Klonopin and Withdrawal: What Users Say

• TOa...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• April 20, 2025

For Panic Disorder "This drug, even at a medium to low dose, once given - is nearly impossible to stop taking. I for one have no desire to ever stop taking it. It gave me relief at 33 years old from a life of nonstop anxiety. It was godsend. However, the issue lies within the medical profession in different regions of the country. I have relocated 9 times in 15 years for work. 9 times, I was told no, we cannot prescribe a controlled substance to a new patient regardless of Dr. records showing I’d been taking Klonopin for years. I literally have been shut down at the window at a new Dr. office, ERs have made me feel humiliated, previous Drs. can’t call in controlled substances across state lines - NINE TIMES I have had to go through the absolute worst nightmare of withdrawals I have ever experienced. Because the medical profession turned their back on me. And continues. I am terrified to move because this will happen again."

• Eva...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• March 12, 2023

For Panic Disorder "I have taken varying doses of clonazepam for almost 30 years. Some of those years I took none at all. As a highly anxious person in general, I was scared to even try it for fear of addiction, withdrawal, etc. But after a particularly bad panic attack where I felt I was going to lose my mind, I asked my psychiatrist for Klonopin, because several people in my family have used it with great success. It is the very best benzo I have tried for anxiety and panic; it has a long half-life, which means (for me) that when I finally clear it, I am so far removed from the anxiety or panic-inducing thoughts that I don't simply just fall back into the abyss. I have a deep and abiding respect for this drug, as it has arrested several near falls into runaway anxiety that always leads me to my most feared outcome: a major depressive episode. You can take it sublingually for quicker effect; it has a sweet, benign taste."

• Gho...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• September 11, 2022

For Seizure Prevention "This medicine is for short-term use, not long-term. Around 2016, a black box label was placed on this medication. In the past, I went through withdrawals because I did not have the proper doctor. I live with protracted withdrawals, a.k.a. PAWS. I went through depersonalization. It was and still is a living nightmare. Want the truth about Klonopin? I would suggest that before anyone starts taking this medication, read the Ashton Manual. You can find it online and can read all about how this medication has negative side effects. I wish I would have known what I know now years ago. People don't have any idea what this medication can do. I had a seizure and came close to death. Having a doctor is very important, one that will work with you. Let me make this clear: all of my medicine was written by a professional doctor. PAWS effects can last forever, depending on how long you have been on this medication. Research is the key word."

• Gho...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• September 11, 2022

For Seizure Prevention "This medicine is for short-term use, not long-term. Around 2016, a black box label was placed on this medication. In the past, I went through withdrawals because I did not have the proper doctor. I live with protracted withdrawals, aka PAWS. I went through depersonalization, and it was and still is a living nightmare. Want the truth about Klonopin? I would suggest that before anyone starts taking this medication, read the Ashton Manual. You can find it online and can read all about how this medication has negative side effects. I wish I would have known what I know now years ago. People don't have any idea what this medication can do to you. I had a seizure and came close to death. Having a doctor is very important, one that will work with you. Let me make this clear: all of my medicine was written by a professional doctor. PAWS effects can last forever, depending on how long you have been on this medication. Research is the key word."

• Bel...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• August 30, 2019

For Panic Disorder "I've been on Klonopin for probably 25 years. It's worked so much better than Xanax. I got down to taking 0.25 at night and 0.25 in the morning. But this year my mom died, and I had been her caregiver for a long time with zero support. I did great until she died, now I'm having panic attacks again. I have fought with myself about upping my dose since I do know what withdrawal is like, but today I took extra. My doctor told me I should. To be honest, I am ready to feel normal again. I'm tired of not being able to participate in life."

• Whe...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• December 28, 2018

For Panic Disorder "Doc put me on Klonopin 2-3 mg/day after a brain injury. After a few years, my quality of life started falling quickly. After much reading, I found that Klonopin was causing the anxiety due to tolerance withdrawals, caused by increasing tolerance with no dose escalation. I was ripped off of the medication and barely survived. Six months of severe withdrawals: didn't sleep, could barely eat, muscles so stiff that walking was difficult, severe tinnitus, etc., etc. DO NOT take this medication for more than a few days or you are risking one of the most severe addictions known to man."

• Ron...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• August 21, 2018

For Seizure Prevention "I've been on 2 mg, 3 times daily for the last 10 years for seizures and haven't had any problems with the drug. I've let myself run out in the past a few times, and the withdrawal is mild compared to powerful narcotic analgesics such as OxyContin or methadone."

