[naejannej]

I seem to have an intolerance for Ativan. It makes me soooo sleepy. I'm cutting 0.5mg pills into quarters and still experiencing mild to moderate sedation. Is this normal? Does it go away with time? My pdoc seems insistent that this is the drug for my anxiety, 3x a day. When should I throw in the towel?

[jesusplay]

it's suppose to sedate you.....

[naejannej]

Originally Posted by jesusplay

it's suppose to sedate you.....

yeah but i cant even stay awake. i can handle a little sedation, but being knocked out isn't so great. i need to function. else i'd rather just attempt to function with the anxiety.

[Travelinglady]

Yes, it is an anti-anxiety drug that basically calms the person down, so it can be sedating. Have you told your doctor it is just too sedating for you? My goodness, there are other drugs out there such as Xanax and Klonopin.

[naejannej]

Originally Posted by PAYNE1

Yes, it is an anti-anxiety drug that basically calms the person down, so it can be sedating. Have you told your doctor it is just too sedating for you? My goodness, there are other drugs out there such as Xanax and Klonopin.

ive tried klonopin and it didnt really work, have never tried xanax though. my next appt is in a few weeks and i think ill push harder this time. thanks for the input.

[Smarter]

Why not Diazepam ? It works better than Klonopin for me..

[sunrise]

Originally Posted by naejannej

My pdoc seems insistent that this is the drug for my anxiety

Why is he/she pushing this? It's a benzodiazepine, and they can be addictive. Many pdocs try to discourage their use. Have you tried non-benzo anxiety medications and they didn't work? I tried Xanax before and couldn't take even a 1/4 pill of the lowest dose. Just made me zone out and be too sleepy. If a drug doesn't work, especially one with drawbacks such as the benzos, don't push it. Just move on to something else, and maybe it's a blessing in disguise.

[sewerrats]

if you suffer acute anxiety that's what benzos are for, I take 4mg Ativan a day and im not sleepy. Your anxiety is at a low level if your getting knocked out by a small dose. Xanax is twice the strength of ativan so forget that,

Bezos are like alcohol making more GABA neurotransmitter that slows the thoughts down so you think with less consequence (anxiety) but are addictive as hell.

Antidepressants will probably be better because for anxiety and if you have depression, they make you feel things less desensitizing the 5ht1a serotonin receptor which makes you calmer and have less excitement in the body (anxiety) but also up regulates some other receptor which makes you feel energized and has a very slight amphetamine effect so you wont be tired (which can cause anxiety but if that happens wait it out or switch to another med).

People are different...benzos are different. Ativan worked okay for me but somewhere along the line of docs one thought clonazepam was maybe slightly less addictive or something and changed. It works great for me. Xanax had absolutely no effect on me at all. May as well have taken an M&M.
I'm thinking along the same lines as Sewerrats... your anxiety level is not in line with your med dosage.

[sewerrats]

Originally Posted by sunrise

Why is he/she pushing this? It's a benzodiazepine, and they can be addictive. Many pdocs try to discourage their use. Have you tried non-benzo anxiety medications and they didn't work? I tried Xanax before and couldn't take even a 1/4 pill of the lowest dose. Just made me zone out and be too sleepy. If a drug doesn't work, especially one with drawbacks such as the benzos, don't push it. Just move on to something else, and maybe it's a blessing in disguise.

I have to agree with you that BENZO,S are or can be addictive , bbbbbut when i had the 12mg a day stopped dead and withdrew worse than death itself. When my GP over ruled the nut ball shrink and gave me back 4MG it saved my life , the rest of the with drawl was murder but i some how made it through with my 4 MG Ativan, To this day years later i still take the life saving 4mg in 2 doses of 2mg , they still seem to work or maybe they prevent a relapse i don't no. but 1 six month shrink appointment another shrink suggested i withdrew again . The look on his face when my wife stood eye to eye with him and said YOU NEAR ON KILLED HIM ONCE , DONT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT. wow what a gal

[yogasavesme]

...wow, this scares the holycrap out of me. I had an intensive 9 day withdrawal from Ativan in a 28-day drug rehab program & I literally thought I was going to die before it was over. This was years ago but I still remember the first bottle saying "take as needed" ...

lmao my bottle said "take twice a day as needed". I thought that meant that i had to take 2 every day.

Pdoc probably thinks I'm an addict..

[IndieVisible]

Ativan was weak for me at .5, I barely noticed any thing. Didn't make me dizzy and did not address my axiety. Seems only Klonopin, Valium or Xanax works for me, but none of them make me dizzy, they just relieve my anxiety by relaxing me a bit. If I took over 1mg it would just make me tired. You probably would benefit from .25mg Xanax, it's much milder and you can split that in half too.

Just another 2 cents to add. Yes, a lot of people develop a dependency or addiction when using benzos. They aren't poison or the devil though. I'm still taking the same dosage I was prescribed more than 15 years ago, and some days less than that. I think there is more to this than some reefer madness kind of thing.

