Help!! Coming off Ativan!!!

Unfortunately this is what took my dad to the grave in 2019 he was only 62, he fought with the VA for years keep your head up I know it's tuff I've seen this first hand. Thoughts and prayers to you.

This is a horrible situation. You need to call your doctor & I think he is obligated to help.. I'd be afraid of the e.r, what if they try to hospitalize you. But, I'd go if the doctor doesn't help. Bring a family member who will attest to you not being dangerous.
Nobody is supposed to get stuck on a benzo like this. I got off a daily dose of a year with lithium. I would had taken the lithium in the first place but had no help in this. The withdrawal from the benzo was not even recorded in my medical records.
Good Luck...

Delta 8 products work well same effect as Ativan [ almost ]

Detoxing from benzos can kill you. It's one of the few drugs that can require a medical Detox. Definitely talk to your doctor.

I know you are coming off of anti anxiety meds so its like you are more anxious than you would even normally be. But call your dr and have them send a script over to your pharmacy. Hell, just call up your pharmacy and ask for a refill and tell them that you are going through withdrawls.

OP,
After you've gotten your meds back in order and stabilized, look into finding someone who can guide you through psychedelic journeys.

I was on a cocktail of meds for BP, anxiety and depression. Now the only anxiety I get is if I drink 3 cups of coffee.
Mushrooms and other plant medicines are here to heal us.
Breath work and Meditation are key.

All my best on your healing journey.

I can't say whether it's the right thing for you or not. Or whether it will help specifically with Ativan. And I don't know if you can find the book when you need it, which is RIGHT NOW. Sheesh, that's alot of disclaimers. Sorry.

But something that came to mind is a book called The Mood Cure by Julia Ross. It gives you a whole vitamin and amino acid protocol for happier times.

I just talked to my therapist and she said to tell the Doctor the truth. If it's never happened before he should be ok with it. I did send him a message just waiting for him to reply. I just don't want to seem like some crazy drug addict. I also hate this feeling.

Much love to everyone for helping me!!!!

You hit the nail right on the head. My anxiety is through the roof along with headache and my hands are super sweaty. Maybe I should just keep cutting my dose even if the doctor sends me in a new script? I don't want to feel this way anymore. I wonder if Gaba could replace the Ativan in the future?

You hit the nail right on the head. My anxiety is through the roof along with headache and my hands are super sweaty. Maybe I should just keep cutting my dose even if the doctor sends me in a new script? I don't want to feel this way anymore. I wonder if Gaba could replace the Ativan in the future?

OP, what state are you in? If you're somewhere near me I can help you out. I get prescribed them and hardly ever take them.

Oh wow!!! I'm in MD. are we close?

Vodka?

That's what my hubby said. Just drink some moonshine lol

Well they do use Ativan for alcohol withdrawals so might be close enough. Not sure tho.

:(

I'm in MA

I hope you hear back from your doctor soon. If you don't, I would call. Sometimes they don't see the messages until the next day.

It takes time to safely titrate down due to how long it stays in the body.

Those with leaky gut and leaky brain respond to GABA, but without knowing if you respond to the supplement, it isn’t something I could recommend (ie it might do absolutely nothing for you, but it knocks me on my butt loopy, which helps when I have bad anxiety, however I have no idea how it compares to Ativan. A modest dose offered less effect to me than a small dose of quietiapine was for me).

Maca could also help, but interesting I used to notice an effect similar to GABA with it, but not so much with maca anymore.

If you can manage during all of this, tweak your diet a bit, if they don’t cause headaches or other symptoms for you (food sensitivities): dopamine and serotonin boosting foods (salmon, dark chocolate, dairy, greens and veggies, bananas and other fruit, when you feel good enough also look up more foods)…

For magnesium, if you only have supplements, try to get a big bag of Epsom salts and take baths daily with a cup of Epsom salts in the bath. Magnesium absorbs through the skin without the laxative effects (in event your normal supplement has that unfortunate side effect). The bonus being the bath is calming…

First and foremost is that if you decide to titrate down, make sure there’s no contraindications with anything otc that you choose combined with Ativan and that you are getting the relief you need to feel safe before coming off of Ativan entirely.

I really feel for you. Please take care of yourself! Will say a prayer for your good health.

This is a medical emergency OP. You need your doctor or the ER on board. The time for self-care is later. Right now the key takeaway here is that you cannot do this alone without professional medical supervision. YOU are worth it OP!

You are going to need real ER/Doctor help to get through it.

waahhh...thank you so much!!

