Anybody have any insight into this?

Since this is the Pain, Chronic Pain forum, i assume that a lot of narcotics meds are discussed. The one opioid drug that you really need to check for interactions is Tramadol. Not that this is the only opioid which may have interactions, just the one I'm familiar with as I'm prescribed Tramadol.

Here is a good place to start;

http://www.drugs.com/drug_interactions.html

I'm curious? Have you had adverse reactions from other drugs combined w/Tramadol?

I haven't, but I have read reports of others having problems due to interactions between drugs.

I am with edgewise http://www.drugs.com/drug_interactions.html is the BEST place to check for drug interactions. I will tell you that mixing more than one Benzo or more than one Narcotic is never a good idea period. To answer the question about Tramadol the main concern with that med is the risk of seizures even in people who have no history of them. Yes Tramadol is a great drug, it does not depress your resp. system or heart like other meds, and you can become addicted but mainly at high levels so it is a good drug for some. But as I have said before in other posts what is good for one is not always good for everyone. Each person reacts differently to medications it basically comes down to your bodies breakdown.

The use of more than one narcotic is a very common treatment for chronic pain conditions especially within a pain management practice.
Using ER medications like MS-Contin or OxyContin in combination with an as-needed breakthrough IR med like hydrocodone or oxycodone has become an accepted regimen for serious pain patients.
You haven't encountered this treatment during your career as a nurse? I'm surprised.
I do agree with you about mixing benzos willy-nilly but that also is not unheard of in medical practice.

I've taken two narcotics at the same time for long periods of time....prescribed by my PM doctor. Not a problem at all and is pretty standard practice for chronic pain.

Although I've never mixed benzos on my own, when I was in the hospital I was given xanax, ativan and shots of valium at the same time everyday for a week. (by, at the same time, I mean within an hour or two of each other...)

The bulldog person might have been aiming his advice toward people who are self-medicating but it is often hard to tell with him.
I think when someone posts medical advice while identifying himself as a "nurse" there is a responsibility that comes with that participation.
Maybe he is becoming more aware of that responsibility. I hope so.

If you go by what those patient leflet say they pretty much dont want you mixing any kind of narc with a benzo or sleep aide or this or that and can cause this and that etc etc so basically mix with nothing else LOL

I have only told from my own experiences as I dont have knowledge by occupation. I wont suggest combining drugs without dr telling you to do it.

My dr told me that I can boost oxycontin with small amounts of valium and use dhc or codeine for breakthrough pain.

Like Klonopin and Xanax. Or Valium and Xanax. One for long term anxiety and one for panic attacks. It's actually quite common for people to take the two. Not on their own, I mean under a dr's care. ONLY. Never just pop benzos on your own!

Or you might end up having a long tapering off program with nice withdrawals.

Never a good thing to start on your own even you might think that the doctors dont prescribe benzos strong enough.

Luckily I am now on 0.5mg xanax once and 2mg valiums thrice per day. This weekend and no more xanax for me anymore ever.

I get xanax and valium also. I only take the xanax if Im having a severe panic attack and the valium is for generalized anxiety but I dont take either of them everyday even tho she says I can. I dont want to build up that resistance to them and Ive heard the addiction is worse with benzo's so Im very careful. My one month supply will last at least 2 or 3 months.

You have no idea how proud I am of you! I WISH I could do what you've done!

It's been 18 years now, that I was first prescribed Xanax. I am not sure I'll ever be able to get off the medication. I am physically and psychologically addicted to them and I'll be the first to admit it. After almost 2 decades, who wouldn't be? I didn't just buy them, they were and are prescribed to me by my dr.

The addiction is bad. The rebound anxiety that occurs when you run low of your meds is worse then the anxiety that you had to begin with. It's a horrible awful mess! No way out. I'd have to go to inpatient detox I am sure.

Right now I am aiming for more Klonopin and less Xanax. Xanax doesn't really work all that well anymore. It helps with the anxiety but only for a few hours. Klonopin is a more smooth anti anxiety medication. It lasts all day. But Xanax kicks in fast and helps... but doesn't help long enough. If that makes sense?

GoogleRose, don't you take Methadone as your pain medicine? I'm surprised that your doctor would prescribe those benzos with it. My doc and several of my specialists have said that you can never mix Methadone with benzos. Sleep medicines like Ambien are allowed but never benzos. They've told me over and over that it could very well kill me.

They, of course, could just be alarmists and it probably wouldn't kill me, but they are very strict about both benzos and alcohol with Methadone so I don't use either....

