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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 14 of 14. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by LisaLynn on October 2, 2014, at 9:23:54
Hi,
For the second time in 18 years I am being faced with not taking the brand name Klonopin and I am absolutely freaking out. If anyone has ANY suggestions or can answer my questions please help!
Was put on Xanax about 24ish years ago for severe, life disrupting panic. When I developed a tolerance to it, my then-doctor switched me to Klonopin. Everything was fine and I take a very small dose (0.5/day).
Once, I was given the generic and after 3 days was in withdrawal so I called my then-doc and asked him what could be happening and he said to only take the brand name because several of his patients said the generic didn't work for them.
Fast forward many, many years to today...there is a Klonopin shortage. 2 months ago when I realized this I cleaned out the stock that one local CVS had and hoped that by the time I needed the refill it would be back in production. Not so!
I have enough name brand to last until next Friday. I decided to be proactive yesterday and start calling my doctor, local pharmacies, and the manufacturer.
The CVS pharmacies in my city are completely out. Can't find it anywhere. They suggested calling other pharmacies like Walgreens because they said Walgreens would have a different supplier. Didn't work.
My doctor's office will barely return my phone calls and isn't taking the situation seriously even though I told them in grave detail the situation. However, they can wrote me 100 scripts, if I can't FIND the name brand it does me no good.
The manufacturer suggested going "outside my area" to other pharmacies. I called some cities in neighboring states (I'm in the desert so there isn't anything else to call) and I couldn't find it.
So my question is what do I do now? I am absolutely terrified and can't even do my job effectively because I'm obsessing over having to take a generic that doesn't work.
What is TEVA clonzapam? Some say it works for them. ANY help or info is greatly appreciated!!
Posted by herpills on October 2, 2014, at 9:44:25
In reply to Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by LisaLynn on October 2, 2014, at 9:25:09
I'm sorry you're going through this. I know some people say generics are the same but I'm not so sure. My suggestion is- try different generics until you find one that works. There are many different companies making generic Klonopin. Also, you could always try increasing the dose. Maybe the generic isn't as strong and you will need 0.75mg of certain generic vs the 0.5mg of brand Klonopin.
I used to take Klonopin a few years ago, I wish I could remember the generic brand I took because I do feel that it worked. Most people seem to do well on stuff made by Teva. Good luck.
Posted by Fred23 on October 2, 2014, at 16:35:53
In reply to Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by LisaLynn on October 2, 2014, at 9:25:09
I've seen the advice to call Genentech directly, from 5:30am-4pm (PST) at 800-821-8590.
Posted by ed_uk2010 on October 3, 2014, at 7:32:51
In reply to Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by LisaLynn on October 2, 2014, at 9:25:09
>What is TEVA clonzapam? Some say it works for them. ANY help or info is greatly appreciated!!
I think you should ask your pharmacist if you can fill part of your prescription with one generic, and if it doesn't suit you, you can try a different generic for the remaining quantity. If the pharmacy seems unhelpful try somewhere else.
There should be various manufacturer's products available so I'm sure you will find something that suits. A bad experience with one product in the past doesn't mean you'll have the same experience again.
TEVA is the largest manufacturer of unbranded medicines in the world! Trying TEVA seems like a reasonable choice. The company has a good reputation.
Hope you are OK anyway. I expect things will turn out better than you expect. The trauma of switching brands after a previous bad experience is obviously causing you a lot of anxiety. With your doctor's permission, it may be helpful to increase your dose slightly for a few days when you try the new brand to help relieve your stress. You should then be able to return to your previous dose after a week or so.
Hope this helps.
Posted by joe f on October 3, 2014, at 9:52:14
In reply to Re: Being affected by Klonopin shortage! » LisaLynn, posted by ed_uk2010 on October 3, 2014, at 7:32:51
wow why is klonopin so popular among the benzos
Posted by LisaLynn on October 3, 2014, at 10:49:23
In reply to Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by LisaLynn on October 2, 2014, at 9:25:09
I am posting updates hoping my experience might help someone else. Thank you all for the replies so far.
I had such severe anxiety last night at work that I thought I was going to have to leave at one point. Felt like I had ants crawling in my spine, barely holding back tears,nausea, just off the charts anxiety. I've actually been this way for about a week, and that's even on the name brand Klonopin.
So I got my generic and this morning I decided to take the generic, which is Teva 0.5. I stuck to my usual dosage and cut the pill in half, saving the other half for later in the day. I also want to note that this morning I felt the same as last night, woke up sick to my stomach, awful nightmares, high anxiety, crying spells that I couldn't seem to stop.
