Benzos Has anyone else had these experiences with Clonazepam and Ativan?

[LynnD]

I have been prescribed both Clonazepam and Ativan over the years; however, I will not take both at the same time.

I have discovered that when I take Clonazepam, it is easier to make me upset and I can be really defensive (people told me this and I didn't realize it would usually happen whenever I took Clonazepam - I would never abuse the drug but for some reason this would happen). Because of this I have decided that I will never take Clonazepam again; the last time I took Clonazepam was March 15, 2018; when that happened I had a huge fight with a family member, it was after this that I discovered that it was linked to the Clonazepam - every time I take Clonazepam something like that happens, even though I don't drink or do illegal drugs nor do I take anything else with it.
Does this happen to anyone else when they take Clonazepam?

I have also noticed that when I take Ativan, the night of the day after I had taken it, I will have really weird dreams - for example, I recently dreamed a crossover between the movie "The Human Centipede (First Sequence)" and one of my favorite TV Shows, "Rescue Heroes". I have not watched either recently, so I don't know why I would be dreaming about that - especially since I have never dreamed about ANYTHING related to "The Human Centipede (First Sequence)"!
Does anyone else have really weird dreams the day after they took their last Ativan dose?

 

[Scrofula]

Only the First Sequence? That ret-conned garbage version? Mein leben dreihund, it was bad.

Have you ever been having a good time in some alcohol-and-good-times-serving establishment, partaking maybe in excess, when it's like an argument or fight or insults break out seemingly at random?

It's from the booze shutting down your better judgment, maybe some emotional control, general balance and poise and ability to remember what was said at the start of the conversation.

Benzos can do the same thing, paradoxical aggression, like giving antihistamines to children sometimes. Even folks who pretend they're happy drunks or that benzos aren't booze, should agree that both can reduce your ability to sustain patience with mild irritants, when you do enough. Especially when you were tired to begin with.

 

[LynnD]

I don't drink or smoke nor do I do recreational drugs. I don't take benzodiazepines for fun; I take them if my anxiety is high.

The strange thing is, when I take benzodiazepines, I am not tired before I take them and it's rare for me to feel tired after; this rarely happens with Clonazepam yet every time I take it I feel pissed off - and I didn't realize the Clonazepam caused this until last week when I took it.

 

[steewith2ees]

I have experienced one episode of 'benzo rage' about 10 years ago and clonazepam was the accomplice, me being the guilty party of course as regardless of the drugs involvement, it was a pathetic episode even by my own sorry ass standards. I am pretty sure the dose was 4mg (2 x 2mg Roche 'Rivotril' tablets taken orally and from what I remember it was midweek after work one night. I was with my partner still and clean from heroin and my benzodiazepine use was arguably at it's lowest (once or twice a week on average). As I was not in a particularly high state of anxiety and just fancied a general chill, I decided to take a heavy dose thinking that with my tolerance almost as low as a non - user, it would wallop me off my feet. But the subtleties of clonazepam and the delusions of sobriety it imparts were still beyond my insight at the time and as such I continued with my evening in a general state of chill but was not overtly conscious of the effect of the Rivotril.

After putting some effort into producing a meal for the household I served the rest of the family before retrieving my own meal form the kitchen, which I clumsily dropped onto the carpet (more than likely a result of poor co - ordination from the c - pam). Out of nowhere, I completely lost my shit, smashing the plate off the wall and smashing a ceramic salt shaker into my head which thankfully cut my head open to a moderately serious degree, ensuring a permanent reminder of what a piece of shit I am ever time I look in the mirror.

I have never lost control of my temper by that means and to the degree since then but I have never forgotten the incident and the factors contributing towards it. The clonazepam was absolutely responsible for my sudden and drastic loss in impulse control but ultimately I alone am responsible for my actions and it remains a cringeworthy reminder of really cuntish behaviour.

