Lorazepam for Anxiety User Reviews (Page 2)

• Ban...
• April 20, 2019

"My doctor finally prescribed me a benzo after having numerous meltdowns in her office. Also after switching SSRI medications multiple times. I have had panic attacks and anxiety since I was 15 years old. She wrote me lorazepam, and I was so happy. I wanted something to stop the attacks. She wrote me 0.5 mg, so the next panic attack I took one, and nothing. So next panic attack I tried it again, and nothing. I knew you could take up to 2 mg, so the next panic attack I took 1 mg. So next I tried 2 mg. Nothing. I'm a pharmacy tech, so I asked my pharmacist if that happened often, and he was very surprised. He said it should have helped, and he didn't understand at all how I didn't feel at ease once I had taken the drug. I have never been on drugs, I had never taken a benzo before. All I take is Effexor and Prozac. I was so disappointed, and I don't think my doctor will ever give me anything again because it was like pulling teeth to get that prescription. I don't know why it's so hard to get help."

• Mel...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 28, 2019

"First 2 weeks helped, but noticed lost appetite within 6 weeks. And a lot of muscle aches and pains where I couldn't move legs. Sometime towards 2 months in, started bad headaches and burning in head. After 4 months, even lost 20 pounds, and I was only 135 pounds. Dr. put me on clonazepam, but want off all of it. Things are supposed to help, not make it worse."

• Jon...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 11, 2019

"I’m 23 and suffer from very bad anxiety. My doctor let me try 0.5 mg of Ativan, and, as soon as I took a dose of it, I began to hallucinate! Visually and audibly. That made my anxiety even worse. It was like taking Ambien in the middle of the day. When I told my doctor, he said that’s actually a common side effect of Ativan, which surprised me. I don’t know why I have this reaction to Ativan since Xanax, Valium, and Klonopin work absolutely fine for me and don’t cause this scary side effect. I’m sticking to Klonopin. There are much better anti-anxiety medications than Ativan."

• EJK...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 13, 2018

Lorazepam "Yes, it will stop panic attacks, but good luck coming off it. I was having severe anxiety after a bad spell of taking Lexapro, which made my anxiety worse and gave me constant panic attacks, so my doctor had me taking 0.5 mg three times a day. I was so grateful to have some relief that I didn't question the dose, but the more I read about dependence, the more nervous I became. I started tapering off it after only a month, and I thought I was going to die. Hallucinating, insomnia where I didn't sleep for days, couldn't keep down solid food, crippling depression, and agoraphobia... it was a nightmare, and I was contemplating checking into a hospital. I eventually transitioned to buspirone and eventually Pristiq. Such a nightmare. I can't recommend Ativan to anyone who may be sensitive to benzos."

• Kan...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 9, 2018

Lorazepam "I am the 1% of people who take Ativan and suffer from extreme anxiety and paranoia. If you experience these symptoms, you are NOT alone, but you should stop taking the medication (with help from a doctor). Once I stopped taking it, I felt so much better and was not paranoid or filled with anxiety."

• Jas...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 22, 2018

Lorazepam "Terrible and dangerous. Muscle jerking, auditory hallucinations, jumpy all day. Even worse anxiety. If it is not life or death, do not take!!!!"

• Bon...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• August 19, 2018

"Has anyone been on this drug for 25 - 30 years? Once it was a miracle for me. Now, not so much. Doc never said it was addicting but had me take 1 mg 3 x per day and Ambien for sleep. Lexapro, too. No one in the medical field admits to this drug affecting the heart, I mean so that you have to take it. So what should ya do? Try to taper? Tried a detox program/crash course 7 days. Trying melatonin for sleep, not benzos. Down to 1 mg each morning, would like to get off or have them work like they did in the beginning. Any comments?"

• Bob...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 30, 2018

"I took a 0.5 Ativan for anxiety last night. It increased my anxiety, and I couldn't sleep."

