Currently taking 2 mgs of Xanax a day. One at 8:00 A.M. & one at 5:00 P.M. Nervous, because I have job interviews coming up this week around 1:00 P.M. for the next three days. Only 33 & never had a panic attack until March of this year. Was drinking too much at the time & have since quit. Wish I never got on this stuff, because of the withdrawals in between doses. Back in March when I had my 1st panic attack my b/p was sky high & the doc. put me on b/p meds. I hate taking all of this stuff. Xanax is the only thing that seems to work.
Have any of you lost weight when taking xanax, or stressful times? Any advice would help.
Actually I did lose weight while I took Xanax.
I only took 1/2 MG a day split in half.
1/4 about 8 AM and the other 1/4 about 5 or 6.
I never had any problem feeling withdrawl between doses...maybe because I took less?
But to be honest I don't know if it was the Xanax or the anxiety itself that caused me to lose weight.
Maybe if you switched to a slower benzo you'd avoid the withdrawals between doses. Tranxene is a good compromise between Xanax and Klonopin.
Never heard of that one. Is it similiar to Xanax? My doc. is leery to give me more then .5 MG's, but 2 MG's is what I have been taking for the past 5 months. It has gotten past that point. I went to a psychiatrist who refused to prescribe any benzos... really good idea... has she ever heard of the withdrawal effects. At a crossroads as to what to do... Should I see another doctor? I hate going to them in the 1st place....
to blue island, I think your xanax dose is too high, also a dose only lasts about 2 hours, xanax is best taken only as needed, carry a few tablets with you and disolve 1 under the tongue when panic or anxiety starts
a small dose of xanax can be taken as insurance before the job interviews
agree that a longer acting benzo may suit you better, a psych who wont prescribe any benzos has probably been brainwashed into 'antidepressants only for anxiety' and isnt worth seeing, IMO
beta blockers are the best PB meds for you as they are the only ones that calm your body
hope you are also learning relaxation, books on overcoming agoraphobia and panic attacks have much useful info
What should I do at this point? It is dangerous to go from 2 MG's of Xanax to .5 overnight. Every experience that I have had lately with a doc. or psychiatrist has been a nightmare. Does Klonopin work the same? Is there anything as strong that lasts much longer? Don't want to be on this junk forever. Have lost 7-8 pounds in the past 6 months. Don't want to keep stressing.
I'm not a Doctor, but IMO going from 2MG to 1/2MG overnight is way to big of a cut.
Going to 1 1/2MG or even 1 3/4 might be a much better idea.
If you want to start weaning the best thing you could do is tell your Doctor and get his/her help.
I weaned off of Xanax and I didn't go that fast, or make that big of a cut and I was only taking 1/2MG a day and at that I was splitting it and only taking 1/4 at a time about 9/10 hours apart.
The cuts I made wouldn't work for you (at least I don't think they would) because I was on a much smaller dose than you.
There is also something called "The Ashton Manual" that you can look at online.
I believe from what another poster...Jennita...has said that there is a chart in this manual that describes how much of a cut you should do.
Jennita, there is a chart isn't there, or am I wrong??
I became addicted to xanax taking it exactly as prescribed. I also felt withdrawal symptoms between doses. Ironically - one of the symptoms of xanax addiction and withdrawal is severe anxiety. When I first tried to cut back, I did it too abruptly and had a seizure. Ultimately I did succeed at weaning myself off the xanax but did it very slowly - over a 2 month period of time. I had withdrawal symptoms the whole time. It was very difficult.
I'm not a Doctor, but IMO going from 2MG to 1/2MG overnight is way to big of a cut.
Going to 1 1/2MG or even 1 3/4 might be a much better idea.
If you want to start weaning the best thing you could do is tell your Doctor and get his/her help.
I weaned off of Xanax and I didn't go that fast, or make that big of a cut and I was only taking 1/2MG a day and at that I was splitting it and only taking 1/4 at a time about 9/10 hours apart.
The cuts I made wouldn't work for you (at least I don't think they would) because I was on a much smaller dose than you.
There is also something called "The Ashton Manual" that you can look at online.
I believe from what another poster...Jennita...has said that there is a chart in this manual that describes how much of a cut you should do.
Jennita, there is a chart isn't there, or am I wrong??
Yes, there is a chart in the Ashton Manual but it is for people taking 4MG per day and invovles switching over to Valium, then weaning off the Valium.
What should I do at this point? It is dangerous to go from 2 MG's of Xanax to .5 overnight. Every experience that I have had lately with a doc. or psychiatrist has been a nightmare. Does Klonopin work the same? Is there anything as strong that lasts much longer? Don't want to be on this junk forever. Have lost 7-8 pounds in the past 6 months. Don't want to keep stressing.
