Klonopin (clonazepam) & Effexor Xr Anyone On Snri & Benzo? Panic Disorder Depression Anxietysocialanxiety Help?
November 3rd, 2009 by adminThanks for stopping by,
this could be kinda long but it’s important and I put detail into it..
Just incase you don’t already know?:
EFFEXOR XR is a prescription antidepressant and is indicated for major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and social anxiety disorder.
CLONAZEPAM/KLONOPIN is a prescription used for :
Controlling certain types of seizures in the treatment of epilepsy and for the treatment of panic disorders. It may also be used for other conditions as determined by your doctor.
Clonazepam is a benzodiazepine. It works by increasing the activity of a naturally occurring chemical in the brain.
(I’m a {}male
{}20 years old)
- Diagnosis:
{}Panic Disorder
{}Clinical Depression
{}Social Anxiety
- Medicines I’ve tried
{}Lexapro
{}Celexa
{}Paxil
{}Abilify
{}Buspar
{}Ativan
(And of coarse {}Effexor XR Clonazepam (Klonopin)
- Went to Doctor, then community mental health clinic,
now I’m at a much better place then the mental health clinic
Seeing a psychologist and waiting to see the psychiatrist
Until I can see the psychiatrist at the new place I’m going
I went to a different doctor (who accepts Medicaid)
and explained this all to him
- I was on effexor xr 75 mg for about a year+
(which my doc told me is an ineffective dose,
the therapeutic dosage for Effexor XR is at least 150-300)
-And also on Klonopin (Clonazepam) .5 mg 2x daily
- I was on both (Klonopin& effexor xr) for about a year up until December of 2008
-I no longer had insurance and decided to try going without any medicine for awhile, and there wasn’t a way to “taper off” without insurance, so i stopped both cold turkey
(please no comments on how that’s not good.. i know)
However I made it through getting off of these medications and it wasn’t as bad as everyone said.
- Since going off of these medications my panic/anxiety & depression has peaked
- So like I said I went to a doctor until i can see the psychiatrist
-He suggested I try going back on effexor only at a therapeutic dose
Below is the treatment plan for now read and discuss after:
Effexor XR 37.5 mg
(they want to ease you up so they give you 30 pills at 37.5 mg each and say:
take 1 for 5 days
(37.5 mg/day)
take 2 for 5 days
(75 mg/day)
then take 3 for 5 days
(112.5 mg/ day)
Then I can get a script filled for 150 mg Effexor XR
The 150 mg should start to help the panic, social anxiety, gad, & my depression
In combination with the Effexor XR; I will start back on *Clonazepam* 1 mg 2 times per day
*(PS: I know clonazepam is a controversial drug and may
have withdrawl effects but for the benefits of functioning
way outweigh the risks. So no comments on that please)*
The 1 mg Clonazepam twice a day should help control my anxiety and panic
In addition to those medications I’m already seeing a psychologist,
I believe talk-therapy alone isn’t the cure but I’m hoping medicine and
the talk therapy will be beneficial together.
In your answers you can leave advice comments etc,
just no lectures or anything like that thanks.
Also If you do take these medications (esp. together)
leave you experience/progress
Any advice on what time you take
Effexor XR (currently taking it in the morning)
Clonazepam/Klonopin (currently taking not specific times, but twice a day)
answers(/anything you have to add) I receive is appreciated
Click here to try the life-changing program "Panic Away".
November 3rd, 2009
wow, i’m speechless ……… go and get yourself fully assessed by a naturopath or other wholistic healer ……. get them to do testing for food allergies/intolerances and chemical sensitivities …….what you ingest and absorb through your skin and breath can have a vast impact on the way you think, the way you feel and your overall health and vitality ……. seriously, you can live a pain free drug free life if only you know precisely what chemicals and foods are upsetting your system …. it could be something as simple as lactose intolerance or an intolerance to processed sugar or wheat …… disorders from which people suffer due to intolerances to food or chemicals in their diets can cover almost the whole spectrum of physical and mental illnesses ….. an extraordinary concept but mind blowingly true……. do yourself a favor and go and get allergy tested.
in the meantime, try to eat as much whole fresh foods that you prepare yourself that includes a wide range of leafy and green vegies, some low sugar fresh fruits like watermelon, cantalope, pears and strawberries, some lean meats and fishes, brown rice, organic nuts and seeds like almonds, brazil nuts and sunflower seeds and lots of fresh filtered water ………. ditch the sodas, pop and soft drinks, consumption of foods containing processed sugar and junky and take away highly processed foods …… ** and that includes alcohol** ……. not immediately of course or the detox would be too nasty …… slowly …… and feed your body from God’s table and wean yourself off the highly processed, packagedsludge that has little to no nutritional value anyway.
i was diagnosed with “Bipolar/Schizophrenia” 7 years ago and was pumped to the eyeballs with a selection of very heavy antipsychotis and large amounts of Effexor daily (600mg) ……. by taking all their nasty meds i ended up an insomniac, with achy bones, nasty sweating, headaches and migraines, terrible mood swings, permanent constipation, constant sweating ……… until i got reassessed by a naturopath and was diagnosed coeliac, lactose intolerant, intolerant to soy and processed sugar and a plethora of other preservatives and other nasty chemicals they use to preserve our foods……… it wasn’t a mental illness at all with me …. it was all food and chemical intolerances … i detoxed off the meds and cleaned up my diet and finally got me the bounce and vitality back that i’m entitled to ……. that we’re all entitled to.