• Do...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 8, 2017

Lorazepam "My husband was 38 years old and committed suicide while taking Ativan. This medication was administered to him from two different psychiatrists. Ativan was prescribed for his anxiety. He took it in combination with Welbutrin for his depression. He was on Ativan for approximately three months. The medication made his heart race because of the lethal combination mixing with Welbutrin for his depression. He became manic, paranoid, and had extreme body tremors, insomnia, and many trips to the Emergency Room from side effects. This company knows it can cause suicide and writes it on the label. Do not take it."

• Tin...
• July 15, 2017

"I was given a double dose of Ativan IV in the hospital and 1 mg dose pills for home! Only took .25 on occasion, and now I'm having withdrawal symptoms! Can anyone answer my question about Ativan being addictive with only .25 mg occasionally?"

• Ben...
• July 5, 2017

Lorazepam "You would have to be crazy to take Ativan. I took 1-2 mg 2x a day for 6 months and had withdrawal symptoms for almost 4 years after stopping over a 2-week period per my doctor. If you think your life is bad before taking Ativan, just wait until you experience the withdrawal and aftereffects of this poison. After 2 years, I still had vibrating, hypersensitive vision and hearing. Burning in your nerves, especially in your feet. Forget sleep, all you do is lie in bed awake for me, almost 2 years dreaming while awake. That part was the most torturous part of the med. The FDA needs to remove Ativan from FDA approval immediately."

• Mar...
• May 4, 2017

Lorazepam "I was prescribed this a few months ago, getting anxiety while driving. The prescription is '0.5 mg once a day as needed.' I have taken it about 3-5 times a week, a few times, I have taken it twice a day. I have been having family issues recently, and I first thought that was the reason my occasional anxiety has progressed to debilitating (flying off the handle, depressive dying thoughts, chest pains), but after research, I've concluded that I'm actually going through withdrawal when I don't take it every day. Now it's 2:36 AM, I'm scared, my mind won't shut off, don't know how to wean off of this properly. I'm tired, will be calling into work in the morning for lack of sleep. Please do not take this and just get counseling for your anxiety first."

• Pau...
• April 20, 2017

Lorazepam "Have been taking this for situational anxiety for many years. It worked to some degree, but I would always feel depressed afterwards, which was awful. Last year, I used it daily, up to 1.5 mg, while I was changing my antidepressant. This was a huge mistake. I soon reached the tolerance and began to get rebound anxiety, which started up every morning. I've been off of it for 10 weeks now and still suffering. This is really hard to come off of. My advice is don't take this more than once a week, and that may be too much. My anxiety is so much worse because of lorazepam."

• Gat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 24, 2017

Lorazepam "This drug is the devil. The first few doses work like magic. After 1 week, a hellish withdrawal starts kicking in about 2 hours after taking each dose. Impossible to wean off of without a doctor who's familiar with this highly addictive drug."

• Jay...
• March 18, 2017

Lorazepam "Sitting here, shaking in my boots. This stuff is weak: 1 mg, 3 times a day."

• Des...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 14, 2017

"I've been struggling with depression but mostly anxiety for 16 years. I take an antidepressant, and last year I tried to change it three times. During this time I began to use Lorazepam daily and began to increase it when it wasn't working for me. Needless to say, this was the worst year ever. My anxiety symptoms were hell. After reading about Lorazepam and the problems with tolerance, rebound anxiety, looping, and withdrawal, I realized my problem was not the antidepressants but Lorazepam. If you take it once a month or several times per year, it could help and shouldn't hurt you, but if you take it every day, you are asking for trouble. My recommendation is to avoid Lorazepam at all costs."

• Dea...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 15, 2016

"Before I explain, let me start off by saying I do not take meds, not even for a headache. This is a very rare circumstance. My Dr knows this and will ask me if I'm going to fill the prescription as to not waste either of our time. I usually say no, and we discuss non-medicinal ways to cope. This time I said yes and got 0.5 mg lorazepam, and in the 3 days I've taken them, I'm more anxious!"

• TH1...
• June 26, 2016

Lorazepam "Do your research before taking! Consult with your doctor, but also be aware of the side effects involved. Symptoms include dizziness, fatigue, muscle weakness, slowed speech, muscle spasms, twitching/fidgeting, and nightmares. Not for everyone."