At 7 am I took the Teva. By 7:50 all my symptoms were gone. I don't "feel" the generic, I just don't feel the anxiety, the crying, the nausea. I feel like what I perceive others must experience as "normal".
I am going to save my last few brand name Klonopins and try to remain on the generic Teva and see what happens. The worst that happens (hopefully) is either I do better on the generic or I don't and have to use the last few brand name pills I have.
Maybe I was silly to get so worked up over having to switch scripts, but I did have a bad experience before and I've read bad things about some of the generics. Let's hope this all turns out well and I was just being over anxious (as usual).
Posted by gadchik on October 3, 2014, at 13:32:52
In reply to Re: Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by LisaLynn on October 3, 2014, at 10:49:23
Hi, I switched to generic Teva clonazepam after a shortage of Roche Klonopin. I never noticed any difference and I stayed on Teva until I decided to c/o to valium to taper off of benzos. I chose Teva b/c the pill seemed more like the brand pill, hard and not crumbly like the other generics, and I looked at the inactive ingrediants of both and they seemed the most similar. And, I saved alot of money on generic. Good luck to you!
Posted by Fred23 on October 3, 2014, at 14:09:42
In reply to Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by LisaLynn on October 2, 2014, at 9:25:09
Did the manufacturer say whether it is in production or not, or have a time table?
(I've had generic non-psych meds cause psych problems, so would not want to try generic psych meds.)
One poster in one of these threads says the raw material for Klonopin is available, so maybe a compounding pharmacy could make a custom batch?
Posted by LisaLynn on October 3, 2014, at 14:53:46
In reply to Re: Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by Fred23 on October 3, 2014, at 14:09:42
> Did the manufacturer say whether it is in production or not, or have a time table?
>
> (I've had generic non-psych meds cause psych problems, so would not want to try generic psych meds.)
>
> One poster in one of these threads says the raw material for Klonopin is available, so maybe a compounding pharmacy could make a custom batch?
>
I was told by the manufacturer that they hoped to start manufacturing it again "sometime in October" but he couldn't give me an exact date.I will keep in mind the info about the compounding pharmacy in case the generic turns out not to work so well.
Posted by LisaLynn on October 3, 2014, at 14:57:19
In reply to Re: Being affected by Klonopin shortage! » LisaLynn, posted by gadchik on October 3, 2014, at 13:32:52
> Hi, I switched to generic Teva clonazepam after a shortage of Roche Klonopin. I never noticed any difference and I stayed on Teva until I decided to c/o to valium to taper off of benzos. I chose Teva b/c the pill seemed more like the brand pill, hard and not crumbly like the other generics, and I looked at the inactive ingrediants of both and they seemed the most similar. And, I saved alot of money on generic. Good luck to you!
I noticed the pill was so hard I couldn't break it in half like I did the brand name Klonopin. I had to get a knife to break it half.
I am hoping the Teva works due to cost also. I spend almost a hundred dollars a month on brand name and the Teva was 1.37 cents at CVS. I sure could use that extra money!
Posted by gadchik on October 3, 2014, at 15:29:35
In reply to Re: Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by LisaLynn on October 3, 2014, at 14:57:19
Yes, I noticed that I couldnt break it in half either! But I figured it wasnt crumbly so it'd go slower into my system. Just gave me extra confidence that the pill was substantial! I did very well on the switch over. No issues and I had tried another generic, cant remember the name, and I didnt like it, so I figured this Teva is a close match.
Posted by LisaLynn on October 3, 2014, at 15:40:51
In reply to Re: Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by gadchik on October 3, 2014, at 15:29:35
> Yes, I noticed that I couldnt break it in half either! But I figured it wasnt crumbly so it'd go slower into my system. Just gave me extra confidence that the pill was substantial! I did very well on the switch over. No issues and I had tried another generic, cant remember the name, and I didnt like it, so I figured this Teva is a close match.
Thanks so much for your posts gadchik! Hearing from someone else who has made the switch to this particular generic really helps me feel like I can do this too!
Posted by ed_uk2010 on October 5, 2014, at 6:42:19
In reply to Re: Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by Fred23 on October 3, 2014, at 14:09:42
>One poster in one of these threads says the raw material for Klonopin is available, so maybe a compounding pharmacy could make a custom batch?
True. There must be some raw material around (clonazepam) given that a variety of manufacturers are still selling generic clonazepam tabs. There are so many reasons for a shortage of the final product though.
