The Road Back. Klonopin withdrawal, Xanax withdrawal etc.

Chapter Nine

Pre-Taper for Benzodiazepines, Anti-anxiety, Anticonvulsant, and Sleep Medication

“I am taking Klonopin. After one week on your program, I do not feel like I am taking a benzo. I am sleeping better than I ever have in my life. Vivid dreams have vanished and if I wake up in the middle of the night, I can go right back to sleep. I will be starting the taper next week and I am very nervous. Every time I have tried to quit in the past, the withdrawal was too much. Everything you have said in your book has been true so far so I probably should not be nervous.”

G.Q. Green Bay, WI.

If you have not read the entire chapter “General Pre-Tapering and Tapering Guidelines,” please do so before continuing with this chapter. Reading and understanding the chapter “General Pre-Tapering and Tapering Guidelines” is vital before starting the pre-taper.

Starting Your Pre-Taper

Note: This pre-taper addresses several types of medication as noted in the chapter title. If the only drug name used is a benzodiazepine, please take that to mean all medications (Benzodiazepine, Anti-anxiety, Anticonvulsant and Sleep Medication).

Physically, you need to address a substance called Interleukin-2 (IL-2) during the pre-taper and taper portion of this program. You can have a blood test and measure the level of IL-2 in your body. If a person has anxiety and or insomnia their IL-2 levels will be too low. The IL-2 substance is part of the human immune system.

There are several things that might have made your IL-2 too low to begin with. If you work in an office building, installed new carpet in the home or office, the air you are breathing is probably positive air ions, instead of negative air ions. Positive air ions will lower the IL-2 levels in the human body and create an anxiety feeling. You just need to increase the level of IL-2 in your body as slowly and naturally as possible.

Not that the air you breathe is the only way your IL-2 might have been reduced but, if you go for a walk at night, walk after a rain shower, stand by a waterfall, if your anxiety levels drop, it might be because of the negative air ions that were just in your proximity. No need to run out and purchase an air ionizer, they do not handle what really needs to be handled with air quality.

The IL-2 levels are an objective test you and your physician can work with to treat your anxiety and insomnia. Your stage 2 of sleep, or being able to go into the deep sleep at night, requires ample amount of IL-2. If you wish to read additional information about the IL-2 and what this program is fully addressing, please read the chapter, The Science Behind The Road Back.

You will begin your pre-taper by taking Body Calm, Body Calm Supreme, Beta 1, 3-D Glucan and the Essential Protein Formula as directed in this chapter. These four supplements should take care of all or most of the daytime anxiety, panic attacks, and sleep problems. Remember, as soon as you start the pre-taper, you will simultaneously start keeping track of your days in the Daily Journal.

Make sure to note when existing side effects stop or when there is a major improvement. This is very important.

You will then know which supplement turns off which side effect(s) or caused the major improvement. You will need to know this in order to complete both the pre-taper and the full taper successfully. The design of the pre-taper is to address the normal cycle of anxiety/insomnia/anxiety that takes place because of medication usage.

Anxiety first thing in the morning and a return of the anxiety in the afternoon are both very common side effects of benzodiazepines, anti-anxiety, anticonvulsant and sleep medications. When using these medications, on any given day, by the time you are ready to go to sleep at night, you are too stressed out and fatigued from dealing with the difficulties of the anxiety all day long. Sleep simply may not happen, and you could easily end up feeling depressed due to this continuing cycle of anxiety, no sleep, anxiety, no sleep, endlessly.

If you are also experiencing depression to some degree, do not be surprised if the depression goes away during the pre-taper, as your ability to sleep improves or the daytime anxiety abates. But, even as you start to experience relief from your symptoms, do not change anything; just continue with the program, as there are still many, many gains to be had, as you move through to full completion of The Road Back Tapering Program.

As mentioned in the chapter, General Pre-Tapering and Tapering Instructions, new supplements have been added to this third edition of the book for this pre-taper. The new supplements are:

Take: Essential Protein Formula: 1 teaspoon mixed in a liquid of your choice.

