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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 11 of 11. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by vicksnow on January 19, 2004, at 6:38:12
it took me forever to find a psychiastrist that would prescribe me lorazapam 1mg for the occasional severe anxiety or upset that i would have.. i now take welbutrin 400mg, prozac 60mg, risperdol 6mg, and buspar 30mg... i take one lorazapam 1mg once a day whenever my nerves feel shot.. is that too much lorazapam. should i not be taking one tablet a day? is that abusing it? my p doc is moving and i'm going to have to see a new psych.. is taking one lorazapam a day considered abuse and i'm wondering if this new dr. will prescribe it for me.. why do most dr. refuse to.... basically my question is: am i abusing lorazapam by taking one tablet a day??
Posted by linkadge on January 19, 2004, at 8:27:18
In reply to lorazapam 1mg one a day is that abusing it?, posted by vicksnow on January 19, 2004, at 6:38:12
Personally, I wouldn't think so.
Linkadge
Posted by john1022 on January 19, 2004, at 9:37:18
In reply to Re: lorazapam 1mg one a day is that abusing it?, posted by linkadge on January 19, 2004, at 8:27:18
I wouldn't worry to much about it. Some people have bad reactions to withdrawal, some have none at all. If you taper you should be fine when you decide to come off them. I was on 1 mg of Lorazapam a day for 6 months a few years ago and quit cold turkey and absolutely no withdrawal symptoms
Posted by mattdds on January 19, 2004, at 10:33:12
In reply to lorazapam 1mg one a day is that abusing it?, posted by vicksnow on January 19, 2004, at 6:38:12
1 mg of lorazepam is a very modest dose. As long as your dose is not escalating wildly, you are by *no* means abusing it.
Lorazepam is an anti-anxiety drug, and you have anxiety. Therefore, you are taking it for the indicated purpose.
There are many people these days that are uneducated about anxiety and believe drugs like lorazepam are inherently bad. Believe me, after lots of research, as well as personal experience, these drugs are a godsend for panic attacks and anxiety.
I take 1.5-2.0 mg daily of clonazapam - a similar compound for panic disorder and generalized anxiety. My life would be a wreck without this excellent drug. My dose has stayed the same for over 2 years and I am feeling great!
The caveat is that when you do decide to go off these drugs you must do so slowly. This is really not unlike other drugs, like antidepressants. With long term benzodiazepine use it is likely that your body will become adjusted to the effects and you will just need to taper off slowly.
Other than that, these drugs are extremely effective and have very few side effects. I personally have *no* side effects from clonazepam. Just find a good dose of it and stay there...this is not abuse, but the correct way of taking benzodiazepines.
Best,
Matt
Posted by Alexander on January 19, 2004, at 23:18:38
In reply to lorazapam 1mg one a day is that abusing it?, posted by vicksnow on January 19, 2004, at 6:38:12
u know
I have been taking lorazepam 1mg 3 times a day (so said the Rx) for over ten years). Then we tried Rivotril/Klonopin, and now I am taking valium.I don't know what to say: I think that any med, as long as it is taken to restore quality of life, cannot be considered "abusing".
If Canadian Prime Minister MacDonald had Ativan/Valium or Xanax, he probably wouldn't have had to get drunk each time he spoke in front of the House of Commons. ...and on the day they tried to demote him by pointing out the golden color in his drink, he had it replaced with gin and delivered one of his greatest speeches, ever.
Did he abuse alcohol?
Well, I know that there were a few scandals around him, some surely related to his inability to "keep a clear mind" when drunk. But had he known where to draw the line...
...he at least never showed up in the House of Commons as what we would consider as "drunk" even though he had a good half bottle whiskey down his throat even before he started speaking...
> it took me forever to find a psychiastrist that would prescribe me lorazapam 1mg for the occasional severe anxiety or upset that i would have.. i now take welbutrin 400mg, prozac 60mg, risperdol 6mg, and buspar 30mg... i take one lorazapam 1mg once a day whenever my nerves feel shot.. is that too much lorazapam. should i not be taking one tablet a day? is that abusing it? my p doc is moving and i'm going to have to see a new psych.. is taking one lorazapam a day considered abuse and i'm wondering if this new dr. will prescribe it for me.. why do most dr. refuse to.... basically my question is: am i abusing lorazapam by taking one tablet a day??
Posted by TheOutsider on January 20, 2004, at 7:53:02
In reply to Re: lorazapam 1mg one a day is that abusing it?, posted by john1022 on January 19, 2004, at 9:37:18
I have no direct experience of Benzo's, but that doesn't sound like abuse to me!
