Posted by Ame Sans Vie on October 9, 2003, at 23:46:03
In reply to Re: Tranxene I know there are people who have tried it, posted by Nissy on October 9, 2003, at 20:19:21
I believe Tranxene (clorazepate) is a metabolite of Valium (diazepam) which would explain to me why I also felt like a zombie on it (or maybe it's the other way around?). Valium, Tranxene and Librium (hmm... maybe Tranxene's a Librium metabolite?--can't remember, lol) have to be my least favorite benzos... very "dumbing" meds, I think. Not to mention that I found Tranxene-SD ("single dose"), the purported sustained-release form of the drug, to be an enormous disappointment. The others (*most* hypnotic benzos excluded, of course) seem more stimulating and anti-depressant -- Xanax, Ativan, Rohypnol (?!), Klonopin, Frisium and Serax being at the top of that list for me. Surprisingly enough, I've found Dormicum tablets to be the *least* sedating of all benzos I've tried, though their amnestic effects certainly were more pronounced.
Anyway, Tranxene *may* have been just slightly helpful for me at doses of 30mg several times per day, but I actually think that was just the anxiolytic effects of the Lexapro I also was taking at the time. The reason I'm quite skeptical to believe that it could have been the Tranxene is because I remember waking up with reduced anxiety each morning, and I know that had to be the Lexapro -- Tranxene simply doesn't work anywhere near that long. Another thing that, in retrospect, I now find suspect was that abrupt discontinuation of 120-150mg/day caused no withdrawal symptoms or any feelings of discomfort whatsoever. One thing to keep in mind: All this is coming from a person who requires *at the very least* 8mg Klonopin daily just to become *minimally* functional, lol. A little under a gram of Tranxene per day might be enough to provide this same "minimal" benefit, though the zombification would certainly be an issue for me... plus, I don't know how many pharmacists would actually fill a script for 28,000mg or so per month of clorazepate. ;-)
In my opinion, Tranxene certainly serves a purpose, but not many find it to be very good for anxiety... maybe mild stress or muscle tension. But for convulsions, DT's, and other factors relating to alcohol/sedative withdrawal, I personally feel Tranxene has Valium beat due to it's longer half-life.
poster:Ame Sans Vie
thread:267482
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031004/msgs/267614.html