Body Calm Supreme capsule: 1 capsule.

Time: Any time in the morning. Make sure you only use enough liquid to wash down capsules and do not have any liquid or food for ½ hour later. Ideally you would not have food ½ hour before taking the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan.

The rest of the day and up until bedtime, you will be alternating the Body Calm Supreme and the Body Calm every 4 hours.

Example: You awaken at 7 am. You would start the day by taking 1 capsule of Body Calm Supreme and 1 teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula.

At 11 am, you would take 1 Body Calm capsule and 1 teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula.

At 3 pm, you would take 1 Body Calm Supreme capsule and 1 teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula.

At 7 pm, you would take 1 Body Calm capsule and 1 teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula.

At bedtime, or 11 pm, you would take 1 Body Calm Supreme capsule and 1 teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula.

The morning of Day 5 – Rate your sleep from the night before and have a look at your Daily Journal regarding daytime anxiety. If you now rate your daytime anxiety at a 7 or higher, and your sleep is at a 7 or higher, proceed to Step 2.

If you do not rate yourself at a 7 or higher for daytime anxiety and sleep, follow Continue Step 1.

In this stage, you will be adjusting the time you take each supplement and or the quantity of each supplement used during the day or at bedtime.

If your sleep was below a rating of a 7 and is now at a 7 or higher, you are responding very well to the Body Calm Supreme.

a. Replace the Body Calm during the daytime with the Body Calm Supreme. Take 1 capsule of Body Calm Supreme every 4 hours during the daytime and continue taking the 1 teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula at the same time as the Body Calm Supreme during the day.

Rate your daytime anxiety at the end of every day, before bedtime and rate your sleep first thing in the morning and post in your Daily Journal.

The goal is to have three consecutive days with anxiety and sleep at a rating of 7 or higher. As soon as you have 3 consecutive days at a 7 or higher, move to Step 2.

Example: You are on day number 2 of Step a. and you now rate yourself at a 7 with anxiety and sleep. Do not change anything you are doing but continue for 2 additional days and see if this new trend holds. This would give you 3 full days at a 7 rating or higher.

Make sure to continue taking each supplement at the same time each day and night that you established during this step for the rest of the pre-taper and taper process.

If this new trend of a 7 or higher rating for daytime anxiety holds for three consecutive days, proceed to Step 2.

If you are not at a 7 or higher after 8 full days, following Step a., use the following sequence:

Continue with the 1 Body Calm Supreme every four hours, but increase the Essential Protein Formula to 4 teaspoons with each serving.

Increase the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan to 2 capsules in the morning, 2 additional capsules in the early afternoon and 2 more capsules in the late afternoon. Make sure you do not consume liquid or food for ½ hour after taking the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan and ideally no food ½ hour before.

Rate yourself each night for the anxiety level of that day. If you feel an improvement, but not to a rating of a 7, continue with this step for 3 full days.

If no change or you are still not up to a 7 rating after 2 full days, do the following:

Decrease the Essential Protein Formula back down to 1-teaspoon every four hours.

Continue this for 3 full days. Make sure to rate your daytime anxiety each night before bedtime. If on day two or three of this procedure, you now rate yourself at a 7 or higher, continue taking the supplements exactly as you have been in this stage until you have 3 consecutive days of a rating of 7 or higher with daytime anxiety and then move to Step 2.

If the daytime anxiety is still not rated at a 7 or higher, do not get discouraged; there are still options for you.

The Anxiety Reduction Chart located in the chapter “General Pre-Tapering and Tapering Instructions,” shows how anxiety tends to drop as time passes when using the correct supplement. Give this some time.

There are other options available with using the Body Calm, Body Calm Liquid and the Body Calm Supreme. The next section provides further ways an individual may use, change, or alter these products for anxiety and/ or insomnia relief.

