Benzos Weird groggy/unsteady feeling after using benzos during detox from opioids

[David1234]

QUESTION: Please help

I know the title sounds dumb on its own but please read the whole post.

On Tue 29 Nov 2016 I stopped a 22 year opioid habit (mainly codeine) about 900-1,200 Mg a day. For detox I went through about 4 boxes of Valium (1,000 Mg) and 3 and a bit boxes of Tamazapem 875 Mg all spread out over about 5 or 6 days (the Valium was used up by Tuesday 6 Dec 2016 (just on a week ago now). So by about Wednesday 7 Dec all the Valium was gone. I still have some Tamazapem but probably don't need it anymore and I didn't take any last night.
During the detox the doses varied some nights I would take as much as 120 Mg Tamazapem and 80 Mg Valium 3 times a day and other nights not so much.
Problem is now I have no withdrawals I have started taking Naltrexone GH 50 Mg a day but I still feel like I'm not able to walk in a straight line, drive a car safely etc and I figured this should have all passed by now. Its the 11/12/16 now. In fact I've actually had 3 minor car accidents over the past two days (previously haven't had a car accident in well over 10 years). I was only driving short distances to see a doctor and get supplies from the shop. But now I'm not really thinking its a good idea to drive anywhere at all. But Obviously I cant stay like that. I was planning to be feeling fully over this and back at work by now.

Any thoughts on what's happening? How long should Tamazapem make me feel drowsy for or is it something else?
Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[pbuilder]

It's the Valium, Valium has a 100 hour half life so from a single dose, half of it is still in your system 4 days later. It takes about 3 weeks to fully leave, if you took 100 Valium pills over a month for opiate detox, that was big time overkill, especially for codeine, and you have built up a huge amount of Valium in your blood. It will take 3 weeks for it to fully leave, and you better pray you aren't sensitive to benzo withdrawals or else when it does finally fully leave your system, you are going to be dealing with withdrawals that are 100x worse then codeine withdrawals.

 

[Treefa]

Wow IDK....sure benzos last a long time. BUT....

But nobody mentions the fact you were on opiates for 22 YEARS?!

Shit, man, I can run out of opiates after 22 DAYS and my cognitive abilities & coordination are TRASH.....regardless of any other substances.
IME I think that personally happens to me due to some kind of dopamine defeincy.... hell i'll probably have parkinsons someday!

OP, though, this is quite inspiring....but honestly NALTREXONE might not be the right move! IDK but If I just got done kicking the LAST thing i'd want or need to take is a opiate antagonist! How does that fare for the body's re-establishment of endogenous opioids & repairing the endogenous opioid system?

Good luck OP, keep on keepin' on..you're an inspiration....just maybe look into a bike, or a taxi until your coordination returns, huh?!

P.S. no offense, but if you're from Kentucky, that totally explains you're shitty driving! Ha you wouldn't get that if you've never been....but those Kentuckians....cannot drive.

 

[kleinerkiffer]

Jesus fucking christ, you took way way too many benzos and they'll stay in your system for a while, so don't drive again!

If you're lucky you'll only experience some rebound symptoms, but in the worst case you'll go through benzo withdrawal, which is way worse than opioid withdrawal. If you feel signs of a seizure it's time to go to the ER.

 

[David1234]

Thanks for the response I had no idea about benzos but I was being prescribed them by an addiction psychiatrist and they came in boxes of 50 x 5 mg tablets (called Valpam 5) So itwas actually 200 tablets not not 100. I just figured they were prescribing them it so it should be fine. To be honest on about day 3 or 4 I wish I could have got my hands on more of them because I was running low.

Anyway its been a week since I had any Valium and 2 weeks since I had any codeine and I really don't feel any cravings or urges. The naltrexone for me is a really good placebo effect if nothing else. If I don't think I'm going to be able to get high effectively without resorting to drastic measures I don't think I will.

Early days so so fingers crossed and kts hoping this dizzy/balance issue goes away.

Im from Australia so driving here might even be worse than Kentucky ��. I have to fly interstate tomorrow for work so I'll be getting a cab to and from the airports. From the sounds of things it's gonna get a bit rough in a few weeks time. Will keep you posted and thanks for the replies.

 

[kleinerkiffer]

This addiction psychiatrist failed his job, 100mg of diazepam should've done the job and prescribing that much to someone who's addicted to opioids is just fucked up, benzos can be really addictive and withdrawal can even kill you

 

[pbuilder]

This addiction psychiatrist failed his job, 100mg of diazepam should've done the job and prescribing that much to someone who's addicted to opioids is just fucked up, benzos can be really addictive and withdrawal can even kill you

I agree, careless prescribing by this psych. Keep us updated OP, it's also possible you will just get better from now on and not have withdrawals, it really depends how sensitive you are to benzo withdrawals, some people aren't very and can get away with a lot of benzo use before they start getting withdrawals so you may get lucky.

 

[mike.vick]

You are doing the valium shuffle. Nah but foreal, it is the combined horrid shitness of withdrawal mixed with the leaning-on-walls benzo dosing. DO NOT MIX any more drugs with that, The good thing about valium is it last a few days in your system - just hope you aren't in college cause it's finals week this week. ( fuck me )

 

[mike.vick]

Thanks for the response I had no idea about benzos but I was being prescribed them by an addiction psychiatrist and they came in boxes of 50 x 5 mg tablets (called Valpam 5) So itwas actually 200 tablets not not 100. I just figured they were prescribing them it so it should be fine. To be honest on about day 3 or 4 I wish I could have got my hands on more of them because I was running low.