Bump....i need to remember your screen name. I have similar problem. You seem to know about all this in depth.

lol, lots of very undeducated, and inexperienced people sounding off in here.


just to let ya know how i know what i'm talking about.. i was a benzo and opiate addict for a long long time... also, my mother is a doctor, and growing up in a medical household, you learn stuff.

1. the dose (if you're telling the truth) is not very high at all, and you wont feel withdrawal as bad as you would if it was worse... 4mg or less a day of ativan is really not much at all..
.....................get some alcohol, drink a little when you feel the withdrawal coming on strong, it will help, alcohol is also a gabagernic, and will keep you from convulsing. (you're not taking enough to have a seizure)


i wouldn't call the doctor if i were you... or mention anything about running out early, it's a red flag immediately and they'll cut you off.

ya got any friends with benzos? any benzo will also take you out of withdrawal...

be careful, ativan is about on par with klonopin as far as potency.. about like xanax too (but xanax has a shorter half life so it comes on harder, faster)

so make sure you dose yourself right if you get your hands on some different benzos.




all in all you'll be fine.. you'll be uncomfortable.
drink a little alcohol to keep the edge off, and smoke a J..if you toke...


and dont even get to the point you take more than about 4mg a day of the ativan, or about the same of xanax or klonopin...

anything more than that...and you'd be in a little deeper of shit here...

when i was addicted i went all the way to 10+mg per day of xanax and other RC benzos, FLU, DiClaz...

it was horrible, and i had lots of seizures, and i did go to prison.


so be careful.

No i'm serious I only been on 1mg for about 10 years. 4 years ago my daughter left at 18 and I haven't spoken to her in 4 years. The past 4 months have been hell on me. I was on Buspar, Ativan and Trazodone. But the psych took me off buspar and trazodone. put me on Lamictal and Doxepin that sent me to the ER with horrible headaches. So the last 4 months i've only been taken Ativan 1mg. I haven't been able to sleep taking 125mg of Benadryl and 24 mg of Melatonin. I think i'm chasing sleep cause I can't sleep so was taking extra halves of the Ativan. I already sent the Doctor a message. I hope he doesn't cut me off completely. Yikes!! now my brain is going on overdrive thinking

I'm on a very low dose of valium because for some reason my body and xanax just have this inverse reaction. It would knock me out and I'd wake up with a panic attack ... great soooo what I was going for. So I had to switch off.

My biggest issue has been mix ups at the pharmacy where it needs to be refilled but it might take 5 days for the paper work to get sent back and forth and it actually refilled.

After about 3 days I start getting withdrawls and in reality a cig or a drink or two will calm it. But I think valium is like one of the longest lasting ones out there so with drawls are minimum.

I got off of lexapro alone by myself. Not sure if it was worse getting on or getting off of it.

OP breathe. Your dr will not cut you off. But he may request to see just so you can get your meds correct. You aren't abusing at crazy high levels and you aren't selling them on a street corner.

GABA, L-theanine, valerian, magnesium

I cold turkeyed 15 years of clonazepam at 3mg daily. I didn't have any supplements either. It was a long few years before I was free. Those supps should help. CBD oil could be beneficial as well with them.

I'd say the 2 most important are GABA and magnesium.

Switching to keto can make a big difference for those in various types of withdrawal because it ups GABA. Unfortunately there's an inital period where a lot of things are worse (keto flu)

GABA supplements may help a little, but are not any sort of solution, especially long term. I've had tolerance and withdrawal from the supplement.

The Gaba comes tomorrow. I been taking the magnesium today though. Thanks so much

I just realized 9 extra pills in 3 months. That is NOTHING. Crap I've taken a few extra in one month just because I threw up because I was so anxious before they worked.

If you feel like you need to go to the ER go. They won't admit you. They'll give you something, watch and make sure you are ok and have a ride home. (at least thats what the ones around here do).

You need to get free from that slavery. I know it's scary to think about, but there's going to come a time when that medicines not available, then what? God will set you straight again. He did for a wretch like me even. I died and he brought me back as a new person with no addictions. I stray once in a while, but I'm no longer the prodigal son, and that in itself gives me peace. Figure out what's causing you all that anxiety and learn to overcome it. Pray about it. You'll get the answers you need. I'll pray for you as well. Be well in your recovery. I'm rooting for you brother, or sister!

I know right. I was on all kinds of ssri's and couldn't last for more than 5 days on them. The side effects were awful.