MemphisBlues

Pleeeaassseeee do not abruptly stop taking Xanax. Look at it this way: From what I've read, if you were taking about 5 milligrams of Xanax a day, that's the equivalent of 100 milligrams of Valium (.25 milligrams of Xanax equals 5 milligrams of Valium).

I'm no doctor, just a victim of benzodiazepines. There nothing to mess around with. Xanax has a much shorter half life than Valium (which has the longest of all benzodiazepines), and if you've taken Xanax for a year or so, you've developed a tolerance. I ate a mountain of Klonopin every day for years. I tried to cut along the lines of the schedule you're talking about. I ended up in the hospital -- I had seizures, hallucinations, fevers, palpitations, sweat attacks, panic attacks, delusions, you name it.

I'm just a hapless soul that's been there. And I drank on top of the benzos. Binderdonedat is right; the paradox about benzos is that they're hypnotics that relieve anxiety, insomnia, etc. But when you quit taking them, anxiety and insomnia come back in spades. If you were just taking them for fun, and had no underlying anxiety disorder, there's a chance you'll get whacked by rushes of anxiety, etc.

There are a lot of people who can kick benzos with no problem, or so I've heard. Check out the links others have suggested. You'll find that unlike detoxing from other drugs, the withdrawal symptoms are from the lack of benzos, and your brain has to relearn how to absorb the naturally calming chemicals benzos replaced. Until it does, those happy-feely chemicals ain't got a neuron to land on.

With alcohol, cocaine, heroin, the intense withdrawal occurs as your body eliminates them from your system. Once you've detoxed -- once the physical dependence is gone -- all that is left are the demons that made you want to ingest the crap in the first place.

Not so with benzos.

I would definitely approach a doctor for help. I suggest you ask if you could taper the Xanax for a few weeks, and introduce Valium at a close-to-equivalent dose (I doubt any doctor will prescribe 100 milligrams of Valium, however...At least I hope not). The ideal way -- or so I've read -- is to then taper the Valium, reducing the amount by about 1/10 ever two weeks or so.

I would go to the doctor armed with information from benzo.org.uk, or screen the doctor you're going to see over the phone to ensure he or she is versed in benzo withdrawal. The U.S. is way behind in recognizing that benzodiazepines pose a unique risk in use and in cessation. Britain, Canada, Australia and other countries -- they're doing everything they can to limit use to two to four weeks, an d they also mandate specific label warnings about abrupt cessation.

Good luck. Come back here. Oh...in my case, the severe withdrawals didn't kick in until I was off Klonopin for more than a week...and lasted for a month. Actually, they're still going on, but better. The good news: the lower the dosage and amount of time you took them, the less chance you have of developing protracted withdrawal symptoms. Then again, if you check out benzo-specific forums, you'll find people struggling to live without as little as a single milligram of Xanax.

Were these pills prescribed? I'd start with the doctor who wrote the prescriptions, if that's the case.

I hope you're one of the lucky ones. Take it easy...and slow.

CleanandSober44

I did a taper off the klonopin at home with a lot of help from some groups on the internet.
I tapered for 4 1/2 months, very very slowly. Its been aprrox 1-1/2 years since my last dose and Im back to "normal". I started feeling a lot better after I did the taper. Thats just my experience.

Hope you find what works good for you,
Michael

BullDog777

i detoxed off of a daily 6-8mg of klonopin habit and it was the worst i've ever felt in my life. i had tons of symptoms and multiple seizures. the worst of the detox lasted a solid month. i still believe it was a miracle that it didn't last longer. my detox was cold turkey and at day 25 my blood pressure was almost 200/105. i thought i was gonna stroke. i was also detoxing off of booze at the same time which didn't help either.

14 months later, i have vey very mild post acute withdrawal, but only 1 symptom is involved and it only happens once in a great long while. sometimes my eyelid will twitch like crazy for a few days and then suddenly it goes away. it's been probably 5 months since i had an episode though.

i consider myself fortunate for living through the worst hell i could have imagined. so much so, after reading this thread, i'm going to get a medical alert bracelet for benzos. never....ever...again.

EDIT: i just called my pharmacy and am going to stop by today to fill out the paperwork. it's only going to cost me about $20 to get one personalized.

myheadhurts

That's the first thing I did. I had benzos and z-drugs engraved on it, also added fluoroquinolone antibiotics and corticosteroids.