My story is much like yours. I had a physchiatrist who told me I needed Xanax and Paxil for over 25 years. I suffer from debilitating anxiety and panic. No known reason. I’m 67. Last year when the Xanax “turned on me” the best way I know how to put it, LOL, I expressed my desire to discontinue and begin tapering. To make a long story short my doctor totally abandoned me, refused to take my phone calls, office staff was hanging up on me, etc. etc. I had no prescriptions left and even though I live in a very large city couldn’t find a new doctor willing to take on another doctor’s benzo addict. I wound up in the hospital and was put on all kinds of crazy physch meds when in actuality I was in withdrawal from the abrupt cessation of the Xanax. No physchiatrist at a very well known hospital here would acknowledge or admit I was in withdrawal. Another long story short after leaving the hospital with about 5 different meds making me horribly worse I did find a compassionate, caring doctor who is now helping me out of this mess. This has not been a good year! Thank God I have a loving husband of 48 years and two great sons. Doing pretty darn good now.