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Tapering Benzo withdrawal: Losing my mind

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Good advice I didn't realize pregablin was so much more dangerous. The problem I have with gabapentin is that it stops working really fast. My tolerance is just jacked up to it from bring on it for awhile.

That is precisely the problem with gabapentin if you are using it for its psychoactive effects. I found that using lower doses every four hours taken with a few crackers with cheese was helpful in reducing the anxiety and malaise of opioid discomfort during tapering off of and withdrawal from methadone, but it wasn't super psychoactive.

If you tolerance is all jacked up, how large are the doses you had been experimenting with recently? There is no shame in it and, although I'm not at all suggesting this is worth trying (because really it isn't at the end of the day, you wouldn't be missing anything), I have taken up to between 12~20g of the stuff at once before. I have found that taking more reasonable doses of <2000-3000mg more regularly with a little fat, protein and sodium to be a bit more effective (while, importantly, keeping me from running out of my stash too quickly).

Tolerance isn't an issue in the same way as it is with gabapentin when it comes to pregabalin, but it definitely will increase at least as fast as benzo tolerance tends to (which can be rather fast if you have ever already experienced as significant tolerance to them as you or I have). And there is the issue of complications/side effects from the pregabalin as well that aren't really there in as significant of ways with gabapentin.

The beauty of having access to both medications is that you can cycle, keeping your tolerance down a bit for each, alternating on and off. In my experience taking significant doses of both gabapentin and pregabalin provides no significant increase in positive effects and exponentially increases the negative side effects of both medications.

I know you don't want to hear me say this, but perhaps you should just stop using gabapentin?

No matter what you decide, I am really glad to hear you're feeling a bit better stabilized on your current meds. :)

Even if I tend to push against it, I really appreciate your perspective when it comes to pushing for more abstinence CH. I tend to get carried away in the other direction sometimes, so it is good to be balanced out I feel. But you already know I love you comrade :)
 
I start my morning with 1600mg then take 1 every 45 min till I feel good. rinse and repeat every 8 hours or then next day depending on my mood. I blew through 90 600mg in a week this month. honestly if I could just smoke weed I wouldn't have to play with these fucking pharmaceuticals. that's the 1 huge downside to methadone in Alabama.
 
Agreed, and I imagine your tolerance to benzos exacerbates cross tolerance to other gabaergic substances like GBP.

Gotta work with what you have I guess. . .
 
is it weird that I start getting really antsy 12 hours post dose? I kinda hoped the half like would allow me a little more leeway but I start feeling like shit 16 hours post 1mg dose.
 
Can you take 1mg twice a day? Or are you only prescribed 1mg/day? If you can wait it out your body will adjust, but if not go back to your doctor.
 
That is bullshit, they are just trying to scare you (and understandably the stick seems to be working and, well, whatever works right?). I highly doubt they are actually liable for anything just because they have a patient on benzos and methadone. That happens all the time, and I have heard that threat all the time - it is simply a strategy of scaring the patients to keep them in line.

Be careful with taking pregabalin. Taking higher doses of it (>600mg at a time) regularly is almost guaranteed to lead to complications (including seizures). I found alternating between gabapentin and pregabalin really helpful while I was on methadone dealing with some shit, so perhaps you could try to find a way to get access to both?

Gabapentin, in my experience, is far more benign than pregabalin. The upside to pregabalin is that tolerance doesn't build so fast (though it builds faster than a lot of people think). Just understand that you can't take pregabalin with little to no worry of side particularly harmful effects like you can with gabapentin. They are two very different beasts in that regard.



I'm curious, as I LOVE SB, why do you say that? They have a great clinic there (one of the best I've been to), but I don't know much in terms of what they have as far as social support goes. I imagine it would be better than LA, as this is a rather tougher town than coastal cities in central/northern CA. But I just don't know anything about the scene there.
Well, there are a handful of shelters and places to get fed and there is a good deal of spots to sleep outside too, including the south end of the beach, just past the volleyball courts and under the cliff leading to the cemetery (same spot Kerouac slept on one of his adventures ) :) Great place to start over if you're homeless and broke! The shelter I stayed at also offered treatment services which helped you get a job and a place over the course of 1 or 2 years as well as support in staying clean!