NEVER mix ambien with Soma... Fainting, seizures, good stuff!

for many years, my psychiatrist had me on klonopin for maintenance and xanax for breakthrough attacks.

when my psych retired, my primary kept up the regimen of both.

it works for me; no side effects i can discern. i do NOT like being on benzos long term, but i was in therapy (CBT, meditation, etc.) for almost 20 years with an LCSW. nothing worked to stop the attacks, though the therapy was indeed necessary and helped me a lot. the medication stops the attacks. i was told by more than one dr. exactly where and how my brain incorrectly triggers the attacks; it's an illness, and i'm being treated for it with medication. my dr. sees me every 3 months and always spends at least 20 minutes with me on how things are going.

that's the only way i would recommend someone use more than one benzo - be seeing a dr. on a regular basis (more than once a year - you'd have to anyway, you can't write a 12-month script for benzos).

I had to go the inpatient detox route for xanax. It was awful, but at least I am now only taking klonopin. If I get a really bad panic attack, obviously the kpins are not as fast acting and effective as the xanax, but I will never take another xanax as long as I live.

Also, congrats Mr. Root on your recent taper down from your benzos! It is so, so hard to do in my experience. Actually, it proved to be nearly impossible. So much out of control anxiety and panic. Ick.

Yikes, I don't want to do inpatient treatment. So far it's been 37 hours since I took any Xanax (yeah I'm counting hours at this point!). I'm in the process of trying to wean myself off of them. I am trying to do it cold turkey and use Klonopin in it's place.

I'm waiting for the withdrawals to hit. I hope I just keep enough Klonopin in my system so that they never do. I also just keep reminding myself that they cause anxiety, not help anxiety. So when I go to reach for one (which I did yesterday), I stopped and said forget it. Out of natural habit when I woke up this morning I went to take one as well. I just reminded myself I no longer take them and moved on.

It almost seems too easy. Like the calm before the storm. We shall see!

How were you able to switch completely over? Did they just up the klonopin while lowering the Xanax?

See that's the part I fear. I don't want it like that, because I know the Xanax only lasts so long and then I'll have rebound anxiety as well as withdrawals and all that.

I want to have enough Klonopin in my system that I have no desire or need to take any Xanax. I was on 3mg a day of Xanax and Klonopin.

Right now I am trying to take 2 doses of Klonopin a day. I'd like to get it where I take 2mg of Klonopin in the morning and 1mg of Klonopin at night. If I find I'm building a tolerance to Klonopin, I am going to cross over to Valium.

Just my 2 cents, no expert here but mixing benzos is very bad for the brain. I don't think anyone knows the consequences. Be careful, it isn't like going from DHC to codeine. Or oxy to hydro.

A week. Do that for a year and you may have to be put away.

LOL! I agree with you O&W. I was freaked out that they were giving me all those benzos at one time. No way would I do that to myself! I don't mess around with benzos so no problem there. My PM doc gave me 1/2 mg of klonopin to take at night. He prescribed it yesterday and I have to go back in a few weeks and let him know how it's working for my anxiety. I would like to be able to take 1/2 mg twice a day so I could take it during the day when I'm so freaked out. Taking it at bedtime seems to defeat the purpose.

Does Klonopin, when taken at bedtime, help with anxiety during the day or has it worn off completely by the time I wake up? Maybe I should go do some indepth research on it after I log off from here.

i have a friend that been on adderal since he was probably 12.he recently had problems with his doc(since taken care of)and his refills would be late every month.he could barely function(i mean barely)without the stuff.seemed as if his body was dependant on it...but to stay on topic,adderal is an MAOI and its probably best not to take ANYTHING with it.especially a downer such as xanax,valium.god thats a scary thought.

I don't take Adderall so I don't know, but I do know two people who take Adderall during the day and a benzo at night to help them calm down and sleep. In fact, one of them takes ativan and Ambien at night, and Adderall and hydrocodone during the day. I think her doctor is a little wacky but the combo seems to work for her and she never acts strange so maybe she can handle the combination.

hopefully the combination of amphetamines and benzos/sleep aids isnt damaging your friends heart.

Are you talking to me or someone else? My daughter is on Adderall but hasn't taken it for a few months, and I'm on 0.5mg of Klonopin at night. I don't take sleep medicine. I think there's a member here who currently takes both so you might want to address this to him. My heart is fine thank you.

no,you said you have two friends that take adderal during the day and benzos at night.i was refering to your friends but responding to you.

I had a VERY bad interaction with Soma and Valium
i read the warning and understood but it was one of those things my body didnt agree with.
NEVER AGAIN!!