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Re: V, Re: Klonopin vs. Xanax XR - Info wanted » McPac

Posted by Viridis on September 20, 2003, at 16:58:04

In reply to V, Re: Klonopin vs. Xanax XR - Info wanted, posted by McPac on September 19, 2003, at 13:17:55

Hi McPac,

Just recently, I have tried taking an extra 0.5 -1 mg of Klonopin very occasionally later in the day (I take my usual dose in the morning). It does seem to help if I've been under unusually high stress. I guess what I like about Xanax is the rapidity of relief, the fact that it's different from Klonopin, and that I've only needed to use it sporadically.

I worried quite a bit about tolerance/dependency when I first started benzos 2 1/2 years ago, yet tolerance (at least that's what I think it is) didn't materialize until recently with the Xanax. I'm certainly not dependent on it, given that I may go as much as two weeks between doses.

I expect that I am dependent on Klonopin, but have never had to increase the daily dose. So, taking more, even occasionally, just makes me a bit uneasy. This probably is unfounded; my pdoc told me initially that he considered the dose very low and offered to raise it if necessary, so I'm sure he'd prescribe a few extra pills per month. I don't want to do anything that could lead to a regular need for more, though, if I can avoid it, and having an alternative anti-anxiety med for infrequent use has worked well until now.

One thing we did discuss was that perhaps my perception of "tolerance" to Xanax has more to do with feeling the onset. With Klonopin, I don't even notice it, whereas with Xanax I could always feel it taking effect, even at very low doses. He asked if Xanax caused initial euphoria, and I said (quite honestly) no, just a rapid, detectable sense of anxiety relief. We discussed the possibility that this in itself might magnify my perception of its effectiveness -- in other words, maybe I've gotten accustomed to it enough that the onset isn't so noticeable, which sets me up to think it isn't working, and in turn causes me to stress over that.

Who knows? At this point, I'm not having serious anxiety problems, the Klonopin still works well, and it's not a big deal for me to limit use of Xanax to very rare occasions. I am a little puzzled by the fairly sudden tolerance (or whatever it is) to Xanax, though, so want to be cautious with it.


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poster:Viridis thread:261296
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030917/msgs/261998.html