I was under the assumption stopping Xanax cold turkey is not recommended, however mom's dr. refused to refill prescription. Am I overreacting?

You definitely have to be weaned off of Xanax you can’t just stop cold turkey you go into the most horrible withdrawals. I know this from personal experience.

What dosage is she on? I would think after 5 months you are more than likely already physically dependent on the drug. Quitting cold turkey can lead to seizures. I myself have had the experience and it was horrific. Xanax is one of the worst drugs to be on as it’s 1/2 life is only 6 hours. Valium also known as diazepam has up to an 80 hour half life a much better drug to be on and get off of. I would call her doctor ASAP if the pharmacy is not filling her script hope this helps.

If she's only taking it at night, and only a .5 mg dose, it's not as bad as if she would have been taking it around the clock. Still, she should have been tapered to halves first. I'd consult with another doctor.

Anybody who wants to learn about this drug: Google "Benzo Buddies" or the "Benzo Information Coalition".

Drs are under SUCH scruntiny with so many drugs. My own PCP talks with me every single month about the Tylenol with codeine that I take for arthritis (and now bone pain from cancer) The pendulum has swung so far from the middle--My PCP is really frustrated about his inability to care for his chronic pain patients. Same with benzos. Those are highly addictive and it can take YEARS to de-compress from them. Your dr is being a jerk. Sounds like you did a safe go-around for mom.

Personally, until you have walked in my shoes and felt MY anxiety and insomnia and pain, you don't KNOW what I'm feeling. Sometimes you have to dr shop to find one who is willing to help you and do so in a compassionate manner.

My KIDS were super, super judgmental about my need for a mild benzo, until THEY started having anxiety problems. Shoe on the other foot changed it all for them.

We do not know another's person's pain and problems. Don't judge.

Do not discontinue any daily med without a consult with the doctor and/or pharmacist. Drug interactions are very different from person to person.

Not a do-it-yourself project.

Abby, I'm so glad you found a workaround!

Call right away as soon as you can and tell office that a complete dead stop on a medication like xanax constitutes negligent treatment, because it does. You should now have complete instructions on how to withdraw her from this medication. Meanwhile, you do have medication for her until you get ahold of the doctor, who may want to reassess her for need. One pill a day is not a terribly high dose, but he may need to see her before reordering. The truth is that doctors now are being looked at VERY carefully if they order these medications for patients, and they are pretty scared.

I agree, he refused because he needs to see her.

Most DEA controlled substances need a doctors script every month. They can not be called in and at one time they could not be faxed, but that may have been changed. I worked for a Pharmaceutical company. Pharmacies would have to send in DEA forms for certain Drugs. Their records had to show what was ordered had a prescription to fill. No stocking the item.

My mom has been on that garbage drug for decades. She's been hospitalized twice in the last two months for mis-managing the medication. The first time, she had doubled-up and then ran out, so had withdrawl symptoms within 24-48 hours and had to be taken to the ER. Just this week she took a little too much, washed it down with wine, was hospitalized again and is now in a mental health ward. This drug is horrible and I believe has caused significant damage to both parents, who have been on it since the 1980s. Dad is in a dementia care home and basically a zombie. He swore by this drug and took it 365 days a year for sleep. Read the list of side effects, they really do result from use of this drug.

My mom was on Xanax for 10 years - totally addicted. Her doctor put her on it when she found my stepfather's body when he collapsed from a fatal heart attack while chopping wood. No one ever even suggested she wean off. She changed doctors along the way and her new one decided to stop the Xanax cold turkey. That poor woman went through horrible withdrawal with no idea what hit her. Nausea, headache, tremors, hallucinations. I called the doctor's office after hours and got the on-call doc. He okayed a prescription for a week's worth and I doled them out one pill, then a half pill, then a half every other day over several days until she was safely weaned off. Definitely call the office or go to an emergency room.

The advice is "do not stop Xanax without talking to your provider first."

I cannot find out what you are supposed to do if your provider is not available to be talked to. You can't call the doctor's office, today, now, and keep ringing until you get an answer from somebody qualified as to what you're supposed to do?

A heart Dr. put my mother-in-law on the very lowest dose once a day. Five months later when she saw her primary care Dr., she took her off. She put her back on Buspar & when that got in her system she quit the Xanax. The drugs work differently & I was afraid of withdrawal issues, but it went smoothly.
Can you speak to the DR. About putting your Mom on something non-addictive & with little side effects before just quitting cold turkey?

Didn’t the bottle say how many refills she hadn’t left? Xanax is schedule IV controlled substance which means it the prescription cannot be refilled more than 5 times or more than 6 months after the prescription is written. You will need to take mom in to see the doctor in order to get a new prescription. Ans definitely ration what she has left. If the bottle didn’t specify how many refills she had, and the doctor didn’t explain the need to bring her in after 5 refills, it might be something to complain to him about.

I'd halve the ones you have left to stretch things out and help with any withdrawal side effects.

Have you spoken to the doctor? Is s/he refusing to renew because she needs to be seen before another script is written? Most psych drugs cannot be renewed for long without the physician examining the patient.

I would Google "xanax withdrawal" and check Mayo Clinic and Web MD for accurate information.

Does mom's insurance company have a nurse line you can call?

Put a call into the doctors office tomorrow and talk to her or him about what needs to happen to get a new script.

It is a controlled substance, doctors are being closely monitored due to abuse. You will have to take her into her doctor, every 6 months.

Abby, has your Mom's doctor asked for her to come into the office for a check-up? Usually when one is one that family of prescription medicine, the doctor needs to see the patient every six months. That is what I need to do as I am also on Xanax.

I bet the refills were only for 4 or 5 refills. That is how my primary doctor has my prescription. Thus, it makes me need to go see her for a check-up.

I take xanax but not very often. You can't " call in" that rx.,you have to physically go get the prescription.,maybe that is what is going in?