Flunitrazapam (Hypnodorm, Rohypnol, “roofies”) script.
I went to the doctor today and was prescribed flunitrazepam and
clobazam for my anxiety, panic attacks and insomnia. I’m supposed to
take the Frisium (clobazam) in mid-morning (10 mg) and Hypnodorm
(flunitrazepam) at night (1 mg). Both the prescriptions belong to the
benzodiazepine family and they are pretty rare. The campus pharmacy
doesn’t stock them so I had to head down to Clayton to get them from a
bigger pharmacy. Personal and other identifying details have mosaic
applied for privacy. Yes, I really do have severe anxiety.
Clobazam (Frisium) script.
Anyway, here’s a bit of information (compiled from various sources) about both the medications:
Flunitrazepam
Hypnodorm (Flunitrazepam) bottle containing 30 tablets @ 1 mg each.
This is banned in the United States due to the hullabaloo about it
being a “date rape” drug. It is available in Australia for severe
insomnia “when all other options are exhausted”. It is Schedule 8 over
here (belongs to the same schedule as dexamphetamine) while most other
benzos are Schedule 4. Schedule 4 is “Prescription only drugs” while
Schedule 8 is “Drugs of Dependence/Addiction”. Schedule 8 prescriptions
are not easy to get due to the restricted nature, while Schedule 4 is
easier.
The scheduling into Schedule 8 is probably due to it’s notoriety as
a “date rape” drug, since a benzo is a benzo is a benzo and most
benzodiazepines are Schedule 4. However, this doesn’t mean that all
benzodiazepines “feel” the same, because they don’t, since every one
has a different affinity to different GABA binding sites.
Benzodiazepines have been compared to red wine in this sense, in that
you can “appreciate” the subtle differences between the different ones.
Flunitrazepam is marketed under Hypnodorm (generic) but it is more well
known under the name Rohypnol (F. Hoffman-La Roche). This is called
“roofies” on the street and due to the unfortunate media hype (search
for “date rape drug” and Flunitrazepam (Rohypnol) comes up, followed by
GHB – do not allow me to rant about this topic) it’s not available in
the US and it’s hard to get in most other countries as well.
The tablets are green and oval, with FM | 1 on the front and the alpha symbol on the back.
Flunitrazepam has a long half-life (18-26 hours) and it also has an
active metabolite (like Valium) that lasts 36-200 hours. Peak plasma
concentrations occur after 45 minutes, so this is one of the fast
acting benzodiazepines (like Xanax). 1 mg of Flunitrazepam is equal to
10 mg of Diazepam (Valium) or 0.5 mg of Clonazepam (Klonopin) and
Alprazolam (Xanax). It is marketed as a hypnotic (for insomnia).
Hypnodorm comes in a bottle of 30 tablets of 1 mg each. It’s not
available in other doses or sizes in Australia. 30 x 1 mg Flunitrazepam
tablets costs A$26.05 (RM 50) under my health coverage, which does not
cover prescription drugs, so I pay private (full price).
Clobazam
Clobazam (Frisium) pack containing 50 tablets @ 10 mg each.
This is another benzodiazepine that is not available in the United
States. It’s made by Hoechst and marketed under the name Frisium. This
is indicated for acute anxiety in Australia and it’s Schedule 4 like
most other benzos. An interesting tidbit about Clobazam is that it’s
the first anxiolytic (anti-anxiety) drug which belongs to the class of
1,5-benzodiazepine as opposed to the 1,4-benzodiazepine structure. This
makes it something of “historic value” to people who are interested.
This is a side view of the Frisium pack.
The different structure also makes it feel different from other
benzodiazepines, qualitative user comments mentions that the 1,5
structure makes it affect the motor functions much less than normal 1,4
benzodiazepines ie you don’t feel as physically impaired (stumbling
around etc). The half-life of Frisium is 12-60 hours and it’s marketed
as an anxiolytic and an anticonvulsant. Peak plasma concentrations
occur between 1-4 hours, so this makes it a slower acting
benzodiazepine (like Klonopin).
Frisium blister pack – front.
Frisium only comes in packs of 50 tablets containing 10 mg of
Clobazam each. The pack has 5 individual blister packs with 10 tablets
each. 20 mg of Clobazam is equivalent to 10 mg of Diazepam (Valium) and
0.5 mg of Alprazolam (Xanax) and Clonazepam (Klonopin). The pack I have
is the brand name one (Frisium) so it costs much more than generics
would. I paid A$36.15 (RM 70) for the pack of 50 x 10 mg tablets. This
is the private (full) price.
Frisium blister pack – back.
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prefer not to discuss this subject on the blog. You can email me if you have any pressing questions related to the post, I will answer every one. Thanks for understanding.
The tablets are white and round, with B | GL on the front and the Hoechst logo on the back.
