Posted by med_empowered on February 2, 2005, at 4:02:03
In reply to Preventing tolerance to benzodiazepines, posted by SadDoggie on February 2, 2005, at 3:47:03
Hi! I've never heard of anything that's been proven to prevent tolerance to benzos. Sorry. That said, you may be able to have your shrink work with you on this w/o coprescribing something to prevent tolerance. What benzos have you used, and which have been most successful? If one is taking them for a while, every day, the general consensus seems to be that long-acting benzos such as Klonopin are best used, whenever possible. Short-acting benzos such as Ativan and the original xansx (there's an xr version of that now) are now used mostly for sleep or on a relatively infrequent, as-needed (PRN) basis. That said, many perfectly capable psychiatrists still prescribe xanax or ativan for regular use b/c they work quite well, and some people have problems with Klonopin (depression with long-term use is a big one). If you drink regularly, take other sedatives, or even use sedating antihistamines on a regular basis, try taking your benzo(s) without these additional agents; if you potentiate your meds with additional sedatives, future doses will seem less effective/powerful. Prescription benzo "boosters" might help as well; propranolol and other beta-blockers, for instance, are believed to boost the effect of the benzodiazepens. Add-ons such as gabitril, neurontin, and sometimes, BuSpar (usually NOT coprescribed with benzos, but I've known a few people on the combo) can help with anxiety, too, and prevent a dosage increase. Good luck!
poster:med_empowered
thread:451569
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050202/msgs/451574.html