![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 12 of 12. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 7:00:04
Hi,
I have been on Klonopin for over five years and reading responses to an earlier post from people (which I would like to thank for their responses :)) it appears I take a hefty daily dose.
I take 4-6mg daily with no sedation or anything, no memory loss, nothing. I am a 28 year old male who has never used drugs and/or used alcohol.
I was wondering what is the difference and benefits of Xanax vs. Klonopin. And is my dose which is usually 4mg daily but sometimes 5-6 considered alot? Because I also take Lexapro, Remeron, and Trileptal.
Hope to hear your response.
Thank You.
BRC
Posted by tensor on January 21, 2005, at 7:42:59
In reply to Which is better Klonopin or Xanax, posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 7:00:04
Hi BRC!
Sorry to be off-topic..
Are you suffering from recurring depression and anxiety as I do? Because your medication is so similar to mine, i take clonazepam 2mg daily for anxiety/SP and zoloft, remeron and lithium for depression. I wonder how you are doing on Trileptal, what your are taking it for and if it helps.4-6mg is in the upper range for anxiety but it's not an unusual high dose. Clonazepam has a reputation for keep working year after year without the need of increasing dosage, i.e. no tolerance build-up. Are you saying you don't get the therapeutic effect you want? Or that you don't get the s/e usually associated with benzos?
Kind regards,
Mattias
Posted by Glydin on January 21, 2005, at 8:27:12
In reply to Which is better Klonopin or Xanax, posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 7:00:04
> I was wondering what is the difference and benefits of Xanax vs. Klonopin.
Hi BRC,
We have discussed Klonopin with one another before.
Xanax and Klonopin's actions are very similar being the same drug class and they are both CNS depressants. Xanax is faster acting and burns out quicker and Klonopin is slower to act and lasts longer. There is a XR version of Xanax and while there is no change in the halflife of the med, the delivery system would, in theory, make for a single dose lasting longer.
From what I've found - in myself, on this board, from others, and info on other boards - it seems to be a matter of what folks are used to and what folks are expecting from a benzo. Those switched one from another do notice a difference. Most seem to switch from Klonopin to Xanax for sedation and depression reasons. I have seem a number switch from Xanax to Klonopin report it was due to tolerance reasons.
I think it's very individual and one is not necessarily better person to person.
Personally, I found Xanax did not cover me as well for my symptoms and there was a very different "feel" to Xanax as compared to Klonopin and one I did not care for - others report the opposite. Also, Xanax was also much more expensive.
Glydin
Posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 10:07:16
In reply to Re: Which is better Klonopin or Xanax » BRC, posted by Glydin on January 21, 2005, at 8:27:12
Hey Glydin nice to hear from you again.
I do recall talking to you before and the excellant advice you gave. And I do rememeber asking the exact same question.
It is just that it is just that my anxiety, depression, and OCD have been acting up pretty badly hear lately and I was recently was dx with Bipolar II. And I hate the fact that I have to take all of this medication to control my emotions.
And I kind of feel bad when I have to take so much Klonopin and I see that most people take alot less. So, it is always a reality check when I hear that people take far less than I do to make it.
So, I begin wondering if there is another medication that may be available to where I don't have to feel so guilty as taking so much.
Hope I kind of explained myself.
Hope to hear from ya soon.
p.s. I know I will not subsitute your advice for in place of my doctor's. But in your opinion do you think a dose of 6mg daily of Klonopin is rather high. Just looking for input from people who have been down the same road as I have.
Posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 10:47:04
In reply to Re: Which is better Klonopin or Xanax » BRC, posted by tensor on January 21, 2005, at 7:42:59
That is a great question Tensor. You can ask me anything.
I do have persistant anxiety, depression, but I also have a pretty intense case of OCD.
I have tried many med combos over the past five years.
To best answer your question I guess I will give you a break down of my medications and how they effect me.
Lexapro--I take 60mg. I know this seems high and it did to me when my pdoc. kept raising the dose. But after intensely researching OCD myself I understand why. It takes a higher dose of an SSRI to treat the symptoms of OCD.