• cle...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 2, 2016

"This drug nearly ruined my life. But, you don't have to believe me. Just go Google 'lorazepam withdrawal' or 'Ativan withdrawal,' and you can see it for yourself. I was never told how horrific the withdrawal would be from this medicine. I have spent nearly five months in extreme anxiety that is nearly fifty times the intensity of the anxiety I had when starting this med. The doctors are not educated on the w/d of this med because the pharm companies do not release these studies because then they wouldn't prescribe it! I became agitated, suicidal, depressed, and had PTSD-like symptoms from this drug. Not one person warned me, and I just took it every day like the bottle said, many times LESS than prescribed. PLEASE do your research!"

• mcn...
• May 2, 2016

"BEWARE!! Some people have no problem with this benzodiazepine, yet there are many who do, such as myself. I took it for hyperthyroid. It has ruined the last 14 months of my life!!! Words cannot express the mental and physical torture I experience daily. PLEASE Google Professor Ashton to read the side effects. Visit Benzo Buddies. You will learn about the horrors these meds cause, as well as success stories of those who survived this! There has been a bill introduced in Massachusetts to get doctors to warn their patients!! Warn everyone you know! Don't be fooled! My world has been turned upside down, and I don't want it to happen to you!!"

• hea...
• March 24, 2016

Lorazepam "Instead of calming me down and relaxing me from my anxiety and panicky feelings, it made them extremely worse. I thought I was going to lose my mind. Well, actually for a brief time, I did. It caused me to have a nervous breakdown. This was only on the second day I took it. I didn't know what was going on or what was happening. I thought I was going to lose my mind, and before I knew it, I slit one of my wrists. I have never had any intention of doing this before taking Ativan. Thankfully, help came, and I got 8 staples put in my wrist where I cut it. I will never take this medicine ever again. I just want to be very careful taking this medicine. I have never had any reactions to medicines before until this medicine I took back on Sept 16, 2015."

• No ...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 3, 2016

Lorazepam "I was prescribed Ativan .5 mg and ended up having a horrible adverse reaction that landed me in the ER. I experienced 20 side effects from this medication."

• Mol...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 29, 2015

Lorazepam "I took lorazepam for 19 days at .5 mg as needed. I was taking them in the afternoon around 4:30. The doctor only gave me 20 pills for anxiety and sent me home. While taking them, I was feeling even worse, I couldn't sleep, I would wake up shaking and scared, and couldn't eat until I took the pill. I decided to stop taking them because I was getting more anxiety and wired thoughts and was shaking all day. So, I quit cold turkey - I didn't know I was to taper off. On the second day of not taking it, I couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, walking around feeling like I'm going crazy, a lot of anxiety attacks and panic attacks. I don't feel joy or happiness. The only thing I could think of is I'm having withdrawals. I stopped taking it on December 9, 2015, it is now December 29, 2015."

• R C...
• November 6, 2015

Lorazepam "Highly addictive, caused severe panic attacks when trying to go off. Got this reaction after only 2 days of 1-2 for sleep. Very dangerous drug. Helps you sleep, but nearly impossible to stop! Most need rehab, was one of the meds Heath Ledger had in his system. Tammy Faye took up to 25-30 a day! Stay away from this drug!?"

• Hat...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 4, 2015

Lorazepam "I took 0.5 mg Ativan 2 times a day for 14 days. I noticed I wasn't getting the same anti-anxiety effect, so I decided to stop taking it. I figured it had only been 2 weeks, so stopping should not have been a problem. I then proceeded into 11 days of HELL. The first 2 days were not too bad, but every day progressively got worse. The insomnia was the worst. I got to the point where I would dread the night. And then the nightmares started. They were horribly dark. I thought I was going to die. I finally would take 0.5 mg every other or every third night just to get some sleep. It took me months to find a doctor who understood how to get off the Ativan. I'm now on a 2.5% taper (40 weeks). I'm on week 9. Not fun. DO NOT TAKE IT."