Benzos lorazepam (Ativan) seems much 'harder to handle' than other benzos

[paranoid android]

^Fact on only being able to fit 60mg's into one ml..... I had to argue this alot as ppl would wanna do 100-200mg shots. (Myself included) and I would sware 100mgs hit harder than 60 in a 1ml syringe -- suppose this is because I was not getting the full 60 out of a 60 where as a 100, def getting the 60 ---- all ER morphine has a rinse. (That you shouldnt do ....but does contain a good percent of your product unless you got morphine powder or IR's)

oh no one shot is not going to make anyone an addict -- may be hard to not want to repeat the experience though. Hydromorphone is alot "more-ish" as it only lasts about 2 hours but the rush is better than heroins, in most peoples opinion.

Still one shot of dilly you will not be an addict, but it will be more-ish in a couple hours, morphine you got more like 6 and you prolly falling asleep buzzed.

Needles are fuckin bad news though -- save that shit for when you are super old and in pain

Lol on dilly i became a human pin cushion for awile. I happened into a steady supply for awile and was banging 3 18mg hydromorph contind about every 4 hours sometimes. I was so hooked id be sick already by the 6 hour mark.

I get the mscontins and theres a trick to getting all the morphine out. It takes abit

 

[lost weekend]

Would it not be the case that genuine pharmaceutical morphine could be stronger and cleaner than say heroin you would buy on the street ?

 

[Psychonauticunt]

After having experimented for a while with Diclazepam, I never really quite understood why it wasn't marketed. For me, it's like diazepam - just a vastly improved one. It has a similarly balanced effects profile as a benzodiazepine. If you take into account its active metabolites, its duration becomes rather long.

Diazepam is metabolized mainly into desmethyldiazepam, which is weak (being a partial agonist), and produces temazepam and oxazepam (also weaksauce) in smaller amounts.
Diclazepam produces delorazepam as its main active metabolite, which is further metabolized into lorazepam and lormetazepam.

Diclazepam and its metabolites are infinitely better than diazepam's.

 

[placebonaut]

After having experimented for a while with Diclazepam, I never really quite understood why it wasn't marketed. For me, it's like diazepam - just a vastly improved one. It has a similarly balanced effects profile as a benzodiazepine. If you take into account its active metabolites, its duration becomes rather long.

never tried it and don't know much about it so I took a "quick look" (ok so I have a fixation problem with some things, fucking OCD brain or something ffs), ended up having to wrestle quite a lot with chatGPT to do this as it seems there's not very much research for Diclazepam sadly so no-one should trust this chatGPT produced info on it!


seems that the key take out is "The important difference is that diazepam's acute phase is better characterized and tends to be more prominent relative to its later metabolite phase, whereas diclazepam has a particularly significant long-lived delorazepam component. The original diclazepam human experiment found an approximately 42-hour parent half-life and active delorazepam, lorazepam and lormetazepam metabolites."

I know you say that its duration becomes rather long, but looking at the crap below and to me (who doesn't understand enough about benzo metabolites) it doesn't seem that different to diazepam to be honest, just a different profile. Maybe the major risk with Diclazepam to your duration point is with abusing it and taking it too frequently given the 48h window, though I tend to leave a good 3-4 days between doses of Diazepam when I do use it

other thing is that Diazepam has stronger anxiolysis/relaxation effects which is for me 1 the main reasons I like it.

hmm, i'm tempted to see if i can find some to give it a go!

Time after dose	5 mg Diclazepam	10 mg Diazepam
0–2 h	Building: anxiolysis, relaxation and sedation begin; impairment may develop	Building: diazepam rises relatively quickly; noticeable relaxation/sedation and psychomotor impairment
2–6 h	Moderate → strong: parent diclazepam is the main contributor; sedation, slowed reactions, impaired coordination and amnesia possible	Strongest period: parent diazepam dominates; pronounced anxiolysis/relaxation, sedation and impairment possible
6–12 h	Moderate: still substantial parent-drug effect; active metabolites beginning to contribute	Moderate → declining: noticeable effects generally declining, although impairment can remain
12–24 h	Moderate: diclazepam remains present; delorazepam increasingly contributes	Mild–moderate: parent drug declining, while nordazepam begins becoming increasingly relevant
24–48 h	Mild–moderate, persistent: delorazepam becomes increasingly important; residual sedation/impairment possible	Mild–moderate, persistent: diazepam + nordazepam; residual anxiolysis and sedation possible
2–3 days	Mild but persistent: delorazepam is now a major contributor; subjective effects may be subtle while pharmacological activity remains	Mild/persistent: nordazepam increasingly dominates residual exposure
3–5 days	Residual: mainly long-lived delorazepam; obvious subjective effects may be largely gone, but residual CNS effects are possible	Residual: nordazepam becomes particularly important; lingering sedation/psychomotor effects possible
5–7 days	Low residual activity: delorazepam can still be present	Low–moderate residual activity: nordazepam can still contribute substantially
7–14 days	Usually little/no obvious subjective effect, but metabolites may remain detectable	Usually little/no obvious subjective effect, although long-lived metabolites can remain
Overall profile	Long, relatively smooth tail driven heavily by delorazepam	Strong initial effect + very long tail, with nordazepam becoming increasingly important