4mg Klonopin--I try not to take this amount everyday. It is the only med that I can say for sure that absoulety works. But I try to get by on the least amount daily I can. But here lately I have been having to take the full amount because my OCD, anxiety, and Depression has been getting pretty bad. That is what prompted me to write the original post b/c I was wondering if another benzo had better effects at a lower dose. Curious by the way what does s/e mean?
Remeron--It is the only thing that will allow me to sleep. I take 30mg solutabs.
Trileptal--What you was asking me about. It was kind of an accident as to how I found Trileptal. I have nerve damage to my right leg due to a benign tumor inside my spinal cord which can cause some pretty intense pain.
My nuerologist not my pdoc. insisted on my trying Triletpal for the pain. He gave me some samples I took them and they did not seem to help. I have had the pain since I was a kid so I was used to it. So, I went back to my nuerlogist and he asked me if the Trileptal worked and I told him I took all the samples but it really didn't to anything. So, he raised the dose to 1,500mg. It did not only help with the pain, but it also slowed down some of these OCD thoughts I had been describing to my pdoc. for the past few years. So, it helps with my thoughts and coiendendily my pain. So, my pdoc. told me I also had BP II--damned doctors :).Hope this helps and hope to here from ya soon.
BRC
p.s. Just wrote Glydin but I would like him to look at this post to so I am going to include his name in the subject.
Posted by Glydin on January 21, 2005, at 10:54:19
In reply to Re: To Glydin » Glydin, posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 10:07:16
> Hey Glydin nice to hear from you again.
~~~It's very nice to hear from you, too, BRC
> It is just that it is just that my anxiety, depression, and OCD have been acting up pretty badly hear lately and I was recently was dx with Bipolar II. And I hate the fact that I have to take all of this medication to control my emotions.
~~~I'm very sorry times are rough for you right now. I know it is difficult to make peace with the fact we must take meds, but these are problems that meds can treat and I try to see it as no different from any other medical problem that one would have to take meds to control. It's not an easy fact to accept, but sometimes, after we do, it makes it easier.
> And I kind of feel bad when I have to take so much Klonopin and I see that most people take alot less. So, it is always a reality check when I hear that people take far less than I do to make it.~~~I can understand that, but we are all so different and comparing usually serves little purpose but to enhance the guilt.
>
> So, I begin wondering if there is another medication that may be available to where I don't have to feel so guilty as taking so much.~~~There are options.
> Hope I kind of explained myself.~~~You have explained yourself very well.
> I know I will not subsitute your advice for in place of my doctor's. But in your opinion do you think a dose of 6mg daily of Klonopin is rather high. Just looking for input from people who have been down the same road as I have.
~~~In my opinion, 6 mgs is the upper end of what I would be comfortable taking. However, the bigger questions would be:
Is this dose effective?
Over what period of time did it take to get to this dosing?
- I guess my main point is, if this dose is effective for you... great. If this dose isn't, I feel you may have hit a point where thinking of other meds or another benzo as an option may come into play. Maybe the doses of your other meds need adjusting? I suggest having a frank talk with your doc about all your concerns.
Again, I'm sorry for the rough times and I hope things look better for you very soon.
Glydin
Posted by tensor on January 21, 2005, at 16:33:18
In reply to Re: To Tensor and Glydin!! » tensor, posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 10:47:04
Hi BRC!
>Lexapro--I take 60mg. I know this seems high and it did to me when my pdoc. kept raising the dose. But after intensely researching OCD myself I understand why. It takes a higher dose of an SSRI to treat the symptoms of OCD.A pdoc once told me a about a girl he treated for OCD, she washed her hands like 200-300 times per day. She was treated with clomipramine and the symptoms started to go away at 275mg. And I was whining about the s/e at 100mg…
>4mg Klonopin--I try not to take this amount everyday. It is the only med that I can say for sure that absoulety works. But I try to get by on the least amount daily I can. But here lately I have been having to take the full amount because my OCD, anxiety, and Depression has been getting pretty bad. That is what prompted me to write the original post b/c I was wondering if another benzo had better effects at a lower dose.
