Coming off xanax?

Question

i was on a dosage of 1.5 -2 mg a day for panic disorder. after 5 months of it, and staying on lexapro, i think i can lower my dosage. for the past two days, i've taken 1 mg a day. i sleep horrible and twitch a little, feeling nervous. i know there will be withdrawal symptoms, but should i stay at the 1 mg for a few days or can i go ahead and lower my mg again? my counselor has ok'd me lowering my dosage, so that's not a problem. i'm trying to get to the point where i only take one if i have to. i've had a drug problem with opiates in the past, so i know about withdrawal symptoms with them, but never xanax.

Answer 1

i was on xanax five years.  i was up to 4mg a day.  i wasn't thinking and tried to go off it cold turkey.  big mistake.  i almost had to go to the ER.  i weaned myself off of it gradually under my doctors advisement.  i started by cutting my dose down a quarter.  then a week later i cut my dose in half.  a week after that i was down to taking a half milligram a day.  i finally went to taking a quarter milligram a day.  i stayed on that dose for a few weeks and finally just stopped taking it.  

just start cutting the dose gradually and give your body enough time to adjust to less of the medication.  

i would suggest having your doctor advise you on what to do.  xanax withdrawal, when it gets to a certain point, can be dangerous if you don't decrease the dose properly.

Answer 2

I don't have experience with Xanax...I'm an Ativan girl and only take it a few times a month.

But I do have a website recommendation for you which explains benzodiazepines and how to reduce dosage.

http://www.benzo.org.uk/manual/index.htm

The second website I listed is a bit technical but still informative for people who are not medical professionals. It also mentions benzo alternatives like Buspar. I don't know if you've tried it. It could be better than nothing if you still struggle with the panic disorder.

As a side note, I've noticed that my need for Ativan has been reduced since I've been doing pilates exercises (at home). The movements are slow, kind of relaxing, and you need to concentrate on your breathing while doing the moves.

Good Luck!