Is it a bad idea to use benzos to reduce and get myself off alcohol dependence

[PistolPete1]

Hey everyone,

I've had a drinking problem for years and recently gave the thought to using klonopin to help deal with negative symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Is this this a bad idea to try? What would be a good way to go about it? Like some schedule or regimen. Any advice will be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[PriestTheyCalledHim]

Yes it's an extremely bad and dangerous idea to do this.

You are setting yourself up for death, seizures, and benzo addiction.

Check into a rehab or detox clinic, or a hospital instead to get off of alcohol and do this under the supervision of a doctor and other medical professionals. Stay safe.

 

[EscapeFromFreedom]

I would caution against using benzodiazepines for alcohol withdrawal. Klonopin is an incredibly potent benzodiazepine, originally invented for the treatment of epilepsy, so you may end up with a much worse problem than alcohol. I would also caution against using any other potent benzodiazepines such as Xanax, Ativan and even Valium. Probably, the only benzodiazepine suited for alcohol detox that would make sense would be librium, given under doctor's supervision on an inpatient or outpatient basis. And the treatment should be a few weeks long, including the librium taper, as well.

IMHO, the best way to stop drinking is to gradually reduce the intake of alcohol over a period time, as to avoid shocking your system too much. Depending on how strong you alcohol dependence is, as well as how long and how strong your drinking habit is, you would need to plan the gradual reduction of alcohol. But I would definitely recommend doctor's supervision, as blood pressure medications (ACE inhibitors) and/or beta blockers may be needed to control the possibly elevated blood pressure that would result from alcohol withdrawal. I would also avoid any stimulants (i.e. coffee, sugar), and would also stay away from antidepressants, as they could make the situation worse. There are also certain natural teas (chamomile) and supplements (valerian root, passionflower) that could help, as well as a medication called Buspar (Buspirone), which is a very mild sedative that could be helpful, and is not habit forming in a way that benzos are.

The reason why a benzo like Klonopin is a poor solution is that there is a chance that you may reach tolerance very fast, and higher and higher doses may be need to just keep functioning. Eventually, everyone has a point where benzos lose their therapeutic value, and you will get the paradoxical effect, and will most likely have to stay on them forever or be forced into a grueling slow taper involving, tiny dose reductions for 1 year or more while regretting taking those benzodiazepines in the first place. Also, with the alcohol history, a benzo taper may make you crave alcohol so you may end up on both at the same time. Not saying this would happen, and this is not any kind of judgment on anyone's character, but it's just the nature of how those psych meds work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_51H_TfhCjU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TSUS8IF8Hw

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2231826

 

[PistolPete1]

I would caution against using benzodiazepines for alcohol withdrawal. Klonopin is an incredibly potent benzodiazepine, originally invented for the treatment of epilepsy, so you may end up with a much worse problem than alcohol. I would also caution against using any other potent benzodiazepines such as Xanax, Ativan and even Valium. Probably, the only benzodiazepine suited for alcohol detox that would make sense would be librium, given under doctor's supervision on an inpatient or outpatient basis. And the treatment should be a few weeks long, including the librium taper, as well.

IMHO, the best way to stop drinking is to gradually reduce the intake of alcohol over a period time, as to avoid shocking your system too much. Depending on how strong you alcohol dependence is, as well as how long and how strong your drinking habit is, you would need to plan the gradual reduction of alcohol. But I would definitely recommend doctor's supervision, as blood pressure medications (ACE inhibitors) and/or beta blockers may be needed to control the possibly elevated blood pressure that would result from alcohol withdrawal. I would also avoid any stimulants (i.e. coffee, sugar), and would also stay away from antidepressants, as they could make the situation worse. There are also certain natural teas (chamomile) and supplements (valerian root, passionflower) that could help, as well as a medication called Buspar (Buspirone), which is a very mild sedative that could be helpful, and is not habit forming in a way that benzos are.