• mil...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• August 13, 2017

For Panic Disorder "I have been on Klonopin for 17 years. I started with 0.5mg in the morning with an SSRI. Over the years, all the SSRIs would work for a bit, then I would have to change. In the last year, I lost my husband suddenly at 38 and have changed SSRIs 4 times, and finally said no more. I am currently on 10mg of Lexapro and 1.5mg of Klonopin. The withdrawal of Lexapro and before that Effexor have been hellish. If not for Klonopin, I wouldn't make it through the day. Addictive or not, it works."

• Don...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• June 16, 2016

For Panic Disorder "My doctor began prescribing Klonopin 1 mg 3 times a day when I was 23 years old to help treat anxiety and sleep disorders. I took Xanax for 11 years, and it did help my symptoms, although I did build up a tolerance pretty fast but kept at the same dose. But when my doctor retired and a new doctor took over his practice, I was abruptly discontinued from Xanax. This was a dangerous thing to do. I began to go into withdrawals within one day without the Xanax. The withdrawals were excruciating and lasted for weeks. I was in constant extreme anxiety. Sleep was nearly totally absent for more than two weeks. My thoughts started to become almost to the point of psychosis, which also lasted for weeks. So never abruptly stop benzos unless medically supervised."

• Ann...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• June 11, 2016

For Anxiety "Yes, this medication works. It works very well for chronic anxiety disorder and sudden onsets of severe panic attacks. Knowing what I know now, I wish with all my being it had never ever been prescribed to me, and without the absurd nonchalance dozens of practitioners have portrayed. I'm 32 and have been prescribed clonazepam for 14 years. I've been in situations where my health insurance is in transition and I must go off the medication abruptly - this is when I realized how deep I was. Weeks upon weeks of non-stop physical, emotional, and psychological withdrawal effects that are like hell. Words cannot accurately describe just how awful it is. This, again, has been my experience during withdrawal as a long-term clonazepam patient. All skin, especially the face, becomes numb. Vision gets fuzzy and difficult to see clearly. Panic attacks become extremely exacerbated, frequent, and debilitating. Severe irritability. Worst of all: a terrifying disconnection between your mind and body; as if you're an onlooker watching and feeling this horrible thing happen to you, but not actually feeling connected to any of it - that one is tough to explain. All of this... It can last months, maybe more. That's right. Not just some one-week hump to overcome. After finding how awful the withdrawal is, I've been attempting to wean very, very slowly down from 3 2mg doses per day to eventually zero, hopefully. After six months of gradually decreasing in dose, I'm now at 2 - 1mg doses per day, and I'm not sure how or if I can go much less than that. No doctors I've had have been of any help. The wean down was my idea, and the rate of it was also my idea based on experience. It sure would be nice to meet a doctor that truly had knowledge of this withdrawal syndrome and took it a bit more seriously. I am confident that the medication is no longer treating my anxiety disorder, but simply preventing withdrawal from the meds themselves. And there don't seem to be any good alternatives. It's a long road ahead, please think it over and over with someone knowledgeable before being so quick to embrace this miracle drug. The truth is that most of us actually need very real psychotherapy, not chemicals that run our lives. Once again, all my point of view from my personal experience. It feels very good to share this."

• Har...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• March 8, 2016

For Anxiety "This 'medicine' ruined my life. I took it just as the doctor prescribed Clonazepam, 5 mg every night before bed. He said I would probably need them for the rest of my life. He failed to tell me these are very powerful tranquilizers (all benzos are). We are only supposed to take these for no more than 2 weeks! It worked well for many years until one day it quit working. Tolerance, withdrawal, sick 24/7, med no longer works, sheer panic. Suffering all since that day, and it's been one year off now. These meds also cause depression over the years. I had a great life until this med caused me to lose everything! Nightmare! Please, don't walk, run from this poison!"

• Gen...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• April 7, 2013

For Anxiety "This medication opened up a whole new world for me. I developed a very bad anxiety and panic disorder and lived with it for years. Therapy and many other medications did not help! I didn't notice much of a difference initially, but by the time I was up to 1 mg 3 times a day, my life so greatly improved. I currently take another medication (Xanax). I was taken off the medication because I became an alcoholic. When I detoxed from alcohol, I was immediately taken off Klonopin. My only concern for people that are taking it is that if they decide to stop, please withdraw from it properly by a gradual reduction over a period of time. The hospital took me off of it without gradually reducing it. The withdrawal was horrible!"

