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Possibly facing jail and going off xanax cold turkey. Advice

Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 3:55 pm
by 4EverMe
Hello,
I've been on 1mg xanax four times a day for years...I could be facing jail (1-2 yrs). I cannot go
off my med cold turkey! Advice from a loved one is to "get off the grid." It's fight or flight...
Any advice? I'm scared to death, honestly!

Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2014 4:06 am
by Hawthorne
How soon is this possible jail? Can you start decreasing your meds now?
Can you get special permission to be on these meds while you are in jail? I know that some jails will medicate if possible.
Good luck!
Hawthorne

Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2014 4:10 pm
by 4EverMe
Hi Hawthorne,
I'm grateful that someone has finally answered! Thank you...

Well, I decided against the 'flight.' Not a smart choice.
Where I live, the jails will only give the meds for epilepsy, blood pressure, heart issues & such. Other than that they don't really care, according to my lawyer.
I've been prescribed xanax by my Primary Care Doctor, as I've been on it before for agoraphobia, ptsd, and panic disorder. I inquired about finding a psychiatrist to be the one to prescribe this because they have some clout with the courts. However, the psychiatrists are booked up with other clients for a year or longer!

Recently, I took a fall and fractured some bones. The court granted a continuance, and my new court appearance was rescheduled for this coming Monday, the 18th.
After speaking with my attorney for quite a while, there may be hope. We just need to explain to the judge where a misunderstanding had occurred...
All, I know is that I've been doing my very best.
Right now, I can only pray and hope that the judge believes the truth.

If you'd like more details, please ask. Otherwise, to make a long story short, I've been on a PDA (prosecution deferment agreement) for a misdemeanor. A large part of this was due to an ex-friend making up lies to get a restraining order against me. She had threatened me to my face that she was going to get me kicked out of my apartment, and for me to just "wait and see." Because we'd been neighbors, she knew that getting a R.O. would force me out of my place. She then lied and said that I had violated the R.O. (!!) I had no way of proving that all of these accusations against me were lies. Thus, I lost my apt. and had to move!
When a person is on a PDA, you must follow the court orders as laid out, stay out of trouble, and then the case is dismissed when the PDA expires.
Again, to make a long story short, there was a misunderstanding involving one of the court orders. The prosecuting attorney has filed a motion to revoke my PDA due to "noncompliance.'

This whole situation is a nightmare. All I've been doing is my best to comply...and then this!
The only thing I can do is pray, trust my lawyer, and hope that the judge understands.

Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2014 4:23 pm
by 4EverMe
P.S. I've been on a high dose of xanax for years. There's not enough time to safely taper from the dose I'm on. It would take a year or so to do this.
Yes, it's very dangerous and can be fatal to even taper off too quickly.

There was a time when I had decided to ween myself off of it. I went from taking three and a half pills to taking three. By the second evening, I began suffering terrible hallucinations! It was just awful...
The hallucinations ceased after I took the half I had omitted.

Usually, when tapering from xanax, a person is to be weened down 1/4 milligram per every couple months or longer. I take 3- 3 1/2 millligram a day. So, you get the picture!

Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2014 12:13 am
by 4EverMe
Just want to say I'm okay. :-)

Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2014 8:58 pm
by hazeleyes
So glad to hear you're OK! :D

Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2014 5:43 am
by 4EverMe
Aww, thank you hazeleyes. :-)

Re: Possibly facing jail and going off xanax cold turkey. Advice

Posted: Sun Jun 07, 2020 1:52 pm
by Prycejosh1987
4EverMe wrote:Hello,
I've been on 1mg xanax four times a day for years...I could be facing jail (1-2 yrs). I cannot go
off my med cold turkey! Advice from a loved one is to "get off the grid." It's fight or flight...
Any advice? I'm scared to death, honestly!

That is not good advice. Not good advice at all. I am sure you can still get your medication in prison. They dont take everything away from you.