I have chemical sensitivity and cant take anything to help. I just don't know what to do. Nobody understands or wants to help me. I feel like I am going to die. Please help me. Please
I have been on ativan for 22 years. It has destroyed my life. I am trying to taper. I am so scared?
Question posted by Jesuslovesme on 16 Jan 2012
Last updated on 17 June 2024 (2 weeks ago) by Ellissee
4 Answers
Ellissee
18 June 2024
This is much later and I hope you’re doing better now. Be careful who you listen to. The person who appears to be a doctor was still taking you down too fast. I was put on Xanax 4 x a day 32 years ago. The doctor should have put me on 3 x a day. So I’m weaning down very slowly- having a bit of trouble shifting from 4 X to 3 times but I am very very slowly weaning down. I bought a new pill splitter and am going to go down even more slowly. I was going down by 1/2 of a 0.25 every 2 months. Now I’ve reached the point that’s too fast. I take 0.375 in AM, 0.25 noon, 1.0 mg 6 PM, 1.25 mg about 11. However sometimes I fall asleep and miss a whole dose. The pharmacist told me to just go to next dose, because it won’t really cause serious problems until 3 days. My dr tried changing me to Ativan but it gave me psychotic dreams, so back to Xanax. He was me to take tiny doses of Prozac while I’m weaning down but I haven’t started it yet.
He said by the time I get to decent dose of Prozac I’ll be off Xanax. But Prozac keeps Xanax in the system longer so I’m aiming for the 3 x a day before starting it. I’ve heard Paxil is one of the most difficult to get off, so be careful. I’m planning on cutting the 0.25 dose in quarters and trying to see how that goes and get rid of the noon dose and shift after I’m on 3 x a day. I’m wondering how you’re doing. I once went too a doctor who shifted people slowly from Xanax to Klonopin and then off. I was allergic to Klonopin. Xanax is much shorter timing in system which makes it harder to get off. Netflix (or Amazon Prime) has a documentary called Xanax and a chemist was weaning himself off with minuscule amounts of liquid Xanax which they don’t sell in US. Watching it might help you. Also, biofeedback helps me to relax if you can find someone to do it. What I’m saying is don’t listen to people who are going by standard doses of how to wean down. Listen to your own body. And this is not the same thing as Addiction to alcohol so don’t call yourself an addict, please. It works for alcoholics because they can stop and go to AA or narcotics addicts and NA. I wish you luck. I hope you read this and please contact me if you want. I’d really like to know how you’re doing. Be gentle with yourself. Not sure how the guy acting like a doctor made it possible to communicate with you but I’ll try. My doctor says take as long as you need because the older you get the harder it is. Don’t go on an anti psychotic. By now perhaps you’re fine. If not, please let me know, if you want. I’m also a therapist and perhaps I can be of more help, but not pushing it. Back when we were put on these pills there wasn’t much else.
Inactive
27 Jan 2012
Hi, I've just read your post, and it brought me to tears. Withdrawls can feel like your own private hell, I know because I have been in that hell myself. I ended up in hospital, bp and hr through the roof, phycosis, hallucinations, etc... bad bad sh*t. What did my Dr do? He put me right back on benzo( ativan) and told me I will probabley be on it for the rest of my life. I hate that, but I've made peace with it. Its now just a part of my life, like food or water. Please don't suffer if you don't have to. Many people are on meds for the rest of their lives, and if it helps you, there is no shame in that. Please talk to a proffesional, life is worth living, I am praying for you sweety. A friend, Taylor
Jesuslovesme
29 Jan 2012
Thanks Taylor. I needed to hear that. Please keep talking to me. You are keeping my spirits up.
