Jdre

So I'm finally 3 weeks clean from methadone and feeling awesome about that!! But, I'm dealing with horrible anxiety and panic attacks since then. I've been taking Lexapro for almost 3 weeks (this past week I was upped to 20mg by my doctor and dealing with horrible nausea but I know that'll eventually go away soon).

I've also been taking between 2-4mg per day of Ativan for 3 weeks. My problem is, I know I need it until the Lexapro starts working (they say about 6 weeks to take affect) but I don't want to become dependent on something else. If I do decide to stop the Ativan now, do you think I'll have bad withdrawals after just 3 weeks?

Jdre

Also, if anyone has some helpful links about dealing with anxiety and PAWS they would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much in advance.

Jeni26

Hi Jdre,

I'm sorry you're struggling with anxiety. I don't have experience with those meds but I think you should go talk to your doctor about your concerns.

As for PAWS..I found this website to be helpful

Post-Acute Withdrawal Symptoms - Relapse Prevention Strategies

I hope things improve for you soon.

Boudicca

Hi and welcome! Congrats on the three weeks.........I know it is hard. It is difficult to say about discontinuing the Ativan. Definitely something you should discuss with your doctor....we aren't supposed to give advice about dosages, etc....it violates forum rules I can tell you that 4mg per day is not a small dose (I assume you are taking 1mg every 8 hours?) This is because Ativan is fast acting and has a fairly short half life. That means you have to dose again to retain desired anxiolytic affect.

That said, benzos like Ativan really aren't designed for long-term use as physical dependence may occur after 2-4 weeks of use. However, your doctor has prescribed them because he feels the benefit to you may outweigh the risk of tolerance and physical dependence.

Don't be afraid to bring your concerns to your physician. Does he know about your addiction history? If not, it is very important that you share that information.

Perhaps once the Lexapro becomes fully effective you will be able to discontinue the Ativan if you wish, patients report it has good anti-anxiety properties.

Keep us posted and let us know how everything goes.

Boudicca

On the subject of PAWS google post acute withdrawal syndrome why we don't get better. Should bring up one of the best articles I have read on the subject on a website called what me sober.

Hope this helps.

Nocturnal

Hello- I ride about 10mi a day and do about 30-45 min of weightlifting everyday im not drinking (giving it up now) I find it helps immensely with my anxiety I was born with ADHD so I dont know if there's a big difference in different anxiety disorders

TimeHeals831

I've been struggling with anxiety for years and I usually try things that will just get my mind off of it because it starts to consume my mind and I will literally think I'm going crazy. I really like the 5 senses grounding skill (don't know if you're familiar with it, but very easy)
You can either pick a place you like to be (the park, a city.. For me it's the beach) or you can use where you currently are and then use your 5 senses; 5 things you see, 4 things you hear, 3 things you physically feel, 2 things you smell, 1 thing you taste.
That helps and also I really love silly putty that also gives me something to play with and take the focus off my anxiety.
Although I am not an addict, my doctor wants me to start getting off Xanax because it's not something to stay on forever, so I'm kinda being forced to work with skills (which isn't a bad thing, just a little scary I guess) hope this helps a little bit! As lame as this may sound, when in doubt, I google everything, google some coping skills or grounding skills for anxiety.