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Going To Start Lowering My Dose.


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#1 Ramona80

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Posted 25 June 2015 - 04:14 PM

Hello!

 

First, thanks to all who have been patient with my MANY posts and questions, and thanks for all the support and information I've gotten so far.  

 

An update about me: I wasn't stabilizing at 60 mgs (following my withdrawals at 40 and then 50 mg). My psychiatrist wanted me to go up to 90 mg, but I was hesitant, and asked to try 70 mg first. 70 mg made me feel better, but I was still having trouble using my legs many days, and had very little physical stamina still. After a while, at the urging of my family, I agreed to go to 90 mg just so I could function better. (I am a mother.) Turns out I did not have a choice, my psychiatrist didn't think I was improving enough on 70 mg, and insisted I go up to 90. She refused to write more Rx's for 70, she said it had to be 90. 

 

So...I have felt better on 90, and have been much more functional, but I have had a faster heart rate and sleep trouble (muscle jerks jolting me awake.) Because of that, my doc thinks it's time to reduce to 80 mg.

 

My doc said I should be able to just drop from 90 mg straight to 80 mg (since it's proportionally not as big a jump as starting from a lower dose) but after my past experience, I want to go more slowly. She is OK with that. 

 

My 30 and 60 mg capsules have (combined) 539 beads. The 30 mg capsule contains 184 beads. 1/3 of that capsule would be 10 mg, or about 61 beads. So I need to gradually reduce beads until I'm 61 beads down, and then switch to a 20 mg capsule to add to my 60 mg capsule Then I will stay on 80 and see how that goes, and when ready, will continue.

 

So my question is - how quickly would you drop the 61 beads? How many per day? I was thinking 6 beads per day for 10 days. Does this sound OK / is there anything I'm overlooking or forgetting?


#2 fishinghat

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Posted 25 June 2015 - 08:07 PM

My recommendation would be to start out with about 4 beads a day. If after a week no problem then go to 5, etc. At some point you will start having problems with some withdrawal. Let us say just for example that level is 8 beads a day. Once you start having the problems go back to one less bead a day (say 7 in the case of my example). Go back down a little and stay with that drop rate. Once you get down to about 20 mg things get tougher so you will need to go much slower. The last beads are the worse so ssllloowww at the end.


#3 Ramona80

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Posted 26 June 2015 - 07:34 AM

OK. I will slow my wean down.


#4 Ramona80

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Posted 26 June 2015 - 08:28 AM

I have read in this forum, and others, that it's appropriate to have a 10% drop in a month when starting from a higher dosage (I am starting from 90 mg). Would this be too fast a taper: start with removing 6 beads, and then reduce an additional 6 beads every 3 days? I know everyone is different and has to adjust as they go to find the rate that works for them. My motivation for wanting to go at this rate is that I am not sleeping much on this higher dose and am having hours of hypnic jerks keeping me awake. I definitely do not want to run into more withdrawal trouble though. 


#5 Ramona80

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Posted 26 June 2015 - 07:20 PM

P.S. Fishinghat, do you mean 4 beads per day for a week, or 4 ADDITIONAL beads per day over a week? Like 1st day 4, next day 8, etc.?


#6 fishinghat

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Posted 27 June 2015 - 08:40 AM

"4 ADDITIONAL beads per day over a week? Like 1st day 4, next day 8, etc.?"

 

That's the one!!
 





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