Ok, 4mg clonazepam, you’re saying it works, but it isn’t enough? How much would you need to take to get a satisfying response? I really don’t think you would get away with a lower dose(equivalent dose) by switching to another benzo, though this is based on my own experience. I agree with glydin that changing or adding another type of med is to be considered if you feel you need more than 6mg. That’s something you’ll have talk with your pdoc about.
>Curious by the way what does s/e mean?
Side effects.
>Trileptal--What you was asking me about. It was kind of an accident as to how I found Trileptal. I have nerve damage to my right leg due to a benign tumor inside my spinal cord which can cause some pretty intense pain.
Sorry to hear about your tumor and pain :-(
Is Trileptal helping your depression? What about s/e? (side effects) :-)
Take care.
/Mattias
Posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 19:55:27
In reply to Re: To Tensor and Glydin!! » BRC, posted by tensor on January 21, 2005, at 16:33:18
Hi,
Thanks for your concern :).
About the Klonopin if I had to go above 4mg daily then the side effects oh exuse me s/e :) would not be worth the use of the medication. That was why I was wondering if Xanax was any better.
About the Trileptal and helping depression (I guess) if you was to have depression with alot of anxiety or aggression. Trileptal when it is used in psychiatric medicine is used as a mood stabilizer usually with people with bi-polar disorder. But doctors prescribe it for a wide range of things. It is actually a newer version of the medication Tegretol. It just has less side effects than Tegretol.
When a doc. gives me something to take I tend to look it up and find out about it as much as I can. That is how I know about Trileptal.
The side effects for me was headache, blurry vision, etc. But they tend to go away after a while. A rare but dangerous side effect that my nuerologist told me about the med is that it could cause a drop in blood sodium levels. So, you have to get your blood checked ever now and then to make sure everthing is ok.
If you don't mind me asking what are your med doses and do they help you?
Oh by the way I do not have the kind of OCD where you worry about germs and contaminaton and stuff. It is a different kind :).
Hope to here from ya soon.
Posted by johnnystats on January 21, 2005, at 23:33:17
In reply to Re: To Tensor from BRC!! » tensor, posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 19:55:27
I don't think either of them are better, it just depends on how your body tolerates it. I take xanax xr at a high dose and i feel great on it. Klonopin completely knocked me out and i felt in a daze.
Posted by jasmineneroli on January 23, 2005, at 2:50:02
In reply to Re: To Tensor from BRC!!, posted by johnnystats on January 21, 2005, at 23:33:17
Hi BRC, Jas here.
You're getting the tail-chasing thoughts again, aren't you? Your anxiety/stress level must be higher lately. (Sorry for you. Hugs to you.)It often seems to revolve around your Klonopin dose......you're getting "stuck" on the thought that it's too much, once more.
Nothing we say here about dosage amounts or other benzo's, will get you "unstuck". It's part of the obsessive-compulsive personality disorder/anxiety situation you have going. IMO it's a result of increased stress or anxiety. Has the extra dx of bipolar ii caused this extra worry?You probably would feel better if you called your doc about a possible addition or change in meds, that would more effectively control the OCPD thinking. Sometimes an ADD type medication can ease "perseveration", as can an atypical anti-psychotic like Risperdal. I'm not a doctor, so I don't know how these meds might affect bipolar ii.
Talk to your doc again soon, OK?
Do you see a therapist? That may help too.
Look up "perseveration" on Google. It might help you understand it a bit, and understanding it can help the feeling.
It's great to see you here again. I wish it was for happier reasons. Take care :)
Jas
Posted by sdb on January 23, 2005, at 15:10:10
In reply to Which is better Klonopin or Xanax, posted by BRC on January 21, 2005, at 7:00:04
Hi BRC,
Did you have sexual side effects (m/f)?
Posted by sdb on January 23, 2005, at 15:15:35
In reply to Re: To Tensor and Glydin!! » BRC, posted by tensor on January 21, 2005, at 16:33:18
4mg Klonopin is not unusual.
look the link:
http://www.dr-bob.org/tips/social.html#English
"The ideal dose of clonazepam in the treatment of Social Phobia stays between 3 and 6 mg/day divided in three doses a day, morning, afternoon and bed time."
Treatment for seizures is even higher.
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.