Have you seen people develop paradoxical effects while on a stable dosage? (Jordan Peterson)
I’m asking for help regarding the long-term use of clonazepam for my debilitating IBS and functional abdominal pain syndrome. My condition involves constant 9/10 neuropathic-like pain that has left me bedridden, and after exhausting all options (diets, vagus nerve stimulation, hypnotherapy, antiepileptics...) **clonazepam** is the only treatment providing any relief and not causing any CNS hypersensitivity. However, I have a history of severe paradoxical reactions from past antidepressant use (leg nerve pain that appeared right after starting them, but I kept pushing on the drugs because of a doctor's advice), which makes me extremely hesitant. Took me several years to recover from that.
I was considering a long-term, low-dose regimen on clonazepam, but after learning about Jordan Peterson’s experience with a paradoxical reaction and kindling to this drug, I am terrified of going through the same. In Jordan Peterson's case, he used clonazepam for sleep during 4 years, experiencing the usual side effects, and after that time his wife got cancer and his dose was increased to deal with the extreme anxiety. He experienced a paradoxical reaction (more anxiety), aka kindling, and tried to cold turkey the medication leading to severe akathisia.
I would like to know how common paradoxical reactions are after using clonazepam for a few years, in a stable regimen. Tolerance, I can deal with. I would just start a hyperbolic taper and go very slow. But paradoxical reactions are an entirely different animal, one that would definitely put my life at risk...
Appreciate any insights...thank you all!
Posted May 1, 2026, 9:19 PM UTC