Inactive
29 Jan 2012
Are you still weaning of your Ativan? If so. How is that going? Still feeling ill? Or is it getting better for you. I applaud you for trying. I couldn't do it. And I don't think ill ever try it again.
babyr0423
16 Jan 2012
Dear Jesuslovesme,
Hello there. You need to listen to your name, because yes he does. Let me start by saying I started drinking at 14 and only quit a little over five years ago and I am in my early 40's. I know what the power of addiction is and what it feels like to think you are dying. To want to die in fact. It took me three trips to treatment centers, a few times in the hospital, and almost dying before I quit. I could tell you my long story, but I want you to know you are not alone. There are many of us that have been, or are where you are. We understand and want to help. You will hear from many others who will share with you too, and I want you to know I realize it isn't easy. In fact I told someone earlier..I had to get to the point in my life, due to my children, that I had to grag the bull (alcohol) by the horns and drag him down to the ground where he belonged. I had too. It was killing me. My friends and family didn't think I was going to live.
And I refused to allow my children to watch me drink like that anymore. If I can do it..anybody can do it. It doesnt matter if it is a pill or if it is alcohol, or heroin, or whatever. If something is making you this miserable and you feel like you are going to die, you need to do something about it. And you can hon. Doesn't mean it is going to be easy. It wasn't easy for me. It was hard as heck. The hardest thing I've ever had to do. Literally. I craved and needed that alcohol. Didn't matter that it was killing me. Didn't matter that it was upsetting to my children. Addiction is like that. We don't realize when we're in it what it is doing to us and to others. When you take a moment and stop..just stop and think to yourself... this is making me feel like I want to die. Do you really want to live the rest of your life like this? There is hope for you. All you have to do is have a tiny glimpse of it. Just a little. You can take teeny tiny baby steps if you have to. But you can do this Jesuslovesme. You don't have to feel this way anymore. There are support groups out there. AA, Na... ect. that have people going through the same things you are going through that can help you. Encourage you. Support you. I've been there. I got tremendous support and love and help. I've been to counseling too. I had to do it all, but it was so worth it. And the good Lord has blessed me with children that love me and have great relationships with me now. And after I quit drinking I was blessed with another child. And a husband that loves me. Please don't give up. Please don't feel ashamed. We've all walked down paths we're not proud of or happy about. And some of us are still there struggling to get it right. But with a little hope and allot of prayers you can do this too, and I will be praying for you hon. You hang in there. And I am here for you, as well as others, if you need us anytime. Ruth
Jesuslovesme
16 Jan 2012
This is day 3 of tapering and i can't stop crying. Everyone hates me. My children have disowned me. What's the point. I have lost everything. Please keep writing me. Please be there for me and pray that God is with me. My heart is burning. I feel sick.
babyr0423
16 Jan 2012
I will add you as my friend and I will keep praying for you. I have to go to the doctor so I will be gone for a while, but I will write to you when I get home..I promise. Ruth and hang in there. Please Please hang in there. Everything will be ok. Say a prayer. I will for you too. Ruth.
Jesuslovesme
17 Jan 2012
I am in tears. I won't go into the hospital. I will die first. Please pray for me please and keep writing to me. My body is tired. My eyes are burning. My head hurts. I can't breathe well. But the fact is I am still alive. The back of my head hurts bad. I can't take anything with magnesium Sterates. I have chemical sensitivity and I don't know what to do. Also i am getting bruises. Why do I hurt so much?
babyr0423
17 Jan 2012
Dear Jesuslovesme,
If you're doctor doesn't care then you need to find another doctor. I friended you. Friend me back so we can talk. I strongly think you need a good doctor that can handle things for you and get this under control for you. There are other meds out there that can help you. I have been where you are. You have to find a way to stay calm. Talk to me if you need to. Do you know how to friend me back? Just click on my little lamb and click on add friend. Then you can ask me a private question.
Thor283
16 Jan 2012
Hi Jesuslovesme,
How are you doing? It's been a while since you asked this question. Are you alright. You are correct you do need to do a very slow taper to get off Ativan that you have taken for 22 years. How much do you take? How long have you been tapering it, and how are you doing it? I mean how much have you reduced the dose by and how often? I need to know all that to help you.
Why do you say it has destroyed your life, in what ways? Have you told your Doc about this? Do you see a psychiatrist or a family Doc? I'm also wondering if your Doc is helping you to get off Ativan or are you trying to do it on your own?
