweyerd

My p-doc told me that Xanax was the Muhammed Ali for anxiety. I have been on it for several years. I am dependent upon it for sure. But I believe there is a difference between dependence and addiction. I would have withdrawals from my anti-depressants as well. I have tapered myself off xanax at least 4 times before as the situation I was in, I no longer needed it. But this is the longest I have ever been on it before and when I decided to taper and threw away some 180 1 mg tablets....it was pure hell....and then when I had tapered off and was given a low dose valium from a gp, I quickly learned that I had suffered needlessly, that the xanax works for me and I do need it. My p-doc was very upset with me about it....I was working out of state when I did this...and had gone to a gp. And made this decision on my own....because some of the abuse threads scared me so badly. From now on, I work with the p-doc I know and trust and who has been seeing me for 4 years. We have discussed klonopin at the last two visits, because of I was complaining of the lethargy produced by xanax. I was also quite depressed last time and she changed the AD meds to more activating ones....so far so good!