• Mou...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• August 4, 2018

For Panic Disorder "Klonopin is very effective with my anxiety disorder. However, stay away from it. You will be addicted before you know it and will seek more and more. If you don't have it, you feel like you are in hell. Withdrawal symptoms are horrible, and you lose control of everything. You will get rebound anxiety, which is worse than your original anxiety. This is so bad that you cannot function without it. Therefore, you have to continue using it to avoid the withdrawal symptoms because they are so awful. Please, if your doctor prescribed this drug, refuse it and take a non-benzo drug. You will rue the day you ever started using it. I am out of medicine now and am in just terrible shape that I cannot sleep. Yes, it is very effective at treating your disorder, but it has got to be the worst drug to come off of. I was in rehab, and even the heroin abusers didn't have as bad withdrawal as I did. Yes, run away from this drug. It will help you but eventually destroy you."

• Eri...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• March 16, 2017

For Anxiety "This drug should not be prescribed for more than two weeks (and this has been known since the eighties). Most doctors in the USA don't have a clue about what benzos do to the lives of the patients they are prescribing to, and especially how difficult it is for patients to withdraw from these drugs. I was completely dependent on clonazepam after 30 days and remained on it for about eight years before I realized I had to get off of clonazepam if I wanted a chance to become healthy again. It took me 7 horrifying months to taper off, and I became disabled during that time. I lost about 85% of my long- and short-term memory during that time. I am educated, but I did not research this drug before I took it. Please don't make that mistake."

• Ves...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• June 22, 2016

For Seizure Prevention "This medicine made me confused, slur my words, exhausted. I was basically living in a fog for over five years. No amount of sleep helped, I needed to take a nap every day and would still be tired when I woke up. I had difficulty thinking, repeated sentences, had anxiety attacks. This medication is only supposed to be given for a maximum of 2 weeks. It's highly addictive, and the user develops a high tolerance. Long-term usage can result in brain damage, and benzos are the most overly prescribed drug in the world. Withdrawal was horrible, but worth it! I got my life back after getting off of it, and I don't have anxiety or seizures, changed my lifestyle, diet, and exercise."

• Raf...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 26, 2015

For Anxiety "I was diagnosed with PTSD and GAD after 2 tours in combat. I began to suffer from anxiety in 2009, I was prescribed Zoloft and Klonopin .25 mg (as needed). Klonopin was an immediate relief for unexpected anxiety attacks. 15 minutes later, I was functional again. After 2 years, Zoloft destroyed my libido. So I took myself off and relied only on Klonopin. It began as needed, then 2 a week, once every day, and finally twice a day. The anxieties were reoccurring quite often, I quickly built a dependence to get me through the day. It turns out that I was getting anxiety due to my addiction to Klonopin. I decided to get off cold turkey (not recommended) and I went through 2 weeks of withdrawals. It's a quick relief but addictive. Be careful!"

• Zac...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 6, 2015

For Anxiety "I was on this medication for approximately 5 years. The last couple of years, I had increasing anxiety and depression. I never increased my initial dose of 2 mg at night to help with sleep. My PDoc continued to insist that it was not the Klonopin that was causing my anxiety and depression. Who knows? I weaned myself off of the medication SLOWLY over 4 months. It really took me that amount of time, even that may have been too fast for me. When it works, it's helpful for me. The problem is that many people tend to build a tolerance to the med and will likely need to increase the dose to get the same effect, hence feelings of withdrawal that can come on automatically. I know everyone has his/her own opinion about this drug."

• Rya...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• November 3, 2020

For Panic Disorder "Story summarized: Believe the horror stories. They are true. I started taking it as a 30-day supply for anxiety and insomnia, it helped me so much I wanted more after the 30 days. Doctor wouldn’t do it, so I moved on. Didn’t take it for months, back to the old sleepless, anxious, angry person. Got the script, it helps every single day of my life. Newsflash: Good luck stopping. Same withdrawal as heroin. I will just take the pill and feel good and normal. 8 stars because it did pull me out of the death spiral, but lost 2 because nobody on earth deserves to take this nasty ass pill. Confusing, yup. It does help with a lot of different things... but good luck leaving!! :/"

• Ste...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 21, 2015

For Anxiety "Okay, here is the thing with Klonopin. It's a drug that works perfectly. There is literally no way to be anxious on a high enough dose, and benzos will be your saving grace if you are suffering from several panic attacks a day or even if you're catatonic. It's also got a pretty good record for being safe, as far as I know. Here's the bad part. Any drug that works too well, that allows you to feel too good on it, runs a high risk of dependency. Not only that, withdrawal from this drug is miserable and painful if not done correctly and under supervision. You'll be told this is 'not abusable as Xanax' because Xanax is common among recreational drug users. That's a fallacy. Klonopin is very easy to double up on and abuse. Do not mix with alcohol."