The visual takeaway​

5 mg diclazepam

Moderate → strong → moderate → mild → long residual tail
████████ → ██████ → ████ → ██ → █ → ···

10 mg diazepam

Strong → moderate → mild → long residual tail
██████████ → ██████ → ███ → ██ → █ → ···

Feature	Diclazepam — 5 mg	Diazepam — 10 mg
Parent drug half-life	~42 h terminal	~20–70 h; ~24–48 h commonly cited
Main active metabolite	Delorazepam	Nordazepam / desmethyldiazepam
Major metabolite half-life	~78 h delorazepam	~40–120 h nordazepam
Other active metabolites	Lorazepam; lormetazepam	Temazepam; oxazepam
Metabolic pathway	Diclazepam → delorazepam → lorazepam / lormetazepam	Diazepam → nordazepam → oxazepam; separate branch → temazepam → oxazepam
Approx. parent amount administered	5 mg	10 mg
Estimated major-metabolite amount	Delorazepam: ~0.2–2 mg crude modeling range	Nordazepam: ~0.4–4 mg crude modeling range
Other metabolite amounts	Lorazepam: ~0.1–0.7 mg; lormetazepam: ~0.05–0.5 mg	Temazepam: ~0.2–1 mg; oxazepam: ~0.1–1 mg
Confidence in metabolite-mass estimates	Very low	Low, but better supported than diclazepam
Early dominant compound	Diclazepam	Diazepam
Later dominant compound	Delorazepam	Nordazepam
Approx. strongest subjective period	Roughly 5–12 h	Roughly 4–12 h
Residual active exposure	Several days	Several days to >1 week
Particularly long-lived component	Delorazepam	Nordazepam
Typical key effects	Anxiolysis, sedation, muscle relaxation, amnesia, impaired coordination	Anxiolysis, sedation, muscle relaxation, amnesia, anticonvulsant effects
Relative certainty of PK data	Low	High
Overall profile	Long-acting benzodiazepine with long-lived active metabolites	Long-acting benzodiazepine with exceptionally well-characterized active-metabolite accumulation

Spoiler: Diclazepam

Best directional estimate for a 5 mg dose​

Compound	Approx. terminal half-life​	Relative amount expected from 5 mg diclazepam	Very rough mass-equivalent estimate*​	Relative contribution to overall effect	Key effects
Diclazepam	~42 h​	100% initially	5 mg parent​	High initially	Anxiolysis, sedation, muscle relaxation, amnesia, impaired coordination
Delorazepam	~78 h​	Largest metabolite	~0.5–2 mg equivalent, very uncertain​	High and prolonged	Strong anxiolysis/sedation, muscle relaxation, anticonvulsant activity
Lormetazepam	~13 h​	Smaller	~0.05–0.5 mg equivalent, very uncertain​	Moderate, relatively shorter-lived	Sedation/hypnosis, anxiolysis, muscle relaxation
Lorazepam	~12 h​	Smaller than delorazepam but potentially substantial later	~0.1–0.7 mg equivalent, very uncertain​	Moderate, particularly in later phase	Anxiolysis, sedation, muscle relaxation, anticonvulsant activity

* Important: those ranges are not experimentally established amounts of metabolite actually produced. They are deliberately broad directional estimates based on the observed serum concentration relationships and the known pharmacology of the metabolites. I would not interpret “0.5–2 mg delorazepam” as literally meaning that a 5-mg dose generates 0.5–2 mg of isolated delorazepam.
The reason I'm putting delorazepam substantially ahead of the others is that in the original experiment its peak concentration was ~2.0 ng/mL, versus ~0.40 ng/mL for lorazepam and ~0.34 ng/mL for lormetazepam. Delorazepam also has the longest half-life of the three, around 78 h, compared with ~12 h for lorazepam and ~13 h for lormetazepam.