The issue with compounding pharmacies is that few are likely to have the quality and variety of equipment and analytic techniques that even the smaller generics manufacturers possess. In addition, none would have any bioavailability data for their specially manufactured products. In contrast, all generics companies possess such data and on the basis of a dossier submitted to the FDA have been granted a license to market their product. They also receive inspections from the FDA. I do not know how the quality of manufacturing at small compounding pharmacies is controlled but it will, almost inevitably, be less consistent than at pharmaceutical companies.
The outcome could be that a compounded product would be far more expensive, less consistent and something of an unknown quantity compared with an established generic. If one generic didn't suit, trying a generic from a different manufacturer would be the first step. Most common drugs are sold by a few different suppliers at least, so there are usually some options available.
My opinion of compounding is that it's an essential pharmacy service.... but only for cases where no licensed alternative exists, or for some clear reason none of the licensed versions are suitable. A good example is that for some meds, all licensed versions contain the same dye, and for someone with a proven allergy to that substance, a compounded med might be needed. Fortunately, even in this situation it's still often possible to find a suitable alternative drug which doesn't contain the offending substance - usually a drug with a very similar mechanism of action. This can then avoid the need for compounding.
Another use for compounding is to make liquid medicines for those with swallowing difficulties, when no approved medicine is available in liquid form.
Posted by ed_uk2010 on October 5, 2014, at 7:58:57
In reply to Re: Being affected by Klonopin shortage!, posted by LisaLynn on October 3, 2014, at 15:40:51
Staying well..... and getting what you want at the pharmacy. Here goes.
>....really helps me feel like I can do this too!
I have every confidence you can do it. At first, you were understandably very afraid due to your previous bad experience. Once you switched to TEVA and the panic subsided, you soon noticed that not only did you feel normal, you were calm. From now on, there's no reason to anticipate that you'll have any problems with TEVA. It's a very widely used brand and effective medication.
Naturally, some days will always be better than others but it's important not to attribute everything to your meds unless you've actually missed a dose or something.
Although most other generics would likely work similarly well, I think you should stick to TEVA for now because any further switching will inevitably cause you more anxiety - irrespective of the quality of the meds you are dispensed.
In the UK, pharmacies can order all of TEVA's product range 'by name', assuming that they are in stock. This also applies to a couple of the other major generics manufacturers.
Generics from less well-known manufacturers are usually sold to pharmacies as non-continuity lines via the wholesaler's computer system. They are simply listed by the drug name/active ingredient, formulation, strength and pack size. In this case, any licensed generic could arrive.
I don't know for sure, but I assume the ordering situation works in a fairly similar manner in the US. As a result, the TEVA version should remain fairly easy to obtain.
Of course, large chain pharmacies are told which manufacturer of brand/generic to dispense for all Rxes where a specific brand is not requested by the prescriber - different companies form different contracts. Some pharmacies might use TEVA as their default product for clonazepam scripts, others will not.
If you find that your pharmacy doesn't want to supply TEVA clonazepam 'because it's not the one we carry', find out whether they are willing and able to make an exception for you....unless of course the TEVA version isn't available from their specific supplier. Some large companies exert a lot of control over the ability of staff to order specific brands, others do not. At independently-owned pharmacies, it's very much at the discretion of the owner/manager.
So.... if they order it in for you as an exception, great, if not, try a different pharmacy. It's best to speak to the pharmacist personally in private and give at least one clear reason why a specific brand/generic is needed. Do this before your prescription is dispensed. Don't wait until the end and then complain 'I don't want this'. That rarely goes down well, especially during busy periods. Similarly, customers who demand things aggressively will not attract much sympathy from staff!
Make your needs known from the outset. Customers with no more to say than 'I don't like the white ones' are not as likely to get what they want as those who can provide a sensible and coherent reason! Instead, they just create an impression of awkwardness. Pleasant, firm, logic is normally the key, allowing you to get what you want without even having to ask your doctor to do a new prescription specifying the manufacturers name and 'this manufacturer only' etc. If you use the same pharmacy all the time they can record your requirements in your electronic pharmacy record.
There are times when certain generics are out of stock, just like brands, but there's normally a pharmacy able to help unless they physically can't obtain any stock at all. One advantage of TEVA is that they are generally a fairly reliable supplier with respect to having relatively few long-term out of stock situations.
Getting insurance providers to pay for certain name-brand medicines (when generics are available) may be an entirely different ball game. The price may be so high that there's no chance of getting it until it's clear who is going to be paying!
Hope you continue to stay well.
This is the end of the thread.
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