Posted by Mitch on May 27, 2001, at 15:48:24
In reply to Re: anyone with memory problems, posted by Rick on May 27, 2001, at 2:59:59
I have been taking Klonopin for two+ years and have tried Serzone before. Just a question for anybody-I have noticed that just abut everything that creates a short-term memory problem *also* causes amblyopia/lazy eye problems. Here is my own list of amblyopia causing meds: Serzone, Klonopin, diazepam, doxepin, Remeron, (sedating stuff), but NO amblyopia with Diphenhydramine, for example. Has anybody else noticed this? Any ideas about why they could be connected?
> I've been taking Klonopin for two years, and both Serzone and Provigil for one. Over the last six months I've started experiencing more and more memory loss -- long-term and especially short-term. Part of the short-term problem is losing a thought that I had just a moment ago. Sometimes I admonish myself, "remember, remember, remember!", and then quickly forget... usually when I'm distracted by one or two insignificant thoughts or occurences.
>
> I tried cutting the Klonopin from 1.5 to 1 mg/day. After a few weeks I noticed no difference in terms of memory lapses. Then I re-upped the Klonopin and tapered down on Serzone, eventually all the way from 450 to zero. The memory deficits responded promptly...the less Serzone I took, the less I forgot. An important confounding factor in the analysis may be that I tapered the Serzone during one of the few not-so-busy periods I've had in a long time (read: I was getting 8 hours of sleep instead of going to bed late and getting 4-5, sometimes 6).
>
> To get back the wonderfully robust anti-anxiety (Social Phobia) benefits of my med cocktail, I re-upped the doses, but stopped at somewhat lower levels than before: 1.25 Klonopin and 375 Serzone.
>
> Current status: Slightly reduced anxiety benefit vs. 1.5/450, and, unfortunately, no real improvement in the memory situation (dry mouth not quite as bad, though). Dealing with the memory-loss episodes is hardly debilitating but it is annoying, and has caused some minor problems (including incurring needless expenses) and embarrassment.
>
> Possible conclusions:
> -- Serzone seems to be the real culprit for my
> memory lapses, unless the hours-of-sleep
> coincidence was a prime culprit, too.
> -- However, perhaps a Serzone interaction with
> Klonopin *could* be bringing out the Klonopin
> memory-loss effect that I've heard a lot about
> but never experienced (except perhaps *very*
> mildly) until awhile after I added Serzone.
> (When I started writing this bullet point I
> intended to add another thought, but now,
> 60 seconds later, I haven't a clue what it
> was. If I sat here and concentrated for five
> minutes, there's perhaps a 50% chance it
> would come back to me. There's also a
> chance it will come back to me in a day or
> two. This kind of thing would happen to me
> pre-meds, but nowhere near as often.)
> -- At least for now, the memory effects clearly
> seem reversible. Whew!
> -- The anti-seizure, anti-anxiety benzo Klonopin
> does NOT seem to be the main culprit for me,
> despite its reputation. Of course there's
> been a lot reported about memory problems
> with Serzone, too.
> -- While Provigil provides me with many wonderful
> benefits, I sure haven't seen the reputed
> memory-enhancement effects!
>
> Question:
>
> In others' experiences, or from what you've read or heard, can med-induced memory problems take such a long time to surface? (6 months in my case,or 18 months if the Klonopin is involved)
>
> And that question just reminded me of the thought I lost when I was writing above. Namely, with regard to any Klonopin impact on the memory problems, I was taking a lot more Klonopin pre-Serzone -- up to 2.5 mg per day -- and had virtually no memory issues. I really the blame has to go to the Serzone and, maybe to a lesser extent, the lack of sufficient sleep (which I'm determined to change...so why am I posting at 3:00 a.m.????)
>
> Rick
poster:Mitch
thread:61137
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010522/msgs/64438.html