19th November 2007
Hello Monkey
Yes, I tapered from Xanax recently. Although at my peak of use I was at 2.5 MG per day I officially started tapering at 1.5 mg per day.... one .5 mg tab, morning, noon and bedtime. Is that how you are dosing now? I also was on an antidepressant, still am, happens to be Lexapro. Also, I was already on a blood pressure med... Toprol XL. I stayed on the blood pressure med and the antidepressant throughout the taper and remain on them.
Tapering from Xanax was really hard for me. I had tapered from an opiate, Oxycodone, and after a brief reprieve, started on the Xanax. I started the Xanax taper by reducing one quarter of a tablet, on one dose only. Anxirty was kind of high and I waited until I leveled off and felt stable befor making another cut to another dose. About ten to fouteen days between cuts. In retrospect, even at that pace, in hindsight I wish I had gone even slower. At some points, it took me almost 3 weeks to stabalize.
As I moved along, I started slowly, in fifteen minute increments at the most, moving the morning dose to a bit later as I could. Eventually, and I am talking months, the remaining morning dose melded into the afternoon dose. It was at this point that I started cutting by eights of a tablet. i would get the tab broken into quarters and then divide the crumbles. I would eyeball my portion and then lick my finger, pick up the crumbles, and ingest them. At the very, very end, I would skip two days, take it two days. Then maybe skip three days and take it one. Even with this very slow process, those cuts towards the end were so difficult sometimes.
No way would I ever discourage you from tapering off.. it is the ONLY way to come off a benzo. What I would encourage you to do is to NOT set a timelie for yourself. None. as long as syeady progress is made, you are winning. Take a year if needed. If I knew how hard it was going to be with the anxiety, I would have taken even longer. Hindsight, as I wrote. Smiles.
Do a lot of research on breathing exercises to combat the anxiety. Exercise.. walk, clean the house. Find things to distract your mind like playing computer games. Read and post here a lot for support. and everyday, remind yourself as the going gets tough that you are getting stronger and better everyday.
I do not post as often as I used to, but I am still around for you. Others will surely be also. This board truly helped me regain my sanity and my life.
All best wishes
reach
Yes, I tapered from Xanax recently. Although at my peak of use I was at 2.5 MG per day I officially started tapering at 1.5 mg per day.... one .5 mg tab, morning, noon and bedtime. Is that how you are dosing now? I also was on an antidepressant, still am, happens to be Lexapro. Also, I was already on a blood pressure med... Toprol XL. I stayed on the blood pressure med and the antidepressant throughout the taper and remain on them.
Tapering from Xanax was really hard for me. I had tapered from an opiate, Oxycodone, and after a brief reprieve, started on the Xanax. I started the Xanax taper by reducing one quarter of a tablet, on one dose only. Anxirty was kind of high and I waited until I leveled off and felt stable befor making another cut to another dose. About ten to fouteen days between cuts. In retrospect, even at that pace, in hindsight I wish I had gone even slower. At some points, it took me almost 3 weeks to stabalize.
As I moved along, I started slowly, in fifteen minute increments at the most, moving the morning dose to a bit later as I could. Eventually, and I am talking months, the remaining morning dose melded into the afternoon dose. It was at this point that I started cutting by eights of a tablet. i would get the tab broken into quarters and then divide the crumbles. I would eyeball my portion and then lick my finger, pick up the crumbles, and ingest them. At the very, very end, I would skip two days, take it two days. Then maybe skip three days and take it one. Even with this very slow process, those cuts towards the end were so difficult sometimes.
No way would I ever discourage you from tapering off.. it is the ONLY way to come off a benzo. What I would encourage you to do is to NOT set a timelie for yourself. None. as long as syeady progress is made, you are winning. Take a year if needed. If I knew how hard it was going to be with the anxiety, I would have taken even longer. Hindsight, as I wrote. Smiles.
Do a lot of research on breathing exercises to combat the anxiety. Exercise.. walk, clean the house. Find things to distract your mind like playing computer games. Read and post here a lot for support. and everyday, remind yourself as the going gets tough that you are getting stronger and better everyday.
I do not post as often as I used to, but I am still around for you. Others will surely be also. This board truly helped me regain my sanity and my life.
All best wishes
reach