Clonazepam (Klonopin, Rivotril)

Is it possible to develop tolerance to the alcohol like with benzos, where it either quits working and you have to drink more than usual, or it makes tinnitus worse like withdrawals from benzos? I thought someone might know the answer to that.

 

I've long had a single to two standard unit drinks and it always affects me the same. I'm sure it's possible though!

 

Idly wondering how often and how much you can take a benzo without causing adverse effects. Highly individual question, I know, but curious who out there has used a benzo weekly (or more often) for a long time with no problem? I've taken a low dose of benzo, lately Klonopin (0.25 mg) weekly for a a couple years now and I don't seem to have any issues YET.

I still get the same effect too. I actually started on a higher dose for a while (0.5 mg Klonopin equivalent) and reduced some 18 months ago, still getting the desired effects to date. Probably the weekly interval helping.

 

I take Lorazepam on a regular basis, for the simple reason that it is the only reliable drug that can get me to sleep and I am guaranteed to have a low tinnitus day, the next day.

I'm very careful not to abuse it, however. Lorazepam has a very short half-life, so it is totally out of your body in about 3 and 1/2 days. Klonopin, if I recall correctly, has a much longer half-life, so it remains in your body longer. On average, I only take the Lorazepam about once a week, and I only take 0.5 mg. At that dose, there really isn't much chance of becoming addicted or developing dependency, and it always does the job.

 

Thanks for the feedback! Have you compared Lorazepam with Klonopin?

 

I have looked into both, yes. Lorazepam has a half life of about 12 hours, so it is out of your body in about 3.5 days. This is why it is so good for sleep; one pill lasts for about 6-8 hours, then it's gone, so you don't feel groggy, the next day.

Klonopin has a half life of 20-50 hours, so it stays in your system much longer. My physician won't even prescribe it for me, as he is very concerned about addiction/dependency with Klonopin.

 

@Bruce NH USA, I think I'd find a new physician. Klonopin is the only thing that is keeping me vertical these last few days. There are horror stories for sure but there's also stories like my mother who was at death's doorstep and she was prescribed 4 mg per day and that was 20 years ago. She does great and hasn't had to increase dosage ever.

I'm planning to start Amitriptyline and supplement with .5 mg Klonopin starting tomorrow.

 

I try to stay off of the benzos as much as possible. Lorazepam still does the trick, though today I woke up with the worst tinnitus ever, and it scared the daylights out of me. I may have no choice but to push for Klonopin, if things keep getting worse.

As for Amitriptyline, I can't figure out whether it has helped me or made my tinnitus worse. It definitely helps me sleep---it is great for that, and you can stay on it for years. However, I feel like my tinnitus is worse, so I have tried tapering off of it, but am afraid I won't be able to sleep.

Do you have any insomnia issues?

 

@Bruce NH USA, have you tried Trazodone? I've long struggled with sleep and I've had pretty good experiences with it lately.

 

I take Seroquel and Melatonin and sleep fairly well.

 

Klonopin 1 mg 2x a week as needed works amazing for me. It’s honestly one of the only things that keeps me going. I know that I will get at least a few hours of silence a week.

 

I have heard of Seroquel. Any side effects? How long have you been on it, and what dosage, if I may ask? Thanks.

 

I actually had a bad experience with Paxil, which I am told is a lot like Trazodone, so I was advised against it. It also gave my fiancee a massive headache. Thanks for your input, though!

 

My feeling on Klonopin is firstly that it's f*cking amazing. Secondly, I think the relief it provides might have something to do with its muscle relaxing qualities. I know about the GABA blah blah, but for me I think it was about soothing head/neck muscles that seem to be always be compulsively straining to guard against loud sound.

I took 0.5 mg to 1 mg a day when I was on it, never had any problems with addiction. I have a much bigger dependence on cannabis actually.

Wish I had some Klonopin now, lol.

 

I've been taking 50 mg for about 3 months. That's a small dose. It does help with sleep and I haven't noticed any side effects... My psychiatrist says she has really good results with it.

 

Glad it is working for you, Ben!

 

Is Clonazepam different from Lorazepam? Lorezapam does nothing for my tinnitus.

 

Klonopin vs. Ativan: Differences, similarities and which is better for you

 

Hello! Has anyone here found a bad interaction between Clonazepam and antioxidants, natural anti-inflammatory stuff when taken at the same time?

 

I think all benzodiazepines help with the anxiety that we experience with our tinnitus and much less to do with the actual lowering of the volume. Of, course, other's will have varying opinions based on their own experiences. It's my belief that there is no way to physically lower our volume, and if there is I have yet to find it.

I did have a brief stint with Clonazepam and it did help with the anxiety. Short term use in extreme cases, in my humble opinion, is how to best use it. I have no experience with Lorazepam.

 

I have used benzos with success, lowering the tinnitus volume almost to the point of going away completely. The problem though is it took upwards of 6 mg of Ativan and 4 mg of Klonopin to do so.

Also, I have had success lowering the tinnitus volume with opiates as they too work on the brain, slowing brain functions which in turn reduces the ringing.

 

Hi @JohnRenfro47 -- I've had some limited success with eating fairly large amounts of poppy seeds, which have relatively low amounts of opiates.

 

FYI.

Do you regularly take 4 mg of Klonopin daily?

 

How do I get prescribed Klonopin for my tinnitus? Do I ask my ENT? My GP? What should I tell them to get it prescribed?

 

How does your tinnitus sound? How long did you use this treatment for and what other treatments did you try with success over the years?

 

I asked my psychiatrist. My GP just gave me a couple day supply. But my psychiatrist prescribed it to me long term

 

Yeah, you just gotta ask. Your ENT might be more understanding than your GP if they "get" tinnitus.

 

I’m 63 and a musician. After 15 years of total habituation from left ear tinnitus originally due to one time gunshot exposure when I was 26, my tinnitus has returned louder then ever after recording some vocals with headphones two months ago. It’s been a nightmare the past month (the worst period of my life) and I finally got into to see an ENT two weeks ago who was terrible but who reluctantly prescribed me 20x .5 mg Klonopin on my request.

In the past two weeks I’ve used 7 of them (.5 mg at bedtime) when my anxiety got so bad I couldn’t sleep even using a noise masker, Melatonin, CBD drops or Benadryl.

Unfortunately my tinnitus is high pitched due to the gunshot and I have total loss of hearing in that ear at frequencies higher than 8 kHz so nothing really masks my tinnitus. It sounds like a water faucet/hose spigot running. I can hear it loudly everywhere (even surfing) except when my head is under the shower. The shower masking sounds on YouTube are the closest I can get to masking it.

Regarding the Klonopin, it does definitely lower my tinnitus by at least 50-60 percent so that it’s just an annoying hissing and not maddening. I’ve noticed that .5 mg suppresses the tinnitus for approximately 24-30 hours before it returns to baseline. Is that what other people find as far as duration of tinnitus suppression with .5 mg Klonopin?

I have an appointment with a really good audiologist in a week and I’m hoping she can help me with masking or maybe a hearing aid. I may even consider TRT or acoustic neuromodulation as they offer that.

I’d like to discontinue the Klonopin after I see the audiologist and just learn how to live and eventually hopefully habituate to this new loud tinnitus level over time.

But sleeping with it is another issue, what’s the best prescription sleeping pills for tinnitus?

Thanks.

 

You could try Trazodone, I’ve had decent luck with it. Raises my resting heart rate by about 10 bpm though.

That’s also my experience with Klonopin.

 

Seroquel has helped me get sleep. I take a low dose - 50 mg - and it has worked well for 3 months.