I was given a few 1mg of xanax so I am wondering how long until they kick in? I'd like to not be anxious and go to sleep... any advise?
Anxiety - I normally take 1-2 1mg klonopin and they dont help with panic attack, what about xanax?
Question posted by eguzman8586 on 4 March 2013
Last updated on 24 November 2018 by AmandaB26
This question has also been asked and answered here: Klonopin vs Xanax - How are they different?
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7 Answers
AmandaB26
24 Nov 2018
Cutting out caffeine has been the difference in panic attacks or not. I love coffee but I started noticing I would get panicky after drinking it.
rubicon05
4 Oct 2014
Xanax starts giving you relief within a 1/2 hour, but only last for 2-3 hrs. A full night sleep would be tough. They definitely help with the anxious feeling, but the shelf life is 2 to 3 hrs. I would recommend the klonopin which has up to a 12 hr shelf life. I'm a service man who suffers from PTSD and currently take 1mg Xanax 2x a day and celexa 20 mg 1 a day to keep the symptoms from becoming to much. Seen and did to much in the sand to ever get rid of my symptoms. God Bless
TotalMess
26 Sep 2013
try it start with a small amount it could work
Inactive
23 June 2013
I was on xanax. Worked great but never lasted long. Dr had me on six mg a day. Switched doctors and he put me on klonopin and I only need two mg a day and it lasts the whole day
Inactive
5 March 2013
I take klonopin as well I do find that it does work for me taking it 1/2 hour prior to doing what make me anxious.
However you may want to ask your dr to add something to the mix since its not working.
Zoloft was something that was given to me in the beginning. It's suppose to help with anxiety as well. There are also some other meds out there as well.
One other suggestion is to not consume caffeine, this will only escalate your anxiety I love my coffee so I drink decaf.
Cbt therapy has also been very helpful for me as well
Good luck and breathe
eguzman8586
5 March 2013
Hi there! I appreciate your response =) I see now that I didn't clearly explain what my question was... Klonopin DOES work for me. My main reason for asking a question was that since I was out of my prescription of Klonopin I was able to be given a couple Xanax from my Aunt. The problem was that I took it in the morning when I awoke because I wake up with a racing heartbeat and feel like I am about to lose it. I took a 1 mg Xanax but I didn't wait long enough after taking it to eat so me breakfast because I wasn't getting any relief. I wanted to know how long I should wait for the next dosage to quote " have an empty stomach". It seems the medication works for me better that way to get the bet results. I waited a half hour before I had a very light breakfast but I was still feeling extremely anxious, so I wanted to know how long I should have waited in that case, after having the meager breakfast to dose again and take care of the anxiety?
Inactive
5 March 2013
Lol Now I understand, have you tired taking it prior to eating?
I have taken it before and it's always been fast acting like 15 min without food. I would guess maybe an hour after you eat please don't quote me on this though. It's been so long I don't remember
Best of luck
eguzman8586
5 March 2013
Thank you again for your help. I know that medications work differently depending on the person, but I really do appreciate your input =) I was able to receieve my prescriotion of my Klonopin today so all is taken care of now... so amazing to me how different medications work so differently depending on the person. But gladly I have my anxiety under control now that I have taken my Kolonopin. I am shocked when some say the Xanax works better... I don't like it much it makes me feel very drowsy and "loopy" and it takes away the anxiety sooner but breifly and Klonopin last most of the day until around dinner time or bed time =) Again I thank you. Have a most wonderful day!
Inactive
6 March 2013
Great I am glad your we able to get your meds.
I agree with you conplelty about klonopin being better then xanex I was on xanex for an as needed basis. I took it maybe 3 times. Yes it's was stringer and fast acting but it did the same to me loopy and exhausted. What I didn't like is how quickly it wore off and the anxiety returned. The dr quickly put me on klonopin which I am so ever greatful for and seems to work much better for me. My other issue was I couldn't drive on the xanex I was in La La land. Lol
Take care
eguzman8586
6 March 2013
Haha I know what you mean, unfortunately... I was not only at one point on xanax but norco (pain killer) as well and the doc said it was fine... umm no. I was driving home from work one day thinking I was okay until out of no where a big crash! I had hit something with my passenger side mirror and it was almost completely off! I just kept driving right but then went back so I could see where this happened and what I hit... or so I thought. I went back to where I believed it happened but I was so off in, like you say, "la la land", lol that where I thought it happened there were no signs at all of anything and I went back only minutes after it happened right down the road from my house... NOT GOOD! So never again would I be on xanax and pain killers. I have been in major car accidents so I have a really bad back that hurts chronically on a daily basis but I don't ask the doc for anything anymore just OTC and IB's.