I'm sorry I had to ask you so many questions, it's just that I can't help you without knowing a lot more things.
Jesuslovesme
16 Jan 2012
I Am doing it alone. I was taking 3 mg a day now i am down to 2 1/2 and i hurt and shake all over and cry all the time. It has destroyed my life and thinking. I am so goraphobic. I can't breathe or function. My doctor doesn't care. Nobody does. I just want to die. How can I make it through this? Please help me
Thor283
16 Jan 2012
Hi,
Let me try to help you. First of all, do you have the 1/2 mg Tabs, or will the Doc give you some of them? Since you have been on Ativan all these years, I think you reduced the dose by too much. I want you to reduce it by .25 mg. The problem is Ativan doesn't come as .25 mg. You can carefully cut a 1 mg tab into quarters, but it would better to cut a .5 mg tab into halves. I want you to do this either way you can. Once you cut the pills, I want you to go back up in the dose by .25 mg. Can you do this? Stay at the new dose 3 or 4 weeks. If you feel ok by then, I want you to reduce the dose by .25 mg again. Basically we're going to cut your dose once every 4 weeks. We can wait longer, but we will try that. We have to allow your brain time to start to make the natural brain chemicals Ativan takes the place of. Your brain can do it, but after 22 years it will take a long time. This whole detox will take a few years.
I know you don't want to hear that, but you didn't get physically dependent quickly and you can't break your body's need for Ativan quickly neither.
There is another technique I use when detoxing people off opiates. This should work with Ativan too. But I have a few more questions first. How do you take the Ativan? What I mean is do you take 1 mg 3 times a day, or .5 mg 6 times a day, or 2 mg once and 1 mg once? I mean when you were taking 3 mg a day, how were you taking it? I'm guessing it was 1 mg 3 times a day. First I want your body to adjust to 2.75 mg. Once that happens I want you to break up the doses. I want you to take .5 mg 4 times a day, and the .75 mg once a day. By breaking up the dose in this way we will be keeping a more even amount of the drug in your blood plasma. This will make it easier to make the next dose reduction. I also want you to get a small memo pad and keep track of what time you take the Ativan. Use a new page for each day. Write down the time and how much you take. This way we will know exactly what you're doing. OK?
I also want you to ask you doc for Clonidine. That's a Blood Pressure pill that also does some of the same things Ativan does. I don't know your general health, but if you can take this med I want you to start taking some. Your Doc must determine how much. I also want you to take Baclofen if you can. That will help with the shakes. Usually they prescribe 10 mg 3 times a day. Baclofen is a muscle relaxer that works well for the shakes associated with a detox. Take some kind of OTC pain reliever for pain. I like to use Bayer Aspirin. But you can use whatever is best for you. I just don't want you to take anything with an opiate in it.
Do you take any other meds, which ones? If you do.
I made you a friend. This allows you to come to my profile page and send me a pq or private question. I'd like you to come to my profile page and you make me a friend also. That way I can send you a pq. It may be better to do this with a pq. That is if you want my help. I have helped many people to do a detox before. I know how to do it. If you want my help I will be glad to help you. I always need your feedback on how you feel, as we go along. Every detox is different because all people are different. We have to make it so it can work for you. Okay?
Thor
Lolitta
29 June 2018
Hi I thought I’m the only one who take lorazepam I had bad withdrawal effect 3years ago so I’m back on it .i take 0.25 mg before bed time daily for almost 7 years.i’m not planing to quit this med or switch to another because im scared to do it .
Lorazepam is helping keep up with my life and raise my kids.first I felt guilty but later I said to my self I’m on treatment and lots of people are on medications for the rest of their lives so why not me?
I tell everyone mental issues are like physical issues it has to bectreated
Related topics
ativan, anxiety, panic disorder, multiple chemical sensitivity
Further information
- Ativan uses and safety info
- Ativan prescribing info & package insert (for Health Professionals)
- Side effects of Ativan (detailed)
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