Posted by Viridis on June 19, 2003, at 22:59:38
In reply to Need some advice..feeling frustrated!, posted by Capri on June 19, 2003, at 19:32:26
If Klonopin works best for you, I'd go with that. Benzodiazepines aren't "addictive" for the vast majority of anxiety sufferers -- addiction means that you become obsessed with a substance, keep taking it despite harm, uncontrollably increase the dose, it disrupts your life, etc. (e.g., cocaine).
Klonopin, in particular, is well known for maintaining antianxiety effects at the same dose indefinitely -- my pdoc says he's had many panic and anxiety patients on low levels of daily K for years with no need to increase the dose, and that's certainly been the case for me.
Benzos do cause dependency, which means that if you discontinue them, you have to taper off gradually, as you would with various blood pressure and anti-heartburn meds, etc. Recent studies (endorsed by the World Health Organization) have demonstrated that some of the most common antidepressants are the hardest drugs to discontinue, with Effexor and Paxil at the top of the list -- much harder to get off than Klonopin and other benzos. So, if you're concerned about dependency, antidepressants like Paxil present the greatest risk by far. And, benzos have a much longer track record of safety than any of the newer antidepressants.
So, in terms of safety, effectiveness, and dependency issues, I consider Klonopin much preferable to most antidepressants, if it's appropriate for you. It's a shame that so many doctors buy into the propaganda put out by the drug companies etc. re: the supposed risks of benzos (which, not coincidentally, are almost all off-patent, so are available as inexpensive generics).
poster:Viridis
thread:235246
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030619/msgs/235290.html