My sentiments exactly. I'm also curious why.
^
 
Good to know :) Thanks CfZrx. When were you in SB? Did you end up finding some kind of work through such a program there? I am curious to hear what kind of opportunities they provide in any kind of detail.
 
I get prescribed the kpin 2mg a day so I split it 1mg in morning 1 in evening. It's just annoying to be reminded that I am addicTed and need a dose so often.
 
I get prescribed the kpin 2mg a day so I split it 1mg in morning 1 in evening. It's just annoying to be reminded that I am addicTed and need a dose so often.

Gotcha, I thought I remember you mentioning that. I'm sorry it is such a constant reminder. If you can only stick with it for a few more weeks it should begin to start really lessoning.
 
Really anxious today for some reason. I may cheat and take 3 mg. Then start my taper tommorow with .5mg in am 1mg in pm. If I do that for 10 days I should come out of the month perfect pill count wise.
 
Really anxious today for some reason. I may cheat and take 3 mg. Then start my taper tommorow with .5mg in am 1mg in pm. If I do that for 10 days I should come out of the month perfect pill count wise.

I'm sorry to hear this cj :( I hope you feel better ASAP!

Why are you starting to taper the pins so soon after getting back on them? I was under the impression that right now the priority was just stabilizing, without going right into it and pushing yourself to get off anything too quickly.

Why not just take an extra .5? Or even .25? Should take the edge of I'd hope?

I also strongly suggest only increasing your dose by 0.5mg max if you feel it is necessary.
 
I'm sorry to hear this cj :( I hope you feel better ASAP!

Why are you starting to taper the pins so soon after getting back on them? I was under the impression that right now the priority was just stabilizing, without going right into it and pushing yourself to get off anything too quickly.



I also strongly suggest only increasing your dose by 0.5mg max if you feel it is necessary.
I have to taper a couple days to not run out early. I ended up taking an extra .5. I may try to score off the street a few times
 
Really anxious today for some reason. I may cheat and take 3 mg. Then start my taper tommorow with .5mg in am 1mg in pm. If I do that for 10 days I should come out of the month perfect pill count wise.

It's easy for me to move around my Kpin dosage depending on how much and how long I binge obviously, it fluctuated all the time. I don't think one day going to 3mg then to 1.5mg is a big deal as far as medicine, but as toothepastedog alluded to it's also about the mental game.

An example right now of dosing, I jumped off .25mg suboxone roughly 20 days ago and I was taking roughly 5mg a day for a week. Now, I'm down to .25mg 2x's a day (AM/PM).

I'm trying to quit benzos right now, best of luck to you.
 
Are you planning to get pins from the street if need be? Think you'll be able to stick to your current schedule of 2-3mg/day if you do?

For obvious reasons getting pins rather than etizolam would be so incredibly more preferable. At least you don't have to worry about getting kicked out of the clinic for testing positive for benzos though regardless. Please just try and avoid shooting cocaine whatever you end up doing! ;)
 
I cant find pins on the street. If I go to the street itll just be whatever benzo I can find if I can even find any. Yeah no coke.

I am fucking scared man. Terrified of running out of this script early and not being able to find more pills. I got to really be disciplined if I cant get more benzos off the street. I got pressure from my parents to quit all drugs. Man I cant lie I am having some really dark thoughts about suicide and stuff. If it was just me and not my family going through it I would check into the phych ward probably. But that's not an option so I have to continue holding it all together with tape and fishing line. I just wonder what the long game is? At what point do I just end this misery. I don't want to sound alarming I just don't get a lot of pleasure out of docs rationing these pills that I need to live my life. Sometimes I feel like they do it just for power. Like will five extra pills really make or break anything to this doctor? Where it will make a big ass difference to my life. Frustrating.
 
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