A more useful way to think about the 5 mg dose​

If what you're ultimately trying to estimate is “how much benzodiazepine activity does 5 mg diclazepam turn into over time?”, I'd model it qualitatively like this:

Time after 5 mg	Dominant contributors	What I'd expect directionally
0–12 h	Diclazepam	Parent drug dominates; sedation/anxiolysis and impairment
12–48 h	Diclazepam + increasing delorazepam	Parent still important, while the long-lived active metabolite becomes increasingly relevant
2–4 days	Delorazepam + lorazepam/lormetazepam	Delorazepam increasingly dominates residual pharmacological exposure
4–7 days	Delorazepam	Much of the remaining active benzodiazepine burden is likely attributable to the long-lived metabolite
>1 week	Delorazepam/residual metabolites	Pharmacological exposure can persist, although this does not mean someone remains intoxicated for that entire period

This fits the actual analytical observations: after the ~1-mg experiment, diclazepam itself was measurable in serum for about 99 hours, while delorazepam was measurable for up to 10 days; in urine, delorazepam, lormetazepam and lorazepam were detectable for approximately 6, 11 and 19 days, respectively. Detection is obviously not equivalent to impairment.

The three I'd prioritize​

If you're specifically interested in the 5-mg diclazepam → metabolite → duration analysis we've been doing, I'd read them in this order:

1. Moosmann et al. 2014 — the fundamental human PK/metabolism study.
   
   https://doi.org/10.1002/dta.1628
2. WHO Diclazepam Critical Review — the most comprehensive compilation and interpretation of the available evidence.
   
   DSpace
3. Organ distribution study (2019) — useful for seeing how dramatically parent/metabolite concentrations can differ in actual human toxicology cases.
   
   Redirecting

One correction to keep in mind from our earlier tables: the 2014 paper is much stronger evidence for which metabolites exist and how long they can be detected than for estimating how many milligrams of each metabolite are produced. The latter estimates we discussed were extrapolations, not quantities measured by the study.

Spoiler: Diazepam

10 mg diazepam — parent drug and major metabolites​

Compound	Relationship	Approx. half-life​	Approx. persistence	Key effects	Very rough amount / exposure from 10 mg diazepam​
Diazepam	Parent	~20–70 h; ~30–50 h is a reasonable central estimate​	Parent remains measurable for several days	Anxiolytic, sedative, muscle relaxant, anticonvulsant, amnestic	10 mg administered​
Nordazepam / desmethyldiazepam	Major N-demethylated metabolite	~40–120 h, commonly ~50–100 h​	Several days to >1 week	Long-lasting anxiolysis, sedation, muscle relaxation, anticonvulsant effects	~0.4–4 mg as a deliberately broad modeling range​
Temazepam	3-hydroxydiazepam	~8–20 h​	Roughly 1–2 days	Sedative/hypnotic, anxiolytic, muscle relaxation	~0.2–1 mg as a crude modeling range​
Oxazepam	Downstream metabolite of nordazepam/temazepam	~5–15 h​	Roughly 1–3 days pharmacologically, although conjugates persist longer	Anxiolytic, sedative, muscle relaxation	~0.1–1 mg as a crude modeling range​

The major metabolic routes are diazepam → nordazepam → oxazepam and diazepam → temazepam → oxazepam. Nordazepam is the major circulating metabolite and has a substantially longer half-life than diazepam.

What I would actually use as a "best guess"​

If you want one set of numbers for a rough conceptual model rather than a range:

From 10 mg diazepam	Crude working estimate​
Diazepam administered	10 mg​
Nordazepam	~1–2 mg​
Temazepam	~0.5 mg​
Oxazepam	~0.25 mg​

I'd attach at least a several-fold uncertainty to those metabolite quantities. They should not be interpreted as measured quantities of metabolites physically generated.
Why? In a human study after a 4-mg dose, urinary recovery over 96 hours was only about 3.9% as nordazepam, 6.6% as temazepam and 2.8% as oxazepam. Those percentages represent urinary recovery, not total formation, so they cannot simply be treated as the percentage of diazepam converted into each metabolite.

