Clonazepam for Bipolar Disorder User Reviews (Page 3)

• jas...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• May 28, 2012

Clonazepam "For me, Klonopin 1 mg 4x daily has helped me with my social and overall anxiety. With that being said, for my nerves, it's a great medicine. In combination with my Lamictal 200 mg, it also helps keep my moods at a more even level, especially my mania, which I seem to have much more than depression."

• Anonymous
• April 28, 2009

Clonazepam "This medicine made me worse. I became aggressive and violent. The only time I have ever seriously thought I was going to really hurt someone was while I was on this medicine. I unfortunately wasn't able to stay on this long enough to see whether this would have gotten better."

• Ret...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• December 15, 2022

"Clonazepam is by far the best medicine for my bipolar, as well as my anxiety. There was a shortage here in Finland, which caused some problems with having to take Valium, which does not work as well. Clonazepam is a genuine lifesaver!"

• PSa...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• January 5, 2020

"I was overcome 24/7 with severe anxiety and had panic attacks. Was on lithium and Paxil. Added Seroquel for about 1 year. Bipolar I; took about 6 years to recover, get off SSDI, and get my life back. Was on up to 3 mgs clonazepam a day, reduced over the 4 years I took it, and was on 1 mg at night for the last couple of years. Recently tapered off completely. I did not rush the tapering and had little difficulty. Mainly had some issues with insomnia."

• Cor...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 31, 2020

"Clonazepam really helps with my TMJ since all the other medications tend to work for a short duration. I was originally prescribed Klonopin for anxiety but noticed it really relaxes my muscles, so I was able to get off my baclofen and Flexeril. I could have kept all three but told the doc the other two were unnecessary."

• Anonymous
• September 12, 2009

"Three years after being diagnosed with Bipolar 1, I was put on 2 mg of Rivotril to be taken at night following a car accident. When it was prescribed, I was in a poor state of mental health and was suffering from extreme agitation and horrible nightmares. After taking clonazepam for a while, I noticed that not only did it calm agitation, but it helped stabilize my mood. It has made my mood more consistent and improved it dramatically. I consistently feel calm, positive, and mentally stable. I've been prescribed other benzodiazepines in the past, but clonazepam has by far been the most effective. Overall, an excellent medication also considering that it isn't subject to metabolite accumulation."

• Yev...
• April 23, 2013

"I've been on this medicine for about a month. I am currently on 1 mg 3 times daily. There is no kick to it, in that it's so smooth I'm not sure it's working. I have fewer outbursts, so I think it helps with that."

• JSt...
• July 8, 2009

"I'm bipolar and suffer from panic attacks. I'm really impressed with how well clonazepam works. I take 0.5 mg x 4 times daily. I do feel a sense of calm and evenness with this medication, which is important with my bipolar disorder. Highly recommended."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• March 17, 2022

"Works as designed, every time. Saved me from a lot of what could be bad days. Only thing is they make me a little sad, but a lot happier when it kicked in and my anxiety faded into the mist as quick as it came. The tiredness and sluggishness that you get sucks if you have to get things done. Keep this to yourself and don't tell anyone you take this because they will judge and call you something stupid. They don't understand how it is to live with mental illness, especially bipolar. Anxiety and panic attacks are real things we deal with in this specific illness and can be debilitating, to say the least. Klonopin is a good med, a lot better than alprazolam in my opinion. Way better than SSRI or mood stabilizer garbage."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 28, 2022

"I live with seasonal bipolar 2, and my manic phases have been getting progressively worse; when they start in the spring, it's like I'm going 800 miles an hour, and my movements and gait are all off. I go from being a rather well-coordinated person to crashing into things and practically ripping doors off because I can no longer calibrate my movements. I can no longer figure out how to make coffee or use the TV remote. It's beyond awful, and I become completely dysfunctional and have to take 2 weeks off work. Then it starts to slow down, and I gradually get to 'normal manic', where I function better but am still a little speedy and overreact to things and can't sleep more than a couple of hours, which makes me exhausted. It was at this point that a psychiatrist suggested 0.025 mg clonazepam, and it was like a miracle -- I could fall asleep, woke up happy and almost calm, and it has stayed that way. I can work normally. I feel the mania is still there, but under far better control. Life-saver."

• esp...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 27, 2016

"Not quite strong enough for me by itself, but it helped me sleep easier during the roughest period of my life (losing my mother) when combined with Xanax, Ativan, Halcion, Lamictal, and Risperdal (though I did have problems with the Risperdal - but I put that there)."

