I have a few for anxiety, but I’m afraid to take them. They’re the little wafers, a low dosage, but I’ve heard they are horrendously addictive and you have to be on them for life…I was thinking I could cut one in half and take that only for extreme anxiety once or twice a week. Would that be OK or would they still alter my brain. Thank you,
It’s a benzodiazepine, similar to Valium (Klonopin’s genereic name is clonazepam, Valium’s is diazepam). It’s used mostly to prevent seizures, but it’s also a muscle relaxant and an anti-anxiety med.
It also, like Valium, has a very long half-life (which means it stays in your system long after you stop taking it).
I hope you can appreciate the irony there… 
Klonopin is an analog to Valium. The Wikipedia article is really good.
As a preface to my comments, I will mention that I currently take psychoactive medication, including a medication called Depakote for anxiety and a medication called Effexor for depression. I know many other people who do.
I won’t give you medical advice here. That’s a rule of this forum, and also a smart thing for anyone to do, doctor or not.
Instead, I will advise you based on personal experience that you should never take prescription medication except under a doctor’s supervision. All medications have their risks. Prescription medications have risks and side-effects that make them unsuitable to be taken without the knowledge of a doctor.
This isn’t a matter of opinion as much as it is a matter of regulation. Prescription medications are regulated by several different authorities. Pharmaceutical companies design the medications to be administered within those regulations. I think that, in many respects, using prescription meds without supervision is not analogous to speeding in a car; it’s analogous to welding wings onto a car and using it as an airplane.
Moreover, I think that you should take psychoactive drugs for various mental/emotional conditions only under the supervision of a psychiatrist, and only under one that has substantial experience with medication, and only after lots of discussion. General physicians have very little knowledge of psychoactive drugs, they overprescribe them, and they can’t provide the additional support that is necessary.
Bad psychiatrists are even worse. I’ve had psychiatrists play around with prescribing medication as part of my so-called “therapy”. I’ve had others who didn’t tell me about side-effects because they were afraid I woudn’t take the meds!
In general, psychoactive medications adjust the balance of chemicals in your body, particularly in your brain, so that your body expects them to be there at a certain level. This means that if you stop taking them, your brain may start functioning in different ways.
You could interpret this as being “addictive” effects. The problem with the word “addictive” is that in our culture it connotes evil, lack of control, lack of choice. I have never encountered or heard of a psychoactive medication that did this. People do switch between medications or stop taking them. It is not a matter of simply stopping; some need to be tapered over a few days, others may take longer. Compare that to the addictiveness of cigarettes…
Another way of looking at this is to compare it to the situation with medications for “regular” medical conditions. People with Type I diabetes are “addicted” to insulin, much more so than I am to Depakote. I am “addicted” to flecainide, an anti-arrythmic, and simvastatin, an anti-cholesterol, in the sense that my health would be profoundly affected if I didn’t take them. In comparison, if I stopped taking Depakote my physical health would remain unchanged but my moods might suffer.
As a note, most things that we add to our bodies have effects that we’re not looking for. Beans and coffee give us gas, alcohol gives us a hangover, aspirin gives us an acid stomach. Doctors say that a medication without side-effects has no effect at all. Keep this in mind as you decide whether or not to follow a doctor’s advice regarding medication.
In summary:
[ul]
[li]Take medication with the supervision of a knowledgeable and trustworthy MD.[/li][li]Always take the medication until you talk to your doctor about the way you should stop.[/li][li]The effects of a medication may require you to taper off of them.[/li][li]On the other hand, I will offer myself as fairly objective proof that medications for mental wellness do work.[/li][li]If you think that you have mental health issues, contact a psychiatrist or psychologist. Don’t just diagnose yourself.[/li][li]Accommodating anxiety, depression, bipolar disease, and so forth is not just a matter of taking medication.[/li][li]Make your own decisions. If you want to be on medications, that’s OK. If you don’t, that’s OK too. Just avoid letting someone else live your life for you.[/li][li]Take Care Of Yourself.[/li][/ul]
I take clonazepam for restless leg syndrome 1mg every night.
From time to time I forget to take them; a few times I’ve forgotten them when I went away on a trip. The next day I had a headache (and of course the restless legs came back) but other than that I was fine.
YMMV.
Ten years on Klonopin here. Pretty addictive. If you take them long term, you can’t just stop overnight. But I did wean off of them for six months last year. Mild withdrawal symptoms as I tapered down, no big deal.
Then, grandma died, and I took a couple to get on the plane to go to her funeral. I needed them again. I would put them in the same category as cigarettes as far as addictive qualities.
If your life is to the point where you can’t function properly, then, for God’s sake, take the meds you need in the right dose. If you can still function, be cautious with them…really no different than any other drug…
I am on it now I take 4 .5mg a day. I do not see them as addictive but they help me out a lot
Experiences vary.
I’ll amend my remarks. “Don’t stop taking them” might mislead someone into thinking that if you miss one dosage you’ll drop dead. That would be an exaggeration. It’s better to say that one should not go completely off them without advice and monitoring from a doctor. Having said that, I will say that I once skipped my dosage of Xanax for an entire day, and I do not recommend that as a joyful way to spend a day!:eek:
One time I let my prescription run out for three days, which was right when the withdrawal kicked in. For me, it consisted of a massive amount of anxiety, the kind that makes you feel constantly confused and mentally exhausted. And restless. When I got the prescription refilled, I must admit I felt the kind of relief a junkie must feel. I didn’t pop one right away, but I felt better just knowing I had them.
I take 2 mg at night and 1 mg in the morning.