Body Calm capsules – You can add 1 Body Calm capsule with each Body Calm Supreme if needed. You may take as many as 3 Body Calm capsules at bedtime for sleep. You may take 1 Body Calm Supreme, along with the Body Calm at bedtime if needed.

Body Calm liquid – For some, but very few, the Body Calm liquid is the answer for daytime anxiety and or insomnia. Making the switch from capsule to liquid can be magic.

Body Calm Supreme – As described in the chapter “General Pre-Tapering and Tapering Instructions,” reaching a “steady state” can be different for each person. If you are feeling some relief from anxiety, but it is only temporary, you may need to change the frequency or amount of Body Calm Supreme. You can take the Body Calm Supreme every 2 hours during the day to achieve this. For some people, this gives astounding results.

As mentioned earlier in this chapter you can take the Nature’s Vitamin C and Probiotic Supreme. If the adrenals need help the Nature’s Vitamin C would be the supplement to introduce. The adrenals require ample supply of vitamin C to work properly.

Most medications will create a yeast overgrowth and the Probiotic Supreme is designed to handle that quickly. Side effects from yeast overgrowth can include anxiety, depression and insomnia.

Daytime anxiety – Daytime anxiety may also be helped by including CLA daily. You would need to take 1 softgel in the morning, again at noon and once more before 4 pm. Make sure to include 1 Ultimate Omega 3 in the morning and at noon along with one vitamin E in the morning.

We have tried to remove all trial and success out of this program but sometimes there are no other options. The Nature’s Vitamin C, Probiotic Supreme and CLA are trial and success. They may not make a change or they may be the exact fit for your body. This is the stage to see if this is what your body needs to get over this hump.

Suggestions: If you have felt any improvement during these procedures, you have something to work with. If the anxiety has at least moved from a rating of 3 to a 5, and the anxiety is holding at that level, using these supplements will be the answer for your success. You just need to adjust them further, allow a little additional time, or adjust the time of day you are taking them. Adjust supplements one-by-one every third day. Keep good notes in your journal. The answers will either be the quantity taken of a supplement or it will be how often the supplement is taken. The answer can be both; quantity and how often the supplement is taken.

Experiment with this as needed and keep your Daily Journal. Give this some time to work. If you have had some improvement, such as from a 3 to a 5 rating, and it is holding steady, but will not move beyond a 5 rating, give this stage 30-days to fully work.

After 30-days, if still at a 5 rating, move on to Step 2 and keep rating the daytime anxiety each evening. It may very well improve to a 7 rating later in the pre-taper.

You can have a blood test done and check the level of a substance called Interleukin-2 (IL-2). The reference range for IL-2 will be from 223 to 710 with most laboratories. If your test results come back with a level under 466, you need to increase the IL-2 further and you should increase the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan to a total of 9 capsules each day.

Increase the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan to 3 of the 100 mg capsules 3 times a day. Give this increase 14 days to completely work. If you have improved after 14 days but are not up to a 7 rating yet, you can increase the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan to 2,500 mg each day if needed. Increase by no more than 300 mg every 3 days.

a. Keep doing exactly what you have been doing during the daytime, during Step 1.

b. One thing to keep in mind as you increase the supplements for sleep is that the changes made during the daytime for the anxiety may very well help with the sleep as well. If a person who had daytime anxiety no longer has daytime anxiety, the chances are very high that their ability to sleep will improve greatly.

Do: Increase the Body Calm Supreme to 2 capsules at bedtime and continue to take the 1-teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula. Take 2 additional 100 mg capsules of Beta 1, 3-D Glucan after 4 pm but before 8 pm.

Stay at this level for 3 nights.

Make sure to rate your sleep each morning when you awaken for the night before.

If you rate yourself at a 7 or higher on any of these 3 nights, continue with exactly what you are doing until you have 3 consecutive nights of a sleep rated at 7 or higher. Then move to Step 2.