• met...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 12, 2021

For Panic Disorder "I'm prescribed to not take more than 1 mg per day as needed. Typically, I take between 0 and 4 mg per WEEK. Been on it for almost a year now. Taking it in this way has yielded zero negative results. I never get withdrawal symptoms the weeks, and (on a very rare lucky month) I don't take it. At this dose, combined with the Effexor and Trazodone, it's enough to end any panic attack within about 1 hour tops. I literally only take it when I have panic attacks. If you suffer from panic/anxiety and are OK using this only when you feel you really need it, it's a pretty good med. I don't doubt that those who are on ridiculous doses like 3 mg+ per day will have withdrawal issues, as this is a benzo after all. It also helps with my Autism symptoms. I'd say this drug is excellent if all you need is a once or twice weekly emergency med. I have not experienced consistently daily doses, so I have no input to that effect."

• Gar...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 9, 2013

For Anxiety "Please, please, please do your research before ever taking Klonopin or any drug in the benzodiazepine family. Klonopin has caused me great hardship and nearly cost me my life. And I am not alone - thousands of people have had horrific experiences with this drug. Please search 'benzo withdrawal' or similar to educate yourself. Looking back, my original anxiety was nothing compared to the torture I went through once I was addicted to Klonopin. And I am not through it yet. Words cannot explain the horror I went through. That is why I beg you to do your own research. Most doctors don't know or are in denial about the withdrawal effects of benzodiazepines. The stories you will find are not lies or exaggerations. Buyer beware! Please!!"

• Cyc...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 26, 2019

For Panic Disorder "It works very well. But it made me dull and sleepy. 2 mg a day on occasion isn't a problem. The half-life is over a day, so if you take it a lot or are told to take it daily, it will build up. If you have these problems, try a benzo that has fewer active metabolites and a shorter half-life. These side effects are much lower. Also, tolerance builds up over time, requiring more of the drug for the same effects. Withdrawal can be terrible, and the higher the dosage, the longer the suffering lasts."

• Pha...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 29, 2018

For Panic Disorder "This drug is responsible for ruining many lives. It should be a highly illegal substance considering how it permanently damages your brain. You will think it is sent from heaven initially, only to be plunged into unimaginable depths once you reach tolerance and have to wean off this poison. I've had protracted withdrawal symptoms for nearly 4 years after stopping this drug. I would give anything and everything to just have my original anxiety back. People have died from this drug, and many more have had their lives ruined beyond repair. Check on the internet about benzo injuries to see for yourself. The biggest mistake of my life was trusting my doctor that this pill was safe."

• Ama...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 10, 2015

For Anxiety "I have suffered with anxiety and panic attacks since I was 7. I'm currently 33 and just discovered Klonopin. I was on Paxil for 12 years, and it was a miracle pill until I built tolerance to it and it stopped working. I've recently switched to Zoloft, and it's been a rough road. However, my psychiatrist put me on Klonopin to help ease the anxiety, and it has been amazing. I only need 0.25 mg 2 to 3 times a day, but it gave me the ability to function. Even with withdrawal from Paxil and startup side effects from Zoloft, I can still keep my head straight. Anxiety and panic are debilitating, and when I weigh my options, I'd pick Klonopin every time."

• Dai...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 9, 2020

For Panic Disorder "I took Klonopin for the first time because I had a panic attack while driving on the highway. My emergency room physician prescribed me 0.5 mg prn as needed. I read some of the reviews before I took the medication. There were more negative comments than positive. So I broke the pill in half and took 0.25 mg because I didn’t know how the medication would make me feel. After I took the medication, 30 minutes later, I began to feel a warm sensation through my body. I started shaking, I was nauseated for 7 hours. Then throughout the day, I felt sedated for 2 days. During this time, I was at work and couldn’t function like I wanted to, so I had to leave my job because I didn’t feel safe at work and I couldn’t stay awake. This medication didn’t work until 8 hours later, I felt normal, back to the old me. After I took that one dose, I started having withdrawal symptoms and anxiety. I felt horrible. Please stay away from this drug."