Re: Day 2 of Altivan/Klonopin switch

Preston Crawford wrote:
> Still trying to figure this out. Anxiety-wise things are okay. Pretty
> under control. However, I thought Klonopin was roughly 2 times stronger
> than Ativan, but so far I haven't been able to sleep all through the night
> yet without waking up early (which was the main hope for/reason for
> switching to the Klonopin). This even though my dose seems to be higher
> (1.25mg of Klonopin as opposed to 1.75-2mg of Ativan). Is this just the
> transition phase? Or do I need to be concerned about the dose being
> higher? Or is that dosage ratio more of a rough estimate that doesn't
> factor in how certain people react to certain medications?
>
> Preston

Benzo equivalency charts are to be taken with a grain of salt (unlike
the benzos themselves ;-) because our reactions to meds are so
individual that potency more often than not isn't the decisive factor in
whether a benzo will work or not. Play it by ear, Preston. Benzos
often need one or two dose adjustments in the beginning (there is a
biochemical reason for this) but Klonopin, apart from providing
immediate relief as you experienced, also takes one or two weeks to
fully kick in. So if after those two weeks you still sleep badly you
might want to consult your doctor and see what can be done about it. In
the meantime it sounds like you made the switch without problems. The
main thing is having your anxiety under control, so let's be happy about
that. I know it was a difficult thing to do for you and I'm glad you did
it.

Philip

On Fri, 11 Jul 2003 00:48:39 +0200, Philip wrote:

> Benzo equivalency charts are to be taken with a grain of salt (unlike
> the benzos themselves ;-) because our reactions to meds are so
> individual that potency more often than not isn't the decisive factor in
> whether a benzo will work or not. Play it by ear, Preston. Benzos
> often need one or two dose adjustments in the beginning (there is a
> biochemical reason for this) but Klonopin, apart from providing
> immediate relief as you experienced, also takes one or two weeks to
> fully kick in. So if after those two weeks you still sleep badly you

That's what I'd heard. It's covering the anxiety pretty well, but not the
sleep, but I'll try to be patient. The sleep isn't *worse* than on the
Ativan really, just not better. All in all it's been relatively smooth,
actually.

> might want to consult your doctor and see what can be done about it. In
> the meantime it sounds like you made the switch without problems. The
> main thing is having your anxiety under control, so let's be happy about
> that. I know it was a difficult thing to do for you and I'm glad you did
> it.

Thanks. It wasn't easy for sure. I appreciate the kind words. It's been
hard to be brave about this, but I think it was the right choice. And I
don't feel like I'm having much of a problem with the transition.

Preston