Question about ativan / xanex

[pawlowski187]

So I was at the er today and was prescribed Ativan .5 , they gave me one at the hospital as well... I'm home now and I can't get my new prx for Ativan till morning. I do have a .5 xanex with me incase, but is it safe to take even though I had an Ativan today? I took the Ativan at about 6 pm it's 10pm now in Oregon .... Just incase I have a bad episode will it be ok to take ?

[Chiliphil1]

Yes, it is ok to alternate the 2. However you should follow the dosing and take them no less than 6 hours apart.

Be careful with these pills, benzos can be a lifesaver but can also be extremely addictive. Take them when you need them, don't make a habit out of them.

[pawlowski187]

Thank you :)

[Chiliphil1]

No problem, I personally prefer the ativan, but the xanax works well too. I have also started letting the ativan devolve under my tongue as opposed to swallowing it, it seems to work a bit faster, just a tip.

[pawlowski187]

Ok, I was thinking about doing that... Do u take your Ativan as needed or scheduled daily?

[Chiliphil1]

As needed only. I have not had one in over a month.

I am really careful with them, the last thing I need is an addiction to benzos, so I take it only when I really need it. I have to convince myself to take them most of the time, even when I do need it I am reluctant. Another thing about them is that they really help alot when you need them, but in my opinion they mask the symptoms, so I prefer to just deal with the anxiety as long as I can so that I can build up my own tolerance for it and not use meds to hide from it.

I don't mean any offense of my statement sounded rude, I am not implying that you are hiding from anything, I just feel that way. Sometimes though you really need them, whenever I take them it is generally when I have been fighting anxiety all day non stop and I am just ready to calm down, most of the time the anxiety subsides on its own but when it doesn't, that's when I go for the ativan.

I take just 1 half mg tablet, that is generally all I ever need, I had a friend who was on klonapin and he was on such a dose of it that he had to take 8 half mg tabs of ativan to even calm a little. That's where I am trying to avoid being. Granted my friend truly needed the meds like that, but I just don't want to become dependant on something like that.