[IndieVisible]

I agree George. I am a addicting and substance abusing kind of guy, but benzos never hit me that way. No euphoria means no abuse for me Benzos are like aspirins to me. Instead of headaches, I take them to relieve my anxiety.

[sewerrats]

Originally Posted by IndieVisible

Ativan was weak for me at .5, I barely noticed any thing. Didn't make me dizzy and did not address my axiety. Seems only Klonopin, Valium or Xanax works for me, but none of them make me dizzy, they just relieve my anxiety by relaxing me a bit. If I took over 1mg it would just make me tired. You probably would benefit from .25mg Xanax, it's much milder and you can split that in half too.

.5 of ATIVAN is weak , about .2 of Xanax i don't think I have ever took Ativan lower than 1 mg , some people would sleep for a day on 2mg of Ativan thats 1 mg of Xanax , I could if wanted take 4mg Ativan and function fine , my body is programed . take it away though and I would implode

[sewerrats]

Originally Posted by George H.

Just another 2 cents to add. Yes, a lot of people develop a dependency or addiction when using benzos. They aren't poison or the devil though. I'm still taking the same dosage I was prescribed more than 15 years ago, and some days less than that. I think there is more to this than some reefer madness kind of thing.

The problem started when thousands of people tried to sue Ativan and there gps for making them addicted, these people were shovelling them down with no thought by the company and the docs . I SHUDDER to think what some must have been taking. They lost the court case but ever since then benzos have been a no go for many docs fearing law suits/ There no worse than Effexor and some other ADS if the help take them or tomorrow may never come,

[sewerrats]

Originally Posted by yogasavesme

...wow, this scares the holycrap out of me. I had an intensive 9 day withdrawal from Ativan in a 28-day drug rehab program & I literally thought I was going to die before it was over. This was years ago but I still remember the first bottle saying "take as needed" ...

I had to detox at home ,8mg of Ativan a day ,this after my gp gave me back 4mg a day or I would have been dead detoxing the full 12mg with no back up.My wife used to ring crisis and hospital teams has i trashed my room I was holded up in for 6 months. ALL they said was there nothing anyone can do he took them he detoxs them .

Originally Posted by naejannej

I seem to have an intolerance for Ativan. It makes me soooo sleepy. I'm cutting 0.5mg pills into quarters and still experiencing mild to moderate sedation. Is this normal? Does it go away with time? My pdoc seems insistent that this is the drug for my anxiety, 3x a day. When should I throw in the towel?

What happens when you stop taking it? Is your anxiety that unbearable that you would rather be that drugged up? Everyone reacts to meds differently and perhaps this is the wrong one for you. It seems to be working too well so something not as strong might be more appropriate. Diazepam maybe?

I dont agree with pdocs giving out benzos like lollies. Thats why some patients get into trouble, they should not be so easy to get. I can understand needing it PRN, but long term daily use is just asking for addiction problems. I dont know anyone personally who is on daily benzos while not in hospital. There are many patients who will turn to benzos as a first treatment for anxiety when it should be the last. You'd be surprised how much good therapy and meditation will do for anxiety.

[sewerrats]

Originally Posted by Supanova

What happens when you stop taking it? Is your anxiety that unbearable that you would rather be that drugged up? Everyone reacts to meds differently and perhaps this is the wrong one for you. It seems to be working too well so something not as strong might be more appropriate. Diazepam maybe?

I dont agree with pdocs giving out benzos like lollies. Thats why some patients get into trouble, they should not be so easy to get. I can understand needing it PRN, but long term daily use is just asking for addiction problems. I dont know anyone personally who is on daily benzos while not in hospital. There are many patients who will turn to benzos as a first treatment for anxiety when it should be the last. You'd be surprised how much good therapy and meditation will do for anxiety.

I beg to differ, Benzos are the last not the first treatment for anxiety, CBT to many is worthless and meditation impossible under constant anxiety attack. Chronic anxiety sufferers take 100mg a day has a way of life, doctor in ENGLAND never give benzo longer than 3 weeks usually to help start up a new med. But chronic anxiety has to be tackled with anything that you can throw at it. In America its so easy to buy them on the internet in England we don't have that problem we need a script. I am the highest dose in my GP surgery 4mg a day out of thousands of patients

[Smarter]

That is the reason why most of us buy them in Internet...

[sewerrats]

Originally Posted by Smarter

That is the reason why most of us buy them in Internet...

Well then your heading for the fall of you life when you cannot stop and you run out of money , there not cheap if you get a habit, Its the worse withdrawal there is a can cost you your life, I have been there and still am at 4mg a day scripted , I learned my body to live on 4mg not 12mg, but I had to flat line to do it , and detox 8 month TOTAL WIPEOUT . have fun