Quote:
Originally Posted by Brain patch
Now that I am used to them, they only work for sleep. Do you think my doctor would say no way if I was to ask him if I could take one during the day for anxiety and one at night for the seizure/sleep disorder?
Thanks,
Brain
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Brain,
I take 2.5 mgs of Klonopin at night for anxiety related to sleep.
(Actually, for the past few years I have been taking 0.5 in the am and 2.0 at night).
What if after talking to the doc, you ended up taking half of your dose (or other fraction of it) at night and the other part in the morning.
One thought I have is that you can take something else for sleep and take the Klonopin during the day (unless that makes you too sleepy).
Here is what I found for meds that supposedly help with panic attacks:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/pan...ents-and-drugs
Quote:
Medications
Medications can help reduce symptoms associated with panic attacks as well as depression if that's an issue for you. Several types of medication have been shown to be effective in managing symptoms of panic attacks, including:
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Generally safe with a low risk of serious side effects, SSRI antidepressants are typically recommended as the first choice of medications to treat panic attacks. SSRIs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of panic disorder include fluoxetine (Prozac), paroxetine (Paxil, Pexeva) and sertraline (Zoloft).
Serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs). These medications are another class of antidepressants. The SNRI drug called venlafaxine hydrochloride (Effexor XR) is FDA approved for the treatment of panic disorder.
Benzodiazepines. These mild sedatives belong to a group of medicines called central nervous system depressants. Benzodiazepines may be habit-forming (causing mental or physical dependence), especially when taken for a long time or in high doses. Benzodiazepines approved by the FDA for the treatment of panic disorder include alprazolam (Niravam, Xanax), clonazepam (Klonopin) and lorazepam (Ativan). If you seek care in an emergency room for signs and symptoms of a panic attack, you may be given a benzodiazepine to help stop the attack.
If one medication doesn't work well for you, your doctor may recommend switching to another or combining certain medications to boost effectiveness. Keep in mind that it can take several weeks after first starting a medication to notice an improvement in symptoms. All medications have a risk of side effects, and some may not be recommended in certain situations, such as pregnancy. Talk with your doctor about the possible side effects and risks.
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Klonopin and the other benzos are hard to get off of. Once you are several weeks into them, you have signed up for them.
I took Xanax for a while and loved it because he did not make me sleepy but it was h3ll getting off it. I asked the pdoc to get me off the Xanax. The pdoc increased my Klonopin by what he considered to be the equivalence of the Xanax.
So I was taking 2.0 Klonopin and 1.0 Xanax. He changed the plan to 2.5 Klonopin and 0 .0 Xanax. Even so, I went through a fierce Xanax withdrawal.
M