Excedrin extra stregnth seems to work best actually for me. Most of the time I just deal with it now, once you mess up your back there is nothing you can do about it and it will be that way for life! It's been nice chatting with you =) Thank you
Inactive
26 Sep 2013
Good Morning
I know someone who also is having pain with a messed up back. Of course everyone is different but they went to this really qualified dr and was order for physical Therpy 3 times a week. The point of this was to strengthen the abdominal and core of of there body. After a couple of weeks they found some relief. It kind of made sense. If you abs and center of your body is strong it takes pressure off your back. To get to this point it was a painful process and expensive process. But what he was taught was well worth the everyday pain which they no longer existed. The back of course is one if the most important part of your body and everyone is different.
I hope this helps you and you are doing much better with the klonopin.
MeggieGirl
1 Aug 2016
This is a really old question, but I came across it. When you take Xanax, what you've eaten shouldn't matter. The reason it didn't work for you is because you were supposed to let it dissolve on your tongue. It enters rapidly into the bloodstream that way. A more sure way to get it into the bloodstream is to dissolve it *under* your tongue, though that's not the typical form of administration. I hope this helps!! :-) Meggie
jk13
4 March 2013
Klonopin is great for unpredictable and or continuous anxiety type disorders where as xanax is great for predictable and or situation based anxiety. Also, everyones body chemistry is different. For me, I need to take quite a bit over the converted amount of xanax for it to even work a bit for me. Klonopin however for whatever reason just works better with my chemistry. The opposite is also true for many, finding klonopin to not work very well at all.
Another detail to keep in mind is that you may simply need a higher dose. Around this last november I had to take 6 mg just to get my system calmed down. A couple months later I was back at my standard 3 mg, and now am in the process of stopping the med. as well as all of my other meds (excluding the one for chronic pain). My point is that sometimes your body needs more. If I were to take the 6 mg now it would knock me out as I'm no longer having issues with ptsd / anxiety / depression / etc.
Hope that this is of some help to you!
sincerely
Jeff K
eguzman8586
4 March 2013
Jeff K, I had a decent "mexican breakfast, well meager... a spoonful of beans and some rice... wondering what you suggest as far as how long I wait until I take another dose again to deal with the anxiety I am having at the moment. I took a dose of just 1mg this morning but only waited about a half hour before eating, which is probably why I am still having the anxiety and of course because klon works better but I have to wait a few days before I get that... how long should I wait to dose again do you think? so that the food digest and I have an "empty stomach". btw thank you for the advise
jk13
4 March 2013
Klonopin has a very very long half life. In other words, if you still have anxiety, I'd take the second dose right away.I'd also give your doc a call cause it sounds like the qty. that you need is off. Doctors will always start low and move on up as it's easier to tell if you need more of a med. vs. knowing if your taking too much.
Best of luck to you!
MrsSan
19 Aug 2013
Hi Jeff,
How did you finally get over your anxiety? 24 years here and have good times and bad times with it. None of the SSRI's have ever worked on me. I have been on Klonopin before and it worked wonders, years ago and it worked wonders, but no longer living in that state and Doc retired, so I can't find out the mgs I was on.
I am currently on 1.5 a day and thats not cutting it.
I also started seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist... but my brain is so stubborn to listen and step outside the box...
Anyway, Appreciate any feedback on how you did it.
Thanks!
Sue
jk13
20 Aug 2013
Every person is different, some seem to respond well to therapy, for me, it was meditation. For me, it seemed that my anxiety and ptsd manifested itself in the future as well as the past, even though at the time I was unaware. By depriving the self of this also seemed to deprive the very food that fed the illness. By living simply in the now is what shed the illness. As I said however, this is what worked for me, however, I do know that this isn't for everyone. If you have any additional questions, please do feel free to ask!
Jeff
12345nick
17 Nov 2016
Hey jeff just wondering i take klonopin as well and i was wondering for ur opinion on the matter of u saying klonopin isnt really for panic attacks more for day to day anxiety . My question would be will my klonopin stop an anxiety attack or panic attack i have serve anxiety/panic attacks i would love a response and would greatly appreciate it k thanks :)
Inactive
4 March 2013
Hello. Yes the Xanax will certainly help your panic situation/attacks. It works very quickly. Manufactured for fast term relief. Regards pledge
eguzman8586
4 March 2013
Hi there, well I got up this morning feeling just okay, last night I wasn't so I took two so 2mg and went to bed finally... I waited a bit this morning but I have anxiety everyday so I took one with my coffee, I know sometimes if you have a full stomach they don't work as quickly. But I am experience intense anxiety right now but just had my breakfast... suggestions as to how long before I dose again... ugh I really just want my Klonopin it works better for me like I had mentioned it may not be immediate for a panic attack but for what I have which is everyday anxiety issues it works because of it's long lasting effects. So how long should I wait to take another dose of the xanax today?
Related topics
klonopin, anxiety, panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder
Further information
- Klonopin uses and safety info
- Klonopin prescribing info & package insert (for Health Professionals)
- Side effects of Klonopin (detailed)
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