Expected time course after 10 mg​

Time after dose	Most relevant contributors	Directional picture
0–6 h	Diazepam	Parent drug overwhelmingly important; strongest acute effects
6–24 h	Diazepam + emerging nordazepam	Parent still dominant, but nordazepam is accumulating
1–3 days	Diazepam + nordazepam	Nordazepam increasingly important
3–7 days	Nordazepam + residual diazepam	Long-lived active metabolite becomes increasingly important
7–14+ days	Nordazepam + downstream metabolites	Residual drug/metabolites can remain detectable; this doesn't imply continuous intoxication

A particularly interesting finding is that after 5 mg, nordazepam's urinary concentration peaked around 100 hours after dosing, compared with about 2 hours for diazepam. The same study found that diazepam and its metabolites remained detectable for at least 15 days.

A useful correction to the earlier 5-mg table​

I would now characterize the metabolite amounts more cautiously:

Dose	Diazepam​	Nordazepam​	Temazepam​	Oxazepam​
5 mg	5 mg​	~0.2–2 mg​	~0.1–0.5 mg​	~0.05–0.5 mg​
10 mg	10 mg​	~0.4–4 mg​	~0.2–1 mg​	~0.1–1 mg​

These are modeling ranges, not experimentally measured metabolite yields. The particularly large uncertainty for nordazepam is intentional: about 50–60% of diazepam undergoes N-demethylation, but that does not mean 50–60% of the administered mass appears as free nordazepam—the metabolite is subsequently distributed, metabolized and conjugated.
Also, 10 mg isn't necessarily exactly twice the subjective effect of 5 mg. Plasma exposure generally increases with dose, but pharmacodynamics, tolerance, age, CYP2C19 genetics, liver function and drug interactions can produce substantial individual differences.
For perspective, controlled human testing has specifically examined 10 mg diazepam and found measurable acute impairment shortly after dosing, while older overnight testing found much less measurable next-morning impairment in healthy subjects. That illustrates why "half-life" and "duration of noticeable impairment" shouldn't be treated as the same number.

 

[Psychonauticunt]

That all seems to check out, sure. Also, diazepam is well-known for being one of the most rapidly absorbed and peaking benzos, which has obvious therapeutic benefits.

A lot of it, for me, just boils down to the fact that I like delorazepam, lorazepam and lormetazepam (one of my absolute favourites of like, almost 40) more than I like temazepam, nordazepam or oxazepam, the last two being particularly and emphatically meh.

Diazepam's duration of action isn't all that long, though - at least not as many people make it out to be. Says in the table that the approximate strongest subjective period for diazepam is roughly 4–12 h. That's an unnecessarily wide range to accommodate for some slow metabolizers or those who are super sensitive to even mild effects from metabolites, but diazepam has a biphasic action and the stronger therapeutic one is rather short, in fact. For most people, the strongest subjective period of activity is about 4-6 hours.

When people take diazepam for anxiety, it is typically administered THREE times a day. It is not especially known for producing next-day grogginess.

In a hospital setting, lorazepam is often given because if it takes hours, a second dose of diazepam is usually needed. It reaches its peak rapidly, but is then distributed around the body, and is no longer as active. Lorazepam, despite it's WAY shorter half-life, has a longer duration of principal action.

Diazepam's half-life due to its metabolites, especially with cumulated doses, is what makes it great for tapering, but after 10 hours of taking a Valium, you've got the benzo equivalent of half a sip at the bottom of your beer.

EDIT: Massive thanks for the info dump. You say OCD brain - are you sure it's not autism brain?

 

[placebonaut]

EDIT: Massive thanks for the info dump. You say OCD brain - are you sure it's not autism brain?

I thought ADHD but Dr GPT thinks it's "Very high openness/High novelty/sensation seeking" not sure if these are real medical terms but I need loads of mental stimulation to keep me sane, otherwise I sedate myself

 

[DeathIndustrial88]

As a former benzohead and someone with (way too much) experience with most of them out there... alprazolam, diazepam, clonazepam, and temazepam prescribed at various points in life, and then tons and tons of illicit scripts taken over the years, research chemicals, and all the rest... I actually can't take lorazepam (Ativan). I have some sort of allergy to it and it makes me feel nausea and see open and closed eye visuals, mainly colorful tracers. It sounds cool, but the nausea makes it hellish. I can get away with low doses, but at that point, it's not really doing much for me. Very high doses make me sick. Only benzo I've ever had that sort of reaction to.

I've had this same reaction to high doses of clonazepam.

 

[drewbocop]

I've had this same reaction to high doses of clonazepam.

