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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 9 of 9. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Krazy Kat on November 15, 2001, at 21:12:36
Sar:
I have a few questions for you. When you take Klonopin (sp?), does it work immediately, or do you have to wait for it to build up in your system and take it on a regular basis?
Does it make you tired? Have you noticed any other side effects?
Thanks a lot!
- K.
P.S. Are you doing O.K.? You haven't been posting as much lately it seems. Hopefully your time is being taken up by the new boy and many interesting things. ;)
Posted by Greg A. on November 15, 2001, at 22:28:26
In reply to Sar - a question about Klonopin..., posted by Krazy Kat on November 15, 2001, at 21:12:36
> Hi K.
Sorry to butt in . . . I take Klonopin too. And have for a couple of years. (I posted earlier about my years on Xanax)
Anyways - I get the effect from Klonopin almost immediately after taking it. I take 1 mg every morning. When I was taking Xanax my doc tried me on Klonopin and i thought it didn't do anything so I went back. After a year of weaning myself off Xanax I went for a long time using ADs only. When anxiety started to get the better of me, my doc put me on Klonopin, and there I've been ever since. It lasts in your (my) system for almost exactly 24 hours, unlike xanax where I would get withdrawal symptoms after 2 or 3 hours. Much more acceptable. Bang on 24 hours i can feel some numbness and tingling in my hands and feet, along with increased anxiety. But i have stayed on the same 1 mg dose for 2 years and I think it really helps with anxiety. They are the best 2 years in a long time. (Finding a combo of ADs that work also helps)
I'm sorry. What was your question. I have blabbed on for so long I have forgotten . . . Oh yes - It does not make me tired. My pdoc would prefer I was off of it because she thinks it can contribute to long term depression. Who cares if you're feeling good!Greg
Posted by sar on November 16, 2001, at 0:58:02
In reply to Sar - a question about Klonopin..., posted by Krazy Kat on November 15, 2001, at 21:12:36
> Sar:
>
> I have a few questions for you. When you take Klonopin (sp?), does it work immediately, or do you have to wait for it to build up in your system and take it on a regular basis?i can't really tell. awhile after i take it, i become aware of it, but it creeps up on you. i take it on a regular basis, 1 mg twice daily, and today i felt so weird that i took a double dose at night...it's made me feel real chill, but slow and sad.
> Does it make you tired? Have you noticed any other side effects?
sometimes it does make me tired. if i take it and drink, ther is no waking me up. a jail warden once tried to wake me up and i wouldn't move--*completely* zonked. but mostly it just makes me feel a little bit cozy
>
> P.S. Are you doing O.K.? You haven't been posting as much lately it seems. Hopefully your time is being taken up by the new boy and many interesting things. ;)mmm...there hasn't been much to report. time taken up by community service, taking long walks, drinking beer out of soda cups in bookstores, and juggling 2 boys (shhhh!).
feeling guilty and blah. need to get out of this house and into my own place in austin. parents getting me down, siblings hate me. i'm too erratic and crazy for them. this is just a period of waiting. 30 more hours community service, then i'm outta the evil suburbs.
thanks for asking, sweet baby...
are you thinking about getting on klonopin? do you have lots of anxiety?
Posted by Krazy Kat on November 16, 2001, at 13:21:13
In reply to K. - you jumped in on my post so . . . , posted by Greg A. on November 15, 2001, at 22:28:26
Thank you, Greg + A, this is very helpful.
It must be better not to be drinking with the Klonopin, right? Still struggling here, although last week has been a little better.
Re: long term depression - that's a given even without the Klonopin, you know? ;)
- K.
Posted by Krazy Kat on November 16, 2001, at 13:28:26
In reply to Re: Sar - a question about Klonopin... » Krazy Kat , posted by sar on November 16, 2001, at 0:58:02
I shall call you Sarafina in this post.
Sarafina:Suburbs are evil. Amen. Hope you get to leave soon.
2 boys - now, now. ;) Wish I could still do that.
I am coming to admit that anxiety is a definite component of my "disorder". I think I'm just going to call myself crazy (ha, ha) from now on since I seem to have so many things going on.
I'm wondering if Klonopin might help with the desire to drink still. It's definitely anxiety-related. I don't drink until drunk, usually, just to get to a point where I don't feel like climbing out of my skin. And, yet again, I want to fool with my meds. Silly me.
That's my disorder - the "climbing of your skin" disease.
What do you think - has it helped just in general?
Thanks.
- Krazy... for you!
Posted by Greg A. on November 16, 2001, at 16:32:21
In reply to Re: K. - you jumped in on my post so . . . » Greg A., posted by Krazy Kat on November 16, 2001, at 13:21:13
K.