The reason why a benzo like Klonopin is a poor solution is that there is a chance that you may reach tolerance very fast, and higher and higher doses may be need to just keep functioning. Eventually, everyone has a point where benzos lose their therapeutic value, and you will get the paradoxical effect, and will most likely have to stay on them forever or be forced into a grueling slow taper involving, tiny dose reductions for 1 year or more while regretting taking those benzodiazepines in the first place. Also, with the alcohol history, a benzo taper may make you crave alcohol so you may end up on both at the same time. Not saying this would happen, and this is not any kind of judgment on anyone's character, but it's just the nature of how those psych meds work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_51H_TfhCjU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TSUS8IF8Hw

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2231826

I was under the impression that k pins were a long acting benzo compared to xanax and had less abuse potential. i had concerns of developing yet another dependence when I largely considered alcoholic and benzos to have cross tolerance. How gradual is gradual? By what portion? I'd been striving so far at 1/3 and it's been rough but hey, it's been far worse. I've sought out detox but as I said, they don't seem to be so concerned and I don't want to wait until tremens then show up at an ER.

 

[EscapeFromFreedom]

I was under the impression that k pins were a long acting benzo compared to xanax and had less abuse potential.

Yes, you are absolutely correct. Here is the equivalency chart, so you can see the half lives and potency, etc.
http://www.benzo.org.uk/bzequiv.htm


Klonopin is a much longer acting benzo than Xanax, and while it is much less likely to lead to abuse, it is also very habit forming, and while you may not end up escalating the dose, you may end up with a so called therapeutic dose dependence, which is the largest part of the benzo user community. A lot of them end up on 1mg or 2mg of Klonopin, they take it every day as prescribed, go to the doctor and get refills every month. This would keep you off alcohol, but eventually that Klonopin will start slowly wearing off and the anxiety can keep climbing up up ever so slowly. So most people don't escalate their doses with Klonopin like with Xanax, it is still a heavy profile med where you may find yourself on a certain dose and unable to stop. Most people think that 1mg Klonopin is not a big deal, but klonopin is about 20 times stronger than valium, so taking 1mg Klonopin a day is the same benzo dose as taking 20mg Valium a day, if that makes sense.

Honestly, I don't really have experience with alcohol to help you there much, but I am someone who has taken benzos for anxiety/panic attacks and bitterly regret that decision. Hopefully, someone here may know more about alcohol taper protocols, but with benzos, some people can have great trouble cutting down a mere 10% of their intake. What I've learned from my own experience is, if I have bad symptoms, I just hold at the current dose until I feel slightly better. If you've cut down to 1/3 of your original use, that's a 66% reduction and that's huge, and you may need to stay where you are (if possible) for a while longer and wait for your body to catch up with that sort of drop. You may need to go much more slowly from now on. Getting off substances such as benzos and/or alcohol after long term use is no joke, and slow and steady wins the race. I recall my grandfather liking some wine here and there, but he'd drink it as 50/50 (50% wine and 50% water). I wonder if you can basically do it by drinking the same amount of whatever you are drinking, but slowly, just empty maybe 3% of what you drink and then add 3% water. I am not a doctor or a therapist and can't really tell you how to do it, but most of the alcoholics I spoke to that ended up on benzos ended up really regretting that decision.

Plus, with benzos, being that they are Schedule IV controlled substance, you'll have to depend on your doctor on a monthly prescription and deal with the pharmacy and making sure you get your refill every 30 days, and sometimes, it's a holiday, and you get your refill 2 days late and then you can end up suffering immensely. Or you miss your psychiatrist appt and/or he/she retires and then you are left with no prescriber. The part of being trapped in that medical system, being at a mercy of prescriber whose prescriptions are keeping you from going into ER is no fun. Believe me.

This is a parody video, but it's so true. It's actually scary how true it is. I wish you the best of luck whatever you decide

https://youtu.be/AQE6RnevEtU

And this is a true story

https://youtu.be/wqthcNhm4ng