Posted by laima on February 9, 2007, at 7:11:21
In reply to Re: Well Benzos Worked For Years Now No Hope » Phillipa, posted by laima on February 9, 2007, at 6:33:56
By the way, when it became clear that I was experiencing high anxiety and dismal sleep with clonazapam, and the mutual decision was made by me and doctor to come off it, he prescribed 2.5-5. mg zyprexa for about 6 weeks. It is not the most popular med, I was very unhappy with some of the side effects, but it was AMAZING for sleep and helpful for anxiety. It was the first time in an awfully long time that I actually slept through the night. Yes, I gained weight, over the holidays, too- but now the 10 pounds or so is coming right off, off zyprexa, excersing more, eating normally. So- I ended up with less anxiety. Doctor actually asked if I wanted to go back onto small dose klonopin recently, for my restless sleep. He said it would be effective again now for that, and for anxiety, too! But I am opting not to for the moment, just because I think I'm doing alright, and I want to see how things move along. Also started a focused therapy, which is helping me sort out the matters I am worrying about. I also feel good knowing benzos will now be an effective option for me again when/if I decide I need them. That's an enourmous relief!Yes, my sleep is restless-"active"- but I'm choosing to just live with that for now- not tired during the day, feel alert. I'm also concerned about benzo effect on sleep architecture, and have noticed that I sleep longer in the morning, don't wake up panicky anymore, nightmares vanished. My doctor thought the early, panicky wakenings were due to clonazapam wearing off early in the morning, and that what I was experiencing was rebound anxiety. I wonder how I'll do over time having "natural" sleep, though I'm resisting the ordeal of going through another sleep study to see what is actually going on.
So that's how I weighed the pros and cons in my case.
poster:laima
thread:731116
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20070207/msgs/731319.html