Interesting. I've heard of a few people besides me who react to lorazepam that way, but never clonazepam. I used to be prescribed anywhere from 1 to 4mg/day of clonazepam over the years with the side effect of making me very mean and violent. Not good. Which is a shame, because I find it to be about the most worthwhile benzo out there for a multitude of uses.

 

[notsmokeymcpot42088]

Would it not be the case that genuine pharmaceutical morphine could be stronger and cleaner than say heroin you would buy on the street ?

Depends which street you live on? But I have to say for the vast majority of the dope market the answer is absolutely. Unless it is at least 34% pure with no active cuts

Personally I will take my chances with binders before fent xylazine nites and god knows. I do not understand feeling any other way about it other than "I cant afford or access legit morphine"

btw that isn't a pro-shooting pill statement it is a "This is how bad the dope is now days" statement.

 

[notsmokeymcpot42088]

I thought ADHD but Dr GPT thinks it's "Very high openness/High novelty/sensation seeking" not sure if these are real medical terms but I need loads of mental stimulation to keep me sane, otherwise I sedate myself

Never listen to Dr. ChatGPT (thats an opinion) hell I don't even know about my dr.'s but I do know that shit will put a positive spin on anything up to and including suicide

 

[DeathIndustrial88]

Interesting. I've heard of a few people besides me who react to lorazepam that way, but never clonazepam. I used to be prescribed anywhere from 1 to 4mg/day of clonazepam over the years with the side effect of making me very mean and violent. Not good. Which is a shame, because I find it to be about the most worthwhile benzo out there for a multitude of uses.

I can't say for sure, but when I was 16 (well over 25 years ago now), before I really knew much about clonazepam, I found some of my moms & stupidly took like 8mg the first time.

I got so sick, nausea, seeing blue tracers. My skin even turned a weird green-tinted color. And I slept for like the next 48hrs straight.

But I can handle anything up to 4mg now a days with not much problem, besides the random bout of nausea some times.
I use to get "taste perversion" from clonazepam too. Like when I'd take it, everything would taste really weird during the duration of it's affect, like it tastes bland & slimy. Only way I can explain it.

But ever since gaining a dependence on it, a lot of that doesn't bother me no more. And I'd never pop over 8mg again for any reason lol So It was just that one time & a few other random times when I was young that clonazepam gave me blue colored tracers & made me feel so sick.

I hear you about the anger though. I've found myself flying off the handle on it a few times. It's like that combination of groggy/sedated & irritated makes you easily pissed off.

 

[drewbocop]

I got so sick, nausea, seeing blue tracers. My skin even turned a weird green-tinted color. And I slept for like the next 48hrs straight.

That does indeed sound exactly like my allergic reaction to lorazepam. Totally. Even the "tinted skin" effect. I believe that is a visual effect, not your actual skin.
You get the red tracers with the blue as well? A few yellows thrown in when your eyes are closed?

 

[DeathIndustrial88]

That does indeed sound exactly like my allergic reaction to lorazepam. Totally. Even the "tinted skin" effect. I believe that is a visual effect, not your actual skin.
You get the red tracers with the blue as well? A few yellows thrown in when your eyes are closed?

Yeah now that you say that, maybe I just thought my skin was green. lol I remember my skin looked almost exactly the same color as the green clonazepam pills my mom had.

Didn't see any red or yellows though, I just remember when the effects took hold, whenever I waved my hand in front of my face, I would see blue trailing images of my arm behind it. Later on in life I had plenty of experience with xanax, ativan & even klonopin (still used it sparingly all through out my 20's when I was having a panic attack or in opioid withdrawal). But looking back, no other time during those years did I ever get those blue tracers again. Although I never took higher than 1-2mg of klonopin ever again after that.

 

[drewbocop]

Yeah now that you say that, maybe I just thought my skin was green. lol I remember my skin looked almost exactly the same color as the green clonazepam pills my mom had.

Didn't see any red or yellows though, I just remember when the effects took hold, whenever I waved my hand in front of my face, I would see blue trailing images of my arm behind it. Later on in life I had plenty of experience with xanax, ativan & even klonopin (still used it sparingly all through out my 20's when I was having a panic attack or in opioid withdrawal). But looking back, no other time during those years did I ever get those blue tracers again. Although I never took higher than 1-2mg of klonopin ever again after that.

