Switching from Ativan to Valium

[Patty Carey]

My doctor recently switched me from Ativan to Valium and I am having a horrible time feeling completely exhausted and worn out even though I'm on the comparable dose to Ativan. I'm just wondering when this will subside and I will stop being so tired and feeling awful.

[WebDevElijah]

@Patty Carey  May I ask what dose of Ativan you were on taking and what dose of Valium you are taking now?   Valium can take a few weeks to a month to build up in your system since it has such a long half life.

[Patty Carey]

I was on on 4mg of Ativan and am now on 40mg of Valium. 10 mg 4x a day.

[Rosalind]

Did he switch you over slowly as per the Ashton Manual? Doing this suddenly can increase symptoms and is not advisable. 4mg of Ativan equates to 40 mg of Valium which should be added slowly. 

[Patty Carey]

No he did a straight switch.  How would i do a slow switch over.  I still have ativan left

 

[Patty Carey]

11 hours ago, BenzoRos said:

Did he switch you over slowly as per the Ashton Manual? Doing this suddenly can increase symptoms and is not advisable. 4mg of Ativan equates to 40 mg of Valium which should be added slowly. 

Any advice what to do?

[WebDevElijah]

@Patty Carey How long have you been on Valium now?

 

 

 

[Patty Carey]

15 minutes ago, cyberelijah said:

@Patty Carey How long have you been on Valium now?

 

 

 

This is my 4th day.

[WebDevElijah]

@Patty Carey

 

Here is an example on how you do a crossover:  

 

How To Do A Benzo Crossover
https://youtu.be/ZuxkhAoKC_o

[Patty Carey]

18 minutes ago, cyberelijah said:

@Patty Carey

 

Here is an example on how you do a crossover:  

 

How To Do A Benzo Crossover
https://youtu.be/ZuxkhAoKC_o

Thank you!

[Rosalind]

11 hours ago, Patty Carey said:

Any advice what to do?

If you need a personal plan and a switch to another Benzos please click on the link to receive this from David Jones. He won’t be active from the week commencing December 24th but will get back to you asap.

[Patty Carey]

On 12/21/2024 at 4:01 AM, BenzoRos said:

If you need a personal plan and a switch to another Benzos please click on the link to receive this from David Jones. He won’t be active from the week commencing December 24th but will get back to you asap.

Since my doctor does not agree with crossing over and prescribing to benzos at the same time I'm just going back to Ativan before I absolutely lose my mind. Thank you for all your help.

[Patty Carey]

Just now, Patty Carey said:

Since my doctor does not agree with crossing over and prescribing to benzos at the same time I'm just going back to Ativan before I absolutely lose my mind. Thank you for all your help.

One more question, is it possible I can't tolerate Valium because today I woke up sicker than I've ever been. Even though I'm taking the prescribed dose.

[WebDevElijah]

@Patty Carey Yes it is possible.  It sounds like you still have not given enough time to adjust to the Valium which takes a short amount of time, but you can always switch over again.  It took me about 6 1/2 weeks to 7 weeks to fully adjust back to Valium and it was much better. Just make sure you don’t jump back-and-forth constantly between Benzo’s.
 

Just make sure you take it nice and easy. Only you know your own body. 
 

 

 

 

[Patty Carey]

5 minutes ago, cyberelijah said:

@Patty Carey Yes it is possible.  It sounds like you still have not given enough time to adjust to the Valium which takes a short amount of time, but you can always switch over again.  It took me about 6 1/2 weeks to 7 weeks to fully adjust back to Valium and it was much better. Just make sure you don’t jump back-and-forth constantly between Benzo’s.
 

Just make sure you take it nice and easy. Only you know your own body. 
 

 

 

When you switched were you sick all the time? That's the problem I'm having I'm sick all the time I have horrible headaches and I don't know if that's part of it or if it's just me.

 

[Patty Carey]

Just now, Patty Carey said:

 

Also were you able to change over with Ativan I don't have that Advantage because my doctor refuses to do crossover. He told me that he could get in trouble with his medical license for prescribing two different benzodiazepines at the same time.

[WebDevElijah]

@Patty Carey Just my opinion.....I was on Ativan for a few weeks and then Klonopin in the hospital after I went cold turkey after years on benzos. They wanted to just switch me over to Valium, but I ended up doing my own crossover.  If you don't do a crossover, you can feel bad for a few weeks but it should level out once your body adjusts to Valium.  In my own option, if I was in your shoes, I would personally stick with the Valium to see how you feel after giving it some time.  The reason I didn't switch back to Ativan or the shorter acting benzo was because I did not want to to have inter-dose withdrawal and I knew Valium had such a long half life that it would take awhile to fully start working...so I decided to stay on track and I am glad I did.  Just my 2 cents, but in the end it is your decision.

 

 

[Rosalind]

Patty are you taking any other psychiatric medication? Just a thought in case there’s any interference for you. 

[Patty Carey]

9 hours ago, cyberelijah said:

@Patty Carey Just my opinion.....I was on Ativan for a few weeks and then Klonopin in the hospital after I went cold turkey after years on benzos. They wanted to just switch me over to Valium, but I ended up doing my own crossover.  If you don't do a crossover, you can feel bad for a few weeks but it should level out once your body adjusts to Valium.  In my own option, if I was in your shoes, I would personally stick with the Valium to see how you feel after giving it some time.  The reason I didn't switch back to Ativan or the shorter acting benzo was because I did not want to to have inter-dose withdrawal and I knew Valium had such a long half life that it would take awhile to fully start working...so I decided to stay on track and I am glad I did.  Just my 2 cents, but in the end it is your decision.

 

 

25mg lamotragine and 50 mg Bupropion Sr twice a day.  I can't take the 100 because I'm super sensitive to medication

 

[Patty Carey]

13 hours ago, Patty Carey said:

 

How short?  I've been sick and I mean really sick since last Tuesday.

[linda116116]

On 12/19/2024 at 4:10 PM, Patty Carey said:

My doctor recently switched me from Ativan to Valium and I am having a horrible time feeling completely exhausted and worn out even though I'm on the comparable dose to Ativan. I'm just wondering when this will subside and I will stop being so tired and feeling awful.

I could not switch..I could sleep with Valium..but then I don't think it was big enough dose.

[linda116116]

I understand lots of folks cannot tolerate Valium. 

 

[Patty Carey]

How do I tag someone?  I wanted to tag cyberelijah.  I wanted to let him know I was finally able to switch from Ativan to Valium and I've been doing pretty good the last 2 days but during the day every so often out of the blue I have a panic attack. It's scaring me cuz it's making me think I'm losing my mind so I'm wondering if this is a normal thing?

Edited December 29, 2024 by Patty Carey
Misspelling

[WebDevElijah]

@Patty Carey Did you do a direct switch without a crossover?   If you did a direct switch, you need to give it a short amount of time for the Valium to build up in your system due to its very long half-life.  This can be absolutely normal until the Valium completely builds up in your system. You’re gonna be just fine just stay focused and stay on track so things settle.  Lastly, don’t start any tapers until your body has adjusted.

 

 

 

 

[Patty Carey]

@cyberelijah I really appreciate your advice and encouragement so much. So feeling like I can't get out of bed and I have zero energy and I'm weak is probably part of the adjustment too I'm guessing?  I also struggle with major depression so I hope this doesn't make it worse?

And yes I did the straight crossover.