Quick answer
If you take Xanax, Klonopin, or Ativan and want to stop, the taper plan decides whether it goes safely. The FDA warns that stopping abruptly can cause seizures. Boyle County recorded 9 drug overdose deaths in 2025. Three facilities within 30 miles of Danville offer benzodiazepine detoxification. Here is how to start.
Benzodiazepines like alprazolam (Xanax), clonazepam (Klonopin), and lorazepam (Ativan) calm the nervous system, and the body adapts to them over weeks or months. When the dose drops too fast, the FDA's updated boxed warning describes what can follow: withdrawal reactions including seizures, which can be life-threatening. The safe path is a supervised, gradual taper, and Danville has local options for starting one.
Why stopping suddenly is the part that gets people hurt
The FDA tells prescribers to use a gradual taper to stop or reduce a benzodiazepine, and states plainly that there are no standard tapering schedules that fit everyone. The plan has to be individualized after an assessment, then watched and adjusted when symptoms spike. Pausing at a dose before going lower again is normal and safe. A rough week mid-taper is information for the next adjustment, not a reason to stop cold.
That matters in a place like Danville, where a benzo prescription often sits alongside an opioid prescription or regular drinking. Benzodiazepines and opioids both slow breathing, and alcohol works on the same receptors as benzos. That combination is what turns a routine dose into an emergency. If you take more than one of these, the taper plan should list every substance you use, not just the benzo.
What the Kentucky numbers show
Statewide, the Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center counted 148 benzodiazepine-involved overdose deaths in 2025, or 13.2% of all drug overdose deaths in Kentucky - a 30.5% drop from 213 in 2024. Alprazolam (Xanax) was identified in 97 of those deaths. The detail that should shape any taper conversation: every one of the 148 deaths also involved at least one other drug.
Boyle County is small, so its annual counts move in single digits. The county recorded 9 drug overdose deaths in 2025, according to the 2025 Drug Overdose Fatality Report. Fentanyl-involved deaths in Boyle County fell from 6 in 2024 to 5 in 2025, per the same KIPRC report.
Those numbers do not mean benzodiazepines are harmless. They mean the danger concentrates in combination, which is exactly what a taper plan is built to manage.
Where to start in Danville
Danville is the seat of Boyle County, about 35 miles southwest of Lexington, and Boyle was the first county in Kentucky certified as a Recovery Ready Community, in May 2023. That certification followed local work on free overdose response training and Narcan distribution.
A search of the SAMHSA locator for a 30-mile radius around Danville returns 37 substance use facilities, including:
- 4 that offer withdrawal management (detoxification), 3 of which report benzodiazepine detoxification specifically
- 9 with residential programs and 36 offering outpatient care
- 1 federally certified opioid treatment program and 30 facilities that prescribe buprenorphine
Three outpatient clinics sit inside Danville itself: the New Vista Boyle County Outpatient Clinic, Spero Health, and the Isaiah House Danville Outpatient Clinic. New Vista, a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic, also runs a 24-Hour Helpline at 1-800-928-8000 and walk-in behavioral health urgent care in Lexington. For a medication question or a taper plan, the prescriber who wrote the benzodiazepine is often the fastest place to begin - bring a full medication list and mention any opioid or alcohol use.
Kentucky's KY HELP Call Center (833-8KY-HELP) is open 24/7 to connect people with treatment, and the Boyle County Health Department runs a syringe exchange and harm reduction program on South 3rd Street in Danville, which offers HIV and hepatitis C testing and hepatitis A vaccine.
Paying for a benzodiazepine taper
Kentucky expanded Medicaid, so more adults with low incomes qualify than in non-expansion states. Kentucky Medicaid covers medically necessary substance use treatment, including withdrawal management and medication when it is medically necessary. Most members get care through a managed care plan, so confirm the level of care and any prior authorization before you commit. If you are uninsured, the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357 gives free, confidential referrals.
How to start today
- In a medical emergency, call 911. If someone is seizing or cannot be woken up, that is an emergency, not a taper problem. For a crisis, call or text 988.
- Call or text (800) 653-9376 to talk through your options with a treatment specialist, or use this form:
Calling is free; the referral service is paid for by treatment providers, and we check your benefits before you commit.
- Ask your prescriber about a gradual taper, or call New Vista's 24-Hour Helpline at 1-800-928-8000.
- Search findtreatment.gov from a Danville ZIP code and filter for withdrawal management or medication-assisted treatment.
Emergency and crisis lines
If someone is unresponsive, seizing, or struggling to breathe, call 911 first - a suspected benzodiazepine withdrawal seizure belongs in an emergency department, not at home. For a mental health or substance use crisis that is not a medical emergency, call or text 988, or call New Vista's 24-Hour Helpline at 1-800-928-8000.
This page is general health information, not medical advice. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by any facility named above.
Last updated: Sun Oct 18 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Frequently asked questions
How many places near Danville offer benzodiazepine detox?
Within 30 miles of Danville, the SAMHSA locator lists 4 facilities that offer withdrawal management, and 3 of them report benzodiazepine detoxification specifically. Boyle County's own outpatient clinics also screen and refer for supervised tapers.
Can I stop taking Xanax or Klonopin on my own?
No, not safely after regular use. The FDA warns that abruptly stopping a benzodiazepine can trigger withdrawal reactions including seizures. A clinician should build a gradual taper plan and monitor it, adjusting the pace as symptoms change.
Do benzodiazepines cause overdose deaths on their own in Kentucky?
Rarely. In Kentucky's 2025 data, every benzodiazepine-involved overdose death also involved at least one other drug, most often an opioid. The risk rises sharply when a benzo is mixed with opioids or alcohol.
Who manages a benzodiazepine taper near Danville?
The prescriber who wrote the prescription is often the fastest place to start, and the New Vista Boyle County Outpatient Clinic in Danville offers behavioral health and substance use care. New Vista's 24-Hour Helpline is 1-800-928-8000, and Kentucky's KY HELP Call Center (833-8KY-HELP) is open around the clock.
What should I do if someone is having a seizure or cannot be woken up?
Call 911 first. A suspected benzodiazepine withdrawal seizure needs an emergency department, not a home taper. For a crisis that is not a medical emergency, call or text 988.