Actually, 1mg of Xanax a day is not considered a hefty dose, but Xanax is a very potent benzo which is very short lived. It is out of your system in approximately four hours. Your doctor should have divided that 1mg dose into at least three to "cover" you for the day.
We all react differently to medication and it surprises me that your withdrawal is so protracted. BUT.............the one biggest no-no with any of the psycotropic meds is that you NEVER, EVER go off them cold turkey!
Tapering off Xanax needs to be done very slowly, even a dose of 1mg. I will assume if you had told your doctor what you were doing, she would have stopped you. And perhaps she had her reasons for telling you to up your dose and entire mg. That's a big jump with Xanax.
If you still trust your doctor, I would recommend you have a good long chat with her about the Xanax. It is normally prescribed for very short term daily use.........<4 months is the recommended time frame. And tapering off is a given. You say you fight anxiety on a daily basis. While Xanax is an excellent PRN (AS NEEDED) drug, for long term relief from anxiety you need a drug that is made to be used long term. Something like Klonopin. One thing you must understand about any of the benzos. All they are doing is masking the symptoms of your underlying anxiety. They will not cure what is ailing you. Therapy is needed to discover what the root cause of your anxiety is and help you deal with THOSE issues...... because it's those issues which are manifesting themselves as anxiety. Meds are a good adjunct to help you during therapy.
Lots to think about.
I wish you the best.
Peace
Greenlydia