If sleep drops below a 7 after being at a 7 or higher for one or two days, but not the 3 consecutive days, increase the Essential Protein Formula to 4 teaspoons at bedtime and continue taking the 2 Body Calm Supreme capsules at bedtime as well. Continue with the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan as well.

See if this will get you the 3 consecutive nights of sleep at a 7 rating or higher and then move to Step 2. If it does not, reduce the Essential Protein Formula back to a 1-teaspoon serving.

c. If b. did not result in the desired rating of a 7 or higher, include 1 Body Calm capsule at bedtime, along with the 2 Body Calm Supreme capsules, and the 1 teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula. Continue with the additional Beta 1, 3-D Glucan.

If there is no change in 3 nights, increase the Body Calm capsules to 2 at bedtime, along with the 2 Body Calm Supreme capsules and the 1-teaspoon of Essential Protein Formula. Continue with the additional Beta 1, 3-D Glucan.

Again, wait 3 days and see if sleep improves to a 7 or higher, and then move to Step 2 after 3 consecutive days of this 7 or higher rating.

d. If you are having difficulty going to sleep, try taking all the supplements ½ hour before bedtime for 3 nights. If still no change, try taking the supplements 1 hour before bedtime for 3 nights. If you begin to feel tired before your normal bedtime, go to bed a little earlier than usual. This may be your window of opportunity for going to sleep with ease, and we do not want to miss the chance.

e. If you are waking up in the middle of the night and are able to go back to sleep with little effort, that is very normal. If you have difficulty going back to sleep, take 1 Body Calm Supreme in the night when you awaken.

f. If, at any time, you begin to sleep well with a 7 or higher rating, but you wake up tired, reduce the last supplement that was increased slightly. You can open up any of the capsules and remove ½ of the supplement powder.

To reach the Stage 2 of sleep where you go into a deeper sleep, it does require IL-2. If IL-2 levels are too low you will have a difficult time going into the deep restful sleep. You can increase the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan to 3 of the 100 mg capsules 3 times a day. Give this increase 14 days to completely work. If you have improved after 14 days but are not up to a 7 rating yet, you can increase the Beta 1, 3-D Glucan to 2,500 mg each day if needed. Increase by no more than 300 mg every 3 days.

Remember, have 3 consecutive nights at a 7 rating or higher for sleep and then move to Step 2.

Suggestions: If you have felt any improvement during these procedures, you have something to work with. If the insomnia has at least moved from 3 to a 5 rating, and is holding at that level, using these supplements will be the answer for your success. You just need to adjust them further, allow a little additional time, or adjust the time of day when you are taking them. Adjust supplements one-by-one every third day. Keep good notes in your journal. The answers will either be the quantity of a supplement or it will be how often the supplement is taken.

Experiment with this and keep your Daily Journal. Give this some time to work. If you have had some improvement, such as from a 3 to a 5 rating, and it is holding steady, but will not move beyond a 5 rating, give this stage 30-days to fully work.

After 30-days, if still at a 5 rating, move on to Step 2 and keep rating your sleep each evening. It may very well improve to a 7 rating later in the pre-taper.

Special Note: If you have insisted on taking calcium and you still are not at a 7 rating or higher, you need to remove the calcium supplement or at least add Calsorption and see if the additional absorption of calcium helps. If you are taking other supplements that are not part of The Road Back Program, it is time for you to quit taking all of them.

If your healthcare provider suggested other supplements, let the practitioner know what you want to do, and give the practitioner a printout of this page, or the book. Once you are off all other supplements for 3 full days, you should feel a remarkable difference.

Take 3 capsules of Nature’s Vitamin C each day. Take 1 in the morning, one at noon and one additional capsule before 4 pm.

Take 1 softgel of Ultimate Omega 3 in the morning, 1 at noon and 1 more softgel at 4 pm.

If you have read further in this chapter you will notice you are doing part of Step 2 of the pre-taper. Once you have your anxiety and sleep rating at a 7 or above in this step and that rating has held for 3 consecutive days, you are ready to move to Step 3 of the pre-taper.

