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Higher Dose Klonopin

xks201

Senior Member
Messages
740
Most of what I have seen is people taking like .25-.5mg per night, if that. I was curious if anyone has ever taken 1mg or more at night because I found that when I upped the dose to 1mg my dream sleep increased quite a bit as did my growth hormone output compared to taking the smaller doses. I also read a case of someone taking 2mg per night and curing their IBS. There is also a doctor out there somewhere claiming that without enough serotonin dopamine and norepinephrine production shut down. Well gaba is inhibitory too so maybe we do need higher dose klonopin. Anyone try it?
 

xchocoholic

Senior Member
Messages
2,947
Location
Florida
I get groggy / brain fog from taking too much Klonopin so I try not to take it or stick to the lowest dose possible.

Last month, I was out of town so I had to increase my dose to accomodate the new toxins in my diet and extra stress. Before this, I was at .125 mg at night PLUS melatonin, theanine and 5HTP and was sleeping great.

I'd been taking Melatonin, theanine and 5htp for a few years but found that Klonopin made me sleep deeper than the melatonin, theanine and 5htp alone did. And I can always sleep.

I'm not sure if it's because I took Klonopin for 16 years before coming off it tho. Up until recently, I'd been off it for 6 years and was just taking natural supplements.

I was prescribed Klonopin 16 + years ago, for nocturnal myoclonus ( jerking when entering REM) and I'm assuming my myoclonus was still bad enough that I was jerking myself awake at night. I didn't have this prior to ME/CFS.

I'm through playing with toxins :oops: so I'm heading back to taking .125mg at bedtime only.

I still need melatonin and 5HTP. These are natural chemicals found in our bodies ... or so they're supposed to be but I don't seem to have these.

tc ... x
 

Nielk

Senior Member
Messages
6,970
I think that many people find relief of insomnia with higher doses of Klonopin. I just want to give you a message of warning of long term Benzodiazepine use, especially at higher levels. There is a danger of becoming chemically dependent on them.
 

heapsreal

iherb 10% discount code OPA989,
Messages
10,086
Location
australia (brisbane)
I think one has to look at sleep med dosages and the initial dosages that worked consistently for them should be the dose they dont go over. if one feels its not working and needs to increase the dose then they have to realise that they are getting a tolerance to the med and increasing the dose will only overcome the tolerance for so long and then they need to increase the dose again etc and it becomes a viscious cycle.

When tolerance to a med starts to develop one should look at taking a break from the med and using an alternative for awhile then maybe go back to the original med. Look for alternative sleep aids in different med classes such as antihistamines and sedating antidepressants etc this will allowe the initial med tolerance to reduce. As i have mentioned in other posts, i find it helpful to alternate sleep meds regularly even nightly to help reduce med tolerance. If one does get stuck at a higher dose then theres a greater chance of withdrawal problems when trying to come off that particular sleep med.

cheers!!
 

AFCFS

Senior Member
Messages
312
Location
NC
I have been on 1-2 mg Klonopin for about 23 years (mostly 1 mg). It helped tremendously with anxiety and sleep at first. I am now wondering if aside from long term use/tolerance/dependance if it may not actually contribute to my symptoms.

The reason I say that is because I decided to wean off of it - very, very slowly - and now can see that at .5 mg there is less brain fog. Things seem sharper and less buffered, that I am in more direct contact with reality - a sense of positive activation as if waking from a intoxicated slumber. There was some initial anxiety and insomnia with the taper, but these were ameliorated with Melatonin, L-Tryptophan and GABA. I cannot say enough about the GABA in regard to its calming - very subtle but very effective.

Another reason that prompted me to go off of it was because through sleep tests, it was determined that I had sleep apnea and was told that Klonopin may exacerbate this as well as interfere with healthy sleep patterns.
 
Messages
3
I take a dose of usually 2mg to 3mg. I use it to help get back to sleep when I awake half way through sleep.
 

arx

Senior Member
Messages
532
Anyone experienced weird dreaming patterns with Klonopin?
Ideally how long should one take a benzo?
 

K2 for Hope

ALways Hoping
Messages
271
Location
Jacksonville, FL 32258
Because the thread is asking if anyone has used higher doses, yes, at one time I was on 4 mg/night Klonapin (generic) along with 30 mg temazepam along with 4 mg xanax. (I doubt you would get a Dr to prescribe that today.)

I don't recommend this for everyone, but it worked for me at the time due to multiple issues with long term stress and insomnia. I used it to help me get to sleep and change my sleep cycle. I was at the point of no return and needed to sleep at night no matter what the cost.

I have now reduced it to no xanax, down to 1 mg Klonapin and 1 pill of 30 mg pill of temazepam, but it took almost a year (or more) to wean off the high dose. There is a website that shows you how to wean off benzo's but several people had to get "onsite medical help" to do that. You need to know that you build up a tolerance for benzo's physically and you may have to be monitored to come off as it is an anti-seizure medicine. Stopping suddenly can have severe medical issues and can cause death. (I don't mean to sound hysterical, but when it was prescribed for me, no one told me those facts.)

So, get the facts before you do anything. Look up benzo withdrawal on the internet. Look up benzo addiction. Look up benzo benefits, etc. Then you will be better prepared to make a decision.
 
Messages
445
Location
Georgia
I was at the point of no return and needed to sleep at night no matter what the cost. .

Why do people continue to take drugs like Klonopin and Temazepam? Why do docs continue to prescribe them every day?

You just answered it with you first statement. There are no good alternatives. Ambien and Lunesta will make you more active than asleep at night. Melatonin and all of the supplements, teas, etc, don't work. Or work very slightly.

It's your choice. If you can get on disability where you don't have to get up in the morning at a certain time, then I would say tough it out. Be strong.

It's only sleep after all. Being insomniac won't kill you. And inspite of what anybody tells you, even if you are on Temazepam, if you are exhausted enough at odds times during the day, you will fall asleep without the drug. I do several times a week.

Some people on this forum would put a skull and crossbones on each bottle of Klonopin. But I would bet they mostly do not work or have families to take care off. Some of us have to sleep "not matter the costs."