Klonopin

[Guest guest]

I was at a cfids awareness conference a few weeks ago in Tampa. It was sponsored

by the cfids association. It was mentioned that  Klonopin does not work for

everyone and they are finding it does not get everyone in a good deep sleep.

...that is what my notes said.....

Re: Klonopin

Date: Monday, June 9, 2008, 10:22 AM

& gt;

& gt; I am not sure where I stand on the klonopin issue, but ironically

my new computer has a program that has been trying to clean out old

email and a message I sent to myself 2 yrs ago was brought to my

attention, I don't know where I got the interview with cheney or

how old it is but this is verbatiom what I copied and sent myself

from somehting I found on the web. to go faster and suffer a little.

& gt; & gt; & gt;

Hi,

Thanks for posting this. I remember this! It was a little

frightening to me because I was brain-fogged and couldn't grasp the

concept of coma vs seizure (well, I could grasp it but didn't like

it).

I cut out a paragraph because I wanted to make a comment based on

our recent conversations on the board.

This paragraph seems to me to equate Klonipin to us as insulin is to

a diabetic. They can be very ill until the insulin is

administered. So, one could argue that they are " addicted " to

insulin.

I am beginning to view Klonipin as insulin for our off-balance brain

chemistry. I have been intending to deal with gluatamate/GABA

through diet (removing excitotoxins, not easy) to supplementing with

GABA.

" The last question Cheney addressed concerned the dose: what happens

if the dose is too high? He said the only down side was that if you

took a little too much (we are not talking overdose here) it would

shift you toward coma on the continuum. It would shut your brain

down to some degree, and thus impact your ability to function. This

is inconvenient, but it's not harmful. In fact, it shifts you into

the " healing state " on the continuum. You may feel like a zombie,

but your brain is protected and your neurons are not getting fried.

However, not being able to function isn't an option for most of us,

so we need to find the maximum dose that doesn't make us drowsy. "

I have recently found out from an autistic child's mom that

removing excitotoxins from diet does not necessarily correct the

imbalance (as countless autistic children's parents have learned).

The brain seems to generate the imbalance. Having said that, I have

gone off excitotoxins for two weeks and then visited a friend for

Memorial Day and a few things had chemicals. I recognized

the " wired, but tired " issues returning and had much difficulty

sleeping, again. Didn't last more than the one night. So, diet may

help, I suggest reading Dr. Blaylocks's book and googling

Feingold Diet.

So if Cheney and others are correct, then Klonipin or GABA would be

a lifetime supplement and if we begin to feel drowsy over time then

it is possible that would be able to get off Klonipin.

AND, if our brains had resolved the issue, then withdrawl would be

easy and not the painful process that we hear and read about.

Are my assumptions on target?

I would be willing to submit a set of questions to Dr.

Baraniuk regarding Klonipin if someone will help me generate a

concise list. Here's a few to start with....

1. Is GABA/Glumatate issue generated in brain or or a metabolic

issue controlled by diet?

2. Is Klonipin a substance that is correcting (cure) an imbalance

or is " bypassing " the cause of the imbalance (treatment) and

therefore a lifelong requirement?

3. Would withdrawal for a normal person without GABA/glutamate

imbalance be easy and free of symptoms? Therefore, if ME/CFS patient

needs Klonipin, withdrawal would be painful.

Cort, did you and Dr. B. have a conversation re: Klonipin? I would

have loved to have been in the room during your conversation - I bet

it was enlightening (in terms of the future of research).

Marti