I have been taking benzodiazepines frequently until two weeks ago; I stopped on November 24, 2017 (The benzodiazepines I would take are Clonazepam and sometimes Ativan - I would never take both the same day; I took Clonazepam because I have severe social anxiety due to being bullied/harassed all of my life, I stopped taking Clonazepam three weeks ago because I didn't like some of the side effects - I found it was making me gain weight even though I exercised and ate the same foods I always ate and it also caused me to have bad acne even though I take care of my skin - very few people gain weight or have bad acne because of it; when I mentioned this to my doctor he said it can happen and agreed that I could stop the drug - I'm already on anti-seizure medication due to epilepsy so there is no risk of me having a seizure when I quit cold turkey).
That day, I took 6 mg of Ativan (my normal dose for Ativan is usually 6 mg) because of some really bad things that happened that day - I ended up going to my doctor and getting a prescription for Ativan because something horrible happened that morning, which resulted in me feeling extremely anxious and I was crying (side note: my doctor is aware that I take 6 mg, he prescribes 2 mg pills and I take three of them - my body has always had a natural tolerance to benzodiazepines, even before I started taking them; I used to take 3 mg of Ativan in 2008; in 2009 I went up to 5 mg, after that year it became 6 mg since I started taking them once a week due to some very stressful issues going on at the time). The 6 mg sort of worked; I had eaten food fourteen hours prior to taking the pills but drank Blueberry Juice four hours before I took the pills; I find that if I eat or drink anything even a few hours (less than 10 hours) before I take the pills, they don't work or barely work, even if they are sublingual.
I have decided to only take 4 mg for an appointment I have on December 14, 2017. In the past, I would go one month without taking the pills and would take 6 mg but fall asleep. I also tried 5.5 mg after 27 days but I appeared to be really "stoned", according to a family member (that is not what I wanted to happen - I don't take these pills in order to get stoned!). I tried 4.5 mg on June 13, 2017 after abstaining for 13 days and the pills worked a little; I fell asleep before the appointment but woke up in time so I could get to the appointment - I find that for some reason if I fall asleep after I take the pills then wake up, even if it's just a half hour later, the pills aren't working at all and it's like I never took anything.
Since I am abstaining from taking any Ativan for 19 days (the last time I took anything was November 24, 2017 and I will be taking 4 mg on December 14, 2017) I am wondering if anyone thinks the pills will work. I know that nobody can really answer that question for me but I am wondering if anyone has done something like this before (abstained for almost three weeks and then taken a lower dose of a benzodiazepine) and if they found the lower dose worked OR if, from what I mentioned about 4.5 mg making me fall asleep after I took it (because I abstained for 13 days), the 4 mg will work (because it's a lower dose and I will not fall asleep this time - my mistake the last time was getting back in bed to watch TV after I took the pills). I only have two 2 mg pills left (making 4 mg); I don't want to appear "stoned" and/or not be able to do other things I want to do after the appointment.
Another note: I know I said this before but I will say it again: I used to take benzodiazepines once or twice a week - when I was on Clonazepam I would take 2 mg if I had to go anywhere that made me feel anxious because of social situations; my doctor wanted me taking Clonazepam for social anxiety and the fact that I suffer from Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder due to being bullied all of my life (and I still am bullied). When I would take Ativan, it would be for medical appointments - my doctor didn't want me to take Clonazepam for a dentist appointment or any other type of medical appointment, yet he wanted me to take it because of social anxiety and Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. They have a cross-tolerance so the Ativan didn't work very well, that's why, when I went to my doctor after something horrible happened November 24, 2017 (not because of the Clonazepam) I told him I wasn't taking Clonazepam anymore; he decided to prescribe Ativan because of the panic attacks I was having (not from withdrawal - the only withdrawal symptom I had was insomnia) and for the dental appointment I would have this month.
That day, I took 6 mg of Ativan (my normal dose for Ativan is usually 6 mg) because of some really bad things that happened that day - I ended up going to my doctor and getting a prescription for Ativan because something horrible happened that morning, which resulted in me feeling extremely anxious and I was crying (side note: my doctor is aware that I take 6 mg, he prescribes 2 mg pills and I take three of them - my body has always had a natural tolerance to benzodiazepines, even before I started taking them; I used to take 3 mg of Ativan in 2008; in 2009 I went up to 5 mg, after that year it became 6 mg since I started taking them once a week due to some very stressful issues going on at the time). The 6 mg sort of worked; I had eaten food fourteen hours prior to taking the pills but drank Blueberry Juice four hours before I took the pills; I find that if I eat or drink anything even a few hours (less than 10 hours) before I take the pills, they don't work or barely work, even if they are sublingual.
I have decided to only take 4 mg for an appointment I have on December 14, 2017. In the past, I would go one month without taking the pills and would take 6 mg but fall asleep. I also tried 5.5 mg after 27 days but I appeared to be really "stoned", according to a family member (that is not what I wanted to happen - I don't take these pills in order to get stoned!). I tried 4.5 mg on June 13, 2017 after abstaining for 13 days and the pills worked a little; I fell asleep before the appointment but woke up in time so I could get to the appointment - I find that for some reason if I fall asleep after I take the pills then wake up, even if it's just a half hour later, the pills aren't working at all and it's like I never took anything.
Since I am abstaining from taking any Ativan for 19 days (the last time I took anything was November 24, 2017 and I will be taking 4 mg on December 14, 2017) I am wondering if anyone thinks the pills will work. I know that nobody can really answer that question for me but I am wondering if anyone has done something like this before (abstained for almost three weeks and then taken a lower dose of a benzodiazepine) and if they found the lower dose worked OR if, from what I mentioned about 4.5 mg making me fall asleep after I took it (because I abstained for 13 days), the 4 mg will work (because it's a lower dose and I will not fall asleep this time - my mistake the last time was getting back in bed to watch TV after I took the pills). I only have two 2 mg pills left (making 4 mg); I don't want to appear "stoned" and/or not be able to do other things I want to do after the appointment.
Another note: I know I said this before but I will say it again: I used to take benzodiazepines once or twice a week - when I was on Clonazepam I would take 2 mg if I had to go anywhere that made me feel anxious because of social situations; my doctor wanted me taking Clonazepam for social anxiety and the fact that I suffer from Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder due to being bullied all of my life (and I still am bullied). When I would take Ativan, it would be for medical appointments - my doctor didn't want me to take Clonazepam for a dentist appointment or any other type of medical appointment, yet he wanted me to take it because of social anxiety and Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. They have a cross-tolerance so the Ativan didn't work very well, that's why, when I went to my doctor after something horrible happened November 24, 2017 (not because of the Clonazepam) I told him I wasn't taking Clonazepam anymore; he decided to prescribe Ativan because of the panic attacks I was having (not from withdrawal - the only withdrawal symptom I had was insomnia) and for the dental appointment I would have this month.
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