Hi would be glad of any advice. My doctor has now prescribed clamazapan but having taken the 1st tablet have felt disoriented and spaced out all day. Good news was that i slept for 8 hours solid. What is the experience of others here? will it wear off or should I try half a tablet?
Thank you in advance
Hello! Starting a new medicine is hard on the body. Just as for everything else, there is a period of adjustment. This is after the first dose, right? It could just be that you need to give it a few days; I would call and discuss with your doctor if you are worried about this, though.
Hi, what dose is the tablet? I was prescribed clonaxepam once. I can't remember the dose but I think I was told to take 0.5mg for the first week then increase it to 1mg the second week.
I think that's right, so taking half a tablet might be a good idea You may then get used to it after a week and could then try a whole tablet - if you need it. If you don't need it, don't increase it.
The other drawback with clonazepam is that it's quite long acting, so it can leave you drowsy next day.
I hear conflicting comments about clonazepam. Some people seem to have taken it for years. When I was prescribed it by a neurologist I was told to take it for a month only as it has a high risk of addiction.
In that case, if you're sufferng insomnia it might be better in the longer term to look at why you have insomnia.
Insomnia is associated with either uncontrolled RLS or with taking a dopamine agonist.
If you have uncontrolled RLS and you're not taking any RLS medication for it, then clonazepam is not the most appropriate medication. If you are taking a dopamine agonist for your RLS, then it's probably that that's causing insomnia or it's failing to control your RLS.
In either case, it woild be a good idea to review your medication. Clonazepam is not really dealing with your issue, it's just masking it.
Thank you for your answer. I was on Ropinerole for several years but then argumented on them and yes i believe this did course insomnia. I was then put on pregabalin which actually didn't seem to have much effect but after abouut 6 months I lost my peripheral vision which has not returned some 10 mths later. I have been managing with zopiclone but dr wanted me to come off of that and to be honest sleep was still very poor only maybe 5 hrs a night if lucky but i could just about cope.
Tried not taking anything but so little sleep Rls every night just impossible so here i am. Unfortunately I feel that there is nothing left to take I've tried diet regimens etc.
They are 2mg and yes dr did say half to 1 tablet so guess i just over done it. Really don't want to be taking them have you any other suggestions
Thank you
Hi again .
Sorry to hear about your loss of peripheral vision. This is awful in itself but also it's such a shame you can't use pregabalin it woukd have been so helpful.
You could try persisting with the clonazepam for now, but as we've thought, half a tablet for at least a week.
The remaining medication option for your RLS which is known to be effective is an opiate. Opiates are indicated when the first line treatments have failed, which, in your case, they have.
This is an option that personally, I would only take as a last resort. Luckily I haven't got there yet.
There are drawbacks to using an opiate, but there are to all strong medications. However, it's a matter of whether the benefits outweigh the risks. The chronic insomnia you're experiencing is itself risky.
Unfortunately, you may find it difficult to get a prescription.
As for other options, cannabis canb help sleep.
You may also have heard of "sleep hygiene" this is a set of strategies that can help promote sleep. They can probably never be anything but a partial help with RLS, but worth a try.
I struggled with chronic insomnia, off and on, for a few years. It did become easier when I retired.
I did to some extent, "cone to terms" with it. This means I gave up struggling against it.physically and mentally and just came to accept that I wasn't going to sleep much. I tried to see.hours of unwanted wakefulness to do something contructive with. Although it didn't help me sleep any better and I still suffered the sleep deprivation effects, it did help me feel better about it. That in itself was an improvement.
Can you tell me what Augmentation means?
Research clonazepam, nasty, nasty stuff harder to get off of than heroine
Took one year of tappering off to be rid of it ... any benzodiazepines are nothing you want to deal with,,,
Heres a good read....
benzo.org.uk/manual/bzsched...
Take care🙏
Hi Operabab
I have Clonazepam given by my Neurologist after trying many other medications, and it is a lifesaver for me. My tablets are 0.5mg and he said take 1/2 to 1. Mostly I take 1/2 but sometimes take another 1/4 if my legs are very bad.
