1. < Depression & Anxiety

Protracted Benzo withdrawal

Posted by aarniek @aarniek, Oct 30, 2016

Taken of 8mg of Ativan daily in 3 weeks and suffering terribly nearly 4 years now! Unable to walk ,have insane muscle tightness,no memory,tinnius is unbearable,unable to picture things in my mind ! After 45 months it's worse than ever and 2 neurologists have tried only medications which all made me even worse!

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lioness | @lioness | Feb 14, 2019
In reply to @brit "I agree with everything you said. It is so hard to "help yourself" sometimes. i am..." + (show)
@brit

I agree with everything you said. It is so hard to "help yourself" sometimes. i am just too tired of feeling this way. My doctor is very understanding and tries to do all he can but so far it hasn't worked. Just pray to the "Father" for help and try very hard for myself but nothing seems to work. Thank you for your caring and God Bless Patti

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@brit As Parus said everyone has there own way of dealing with things in there lives those who believe in a higher power have to know that it is us who make us well the higher power is within us . God helps those who help themselves

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1 reply
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Feb 14, 2019
In reply to @brit "I agree 100% with the Lord helping us but we work "togther" and thats the answer...." + (show)
@brit

I agree 100% with the Lord helping us but we work "togther" and thats the answer. I do try very hard every day to "help myself" and mostly it doesn't work so what can I say. My medication has a weird affect on me but I do take it. My doctor is a very understand man and tries to help alll he can by changing my medication and listening. I just really don't know what else I can do. I do try to help myself on an hourly basis but nothing seems to help. I have to, I know find the strength within myself to overcome this but..................Patti

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I'm glad that your doctor is a good support for you, @brit. Be encouraged, you will find the strength you need. Just keep doing the things that help you. It can be a long process but a rewarding one.

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lioness | @lioness | Feb 14, 2019
In reply to @hopeful33250 "Hello @brit, As I am a person of faith and believe in God, I realize that..." + (show)
@hopeful33250

Hello @brit,

As I am a person of faith and believe in God, I realize that what @parus and @merpreb have posted has a ring of truth. Sometimes people of faith can begin to rely on magical thinking that all will be fine if they just believe. However, as people of faith we are urged to seek out wisdom and to actively involve ourselves in our own well-being.

As an example of this, I have an elderly relative who in her early 50's discovered a lump in her breast. She decided not to follow the doctor's suggestions for a mammogram, biopsy, etc. and instead prayed and went to visit healers that she saw on TV. After 10 years of that kind of behavior the lump got so big that she could no longer lift her arm to put on her winter coat. So, she decided to do things the doctor's way and eventually had chemo, a mastectomy and radiation.

I realize that we all approach God and faith in a way that we have learned so the following sentence is only my opinion: As a person of faith, I believe that God asks me to look to Him for wisdom but also to use the wisdom he has provided to medical science in order to be healthy and strong.

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@hopeful33250 I agree with everything you said Theresa Whether it is our Dr.s ,nurses or whoever people are here to help each other and we need to look to others for help the right kind of people with whatever the problem is . As I said God helps those who help themselves we don't just sit on the sideline

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lioness | @lioness | Feb 14, 2019
In reply to @brit "I agree 100% with the Lord helping us but we work "togther" and thats the answer...." + (show)
@brit

I agree 100% with the Lord helping us but we work "togther" and thats the answer. I do try very hard every day to "help myself" and mostly it doesn't work so what can I say. My medication has a weird affect on me but I do take it. My doctor is a very understand man and tries to help alll he can by changing my medication and listening. I just really don't know what else I can do. I do try to help myself on an hourly basis but nothing seems to help. I have to, I know find the strength within myself to overcome this but..................Patti

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@brit Maybe your trying to hard ?

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lioness | @lioness | Feb 14, 2019
In reply to @gingerw "@lioness Yes, indeed it is! Garden window in kitchen giving me an accurate recital of each..." + (show)
@gingerw

@lioness Yes, indeed it is! Garden window in kitchen giving me an accurate recital of each stormcell. Husband drove his truck to work, leaving a half hour earlier with heavy traffic already at 4:15am. My plants are loving it, and there will be several needing repotting due to growth. You be safe, also.
Ginger

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@gingerw I'm on 4th floor if it gets this high everyone is in trouble. I do have to go to P.T. after while my windows are getting a good wash Thanks

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Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Feb 14, 2019

Hi everyone,
@parus mentioned a discussion on Spirituality that @hopeful33250 started. It is a wonderful discussion that I all those invite who wish to continue to explore spirituality and health to participate in:
- How Spirituality Can Help Stress https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/how-spirituality-can-help-stress/

I'd like to bring the topic of this discussion back into focus about benzodiazepines and protracted withdrawal.

