Quitting Benzos Cold Turkey? 2 year of high use

[BenzoGAD]

I've been on Benzo's for 2 years straight, mostly Lorazepam and Clonazepam around 2-3mg but I'd abuse it and go to around 4mg. My last script was for 3mg Xanax per day but I started doing 4mg at once then 8mg and 10mg, had 25mg in a span of like 3 days. Then I quit cold turkey out of the blue. I just didn't want to be on them. I'm also on Cipralex 20mg and Wellbutrin 150mg XL. So far I've been coping with withdrawal with weed and pregabalin, but it hasn't been so bad yet.. today is the 4th day. What do you guys suggest? My doctor, psych, councilor all told me not to quit cold turkey but I feel if I've made it almost 4 days without major withdrawals then maybe I should continue not doing them?

EDIT - I forgot to mention, I was also chewying up Oxy 40s and sometimes up to 80-120mg at a time. The generic version that becomes instant release if chewed. Quit that cold turkey as well. How am I holding up decently so far?

 

[Patrickforsterter]

I don't know much about benzo withdrawal except it can be life thretaining... So with that I would simply make sure I have some benzos or a substitute around in case you start to seizure a lot of people flush their drugs down the toilet thinking that this heroic act somehow makes a big step in quitting when all it does it show that the person can't be trusted to use his drugs responsibly I used to be the same on codeine but now I take less than half my daily prescribed dose and just feel a lot prouder and happier with myself knowing that I can control my use and that's what I'm getting at you need to be able to have the drugs with you and simply only use enough not anymore obviously it depends on who you are to say what enough would be but I mean just enough to feel well and continue cutting down at your own pace.

Sorry for going off on a sort of rant, I would advise you to obtain some benzoes or a substitute if you don't have any because if you have a seizure and don't die I imagine they will just administer you some benzoes at the hospital some people know s lot more on this subject I'm sure they can give more accurate advise but ime it usually comes down to the same old things with most drugs people are usually in denial though(ime).

Good luck op

 

[BenzoGAD]

I have about 150mg of Xanax and about 20mg of Clonazepam handy if needed. I just don't feel like taking them anymore. They've changed me as a person.

 

[Patrickforsterter]

Yeh that's good that's a great step to take the only thing is benzo withdraw can(don't mean it will just means its possible)kill you how are you feeling now?

 

[Pickledlemons]

My advice would be to NOT cold turkey from benzos. Your doses aren't insanely high or anything but 2 years is a long time, it could still be physically dangerous.

If the last benzo you were using was xanax, you should be in heavy withdrawals by day 4 as xanax is fairly short acting.. I wouldn't guess it would get much worse from here... but the one thing I've learned about withdrawals is that they are unpredictable. Good idea on keeping those the emergency supply on you.

Good luck

 

[BenzoGAD]

Alright so I'm on day 5 today and I'm holding up pretty good... only main thing I'm using is weed and if I feel to down then I take a 150mg pregabalin capsule. This is compeletly cold turkey without a single benzo pill taken since early in the day 5 days ago. However, as you said, benzo withdrawals can be unpredictable.. next thing you know I'm on the ground screaming for life lol

but I do have that supply handly, especially the Clonazepam as it's long acting so should theoretically keep withdrawal symptoms at bay for longer periods of time

I should note that in the past, I've used more than the prescribed amount of Benzos for first 20 days of the script and then left hanging for 10 days until next refill. This happened to me several times and during those 10 or so days I never experienced a great amount of withdrawal. Maybe it's just my body?

EDIT - Hmmm, maybe it won't be so smooth sailing after all... I just counted how much Clonazepam I have left and it is 12mg. My script was for 45mg. Got the script 10 days ago so that means I must have been taking about 7mg of Clonazepam a day on top of the 8-10mg of Xanax. Think all that Clonazepam is still in my system?

 

[Chronicpain54]

Seven mgs of klonopin a day is a lot, plus it's long acting and builds up in your system. At those doses of just the klonopin I wouldn't expect withdrawal to begin until Day 5. If it was just Xanax you would be hurting bad right now but klonopin is sneaky.

