Posted by Kon on October 24, 2004, at 16:19:37
In reply to coming off klonopin!, posted by carriejane on October 24, 2004, at 13:50:09
>Can anyone describe what happens when u start reducing on klonopin please?
When you stop or reduce klonopin you can get 1 of 4 things:
1. Nothing-you maintain anti-anxiety benefits of drug even though you stopped it
2. Relapse-go back to where you were before but no new symptoms (same anxiety level as before)
3. Rebound-same symptoms as before but a bit more pronounced (slightly greater anxiety than before) but no other new symptoms
4. Withdrawal-new symptoms never experienced before. With klonopin such new symptoms include: nausea, vomiting, irritability, tremor, incoordination, insomnia, restlessness, sweating, weakneess, heightened perception (esp of light and sound),etc. along with increased anxiety.
Note that true withdrawal with < 8 months of daily klonopin/benzo use at therapeutic doses is not very common (about 5%). With 2 months of use (your situation), it is probably even less likely that you are experiencing true withdrawal.There is, however, a bit of psychology involved. In studies many benzo users reported withdrawal symtoms after being told that their dosage was reduced even though, in fact, it was not. So if you read about, or are worried or expect withdrawal, you sometimes get those symptoms.
What is interesting is individuals do vary quite a bit in their responses. Some individuals (slightly over 50%) can go on benzos daily for years at therapeutic levels, stop cold-turkey and have no true withdrawal; others can go for a few months and still get some withdrawal.
Also, while this isn't always the case, withdrawal following benzos with relatively longer half-lives like valium, klonopin tend to have less severe withdrawal symptoms than shorter half-life benzos like xanax and ativan.
poster:Kon
thread:406651
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20041024/msgs/406702.html