@creatineboy you mentioned the drug flumazenil (trademarked as Romazicon and Anexate), which is a benzodiazepine antagonist, a type of drug that counteracts the effects of benzodiazepines. Have you used flumazenil? What was your experience?

@num1boxer1919 @beckysn and @elsa1000, you talk about sleep quality since tapering off a benzo. Sleep is so fundamentally important to our health overall. What do you do help promote good sleep?

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1 reply
elsa1000 | @elsa1000 | Feb 14, 2019
In reply to @colleenyoung "Hi everyone, @parus mentioned a discussion on Spirituality that @hopeful33250 started. It is a wonderful discussion..." + (show)
@colleenyoung

Hi everyone,
@parus mentioned a discussion on Spirituality that @hopeful33250 started. It is a wonderful discussion that I all those invite who wish to continue to explore spirituality and health to participate in:
- How Spirituality Can Help Stress https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/how-spirituality-can-help-stress/

I'd like to bring the topic of this discussion back into focus about benzodiazepines and protracted withdrawal.

@creatineboy you mentioned the drug flumazenil (trademarked as Romazicon and Anexate), which is a benzodiazepine antagonist, a type of drug that counteracts the effects of benzodiazepines. Have you used flumazenil? What was your experience?

@num1boxer1919 @beckysn and @elsa1000, you talk about sleep quality since tapering off a benzo. Sleep is so fundamentally important to our health overall. What do you do help promote good sleep?

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I've been trying to practice good "sleep hygiene". (such an odd phrase!) This includes going to bed at the same time and going to bed only to sleep. This goes against a long habit of mine to always fall asleep to the background of the T.V. Also, no coffee after noon. I thought insomnia would be the biggest obstacle in d/c'ing the benzo. Turns out, I'm getting better sleep than I've gotten for too many years to count. I wish I'd known the medication was messing with my restorative sleep as much as it was. I don't know whether the a.m. supplements I started taking during the titration have helped with sleep but just in case: 2000mg fish oil and 2000mg Vitamin D3. And a decent multi-vitamin.
Regarding my titration, I am down to .5mg Valium (diazepam) once a day for another week and a half, then done. I was going to jump off at 1mg but had enough medication to do .5mg for two weeks. So what the heck. I haven't had to deal with much withdrawal (if at all) so I'm erring on the side of caution. Happy Valentine's Day to us all!

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Parus | @parus | Feb 14, 2019
In reply to @hopeful33250 "Hello @brit, As I am a person of faith and believe in God, I realize that..." + (show)
@hopeful33250

Hello @brit,

As I am a person of faith and believe in God, I realize that what @parus and @merpreb have posted has a ring of truth. Sometimes people of faith can begin to rely on magical thinking that all will be fine if they just believe. However, as people of faith we are urged to seek out wisdom and to actively involve ourselves in our own well-being.

As an example of this, I have an elderly relative who in her early 50's discovered a lump in her breast. She decided not to follow the doctor's suggestions for a mammogram, biopsy, etc. and instead prayed and went to visit healers that she saw on TV. After 10 years of that kind of behavior the lump got so big that she could no longer lift her arm to put on her winter coat. So, she decided to do things the doctor's way and eventually had chemo, a mastectomy and radiation.

I realize that we all approach God and faith in a way that we have learned so the following sentence is only my opinion: As a person of faith, I believe that God asks me to look to Him for wisdom but also to use the wisdom he has provided to medical science in order to be healthy and strong.

Jump to this post

@hopeful33250 thank you for once again putting using your gentle words what I was endeavoring to convey. If it were not for my faith I would be at a loss. You stated so well what I wanted to say. I see God everywhere. In the lovely patterns of frost on the window and the trusting smile of my grandson.
Thank you for sharing your story. It is hard to watch others not seek out wisdom.

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Parus | @parus | Feb 14, 2019

@colleenyoung Thank you for the information about the thread...It can be difficult to stay with the topic at times. I am thankful to no longer be taking the benzos. It is difficult to do and I do know I am still working on my CBT skills. I do feel better without them and can empathize with those endeavoring to do so. They need all of the support, encouragement and information available. It has taken time to come back from the fog. I did not know how much of a one I was in for those 9 years.

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