The nightly dose kinda makes me sleepy, but that’s the only side-effect I’ve experienced (and I’m particularly sensitive to medication). Even though I’m taking it for tics, I’ve noticed that the drug has made me even more laid-back then usual. I used to have a hard time organizing my thoughts when called to speak off the cuff, but now I don’t have that problem as much. So I like that. Also, in addition to the tics (which have lessened significantly), I used to have weird sensations in my hands (akathesia), and I think the drug has helped that. But I still have repetitive thoughts (imagine the strangest, out-in-left-field musical earworms, except with phrases and sentences). I still have strange body movements that pop up out of nowhere. So it hasn’t cure all the crazy.
But honestly, out of all the drugs I’ve been on for the past two years, Klonopin has been the best one as far as side-effects go. Yes, I realize that it is very addictive, and I hate being tied to a chemical. But I can rattle off a number of other drugs (ones you may or may not be prescribed in the future) that are far scarier than Klonopin. For one thing, it will not make you suicidal. It has not made me gain or lose weight (both important to me) and it hasn’t sapped away any of my body’s energy, which I’m extremely grateful for. I say, IF YOU’VE BEEN PRESCRIBED IT, try it.
I would never recommend that anyone take Klonopin for just an anxiety problem. There are much safer alternatives. Get yourself to a doc, and not one that overprescribes benzodiazepines. They are nowhere near the first line treatment for anxiety.
I will point out that my current status of being homebound is because of being taken off of Klonopin way too fast. And, before I realized this, I was already past the window where I could reinstate. I’m a year out, and I’m still facing problems. Problems I didn’t have before I took the Klonopin–so it isn’t rebound anxiety. Problems that have, in the past, made me want to commit suicide. If I weren’t a Christian, and believed that suicide would not have brought relief, I’d be dead right now.
(I also considered homicide against my doctor. I still wouldn’t trust myself being in the same room with him.)
Klonopin is not a drug to be taken lightly.
I take them “one per day as needed” - .5 mg. Basically its for when my heart or BP get a little wonky; takes the “worry” out of how many NitroQuik tabs I downed. In roughly 12 years I have used maybe 180 pills. My GP originally gave me the Rx for them to replace the xanax my previous doctor preferred. According to him they were less addictive and I would tend to agree. After a few days on xanax I would notice a little withdrawal effect from stopping. With the clonazepam I’ve gone a week on them and then stopped for several months and never noticed a thing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by salinqmind
I have a few for anxiety, but I’m afraid to take them.
So your doctor gave you a prescription with a dosage and you’re afraid to take them?
Maybe you’re supposed to take them all in one day with a bottle of vodka? Vodka is best because the hangover isn’t as bad. Assuming you live.
Everything I’ve read says this is a drug to be very careful with, and should probably be a last resort rather than a first line.
Benzos are extremely addictive and withdrawal is extremely unpleasant. While it seems like plenty of people take it and end up fine, there is no shortage of people who feel like they have lost large chunks of their lives to benzo withdrawal. I have friends who state that up to a year after medically-supervised Xanax withdrawal they still do not feel right.
One of the most worrisome thing is that the biggest symptom of benzo withdrawal is…crushing anxiety. A course on this drug could lead the very thing you set out to avoid. Depression is also a possible long-term symptom.
A cautionary word of warning: all benzos are highly addictive and you can actually die from withdrawls unless you taper down gradually under a physician’s care. They are extremely effective for anxiety, but you also can build a tolerance to them quickly. They are great for when you need them but try to be very judicious when taking them.
Benzo have great potential for addiction but when used correctly won’t be an issue. People with panic disorders have a great sensitivity to changes in their body. Panic disorders really need some kind of antidepressent, such as Paxil or another anti anxiety agent like Buspar.
It’s not like you’re gonna take one pill and say “God I love this, I can’t live without it.” Even heroin which is probably the most easily addicted drug takes longer than a few days. Yes you always read people get addicted to heroin after one use, that isn’t the actual case in real life.
An anti-anxiety agent is a TOOL a crutch. If you broke your foot, you’d have a crutch wouldn’t you? For instance, I had a horrible, horrible fear of flying. I can’t tell you how much I missed out on because of it. Finally I took Paxil and was able to over my fear. Today I can fly, it’s not my favourite thing, but I can do it AND I don’t need Paxil or any other pill to fly. I used Paxil as a TOOL to get on the plane and get over my inital discomfort, till I learned to cope on my own.
Panic attacks and anxiety are beatable. A good book to read is called “Stop Running Scared.” It’s excellent and it’s unfortunately out of print, but you can get used copies on eBay and Amazon.
I have had it prescribed for anxity. I took it for a couple of years while working of the cause of my anxities. There was a weaning off period of a month or so but it was mangable. I understand your fear, I went through it initially but for me, the drug was a lifesaver.
You’re not going to get addicted from taking a few of them sporadically. I was prescribed clonazepam (the generic Klonopin) and I’ve taken them whenever I anticipated being in anxiety-causing situations, but I definitely didn’t get addicted to them. Of course I’m not saying you won’t/can’t, but I don’t see it happening if you truly do have just a few and only take them in situations where you really need them…
I have a doc and the first thing he gave me was klonopin along with celexa, i take klonopin 4 times a day
Well, thanks for your comments. I wasn’t looking for medical advice, just personal opinions. I wasn’t planning on taking them on a steady basis, just one or two a week during an upcoming ordeal I’m facing. I realize they’re a powerful medication, won’t cure anything. I was thinking of using them as a crutch for a very short time. But everything I’ve read points to a lifelong addiction and ghastly withdrawal - and this from something they hand out for restless leg syndrome. … Maybe I’ll try to find “Stop Running Scared”. That, along with deep breathing, hours of exercise, and a positive can-do attitude should be a great alternative.