Anyway its been a week since I had any Valium and 2 weeks since I had any codeine and I really don't feel any cravings or urges. The naltrexone for me is a really good placebo effect if nothing else. If I don't think I'm going to be able to get high effectively without resorting to drastic measures I don't think I will.

Early days so so fingers crossed and kts hoping this dizzy/balance issue goes away.

Im from Australia so driving here might even be worse than Kentucky ��. I have to fly interstate tomorrow for work so I'll be getting a cab to and from the airports. From the sounds of things it's gonna get a bit rough in a few weeks time. Will keep you posted and thanks for the replies.

Australia and Kentucky have a lot in common I would not eat any more valiums ( i know it's hard when you have them, i'll eat them like candies all day) NEVER eat another today, SET your alarm clock, and make sure you aren't nauseated or consuming ANY alcohol or drugs and You should just be a lil high from the long hal-life tommorrow - Definitely have some for the flight just in case you start buggin!

 

[mike.vick]

Valium and it's active metabolite have a half-life of 10+ days, that's why it is so good for short-term use, cause you don't crash.

 

[David1234]

Thanks again for the responses.

Its been a week now since I've had any Valium. Withdrawals from opiates are well and truly gone and I haven't had any Tamazapem for 4 days. The drowsy/spaced out feeling was a lot milder today. Managed to get to my interstate trip yesterday and back again tonight without any problem except about 4 people I work with kept asking me if I "was OK because I looked sick (one person said stoned lol)".

I had already told people I was really sick because I couldn't work while detoxing from the opiates anyway so that was easy enough to explain.

All things considered I'm feeling pretty good it just feels like I'm not getting enough sleep even though I am now sleeping a lot (if that makes any sense). The benzo withdrawals people have mentioned are a bit of a worry. When should I expect them to start (guessing about Friday?) Also what are the first symptoms I'm going to notice? Will I get RLS again? Keep in mind Ive never really taken benzos before, only about 2 or 3 times in my life. I'm still taking the naltrexone and even as a placebo I'm finding it really helpful. Haven't even had a thought of taking any opiate since.

Thanks again

 

[mike.vick]

^^^ people have told me i look sick in wd - tge best one tet: sineone said, "your walking around lookin like your dog just died". But yeah temazepam is super quick action, like a couple hours, valium stick aroind more, especially at vsry high doses.

 

[Felonious Monk]

You really shouldn't have benzo withdrawal. It would become an issue if you were taking them regularly for more than 2 weeks, but even then it would very minor. For you, most people would just recommend not to start taking them again.

You may get some RLS again. If it becomes bothersome you could ask you doctor to prescribe you a low dose of Gabapentin or Pregbalin. They are much less abusable than opioids or benzos (people do in high doses, but if needed would help the RLS).

If it becomes hard, I would recommend looking into CBD. You're in Kentucky so you can't get real medical cannabis, but Kentucky is now growing hemp and there are several US companies that now produce CBD products. This could help with RLS but would also help with anxiety, relaxation, etc.

 

[mike.vick]

You really shouldn't have benzo withdrawal. It would become an issue if you were taking them regularly for more than 2 weeks, but even then it would very minor. For you, most people would just recommend not to start taking them again.

You may get some RLS again. If it becomes bothersome you could ask you doctor to prescribe you a low dose of Gabapentin or Pregbalin. They are much less abusable than opioids or benzos (people do in high doses, but if needed would help the RLS).

If it becomes hard, I would recommend looking into CBD. You're in Kentucky so you can't get real medical cannabis, but Kentucky is now growing hemp and there are several US companies that now produce CBD products. This could help with RLS but would also help with anxiety, relaxation, etc.

Nah this guy ain't in KY, but Yeah 2 weeks of benzos = addicting ; 8 weeks of benzos = potentially fatally addicting

 

[kleinerkiffer]

You really shouldn't have benzo withdrawal. It would become an issue if you were taking them regularly for more than 2 weeks, but even then it would very minor. For you, most people would just recommend not to start taking them again.

The problem is the OP took a lot in a small time, so if he's sensitive he could experience some withdrawal, given his incredibly high doses

 

[David1234]

Thanks again to everyone who responded.

Just one more question for my friends above who think I might get withdrawals from the benzo's. If I do, when are they likely to start? Also, how bad are they likely to be. Will I get RLS again? I know some people have already commented on this but I want as many view points as I can get. As you can see they aren't all the same.

Edit: On checking my calendar, I took my last dose of opiates on Monday night 28/11/16. First Valium on Tuesday night 29/11/16 and 1000 Mg had run out by the 6th Dec. I was taking about 5-8 Tamazapem a night for a few nights but then stopped them around the 7th.

I spoke to my specialist and saw my GP yesterday and they both said that the drowsiness/clumsiness is just from the Valium. They agreed 1000Mg over 5 days is a lot but said it was due to the length of my opiate habit. They think the drowsiness should pass this weekend sometime.

If that's right then I have to say I couldn't be happier with the way things have gone so far. Its been 16 days since I've had any sort of opiate and 9 days since I've had any sort of benzo or any tamazepam which I've never really used before anyway. The drowsiness does seem to be wearing off and compared to my previous attempts the whole detox was much more comfortable than ever before (not saying it was easy because it was hell, just not as bad as before).

I'm not getting any urge or craving to get any opiates I don't know if that's the naltrexone (because I know how hard it would be to get high) or just a placebo affect from it but all in all I'm feeling pretty good. Looking forward to the first Xmas in 22 years where I'll have a clear head and maybe not so apathetic that I can barely even bother talking to anyone.

Thanks so much again for everyone who answered my posts and please if you have any other views on the benzo withdrawal issue please let me know.