I'm not a doctor either, but I found out that if you start experiencing weird symptoms when you start tapering it means that you should slow down. The best way to go is a 10% cut every week or two.
The valium switch might be helpful, but it requires adjusting your dose and getting used to a new drug with new side effects... I think it's better to taper off your current drug directly. That's what I did. I tapered off directly from Xanax and it took me a long time: five moths total. I had mild headaches and insomnia, very tolerable. If I tried to taper faster these symptoms got worse, that's why it took me so long. My doctor allowed me to take an occassional tranxene to help with the insomnia while I was tapering from Xanax.
Currently taking 2 mgs of Xanax a day. One at 8:00 A.M. & one at 5:00 P.M. Nervous, because I have job interviews coming up this week around 1:00 P.M. for the next three days. Only 33 & never had a panic attack until March of this year. Was drinking too much at the time & have since quit. Wish I never got on this stuff, because of the withdrawals in between doses. Back in March when I had my 1st panic attack my b/p was sky high & the doc. put me on b/p meds. I hate taking all of this stuff. Xanax is the only thing that seems to work.
Have any of you lost weight when taking xanax, or stressful times? Any advice would help.
You may be having problems because you have high blood pressure only during attacks like I do. I always also have high blood pressure when I go to the doctor. This is called white coat syndrome and having high blood pressure during an attack is common. I had to prove that I did not have high blood pressure by buying a wrist tester and checking it 3 times a day for a couple weeks. The other thing that could be causing you problems is if you are taking Toporol or Metatoporol, they can interact with the xanax and cause you a lot of side effects. I was on this at the time and after I proved that I did not have high blood pressure and was taken off the Bp medications, a lot of problems were gone. I was also put on Lotensin at one time and it was lowering my blood pressure to low, causing me problems. When I went to the Doctor, of course my blood pressure was high due to the "White coat syndrome". You might want to see if you really have high blood pressure or just normal rise due to panic or White coat. This can really make a difference if it is the problem. Good luck my Friend
My B/P has averaged 118/70 over the last 6 months. I didn't know about the correlation between Toprol & Xanax. Doctor never mentioned anything about that. At 33, I can play 3 sets of tennis & feel great, but when it comes time to go the doctor I do get anxiety & my b/p goes higher then ever before. Do the longer acting benzos like Klonopin work as well as xanax. How long does a usual dose last? I'm going to the hypertension specialist in 2 weeks just to show him that my #'s have been great for the past 6 months (I have kept track). I know that all of these docs are anti-benzo, but it has saved me in this interviewing process. I actually felt normal yesterday. What a concept.
My B/P has averaged 118/70 over the last 6 months. I didn't know about the correlation between Toprol & Xanax. Doctor never mentioned anything about that. At 33, I can play 3 sets of tennis & feel great, but when it comes time to go the doctor I do get anxiety & my b/p goes higher then ever before. Do the longer acting benzos like Klonopin work as well as xanax. How long does a usual dose last? I'm going to the hypertension specialist in 2 weeks just to show him that my #'s have been great for the past 6 months (I have kept track). I know that all of these docs are anti-benzo, but it has saved me in this interviewing process. I actually felt normal yesterday. What a concept.
Try the longer acting benzos if you can, because you can take them less frequently, such as once or twice a day. Xanax only lasts about 5-7 hours and it is a pain in the you know what to watch the clock if your condition is that you take them regularly during the day. This can cause anxiety, if in a meeting or something and it is time and you can't excuse yourself. I know, I did this for about 5 years and it is the pitts sneaking around taking medications that co-workers just seem to have to find out what you are taking if they happen to see you doing so. Sometimes, as in my case, Xanax is the only thing that works, so I am stuck. I can say though that after I had been taking xanax for approximately 4 years and my body became adjusted to it, I went all 8 levels on a trendmill test. Did not seem to effect my physical abilities. It does also sound like you do not have high blood pressure and that could be causing all kinds of problems. Good move going to a hypertension specialist and if your numbers show that you do not have high blood pressure except under attack, I personally would rather have a little high blood pressure to find out then dropping blood pressure by being on a medication that you may not need. If you have not been on xanax for a very long time, I would try Klonopin since it is closer to xanax then most benzos. This would be better for you for long term use. If xanax is the only thing that works, you must get the attacks under control or you are just wasting time and your condition will get worse. Just remember that going off the medication to fast, is always more dangerous then the medication itself. I listened to a Doctor that did not know this and now I am sol. Be smart and careful with all medications and do things with your Doctors help but don't be afraid to learn yourself and question them. If they can't take the time to answer your questions, or get upset that you question them, then they are just on a control path with you and you don't need that kind of Doctor. Luck to you
What happens is that I take 1 MG at 8:00 A.M. & 1 MG at 5:00 P.M. If I have a meeting or something around 11- 4, I feel extremely nervous from the withdrawals. I hate that. My doc. is the worst. When I went the hypertension specialist my b/p was high as well, but it is all white-coat. I'm just at a crossroads of sorts, because I am going on job interviews, while dealing with that stress along with the stress of making $'s. I have an appointment with the hypertension specialist in 2 weeks. My regular doc. is terrible imo. The hypertension specialist wanted to run all of these blood tests on my kidney function, but it didn't make much sense to me at all. When I am away from that environment I don't feel anxiety. Same goes for the interview process. What side-effect does a combo of Toprol & xanax cause???