EDIT:
sorry, i should clarify that i’m speechless at the fact that physicians are so ready to simply continue to prescribe such meds on a never ending basis when they clearly aren’t resolving the problem …… perhaps your health issues need to be resolved from the source mate, not bandaided with toxicmeds.
peace baby
♥
November 3rd, 2009
Get as much resource as you can maybe is one option,however it could be quite time consuming,here http://www.healthinsurance-onlinetips.in… is one resource i have had good experience.
November 3rd, 2009
Sorry, I wrote the answer above and then realized I had to change my account and settings, etc. if you want to msg me, it’s underdamped_2
November 4th, 2009
Ah, the nay-sayers. Medications have saved and improved so many lives. They not be the right thing for everyone, but I am a firm believer in modern science…
Ok, I have depression, bipolar, panic, and add, here’s the list:
AM
300 mg wellbutrin xl
300 mg lamictal
200 mg provigil
60 mg strattera
PM
rozerem
1 mg klonopin
37.5 mg paxil
as needed: klonopin, niravam (super fast-acting xanax)
I sleep. I’m healthy, my nails, hair, and skin are beautiful. I take dance and martial arts and am in the best shape of my life. I’m taking classes (18 units) to get ready for a master’s degree program, I study like 8 hrs/day, and I get good grades. etc.
I agree with you 100% – the benefits of *functioning* far outweigh the risks/side effects. 50 happy years are better than 80 miserable ones. yes, I take a ton of medication. it not only saved my life, it took it from hell to good. Find a good psychiatrist and be patient. It took a year to get my little cocktail just right, it sucked, but I’m finally mostly normal.
Yep, you gotta have therapy too. You need coping skills to deal with that occasional…symptom. I have found that I can handle life better than most healthy people, every-day problems are so small compared to things I have experienced.
Even if I could, I wouldn’t “heal” myself. I have become very compassionate and non-judgemental. I believe I am better for it and so are those around me. (FYI I’m an athiest)
Hope they figure it out for you. And I hope it doesn’t take too long. Chat with me anytime, especially if the nay-sayers or people who think it’s all in your head get to you.
November 4th, 2009
I used to have severe panic/anxiety attacks and depression I took clonopin and paxil also went to talk therapy which helped I also had severe agorophobia and had to go to day treatment which is kind of like a babysitting service for people with mental illness. But after going there for about 2 weeks I noticed that there were so many people who had wasted their life by going to this place. It seemed that they bought into the whole “you’re ill and you can’t decide things for yourself type stuff)
I quit going there and I decided I would make myself go out and do things even if it was just baby step type things then push to do more and more. After all this is the type thing that no one else is going to make go away you have to reach deep within yourself to find the strength to over come it.
I eventually weaned myself off meds and started driving etc also got a job and have had no problems (well major one) since If I feel anxious I ask myself what is causing it and then work to calm down. Breathing, meditation etc works wonders.
I also have the attitude now of I don’t care what people think That used to be one of my fears I was afraid if I had a panic attack in public I might start acting irrational and be embarrassed.
I could write volumes on panic/anxiety disorder but the space here is limited if you want genuine help then feel free to write me using this screen name @ yahoo.com
And no I’m not going to tell you to find Jesus etc That’s a choice people have to make on their own and when I was at my worst I would get so annoyed at people who tried to tell me I was being punished for so un named sin etc.
I just offer you a friendly compasionate person to talk to about this.
November 4th, 2009
I take 300mg Effexor XR, 2mg of klonopin and 30mg of Abilify. I’m diagnosed with ‘major depression with psychotic features’, GAD and PTSD. I’m 31, been suffering with this crap since I was 12 but was not diagnosed until I was 28.
I’m doing better on this drug combo than on any other meds I’ve been on. I haven’t been on many (Lexapro, Zoloft and Ativan). The Zoloft did nothing at all for me and I took 200mg. The Lexapro was a bit better but nowhere near good enough. Ativan was a nightmare. It helped with my anxiety and panic disorder but I got addicted to it within weeks. I was popping the pills all day long. I was switched to klonopin and have had no problems with addiction and it works GREAT for my anxiety. I haven’t had a panic attack in over 2 years.
Honestly, I take my meds when I remember to take them. I used to be really good about taking the Effexor at night but lately I fall asleep before I remember to take it. I end up taking it at all hours of the day and it doesn’t seem to effect me in any negative way. I originally chose to take it at night in case it made me sleepy. I’m supposed to take 1mg of klonopin in the morning and 1mg at night. I take the Abilify with the Effexor whenever I remember to take them.
Klonopin is a long lasting benzo. It was explained to me that it works slowly but stays in your system for a long time. It’s best to take it on a schedule and space it out. When I was on Ativan, it was ‘take as needed’. It’s a fast acting benzo. It hits you hard and wears off the same way. It would wear off suddenly and I’d be hit with anxiety and need another pill asap. That’s how I got addicted.
As for progress, I had a psychotic breakdown in July 2006. I got on Lexapro, Ativan and Abilify right away. As I said above, the Lexapro and Ativan didn’t work out for me. I got on the Effexor and klonopin around Feb 2007 and it’s done nothing but good things for me…mostly. My sex drive has been a LOT lower since I’ve been on these meds but I can handle that better than wanting to kill myself. One of the meds gives me night sweats. It’s not every night and I’m unsure which med is causing it. I’m leaning toward the Abilify though.
As for taking these meds together, I haven’t had anything negative happen because of the combo. I was feeling a bit lethargic recently and I complained of constant fatigue. My psych put me on Wellbutrin as well but I had a terrible acne breakout after about a week. I can’t live with that so I ditched the Wellbutrin. Unfortunately, it REALLY helped to fight the fatigue.