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What Causes Tight Headedness And Dizziness On Stopping Clonazepam?

Posted on Sat, 10 Jan 2015

Question: Diagnosed Panick Dissorder - GAD in Ag 2013. Taking 35 mg Paxil, 375 mg Lyrica. Stopped Clonazepam 4 weeks ago. I'm shaky, tense, tight head, dizzy. Why?

Answered by Dr. Kathy Robinson (2 minutes later)

It may be withdrawl symptoms without you shouldnt have left it all over you should have grsdually reducrd the dose.. in my opinionnstart it sgaij and tesucr it grsdually

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Kathy Robinson (32 minutes later)

I reduced the clonazepam very slowly. The last reduction was from 0.25 mg to zero. I have days without symptoms or with very few. But some days i feel very tense and shaky .

Answered by Dr. Kathy Robinson (2 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Should not be withdrawal symptoms

Detailed Answer:
Hello and thanks for your question. If you have been of the clonazepam for a month you should not be having any withdrawal symptoms. It is good that you tapered off slowly. It sounds like the anxiety that the clonazepam was treating is returning ad your symptoms (shaky, tense, tight in head, dizzy) could all be coming from the anxiety. I suggest that you see your doctor for an exam and basic blood testing. You may need to restart the clonazepam or increase your dose of the paxil to treat your anxiety symptoms. Good luck to you.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Yogesh D

Follow up: Dr. Kathy Robinson (22 minutes later)

In the past i was at 50 mg of Paxil but i was having sexual problems. Well, still i am having at 35 mg because im not able to have orgasms. Do you think other drugs like Effexor would be better? Another question: i have read several articles that note these drugs do not really work. What do you think?

Answered by Dr. Kathy Robinson (7 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Effexor may have more side effects

Detailed Answer:
Paxil and other drugs in the SSRI class do work for panic and anxiety, but not for everyone. Sometimes you need much higher doses than are needed to treat depression. Then you have problems with side effects. That is why many people end up on medications like clonazepam. Effexor may work for you but it tends to have more side effects in general than the SSRI drugs and it can still leave you with sexual side effects. This is a difficult problem and you may need trial and error with several drugs to find a drug or combination of drugs that treats the anxiety and does not leave you with undesirable side effects. It is best to work closely with your psychiatrist to figure this out.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Yogesh D

Follow up: Dr. Kathy Robinson (18 hours later)

One of the symptoms I have is palpitations. Can my heart be affected by anxiety?

Answered by Dr. Kathy Robinson (4 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
yes, anxiety can cause palpitations

Detailed Answer:
Hello. Yes, anxiety can cause palpitations. When we are stressed or anxious we release stress hormones that can cause fast or missed heart beats. Some of the medications used to treat anxiety can calm this down as well.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Raju A.T

Follow up: Dr. Kathy Robinson (2 hours later)

But i mean, can my heart be damaged?

Answered by Dr. Kathy Robinson (35 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
No not damaged

Detailed Answer:
Hello and thanks for this question. No the palpitations that you get from anxiety will not damage your heart but it can be very uncomfortable. We often use medications called beta blockers like propranolol in patients with anxiety and palpitations. It calms the heart down and can help with anxiety as well.

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Yogesh D