What happens is that I take 1 MG at 8:00 A.M. & 1 MG at 5:00 P.M. If I have a meeting or something around 11- 4, I feel extremely nervous from the withdrawals. I hate that. My doc. is the worst. When I went the hypertension specialist my b/p was high as well, but it is all white-coat. I'm just at a crossroads of sorts, because I am going on job interviews, while dealing with that stress along with the stress of making $'s. I have an appointment with the hypertension specialist in 2 weeks. My regular doc. is terrible imo. The hypertension specialist wanted to run all of these blood tests on my kidney function, but it didn't make much sense to me at all. When I am away from that environment I don't feel anxiety. Same goes for the interview process. What side-effect does a combo of Toprol & xanax cause???
When I was taking Toprol, I just felt anxiety and could not rest at all. I believe it was causing me to have hypertension symptoms. When I found that I did not have high blood pressure and went off of it I felt totally relieved and my other medication began to start doing its job. This is just my situiation, and I don't know that you don't have high blood pressure. This is something that you have to prove to yourself and the Doctors. I just know that when I was on Toprol or Lotensin for high blood pressure, it made me sicker. Just from taking the two different drugs, I feel that Toprol is more of a hypertension medication and Lotensin is more of just a med to lower high blood pressure. If I had high blood pressure I would be on Lotensin, not Toprol. By the way, Metatoprol is the same thing as Toprol if that is suggested. Just my expreinces, be careful not to make hasty decisions. We all want to be well and it is easy to assume things to quickly without proper tests or proving it first. Good luck
Maybe if you switched to a slower benzo you'd avoid the withdrawals between doses. Tranxene is a good compromise between Xanax and Klonopin.
I'm new to this, but I would like someone to tell me what Klonopin is and also why people are saying there is a reaction between Metropolol and xanax. I take both and am using the xanax for sleeping. I have chronic insomnia and would like to quit using the xanax for sleeping. If I don't use it, I lay awake - sometimes all night long. Any suggestions? I take between .25 and .50 per night.
I'm becoming very concerned about the dosages my doc is allowing me to take of my meds....I went through a really rough time this past winter and spring with depression...I had been on anti-depression drugs before, but they seemed to not be doing the trick anymore....at that time my doc had me wean off of the celexa that I had been taking....well I weaned off as directed and each week got worse and worse...I literally felt like I was going crazy...doc started me on a low dosage of Wellbutrin SR...wasn't doing the trick, so we doubled the dosage, still not doing the trick so over several weeks we got me up to 400mgs of the Wellbutrin....I still had major depression problems, so doc added 1.5mgs of xanax a day....after a couple weeks of this I still was having MAJOR problems, I was so desperate I called my doctor at his home, thank goodness he didn't mind...I've known this guy a long time...but then he doubled the dosage, so then I was up to 3mgs a day...finially after a couple of weeks I think the Wellbutrin finially started working and I was feeling much better....I tried to go back to the 1.5mgs of xanax a day and for awhile was doing ok, but then I started having minor panic attacks, but the worse thing was I was having a hard time catching my breath...I always felt short of breath...the xanax seemed to help with that, so then I went back to the 3mgs a day...it went ok for awhile, but the shortness of breath kept getting worse and worse...I called my doctor today and now he prescribed 4mgs of xanax a day...he said this is the highest he'll allow me to go, and to give him a call in 6 months to see how things are going...well I just don't know, before it's time for my next dosage I still get so short of breath and feel nervous...I don't know what else to do, and frankly I don't think my doctor knows what else to do either....does anyone have any good advice...I don't know how much longer I can do this...it's very frustrating....I've done the counseling thing, with 3 different people, and didn't like any of them, I've tried just trying to relax but it doesn't help....what can I do? Please someone help me!!!
Do not depend solely on drugs. The mind is unique and capable of handling anxiety and stress, if you know how to use it. benzos are addictive and dangerous. There are alternatives out there. For instance try hypnosis, it really works!! Do you plan to live the rest of your life depending on drugs to keep you sane?
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Re: Xanax 
Re: Xanax 
Re: Xanax 