Keep those benzos close by and keep any more doses very low...enough to stop seizures, although you will probably feel like crap still.

I do not want to sound alarmist or extreme; just keep up with what you take and keep your fingers crossed that low doses of those two keep the worst of it away. Benzos are scary to abuse, so I don't ever overdo it or run out early. I'd rather run out of my Roxies early.

 

[Speed King]

Op, you need to taper off your dosage. Benzos can kill cold turkey. You don?t jump off long term without a taper.

 

[Binary-Dichotomy]

It's been said "don't quit cold turkey". But you are, so that being said do everything you can to be safe. Don't keep a bottle of xans at home, keep 4 bars in a pocket or wallet so they are on you in case of emergencies. If you have someone you trust, tell them what's going on just in case you don't show up to work or something they'll be able to make sure you're okay.

The Xanax withdrawals should be ending about now, but the longer acting ones are more unpredictable. You may not have any siezures but you're almost guaranteed to have a few crazy bouts of crying and anxiety.

Be mindful of panick attacks because they probably will happen, and it will feel like you're gonna die if you've never experienced it before. Taking a small dose of a benzo to calm down a little is okay but you don't want to take a handful just to feel better in the moment and then have to start over again with quitting.


That being said, I'm not a doctor and you should take my advice with a huge grain of salt.
Your doctor, friends, etc are telling you not to quit cold turkey because IT IS A BAD IDEA and can be life threatening even if it doesn't seem like it. Excercise caution and talk to your doctor.

 

[BenzoGAD]

Thanks for the advice guys! I'm on day 7 now and I'm feeling quite anxious. Even with the weed I still feel pretty anxious but it helps with that feeling at the pit of my stomach. I've been doing more reading online and read people can still get seizure's after a week or even two weeks... That is the only thing that worries me about this. I can fight the other symptoms but what would I do if I had a seizure? I've never had one before... it's making me paranoid lol

 

[Keif' Richards]

Well my friend, I suppose Kudos are in order, because the majority of folks who are dependent upon Benzodiazepines do not generally make the decision to stop on their own volition, cold turkey. The truth is, it's really on you and what you can tolerate. The issue I have, is that I am concerned for your well being, as Benzodiazepine withdrawal, although not necessarily fatal, is still a harmful and fairly miserable process. Even if you are not experiencing Delirium Tremens, there is still a certain level of harm involved when quitting cold turkey.

If it's working for you, then I say more power to you, but I have to make the obvious suggestion that a taper would be a much better and less miserable experience. If you desire to just quit, then I won't stop you, but there's no reason to put yourself through hell if it's not completely necessary.

One thing I will say, is that Gabapentinoids, a class of drugs which includes Pregabalin (Lyrica), will definitely mitigate a lot of the symptoms of withdrawal. You might say that it masks the symptoms of withdrawal. Why is this important? Well, you might not have a true understanding of how severe your syndrome is if you're using the Pregabalin to cope. When the Pregabalin runs out or you become completely tolerant to it, you might find that you're actually in a pretty severe withdrawal.

The Benzodiazepine dosages that you've been using are not minor. One would actually expect a pretty severe syndrome if jumping off from these dosages. I don't want you to go through hell if you don't have to so please keep us posted. If you're not experiencing stuff like hallucinations, paranoia or an innate feeling of sheer terror/panic, then you're going to be fine, but please, please keep us posted.

 

[Tonberry King]

I had a seizure from quitting cold turkey. I would still medicate with pot and an occasional seroquel to knock me out but it's pretty dangerous so it is at your own risk that you do so. I don't recommend that method to anyone but it is what worked for me in the long run. In case of a seizure have someone you can depend on be aware of the situation and ready to call an ambulance if needed. One was called for me but I refused service and signed the paper and they left. It scared the shit out of my family but they responded immediately and that just might have saved my life.
It only lasted for about 30-40 seconds max and by the time the ambulance got there I knew I was going to be okay so I sent them on their way. You might not be so lucky and you might not have one at all. The point is to be around people who know your situation and know what to do if in case you do seize up. Better safe than sorry and I understand 100% why you want to quit ct. Just be safe and be strong.