As long as your dose is not escelating then I don't see what your doing wrong. A lot of people have a drink when they feel stressed, but no one (well hardly any one) thinks of this as 'Abuse'.Your lucky that your not living in the UK were many doctors will not prescribe a benzo for love nore money.
Funnily enough the UK now has a massive alcohol problem! I wonder if there could be a connection.............
Posted by dragonfly25 on January 20, 2004, at 8:32:29
In reply to lorazapam 1mg one a day is that abusing it?, posted by vicksnow on January 19, 2004, at 6:38:12
i am impressed that most docs aren't prescribing it to you. in my experience they are overprescribiing it. but the reason that tehy would be hesitant would probably be because it is very addictive and has awful withdrawal for many people. (same with most benzos). the other thing is...isn't buspar for anxiety (im not familiar with it) i am not sure if it is a benzo type drug or not, but the other drugs you are taking may be the reason that they aren't encouraging its use. (maybe they don't feel its needed)???
Posted by mattdds on January 20, 2004, at 14:10:23
In reply to Re: lorazapam 1mg one a day is that abusing it?, posted by TheOutsider on January 20, 2004, at 7:53:02
>>Your lucky that your not living in the UK were many doctors will not prescribe a benzo for love nore money.
Funnily enough the UK now has a massive alcohol problem! I wonder if there could be a connection.............This is an excellent point. People need relief for anxiety, and doctors are doing their patients a huge disservice by not prescribing effective medications.
They are being so cautious by only prescribing SSRI's or Buspar for anxiety (especially, I'm told, in the UK, but also in the USA), that people get the idea that medications don't work. SSRI's and Buspar only work for a very small fraction - while benzos work for nearly everyone! What gives?
So what do people turn to? Alcohol! It's a great anxiolytic, but unfortunately also carries some very serious side effects. Also the social burden of alcohol is tremendous (car accidents, domestic violence)! You never hear of somebody taking a Klonopin and beating up their wife! Similarly, I'd much rather drive on Klonopin than have my head spinning with anxiety or alcohol.
It's time to give benzos a break! The alternatives (e.g. alcoholism, chronic anxiety) are so much worse!
I feel for my anxiety suffering friends over in the UK.
Matt
Posted by invisible15010 on January 21, 2004, at 16:21:41
In reply to Benzos not Alcohol! » TheOutsider, posted by mattdds on January 20, 2004, at 14:10:23
Benzos Beware! Yes that most definately..help, when I occassionaly using them by themselves before I started suffering form severe depressoin and anxiety, Ihad no side effect. NOw with the combination of Effexor and Buspar, there probably is a connection. Probably the same with other combos....and yes alcohol mixed is not wise. A little bit ( 2 beers or a glass of wine is survivable)..much more especially mixed drinks and you are lost in lala land....don't mix!
Posted by Sad Panda on January 21, 2004, at 22:06:55
In reply to Benzos not Alcohol! » TheOutsider, posted by mattdds on January 20, 2004, at 14:10:23
> >>Your lucky that your not living in the UK were many doctors will not prescribe a benzo for love nore money.
> Funnily enough the UK now has a massive alcohol problem! I wonder if there could be a connection.............
>
> This is an excellent point. People need relief for anxiety, and doctors are doing their patients a huge disservice by not prescribing effective medications.
>
> They are being so cautious by only prescribing SSRI's or Buspar for anxiety (especially, I'm told, in the UK, but also in the USA), that people get the idea that medications don't work. SSRI's and Buspar only work for a very small fraction - while benzos work for nearly everyone! What gives?
>
> So what do people turn to? Alcohol! It's a great anxiolytic, but unfortunately also carries some very serious side effects. Also the social burden of alcohol is tremendous (car accidents, domestic violence)! You never hear of somebody taking a Klonopin and beating up their wife! Similarly, I'd much rather drive on Klonopin than have my head spinning with anxiety or alcohol.
>
> It's time to give benzos a break! The alternatives (e.g. alcoholism, chronic anxiety) are so much worse!
>
> I feel for my anxiety suffering friends over in the UK.
>
> MattIf you don't need to escalate your benzo dosage to maintain their effectiveness then I can't see the harm in using them. A person that doesn't need a dose increase after 4 years of use could probably be on them for ages without much problem.
Cheers,
Panda.
Posted by CareBear04 on January 22, 2004, at 21:22:07
In reply to Re: Benzos not Alcohol!, posted by Sad Panda on January 21, 2004, at 22:06:55
I don't think 1 mg of Ativan a day is abusing it at all! That's what my most benzophobic dr prescribed. I've been on as much as 8mg/day without any problems. I'm also 20, and some drs seem to think that teenagers and college kids abuse benzos and other drugs. I think you're fine. I wouldn't worry at all.
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