How hard is it to get off xanax?!
Question:
How hard is it to get off xanax?
A friend of ,mines daughter seems to be addicted,
Answers:
Xanax is particularly tricky among benzodiazepines because it has the shortest half-life of the bunch. For discontinuing other benzodiazepines, it is sometimes possible to switch to an equivalent dose of a benzo with a comparatively long half-life. That makes withdrawals less of a problem when decreasing the dose.
Unfortunately, the half-life of Xanax is so short that other benzos generally can't be substituted. A slow taper using Xanax itself is pretty much the only way off Xanax. A guideline for tapering is to decrease by at most 0.25mg every 1-2 weeks. If she takes 2mg a day, don't be surprised if a safe taper requires 4 months. Safety is more important than speed in these cases.
Note that I am a student, NOT (!) a doctor. I expect her doctor to recommend the taper guideline I mentioned above, but the doctor may have other information that leads him/her to choose a different tapering speed. Never discontinue Xanax without a schedule approved by a doctor.