Try taking half a tablet for a while. Do you know what dose they are? They are probably too strong if you are groggy in the daytime.
Good luck and hope you get it all sorted.
I hate clonazepan, l loved it at first, but then after a few weeks l had a horrid episode. I was scream ing and throwing myself around the bed, of which l have no recollection of, my husband called 999 because he couldn't control me, l was taken to hospital who then treated for epilepsy, but it wasn't, eventually a neurologist diagnosed a reaction to clonazepan. It was a very frightening time for me, it happened twice, l was weaned off clonazepan, l would never touch it again but that was my experience and not necessarily the case for everyone
Wow - pretty intense drug - found this description. cchrint.org/2011/06/02/amer...
One needs to be aware that not every medicine is right for everyone and that we all have our own peculiar bodies with out own peculiar reactions to thing. Personally, I was unable to take clonazepam due to the fact that one of the areas of my brain that it calmed was the portion of my brain that gave me control over anger. I had several rage reactions to very innocent things and stopped it after two doses. Have never had that trouble since. That said - a lot of reactions and side effects will diminish after acclimatizing to the medication - not an option for me with this one.
A lot of people do have problems with benzodiazepines in that the half life of some of these drugs is greater than 24 hours. The problem is that after 24 hours, half the drug is still in your system. You take another dose and in 24 hours half of that first half is still with you and half of the second dose is still with you. Take a third dose and half of the half of the half (1/8th) of the first dose) is still with you, plus half of the half (1/4th) of the second dose is still with you and half (1/2) of the last dose is still with you. as you continue to take it the amount in your blood slowly builds up. Add the 1/4th's up and you will see what I mean. We have had a hard time with clonazepam with older people whose metabolism is slower and and it builds up faster.
This would be something to discuss with your physician. There are other drugs that are excreted much faster and do not build up like some of the benzodiazepines do.
Good point, the half life of Clonazepam is 30 hours. Unfortunately the short acting "Z" drugs can cause sleep walking which can be dangetous. They also possibly more addictive than clonazrpam.
How many milligrams? Can you take half?
Hi have been on clonazapan for about 20 yrs as well as other meds but it takes awhile to get used to try half tablet and stay on that if it’s enough when you have a bad spell up the dose to 1 whole one then when you settle try a half again that way you get to manage what you need at the time and you can stay on them instead of your body getting use to them an having to change to something else hope this helps
I take 1 mg of it at night and have taken this dose for about 12 years . I am planning to taper off it slowly soon . I have become drug dependent on it so don’t ever stop it cold turkey if you start taking it . It’s really quality of life . Because I am used to this dose I don’t find it makes me tired at all . If you can do with less I’d take less . At the time I was never given an option and never understood a lot about these medications .. but I personally would suggest less if you can do without it . Again it your quality of life , if you need it you need it . For me it’s not that I need it for anything anymore it’s that my body is drug dependent so I am planning before the end of the yr to try a very slow taper . I am going to buy a .001 mg scale and Taper at a pace I can handle verses big drops like the doctors do . Good luck with it all .
I was on Clonazepam for about 15 years and had no intention to stop. The doc had worked me up to 5 mg toward the end and then he retired. His replacement came in and told me she didn't think I needed Clonazepam but that calcium would calm my RLS and help me sleep. So she refused to renew the med. Within 72 I started feeling strange, very strange and I was driving on the highway at the time. Controlling my truck became very difficult and I nearly crashed. I pulled over and called the local ER. They told me to find a way to get into the ER immediately. That ended up being by ambulance. Then I learned I was suffering from major withdrawal symptoms. That doc nearly killed me. Be proactive in your healthcare. Always know as much as you can about what your doctors are doing to you.
Your Doctor was clinically negligent as you probably know. Benzodiazapine withdrawal is very dangerous and should have been done by tapering down very slowly over a number of months under close medical supervision. She nearly killed you! I'm shocked actually. I hope you're with a good Doc now. Even the suggestion that Calcium was an effective treatment for RLS is ridiculous & not based on any empirical evidence. Should she be in practice at all!!
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