I realize this is an old thread, but I read it in some amazement, waiting for someone to dispel the crazy addiction myths about valium. No one ever did, so here goes:
You will NOT get addicted taking one valium a day, even if you take it for thirty years. It simply won't happen and, frankly, I'm amazed that this old story is still given credence by the very savvy people on this site. Valium got its reputation as highly addictive due to some sensationalized stories back in the seventies. While it is true that valium has addictive properties, it is not some magical pill that will cause addition by taking the tiny amounts you all are talking about. The horrible addiction stories you probably have heard about are from people who were being prescribed and taking 80-100 mg a day or more over a period of many years.
You would have to take a minimum of three 10 mg valiums a day, every day, for a period of a couple of years, to become addicted. That's the bottom line. You are not going to become addicted if you are taking 10 mg per day. I should know. I was prescribed 10 mgs per day about twelve years ago, after trying paxil and other drugs for anxiety. I needed something that would allow me to relax but not fuck up my cognition skills. I was seriously bothered by the fact that my MD wanted me to take something like paxil on a daily basis, when I didn't need it on a daily basis. In short, I wanted to control the dosage and the time that I medicated, and my MD finally agreed.
So, I got prescribed one 10 mg per day over ten years ago. Since then, there have been months on end, where I took it every single day when I came home from work because of stress/anxiety issues. The wonderful euphoric 'high' -- didn't last out the first year, but the drug still helped me to slow down and organize my thinking without interfering with my sharpness at work. In fact, I rocketed up the promotion ladder the first five-seven years I was taking it, before settling in. So, I've taken 10 mg, pretty much every day, for months or even years. And then I'd stop. I'd just forget to take it for a couple weeks, or I'd be working out of town and not have access to it, or -- more commonly -- I'd need to lose weight for summer, and have to stop taking it for a couple months to get bathing suit ready. One thing valium WILL do is stimulate your appetite. But you aren't going to go through withdrawal because you took a valium a day for a year, or ten years, or twenty. I don't even think it is physically possible.
And, while I think the addictive qualities have been way overstated on this site, the harm reduction component has been very much overlooked. It is not enough to recommend not drinking with valium. Do not ever drink alcohol with valium. Ever. Especially if you have been dieting -- trying one of those cleanses or something. You will die if you drink and take valium while not eating. Seriously. Google Karen Ann Quinlan.
Ironically, I started coming to this site because of some major issues requiring pain medication. I am currently prescribed 8 norcos per day for pain. I've been asked if I want to consider morphine or methadone instead and came here as part of my research on the issue (I've chosen to stick with the norco for now, even though it doesn't sufficiently address the pain even at this high dosage, and yes, I'm fully aware that I am, almost surely, already physically addicted to vics). My dirty little secret is this: the valium had pretty much stopped working for me after so long, and I had nearly stopped taking it at all over the last couple of years. Really, I just kept a few around for my friends who swear by it for hangovers. But, lord! The first time I combined vicodin with a valium was a revelation to me. It was pure bliss. Oddly, I find that most other people I know, even those who love benzos, don't care for this combo. Except strippers in Las Vegas, or so I've been told. I hear its their drug combo of choice out there.
Anyway, bottom line is that you will build up a dependence (oddly, it's never even occurred to me to take more than one valium per day. And I can't take more than that now with all the vicodin I'm taking), but you won't become addicted on only one valium per day. Not physically addicted anyway, and if your tolerance is such that it's not doing much, you aren't going to have a psychological addiction either.