Here I am intruding again. If I may say so Ms. Kat, you sound just like me. Anxiety IS A BIG COMPONENT of my depression. At one time I thought I suffered only from chronic anxiety with no depression at all, but have since been proven wrong. By living with the anxiety and refusing to treat depression as the root cause for so long, I think I may have contributed to the long upward climb back to normal. (wherever the Hell that is)
I too rarely get drunk when I drink. I found it impossible to relax without some alcohol though, so I drank every night. Like other drugs you build up a tolerance so where 2 or 3 drinks may have once done the trick, it became 6 or 7 to get the same effect. I did not drink to get drunk. Just to find some sense of peace with myself that would allow me to feel okay being around people or even just sitting by myself. Crawling out of ones skin, as you put it. I recall being so tight that I could not put together coherent thoughts because anxiety dominated my brain so much. So I drank. And I take Klonopin. (or the generic clonazepam) The Klonopin, like any benzo, intensifies the effects of alcohol. I never found this to be much of a problem because I take my only dose early in the morning and I always drank in the evening. With Xanax though, I could be a very cheap drunk.
If you have time for a long post, and I don’t seem to be able to produce any other kind, I’ll tell you about my one up close and personal experience with ‘normal’. (and this is the Readers Digest condensed version too!) In 1983, after six years of ever mounting anxiety and a variety of physical ailments that all spelled hyperthryoid, I was finally treated for . . . hyperthryroidism. The hypthy. Greg was shaky, jittery, had a resting pulse of 110, could not gain any weight, sweated a lot, and generally felt really shitty 24/7. The post treatment Greg (after 2 or 3 weeks) noticed this wonderful sense of calm and well being beginning to take over. He could talk to people and feel totally relaxed doing it. For the first time in years he could make public presentations and almost enjoy it. He gained weight. His bench press went way up (important in jock men) He was a happy guy and not nearly so irritable with friends and family. And then one day the anxiety came back. I guess it happened over a period of time, but I still remember it as one day. But it was different. No heart palpitations or shakes or sweats. Just an unfounded sense of fear and unease, and a feeling of DEPRESSION! After a year my brilliant doc determined I was now hypothyr. Alas, I have never felt that ‘normal state’ since that time. But all is not lost cause I’m closer now than at any time since 1983.
I saw my pdoc today for the first time since April. I asked her about zyprexa for anxiety, instead of Klonopin so she gave me 2 weeks worth and said to try it and let her know the result. Ever tried it K?Briefly yours,
Greg
Posted by Krazy Kat on November 16, 2001, at 19:00:41
In reply to Back again, posted by Greg A. on November 16, 2001, at 16:32:21
Greg + A :),
You're just so very helpful when you post - I hope you know that.
I did try Zyprexa - it was one of my first meds and I wasn't prepared for it. I had a spasm in my right eye and generally felt awful on it, so I stopped it before it had any chance to help. My pdoc did Not think the spasm had anything to do with it - perhaps it was pure suggestion from my reading the side effects.
Many folk have praised it on this site. One thing that is universal - weight gain - I'm pretty willowy, and I gained 10 pounds in, like, 2 weeks on Zyprexa. Took me about 6 - 8 months to get it off.
Thanks for the long post - do you feel it is mostly a thyroid problem, then? My sister and I speak openly (now) about depression in my family (manic depression evades her, though it's clear my brother and I are in that "category"). She thinks depression stems only from other physical ailments - I think it can be both. Say, rheumatoid arthritis seems to "cause depression." I'll go with that. But I also think it is an illness of the brain. But, probably, they should all be treated differently. How much more complicated can it get? :)
I know that the tests we have done for blood levels and thyroid, etc., are not perfect. So I will be fascinated to see how this all plays out.
Free-floating anxiety (did you mention that?) has been with me all of my life. I was hesitant to focus on that too much when intially speaking with my pdoc, because I had been treated as a "nervous female type" in my twenties by some doctors and I didn't want that stigma again. Also, the manic depressive elements are very clear in my family.
Wow, I am Rambling, Rambling. Thanks for your post again.
- K.
Posted by Greg A. on November 17, 2001, at 11:09:29
In reply to Re: Back again » Greg A., posted by Krazy Kat on November 16, 2001, at 19:00:41
Thanks for the compliment K.
I think, for me, the thyroid problem, and the failure to treat it rapidly, may have been a major contributing factor in my depression. But I too have a history in the family, which no one will admit to, of depression. I can see it now looking back at the moody, sometimes reclusive relatives. I also set myself up by being the way i am. (or was) Too goal oriented. Wanting to achieve to please others. Raising my standards as I met my goals, so that ultimately failure was a sure thing. Ring any bells?
Greg
Posted by Gracie2 on November 26, 2001, at 21:44:36
In reply to Re: Back again, posted by Greg A. on November 17, 2001, at 11:09:29
After reading your posts, I just wanted to point out how important it is to get a good physical examination before you start on a regimen of mind-bending pschiatric drugs.For probably a year I thought I was dieing. I felt terrible all the time and had constant, debilitating headaches. I should have gone to the doctor, but I was convinced that I had a brain tumor and I didn't want to go through chemo and surgery and die anyway. When I couldn't stand it anymore - the headaches were so bad I could barely function - I forced myself to go to he doctor.
I didn't have a brain tumor; I had very high blood pressure. It took awhile to find the right meication to lower my BP to an acceptable level, but now it is normal. I feel fine and my headaches are gone. I couldn't believe I suffered so much and waited so long because of my paranoia.
Dumb, dumb, dumb.-Gracie
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