 

[BenzoGAD]

I had a seizure from quitting cold turkey. I would still medicate with pot and an occasional seroquel to knock me out but it's pretty dangerous so it is at your own risk that you do so. I don't recommend that method to anyone but it is what worked for me in the long run. In case of a seizure have someone you can depend on be aware of the situation and ready to call an ambulance if needed. One was called for me but I refused service and signed the paper and they left. It scared the shit out of my family but they responded immediately and that just might have saved my life.
It only lasted for about 30-40 seconds max and by the time the ambulance got there I knew I was going to be okay so I sent them on their way. You might not be so lucky and you might not have one at all. The point is to be around people who know your situation and know what to do if in case you do seize up. Better safe than sorry and I understand 100% why you want to quit ct. Just be safe and be strong.

Thank you for this! The reason I'm quitting cold turkey is because I know there is no way I can do a taper. If I start taking them again, I'd end up in the same situation a month or two down the road. I've managed to go 10+ days in the past without seizing but this time I was doing way too much right before I quit. I'm going to order some Rick Simpson Oil and start taking that every day as well because I think it will really help with the risk of seizure and might help in the detoxing process. I really believe in CBD because I know of its effects first hand and I think the only reason I've been able to go 10+ days in the past is because I used to be stoned 24/7 and also taking CBD isolate.

Just a question.. how long into your CT did you experience the seizure? I'm wondering how long it will be until I'm safe from risk of seizure

 

[ThatOneDude!]

I almost died several times from xanax withdrawals..... grand maul seizures.....
it is very dangerous. it seems rather unorthodox to consider cold turkey on benzos. I'd always STRONGLY suggest some sort of taper.
I also totaled my car from a seizure while driving. and was Falsely charged with a DUI.

 

[Tonberry King]

Just a question.. how long into your CT did you experience the seizure? I'm wondering how long it will be until I'm safe from risk of seizure

Week and a half into it. Your situation might be totally different so take caution if you must do it this way. It is dangerous as others have said. I got lucky and you might not.

 

[BenzoGAD]

Week and a half into it. Your situation might be totally different so take caution if you must do it this way. It is dangerous as others have said. I got lucky and you might not.

Thanks! I talked to my psychiatrist today and he said I should be past the risk of seizure since it's been a week but I've been reading a lot of posts about people having seizures much past a week... If you don't mind me asking, how much were you taking and for how long before you quit CT?

 

[Tonberry King]

I was snorting about 4-6 mg a day and orally taking about the same for close to two years straight.

 

[BenzoGAD]

I was snorting about 4-6 mg a day and orally taking about the same for close to two years straight.

Thanks for letting me know! That seems to be higher dosage than what I've been on for the last two years, except for the 2 weeks or so before my CT where I was doing a crazy amount of both Xanax and Clonazepam together.

Just wanted to provide an update... I'm on day 9 now and it's getting easier as the days go by. I still have a lot of anxiety but that may be due to the fact that I've been numbing out my anxiety for two years with Benzo's and now I have nothing to go to except my cannabis. Weed really helped me out a lot here. Now that I'm thinking about it, I've been doing Hydrocodone syrup and than Oxy for like the past two months straight. I never realized I might have actually been addicted to opiates as well. Either way, I quit both Oxy and Xanax the same day and overall I'm feeling much better now than I did even two-three days ago. I'll still keep my supply of Clonazepam/Xanax on me in case of seizure appearing but other than that risk, I think I've beat it! I have no desire to do benzos ever again, at least the way I'm feeling right now. Opiates I feel the same way. One or two joints a day and I think I'll be doing fine overall. Without having access to the weed, I think this would have been much, much harder than it actually was for me. I recommend anyone trying to quit to aleviate symptoms using cannabis in the meantime.