• AFC...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 28, 2022

"I have bipolar disorder, in theory type 1, but I have only had one mania and most of the time depression. I am currently on lamotrigine and asenapine, although I could take the lowest dose of olanzapine, which does not harm me or make me fat. I have a very stressful job where I occasionally do night shifts. Those nights I take clonazepam instead of an antipsychotic, and it works for me, I do not fall asleep. I have also used it hundreds of times for anxiety in depression before they went away with lamotrigine. It is an ideal drug for me. I don't get interdose withdrawal symptoms like other benzodiazepines if I don't take it for several hours, or even days. Clonazepam has been the only drug that has really helped me in my treatment without extreme side effects until I found lamotrigine. A negative point is that if I take it for a long time, I get used to its effects, and I need more and more, so I take it occasionally, and it works wonderfully for me."

• BP-...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 28, 2022

"After 2 years of starting, stopping, and switching between and in combination of antipsychotics (atypical and/or second-generation {SGA} and/or mood stabilizers or antimanics): Lithium, Seroquel, Abilify, Geodon; antidepressants (a.k.a. serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors {SNRIs}): Cymbalta, Effexor, and/or (a.k.a. selective-serotonin reuptake inhibitors {SSRIs}): Celexa, Prozac, Zoloft; anticonvulsants: Depakote, Lamictal, Topamax; tricyclics and tetracyclics: Elavil, Norpramin; Central Nervous System (CNS) stimulants: Adderall ER/IR and insomniac remedies every 2-6 weeks, adding Klonopin 0.5 mg 2x p/day PRN to the combination of Geodon 500 mg p/day, Abilify 20 mg 2x p/day, Adderall ER 30 mg 2x p/day and IR 10 mg 2x p/day and Seroquel 25 mg and Doxepin 6 mg at night was like adding the missing Maraschino cherries to a Shirley Temple for me. Klonopin rectified the negative side effects of my pharmaceutical combinations and is fast-acting. Lifestyle-changer; I can finally breathe."

• Cha...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• June 7, 2023

"I have been on clonazepam for 7 years. It has been the only medication that has kept me from self-medicating with illegal substances. The only issue is every single doctor I have wants to take it from me."

• Mis...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 31, 2017

Clonazepam "When a person has mental symptoms, they're supposed to have a medical workup always. The reason is that many medical conditions mimic mental illness until treated. Then zero symptoms forever (mentally). If a person has myxedema (severe hypothyroidism), gets misdiagnosed as mentally ill (schizophrenia, bipolar, delusional disorder, depression, anxiety ... all common misdiagnoses in thyroid disease), Klonopin can induce coma. This happened to me, and then they realized I was not mentally ill. Had no symptoms since healing from this dreadfully dangerous drug. Read 'Physical Illness Presenting as Psychiatric Disease' before taking any psych drug. Any sedative, hypnotic, even Advil, can cause myxedema coma 40% chance death. See iatrogenic coma & other articles."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• May 13, 2023

"I suffer from ADHD, GAD, and either treatment-resistant unipolar or bipolar depression. Which one is not really relevant as, in order for me to benefit from medication, it needs to be tolerable and not produce side effects worse than the disease itself. Clonazepam or alprazolam are two of only a handful of medications that help my symptoms and don't cause severe adverse reactions. Alprazolam can be more difficult to discontinue if that becomes necessary. I have heard some people talking about dependency, and that is something to consider, depending on your tendencies toward addiction. Also, a red flag would be noticing that it takes more and more of one of these meds to provide the same symptom relief. If that happens, you should know pretty quickly, at which point it is your responsibility to inform your doctor. Otherwise, in my experience, these can be safe and effective medications."

• kol...
• September 11, 2009

Clonazepam "When my dosage was increased from 100 mg to 200 mg, what a remarkable change. I felt relaxed, less anxiety. With the combination of Seroquel and Cymbalta, it was a lot easier dealing with the minor things in life."

• Bug...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 4, 2016

"This Clonopin does not work at all. It makes me nauseous and irritable. It also gives me acne. They were out of the yellow tablets, so they gave me the pink ones instead. I will not take these pain pills anymore."

• MrG...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 11, 2014

Clonazepam "Like night and day. My wife loves my change in moods. I have also been able to stay on tasks 100% better."

• ult...
• November 13, 2008

Clonazepam "Klonopin has been great for both the anxiety and agitation associated with my bipolar symptoms, even on the lowest 0.5 mg dose."

• kri...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 19, 2013

Clonazepam "Love them. They take anxiety and the bipolar away, and I can finally sleep."

• BPo...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• October 13, 2013

Clonazepam "I've used it on and off for 15 years. It works fast for my anxiety. While I only use it infrequently, it has always been safe and effective."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• August 12, 2012

Clonazepam "Keeps you in the middle (not depressed or manic). No side effects other than being tired in the beginning. Helps with other medicines like lithium and Wellbutrin."

• big...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 29, 2014

Clonazepam "Helped with the manic episode."

• Anonymous
• December 16, 2009

Clonazepam "Just started trying Klonopin, really helps me to feel less anxious and relaxed. Not as stressed as I usually am. Hope this lasts. I get great night sleep as well."