Anyone ever have their psych. tell you to experiment with your med

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

dosages?

I take two, .50 mg of alprazolam ER (generic for Xanax extended release) a day (one every 12 hours). I went to my psychiatrist the other day, and she said she wants me to try experimenting with my dosages (she claims she thinks I'm obsessing over stuff...this after seeing me for only 5 minutes after not seeing me for a month). Beginning Monday, she wants me to try taking two, .50 mg alprazolam in the morning and one .50 mg tablet at night. She thinks my taking a double dose in the am will help me with any anxiety at work. She said for me to call her to tell her how I'm feeling.

I already am dealing with anxiety, but this is really wigging me out.

Anyone ever have their psych. tell them to do this?

[Droopy]

1. Psychiatrists will change your med regimen

if they think it will work better. When you go to see the psychiatrist for the first time and get that initial prescription it is not set in stone. That's a good thing. Once they find the right dosage and/or combination of meds for you, however, they will tend to stay the course unless you report or they see any other symptoms.

I started out taking 160 mg a day of Geodon and 900 mg a day of lithium after my last hospitalization. But my current daily cocktail is 160 mg of Geodon, 600 mg lithium, 150 mg Wellbutrin, and .5 mg of Cogentin. I haven't had any symptoms in a long time so my doctor has not changed my meds in a long time.

[Rising Phoenix]

2. I just started Geodon

did you have trouble sleeping on it..... I"m trying to adjust to not being on massive doses of Zyprexa and I'm waking up at the crack of dawn.....just curious, I have an appt this week....

[Droopy]

3. I have had sleep troubles, but I don't think they can be attributed to Geodon

I work third shift and I have a really hard time getting to sleep during the daylight hours. Before I started working that shift I didn't have any trouble with sleep. But I have talked to someone who has had the sleeplessness side effect and she said she never had that problem before she started taking Geodon.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

4. Thanks for your feedback, guys. I'm nervous about changing dosages

(especially increasing) for fear of becoming addicted.

[Droopy]

5. You do run that risk with drugs like Xanax

But from what I've heard from other people who have experience with that drug they find that it's not something that they have to do for the rest of their lives. With drug and talk therapy they have found that eventually just the thought of having a pill to control the anxiety is enough. They don't acvtually have to take it. DemExpat has experience with this and hopefully she'll pop in here and better explain what I'm talking about. You just need help immediately and the drug provides that until you find a better way of dealing with your anxiety.

As far as dependency goes, with most psychiatric medications withdrawl can be controlled by weening oneself off of the drug a little bit at a time. You start by taking a slightly less dosage than you were taking and do that for a little while and continue doing that until you no longer have to take the drug to control withdrawl symptoms. It's kind of like quitting smoking by going from a pack a day to 15 a day, then by going from 15 a day to 10 a day. Not all meds are like that. I have to take the ones that I take for the rest of my life so I'm not concerned about dependency.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

6. I've been taking the meds and doing talk therapy for about 4 years

or so (maybe longer?). I think the combination of those two things are the key. I had a rough 2007, between losing a job, starting a new one and losing a set of grandparents. Maybe increasing the dosage will help me more.

[DemExpat]

7. Hi, Scrubdashrub.

Since you are already taking the anxiety meds I would give the upping the dosage a try to see if it helps you with your anxiety in your work.
As Droopy mentioned above, I was terribly addicted to similar meds in my past, so I do understand your concerns.
But if you give this a try and level out with meds along with your therapy, I see no reason why you could not return to a lower dose again in the (near) future.
I eventually weaned myself completely from them and only have a couple "on hand" which is enough to help me handle my anxiety now when it gets to extremes.

All the best,

DemEx

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

10. Thanks, too, DemExpat.

[Droopy]

8. I'm sorry to hear of your loss

I have one grandparent left and she is precious to me. I know it's going to hurt badly when she is gone.

Go with what the doctor says. He/she has a hell of a lot more expertise on the matter than you or me or anyone here at DU. Try it and see if it works. Be sure to report any side effects and any symptoms that you either cease to have or continue to have. I wish you well.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

9. Thank you, Droopy.

:D

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

11. So, it's been 10 days since upping the dose.

This week, I've felt a bit tired/sluggish during the day (not too terrible, but I notice feeling a bit "out of it" an hour or so after taking my morning dose. Sometimes, I catch myself just staring off, and I've woken up once or twice during the night each night this week.

I called my psych's office today and left a message. I'm pissed because my doc never called me back!

I'm not sure if my body's just "adjusting" to the dosage change or if the doubling up on the generic Xanax XR (it's a 12-hour dose) in the am is too strong for me. I talked to my pharmacist yesterday, and he said for him, taking 1 mg of generic Xanax XR would make him "drunk," but then, everyone's different.

I'm gonna call back tomorrow to see if 1) my body's still adjusting (it's been 10 days) or 2) I can halve one of the pills in the am.

No wonder I'm on this stuff; I'm a ball of nervousness?!

[mdmc]

12. I think experimenting with your doses is a very good idea

Think of the xanax as a tool that will help you to deal with your anxiety. You can use this tool differently every day.
Perhaps your psychiatrist was trying to prompt you to experiment with how you use this tool.

I would try this - take your AM dose as early as possible. If you get up in the night, try taking a half tab.

From what you posted, it sounds like your psychiatrist doesn't want you to be concerned about doses or times that you should take your meds. Use it the way that works best for you.

Hope you feel better. Peace and low stress.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

13. Thanks for the good vibes.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

14. I called my psych again yesterday; she called back and

told me to go back to one pill, twice a day, as I'd been doing before.

Friday was not a good day for me: I was moody, crying in the bathroom...wtf? I hadn't been like that on the one pill, twice a day regimen.

I have an appt. to see the psych in a couple of weeks. I'm planning on asking why she decided it was necessary to screw around with my dosages. To me, if it's not broken, why try to fix it?