 

[LynnD]

I have experienced one episode of 'benzo rage' about 10 years ago and clonazepam was the accomplice, me being the guilty party of course as regardless of the drugs involvement, it was a pathetic episode even by my own sorry ass standards. I am pretty sure the dose was 4mg (2 x 2mg Roche 'Rivotril' tablets taken orally and from what I remember it was midweek after work one night. I was with my partner still and clean from heroin and my benzodiazepine use was arguably at it's lowest (once or twice a week on average). As I was not in a particularly high state of anxiety and just fancied a general chill, I decided to take a heavy dose thinking that with my tolerance almost as low as a non - user, it would wallop me off my feet. But the subtleties of clonazepam and the delusions of sobriety it imparts were still beyond my insight at the time and as such I continued with my evening in a general state of chill but was not overtly conscious of the effect of the Rivotril.

After putting some effort into producing a meal for the household I served the rest of the family before retrieving my own meal form the kitchen, which I clumsily dropped onto the carpet (more than likely a result of poor co - ordination from the c - pam). Out of nowhere, I completely lost my shit, smashing the plate off the wall and smashing a ceramic salt shaker into my head which thankfully cut my head open to a moderately serious degree, ensuring a permanent reminder of what a piece of shit I am ever time I look in the mirror.

I have never lost control of my temper by that means and to the degree since then but I have never forgotten the incident and the factors contributing towards it. The clonazepam was absolutely responsible for my sudden and drastic loss in impulse control but ultimately I alone am responsible for my actions and it remains a cringeworthy reminder of really cuntish behaviour.

I know what you mean; because we choose to take the drug, we are responsible for the actions that we take. I was taking Clonazepam once a week (3 mg - my tolerance has always been naturally high with benzodiazepines; that may be because I suffer from extreme anxiety, that's why I would always end up taking pills at least once a week; I made a rule that I will only take them once a week). yet for at least five days after I took the pills I would be feeling angry for no reason, but I wouldn't really do or say anything. I guess that's because the Clonazepam is still in my system after five days. I haven't taken it since March 15, 2018 but I'm feeling frustrated now; however, that has to do with stress regarding something that happened earlier this week (not related to my own actions - this is related to something someone did). The irony is I have 4 mg of Ativan here that I could take now because of the stress I have been feeling all day but I am refusing to take it because I have a dental appointment in August that I want to save the pills for (I have to take at least 4 mg for the pills to work).

 

[Michael1706]

Give Bromazepam a try if your doc gives his approval. It's a less sedating version of Ativan ( =Lorazepam) even though Ativan isn't that sedating on it's own.

It's anxiolytic properties are level with Xanax (= alprazolam ) and ativan. The charts say 1 mg Lorazepam (Ativan) = 0.5 mg alprazolam (xanax) = 6 mg Bromazepam

But...I have taken lorazepam (I continue writing the Name of the actual substance not the brand name) in the past. I take alprazolam nowadays and tried lorazepam this year after 3 or 4 years. They just didn't do a thing even on a comparable dose to the alprazolam. And years ago it was the benzo I would eat and empty the whole bottle and it was Tuesday when memory kicken in. I started Friday.

But the Bromazepam worked as good for my anxiety as the alprazolam I'm taking. And it doesn't make me tired/moody after some hours like alprazolam often does. And it worked even though I took the equivalent of 2/3 of my alprazolam dose.

They call it the 'alprazolam (or xanax) light ' here. But it works great f?r anxiety and is very benign concerning paradoxical effects. In Western europe it is well known especially Germany or France.

And regarding clonazepam...it's a strong anti epileptic but it's effects concerning anxiety are only moderate. It's good for tapering/withdrawal due to a relatively long half life but other than that....

I don't know how many mg you take?
In higher doses benzos can (some more than others ) make you angry or more prone to fighting verbally - sometimes not only verbally. Because the drug doesn't achieve the desired effect (calm anxiety free relaxed state) , you get aggressive cause your inhibitions are still lowered while under the influence.

Not happy + lowered inhibitions = recipe for desaster

You could try the famous alprazolam/xanax ( great for anxiety but some people get fucked up) or the not so famous Bromazepam.

Stop taking your clonazepam and lorazepam. Talk to your doctor about the alternatives I mentioned

 

[Scrofula]

Well, OP could switch benzos, and while the conventional ones (including bromazepam) sometimes have slightly different profiles, it's like switching to bourbon after you've had problems with tequila. It feels like you made the healthy choice, cause the food you get with tequila is so much better, but if you're prone to getting bitchy on it, that will still happen with bourbon.

Best to try other therapies for whatever it is you take benzos for in the first place.