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I've been on Xanax since age 15 I'm 54 :( help
Addiction & Recovery | Last Active: 3 days ago | Replies (76)Comment receiving replies
@londonex, hi there, thank you for reaching out, my purpose for posting this comment was based on all the comments I have read in the last few years from people who were struggling with fear about not being able to find someone to help them with their benzodiazepine prescription, the reasons were varied from doctors who were retiring and basically leaving their patients alone to get help, the new doctors and also younger ones were not interested in getting involved with these drugs, they were educated about them and at the very least they would provide a patient with a two week supply. The other problem was that the doctors who did provide them their meds were caught up in a the negativity surrounding benzodiazepine and some started pressuring their patients to withdraw, in some cases the withdrawal process was much too fast but they didn’t care, I was a victim of this and sadly all it did was increase my anxiety so the outcome was a disaster. I have posted many comments about this and the shaming I was put through, I never abused my medication and did my utmost best to stay on the same dose, believe me, that was so difficult to do because it’s very well known that you tend to increase over time because your body gets used to the medication. I had to get cancer before my doctor started easing up his pressure but he put me in the care of the pharmacy and I hated this arrangement for many reasons. I know that benzodiazepines were always frowned upon because they are addictive but that didn’t stop the doctors from prescribing them because they worked very well and it made things easier for the doctors who were getting busier with more patients, a quick fix for them and a possible life time of stress and struggles for the patient. I also believe that the opioid crisis which is another travesty of wrong doing got bigger all the time, another highly addictive drug and so they put everything together, thus creating another crisis, it’s a well known fact that you can’t mix benzodiazepine and opioid, it will definitely cause overdose.
Replies to "@londonex, hi there, thank you for reaching out, my purpose for posting this comment was based..."
Thank you for clarifying – I am very sorry you have gone through this misery. I think any medication that helps any medical situation is something that all patients should be allowed to choose for themselves. After all, it is our body.
As discussed, in my case, a low-dose benzodiazepine over many years has been a useful tool for me to get through many challenging situations. While I have some physical addiction for sure, I’m sure the case would be the same for any medication I take whether it be for diabetes, cancer, heart, disease, etc. Even SSRIs are terribly difficult to pull away from. There’s also psychological addiction and fear of discontinuation that comes into play.
So the way I look at it —each one of these factors has to be considered on an individual level with risk factors and tolerances taken into account.
And I know it can be hard find the right doctor that’s tuned into each one of our unique cases. Everyone is so different — I know some folks who have derived a great deal of assistance from these medications and obviously we all know others who have had a rough time. I wish you all the best in your journey.
Can you please explain what “ put me in the care of the pharmacy” means?
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I just wanted to add that some of what I said pertains to where you live, I reside in Canada where benzodiazepines are labeled as a controlled substance and I believe that in the USA it is considered a black box drug which is stricter than here however it’s just a matter of time that it will be the same thing here. I can only say that if you want to get off this drug, do so with professional help and as many people who have been successful in getting off them, go very slowly, there is a lot of good help and support available so you don’t have to feel afraid or alone because you’re not alone.