Yeah, starting your journey as a kid with 8mg must have been a fun day for your mom. Lmao

 

[marsnd]

How is it that everyone has had Bromazepam. And I've never heard of it until half a year ago. Crazy! Wish I did more research on the RC scene.
Anyways, I have experienced a similar result, but with diazepam. I never felt much from Ativan (lorazepam). I have had times where a .5mg val worked fine, and other times it took 20mg. Tried to figure out if there was a pattern to the lower dosage feeling, for obvious reasons. I would highly suggest the half tab route. Make the most of the script, and reserve the higer dosages for nights you absolutely need it, or want to have a chill night. Hide your keys better too.
Also, 2.5 mg Ativan? I didn't even know it came like that. I know they have 2mg, but thought that was the max dose. Maybe you're not in the USA?

 

[placebonaut]

Never listen to Dr. ChatGPT (thats an opinion) hell I don't even know about my dr.'s but I do know that shit will put a positive spin on anything up to and including suicide

yes I don't disagree.

my symptoms aren't severe so not a big deal really, it's useful insight if nothing else and gives me some pointers and leads to follow up on.

to your point about the local DR, quite frankly they seem to know fuck all about things like this! if I were actually going to do anything more about it I would most likely use chat GPT input as a way to frame the conversation with the GP with a goal of getting a referral to a specialist, I'm not making massive life changing decision based on "chatGPT told me to do it"

 

[notsmokeymcpot42088]

I understand on the local doctor and had a rebuttal typed up to 4qdsar's be honest with your doctor point that boiled down to in MY PARTICULAR CASE that would be a shite idea as yea I mean no offense to my dr. and do not really know what he knows and doesnt on the larger scale....but it his record hasn't been impressive so far! I have known people he has done over horribly, and I hear the way he talks derogatorily about drug users at church. (Plus one time I mentioned kratom or 7 oh, maybe it was mdpv even and he went all "you gotta give me they name so I can call the cops" --- no no no just saying ive heard of ppl using em noone in particular).... *Edit, yea it was mdpv cuz I remember saying 'isnt ritalin the same idea, don't like a little competition' ... and that being a sentence too far forsure

I think the UK may be slightly better --- no direct to tv pharm ads and self diagnosis BS --- actually not sure on self diagnosis but I doubt it is as bad.

Americans use google first --- the chinese are more trusted with our medical info than our own doctors lol (Hyperbolic slightly)

 

[placebonaut]

I think the UK may be slightly better --- no direct to tv pharm ads and self diagnosis BS --- actually not sure on self diagnosis but I doubt it is as bad.

there is a definite uk trend of "diagnosis by google", has been for years now, GPs (General Practitioner, similar to a PCP in the US I think) complain about it all the time, with the rebuttal being something along the lines of let's trust my medical degree and 20 years of experience over your google results shall we?

AI is going to change that dynamic because suddenly everyone thinks they have an expert in their back pocket - sadly the general public will be too arrogant to believe their AI fed crap isn't true so won't listen/trust the DRs, and the Docs will be too arrogant to use AI as a supporting tool when they could. It's improved outcomes that matter!

 

[notsmokeymcpot42088]

Damn if I had free healthcare I wouldnt be trusting google nearly as much. If the hospital wasnt so far behind I once had to inform a rehab teacher that benzos were still prescribed and it was barbs she was thinking of --- than prove it... than get her fired for going to my doctor....at any rate lol

I still think they seem a little ahead...if only based on the "Leave patients that have been on benzos for like 15+ yrs on them" policy alone. I really dont know so I will digress though

Having a trusted good doctor is the best way to go --- good luck YMMV

 

[drewbocop]

How is it that everyone has had Bromazepam. And I've never heard of it until half a year ago. Crazy! Wish I did more research on the RC scene.
Anyways, I have experienced a similar result, but with diazepam. I never felt much from Ativan (lorazepam). I have had times where a .5mg val worked fine, and other times it took 20mg. Tried to figure out if there was a pattern to the lower dosage feeling, for obvious reasons. I would highly suggest the half tab route. Make the most of the script, and reserve the higer dosages for nights you absolutely need it, or want to have a chill night. Hide your keys better too.
Also, 2.5 mg Ativan? I didn't even know it came like that. I know they have 2mg, but thought that was the max dose. Maybe you're not in the USA?

Well, for one, a lot of people have tried bromazepam because it's being pressed into a lot of counterfeit benzo pills and other stuff. It's, and other similar benzo RCs, have been turning up in street drugs all over the place around here.