I'm scared to take my ativan :( Please need advice/help

[1125]

I'm so scared. I'm afraid it will hurt me and I'll be by myself and no one will be able to help me. Doctor said to take half of a .5 mg. Will it hurt me?

[alankay]

I have used it for years and would be shocked if .5mg did any thing but reduce anxiety. If they are .5mg tabs take 1/2 a tab at first and see how you feel just to go slow. Alankay

[1125]

I'm going to my grandparents today and I'll take it there. I feel like such a baby. I'm so sad.

[alankay]

Don't be hard on yourself!! I can't blame you. Many folks are afraid of meds as they fear it will make them feel worse. That can happen with an SSRI(sometimes)but that will go away)... but a benzo like ativan should work well to lower your anxiety level. If it seems to do nothing, take the othe half. Alankay.

[1125]

Don't be hard on yourself!! I can't blame you. Many folks are afraid of meds as they fear it will make them feel worse. That can happen with an SSRI(sometimes)but that will go away)... but a benzo like ativan should work well to lower your anxiety level. If it seems to do nothing, take the othe half. Alankay.

Well haven't taken it yet. Still nervous. I think I'm afraid the most of an overdose or allergic reaction or having breathing difficulty. The pharmacist made me a little freaked out when she said that I can take it as needed but if I'm taking it several times a days for a long time and then get off it might cause a seizure bc of my wellbutrin. Ugh. I have thrown up already today and I go from being super nervous to sleepy calm.

[jessed03]

It's one of the irony's in life, isn't it. I remember being the exact same way. Being too anxious about taking anxiety medication. :)

I read a few of your other posts, that says you feel better with safe people, or in safe places. I remember being that way. I had family members around everytime I took a new medication. Just because of the "What if...?" thats always there when you do something unknown.

But it is one of the easiest medications to ever take. Usually, just one dose will calm you, and although it may wear off later on, you'll still have the effects of calm in place, so it won't feel as overwhelming and as exhausting as all day.

Take it around people if you want to feel more secure, for now. :)

[alankay]

To get any complications like that you'd need to be taking a large dose allot longer than the .5mg. At that low dose you can take as needed with no issues. Just try and keep the usage on the low side. I'd take 1/2 tab at bedtime and I bet you'll be AOK. Alankay

[1125]

To get any complications like that you'd need to be taking a large dose allot longer than the .5mg. At that low dose you can take as needed with no issues. Just try and keep the usage on the low side. I'd take 1/2 tab at bedtime and I bet you'll be AOK. Alankay

Well I took it. I was calm for like an hour and now I'm freaking out like crazy. Face is numb. Tingly all over. Getting head zaps. Is this all anxiety? Both my cheeks have never been numb before. I'm terrified!

[1125]

To get any complications like that you'd need to be taking a large dose allot longer than the .5mg. At that low dose you can take as needed with no issues. Just try and keep the usage on the low side. I'd take 1/2 tab at bedtime and I bet you'll be AOK. Alankay

Well I took it. I was calm for like an hour and now I'm freaking out like crazy. Face is numb. Tingly all over. Getting head zaps. Is this all anxiety? Both my cheeks have never been numb before. I'm terrified!

[alankay]

Honestly that dose is so low and that med so common that the issues you're having stem from your concern over it. I'd up the dose as I know what the med can do for anxiety but that's your call. I think you've gotten yourself worked up a great deal about this and is why you're feeling the way you are. By binding to GABA receptors, ativan(all benzodiazepines) slows down your brain and at those receptors(GABAa) reduce anxiety and excitement.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma-Aminobutyric_acid
However if you were at say, 2mg and had that reaction, I might say it was a indeed bad reaction as that dose it well within the "therapeutic window" where .25 is very low. Too low for the kind of reaction for 98%, or so, of the general population. IHMO
Alankay

[1125]

Ugh! Its not letting me reply! But -l be ok? It will be out of my system soon? Then I can calm down all the way?

[alankay]

Yeah it will fade in a few hours or less.

[1125]

Can you chat?

[alankay]

No as I'm in and out of the site since I work allot.

[cheesecake]

I agree with Alankay. The reactions are from your worries over taking the medication.

[aclockworkrystn]

My fiancé recently started taking Ativan .5 mg a day and was worried like you are but he is absolutely fine. It really helps him a lot when he starts to feel anxious. The first tube he took it he said he just felt very happy and relaxed; like how you'd feel after smoking weed. The next few times he took it, he got really tired but has been completely fine otherwise, no side effects.