Hi Maven. I used to take 0.5 mg Clonazepam daily for anxiety. Now I just take it as needed. I'm like you. I'm always hesitant about taking drugs that might be addictive. My doc prescribed Dilaudid for my pinched nerve pain this summer but once I read that it's 5x more addictive than morphine, I chose not to take it. I suffered through the pain instead. I have taken Ativan, though.

I had to do some travelling this summer -- quite a bit of flying -- and, as a recovering agoraphobe with a problem with panic attacks, I was extremely apprehensive. My doctor gave me 20 tablets of Ativan to use for the flights. It helped me a lot. It calmed me down within about 30 minutes of taking it and the effects wore off in about 5 hours. I did a lot of flying over the summer, and eventually I got to the point where I didn't need to take Ativan. I just felt better knowing it was in my purse just in case. It was like a little security blanket. I haven't taken it since. It worked very well for me and I used it as it was prescribed.

I didn't find it tempting to take it regularly or to take more than prescribed because it makes me feel quite out of it. That was perfect for when I wanted to be slightly zoned out in a situation I was phobic about -- being in a crowded airport and on a plane -- but I wouldn't want to feel that way in my daily life. I also found that I had some short-term amnesia with it. There are a couple of layovers in airports in various cities that I have no recollection of at all.

So, it worked well for me. Just watch your behaviour with it. If you find yourself taking it more often (or in larger doses) than your doctor prescribed, talk to your doc about it. If you can use it just on an occasional "as needed" basis, you will probably be fine, IMO. I just found it comforting knowing that I had it just in case -- even though I rarely took it. I still have a few tabs in a bottle in my kitchen. They've been there since September and I haven't been tempted to take one. So, I didn't find it addictive.

Good luck.