Make sure to keep your Daily Journal filled out daily as well as your daily graphs for your 1-10 rating. Make a note of all changes made in supplements and when they were made. When a positive change happens it is usually from some change that took place in the past 3 days.

If you do not rate yourself at a 7 or higher after 7 full days using this approach move to Step 3. Step 3 may be the supplement that gets you over the top.

If you complete all stages for anxiety and sleep and you still rate anxiety and sleep below a 7 on a 1-10 scale, one of these nine things are probably happening:

1. You are one of the few who need to continue taking the supplements for additional time before they will work for you.

This does happen, but is rare.

2. You need to reevaluate how you are rating yourself. Are you being a little too rough on yourself, and how you are judging yourself?

Reread the section in the chapter, “General Pre-Tapering and Tapering Instructions.”

Keep in mind, if you had anxiety throughout the day and the anxiety was extreme, and the anxiety now occurs only in the morning when you wake up, and then disappears for the rest of the day, you have had a major positive change.

Review all the sleep scenarios in the chapter, “General Pre-Tapering and Tapering Instructions.” Before starting Step 1 of the Pre-Taper, if you use to wake up in the middle of the night and had a difficult time going back to sleep, but now you wake up in the middle of the night and instantly go back to sleep, this is a major positive change.

3. You are taking other supplements and the real reason you will not respond to Stage 1 is the other supplements. This is where you need to reevaluate calcium, if you are taking it, B vitamins, and all other supplements. The other supplements, herbs or concoctions may have been causing the increased anxiety or insomnia for some time.

These other supplements might be excellent, but not when you are taking medication from this group.

Meet with your doctor. Ask him or her if you can quit taking the other supplements that are not part of The Road Back Program. If ok with your doctor, discontinue the other supplements, continue taking the supplements used during Step 1 of the Pre-Taper, give yourself 3 days and see how you are doing.

7. Look at the weekends. Are you sleeping in a few hours later and not taking the morning medication at the same time? Are you staying up later in the evening and not taking the medication at the same time?

Have you changed anything in your daily routine?

8. You have started The Road Back Program after you have already made one or several attempts to come off your medication and you were having withdrawal side effects before starting the program.

You should give Step 1 additional time. Many people respond quickly to this step, even if they fit in to this category, but some require from 14 to 30 days to fully complete Step 1 when they fall in to this group.

I suggest you give it some time, at least the 30 days.

9. The Road Back Program is not for you. I wish I could say this program works for everyone, but it does not. From 8 years experience, I know the percentage of people is very low that this program will not work for, but there is that percentage, nonetheless.

At least you have not caused additional harm by your attempt.

Step 2

Rate your mood and other side effects. Use the Daily Journal and rate your mood and any additional symptoms you may be experiencing, from 1 to 10. Rate with number 1 being the worst and number 10 being no side effect or symptom remaining.

Time: First thing in the morning when you awaken, and around noon, but before 4 pm.

After the rigors of Step 1, you will find Step 2 to be quick and easy! You are finished and ready to move to Step 3.

Rate anxiety, sleep, and all side effects. Use the Daily Journal and rate your mood, anxiety, sleep, and any additional symptoms you may be experiencing, from 1 to 10. Rate, with number 1 being the worst and number 10 being no side effect or symptom remaining.

Begin taking 400 i.u. of vitamin E first thing in the morning with the rest of the morning supplements.

Keep taking all supplements exactly as you have established during the pre-taper while you taper off the medication and continue for 45-days after the last dosage of the medication.

The supplements and how much you take of each supplement may be changed during the taper portion of the program. Follow the instructions exactly as outlined in the taper chapter you are going to follow.

If you have tried to quit these medications in the past, you may be a little apprehensive about reducing them again. You can remain at this stage of the process for as long as you like. You do not have to rush.

It is now time to decide which taper program to follow. You can now taper off the medication twice as fast with this program if desired. The slower method has been kept in the book for those of you wishing to really take your time with the taper portion.