Posted by utopizen on July 6, 2005, at 14:40:04
In reply to Re: forget dexedrine, i can do anything, posted by Declan on July 3, 2005, at 22:14:43
> Hi Matt
> My experience with benzos has been that the more you take the worse you feel eventually, even if you need them. I was in a bad way when I was taking the equivalent of 30mg/d (probably) Valium. Agoraphobic, I guess. Big time fear. So for me even when benzos calmed me down they also did the opposite, or something like that. I wonder if Klonopin can aggravate instability of mood.
> DeclanDeclan:
Not really so much. Actually, Klonopin is well-established in the literature as a great adjunct to mood stabalizers. "Anything that slows the mania down," according to my doc, referring to his bipolar patients who he gives it to.
However, higher doses CAN induce extreme somnolence and lethargy over time, and 4mg of Klonopin is to me 1mg over the top. My 3mg is a lot to many, but it's understood it works for me and I've been on it for awhile and I'm fine.
I'd strongly advise just getting off the Klonopin, but ONLY with your doctor's advisement. He needs to wean you down, because at your dose, you're liable to get seizures if you don't taper down slowly.
Once you're off it, he can give you a different benzo. Don't listen to people who are hypothetical bookworms convinced "oh, no, tolerance to one benzo means tolerance to the benzo receptors." There's no actual evidence for that, trust me. It might be true, but it's not a reason to bet your life over, and switching won't hurt.
Try Valium, Librium, whatever. They're all the same. Stay away from Xanax, even Xanax XR, only because I seemed to get depression on that stuff, and plus, it's physically addictive, unlike Klonopin, etc.
ALSO, WAY MORE IMPORTANT: Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever take a benzo without taking an antidepressant. The two combined will likely prevent/help you get out of depression. Benzos alone will slowly slow your brain down and make you so lethargic you'll have so little mental energy you will get depressed in time.
Antidepressants help to prevent this common issue. If I wasn't so into the notion of "oh, no, doc, I'm not depressed, and Klonopin works, so why an antidepressant too?" I would likely have never gotten depression in the first place.
Keep in mind it's not the Klonopin causing your depression, but a combination of lifestyle factors, life stressors, and the lack of a long-term antidepressant to augment your Klonopin's effectiveness.
Klonopin is far more effective and powerful when it's not trying to fight your anxiety off as a One Man Army. Call in some back-up! It's surrounded by too many neurons, and there's only so much the poor GABA-A 1,4 benzodizepine antagonist can do on its own.
Klonopin goes halfway. A simple antidepressant, like Lexapro or Zoloft, can help pick up where it left off, and even reduce your Klonopin over time-- PROVIDED you COMBINE your meds with CBT. (Therapy).
poster:utopizen
thread:522588
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050702/msgs/524305.html