Hi, I have been taking clonazepam 0.25 twice daily since 3 years for anxiety issues. I now want to get over with it, many times I have tried and failed to reduce or taper it gradually, without that medication it makes me totally weak and confused, no concentration and tremors, can someone tell me how to get over this clonazepam without any side effects, please suggest me a plan will adding gabapentin helps to reduce?

Dr. Saranya DevanathanPsychiatrist50yrs exp

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Dear lybrate-user, clonazepam is a benzodiazepine. Probably you have not learnt any non medical method of managing your anxiety level. That is why you are getting anxiety symptoms without clonazepam. 3 years is too long period to continue clonazepam at this young age. No doctor would have prescribed it for so long. Adding gabapentin will be helpful. But it is better to learn jacobson's progressive muscle relaxation or undergo therapy or practice relaxing yoga asanas and pranayama, etc before withdrawing from clonazepam.  

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Dr. P K SukumaranPsychiatrist56yrs exp

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Stress patients worry too much. Stress in today?s day & age where stress is high, feelings of frustration can emerge. It is our perception that can change our current negative situation into a healthy & positive one. Another way of perceiving these feelings of frustration can be by looking at them as an opportunity to push ourselves to go that little extra mile until we achieve our objective. However, there are times when we all can go around in circles; and being in this space can be quite upsetting and lead to feelings of dissatisfaction, frustration and can even cloud our mind and judgment. Exercise one hr daily, oil massage body, hobby, support from friends family, help others, weekly holiday, yoga, meditation to ensure that this stage is not reached, here are a few simple steps one can approach these feelings of frustration with and eventually overcome them: take nexito 10 mg daily exercise daily stop alcohol and smoke be present in the now: when one feels frustrated, we have a tendency to overthink and that too about many different things. It may momentarily occupy our mind but not in a constructive manner. We have a tendency to dissect all the past events in our minds and psychoanalyze ourselves, others & all situations related to the event or even remotely resembling it. The best thing to do at this point is to bring yourself back into the present moment, by calming yourself, center your thoughts on what is presently going on around you. You can do so in the following ways: relax into the now: find a space to sit comfortably, close your eyes and simply concentrate on the live events happening in your environment around you for a minute or two. Take a nice deep breathe, inhale and exhale, in through your nose and out through your mouth, very good, continue. Become aware of all that is happening around you at present- the sun shining in the sky above you, the children playing out in the garden, the vehicles or the individuals passing by. Take in all the details. Relax into this space, in the now. Be happy & grateful for what you have at present: make a list of all that you have in your life that make you happy, joyous or even just comfortable. Things that we sometimes take for granted. Be grateful and happy as you make this list, this is all that is positive and good in our life, smile. It's real! a few examples are:- a warm home and a roof over your head clean drinking water clean, nutritious, healthy food access to the internet and other forms of technology that make life easy your loved ones the point of power is in the present moment: sometimes anger, stress and feelings of frustration can block out all that truly matters, all that is positive & good in our lives, even when it is right in front of us. It is important and very beneficial to remember that the point of power is in the now! the present moment is when you pen down your thoughts, try to trace the root cause of your negative emotions, of the feelings of frustration. When you know the root of the problem, finding a solution becomes easy. List out possible solutions and create an action plan. Take back your power.  

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Dr. Prof. Jagadeesan M.S.Psychiatrist17yrs exp

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How did you get hooked onto it. Clonazepam is a benzodiazepine which is used for short term control of anxiety, maximum for 2-4 weeks. Long time it produces serious side effects, which shrink the brain like cognitive deficits (lack of concentration/ memory) which you have mentioned. Also it produces physical withdrawal like tremors, mood changes (confusion), when serious it can also produces withdrawal seizures. Kindly consult an astute psychiatrist nearby for treatment of your benzodiazepine (clonazepam) dependence and proper treatment of your anxiety with ssris or snris, which are safe and can be taken on a longer run, and those which address the cause of anxiety which is reduced serotonin in your mind (brain). Good luck.  

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Mr. Saul PereiraPsychologist50yrs exp

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No sir, it is not at all adviseable to try this medication nor to self-medicate/regulate without doctor's approval. If you are so keen on coming off of this medication and want to improve your health, I suggest that you go for counseling in tandem with he medicines. If you combined counseling with the medication you can expect the best outcomes for your anxiety disorder. However, you must be episode-free for at least three years before the doctor will decide on weaning you off of the medication but in a gradual and effective manner. Counseling will help in training you will skills and techniques to cope with the daily challenges in life and will give you a fair chance to manage your life when the reduction in medicines is initiated by the doctor. You must also develop your constitution to make it fit enough to cope with fear, felt many times unnecessarily. This involves physical fitness through exercise, good rest (sleep), and a proper diet. Mental stability can be achieved by learning a few skills in handling emotions in an appropriate manner. Stress management skills, which have a lot to do with expressing emotions, will need to be a major part of your recovery program. Please persevere and cooperate through all the support.  

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