Posted by ratgrrl on October 31, 2003, at 8:19:46
In reply to Re: A question about benzo switch » ratgrrl, posted by tensor on October 30, 2003, at 23:23:36
Everyone has different reasons for going from one med to another, so if Klonopin is depressing you, by all means try the switch to xanax, but for what its worth, I did the xanax to klonopin switch twice for the following two reasons.
1) several years ago I was on a constant low dose of xanax for anxiety and we wanted to wean me off of that to try an AD more effective against anxiety and see if I could come all the way off of benzos. Xanax is very fast acting, so (according to my dr at the time, and I think it makes sense) it's easier to wean off with a slower acting drug such as klonopin. It worked. I was only on the klonopin at that point for 2 weeks. Eventually I did go back on a low dose of xanax as needed, usually for sleep, but I really didn't take it that often.
2) I recently made a more complicated switch to klonopin. I had gone off of zyprexa which led to really horrible withdrawal. The main problems were EXTREME anxiety/panic attacks and insomnia. I already occassionally took xanax on a very infrequent as needed basis, so we had me start taking the xanax daily am and pm to see if that would help combat the problems I was having. Xanax was too fast acting to help much, so we then switched to Klonopin which gave more steady help for the withdrawal symptoms. It helped (not 100%, but it helped). My withdrawal has since passed, but the milder anxiety symptoms the zyprexa was helping to treat remain, so I'm continuing on a low dose of klonopin that is helping. I, personally, feel safer on a benzo for anxiety than an antipsychotic (though opinions might differ on that).
--ratgrrl
poster:ratgrrl
thread:275053
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031030/msgs/275202.html