Benzos Benzo withdrawl , hi there

[The Lone Deranger]

Its not nice at all i know, i was on anywhere from 40 mg to 100 mg + basically whatever i could afford on any given day, in my height of taking them ive taken 35 to 40 10mg blues before, and reguarly taken 30 blues, untill i realy wanted to quit.

I got stable on 50mg daily ( bought off the street not prescribed ) haha, C'mon this is England and as it turns out ive NEVER managed to get scripted for em ever ! ..

I cut down approx 5mg a week, sometimes 10 days, then after 20mg i was breaking a yellow in half to cut down 2.5mg a week, The first goal was set to get to 30mg as im already prescribed methadone from a clinic, and through doing urine tests they knew i was on benzo's obviously, so my worker said get down to 30mg a day and we will script you and get you tapered properly with supervision, i met that, but they broke it and said get down to 20mg daily, i did that in another few weeks, they broke that, and said get down to 10mg daily, and i did that, then they said that they wouldnt prescribe me at all for a benzo tapering plan !

So as you can guess i was gutted, but still determined, i went on and on, cutting myself down, even at times having to cope with differant benzos ( what i could find that diff people had in at any given time i needed to pick up ) Ranging from, ordinary blue 10mg and yellow 5mg benzos, to lorazepam, even buying stuff like dormicum - which i cant even think what that is now, and sleepers like zoplicone, anything to numb the mind and body.

Anyway i took my last dose the day after my girlfriends birthday ( 3 days after my own ) and my first day and nite was the 27th of febuary This year.

The only things i used to try and chill and sleep on a night were small amounts of weed, and nightol tablets ( the Nightol seems a joke now ) but thats what i did, either way it was hard, much harder and 3 weeks longer than any withdrawl ive previously done off of Heroin over the years.

But after nearly 5 weeks of sweating, no sleep, and poor appetite, i went full circle, it seemed like an age but despite receiving NO help, even tho it was promised, i did it and came out the otherside, and it feels great to not be having to go out searching or ringing around to try and pick up, Which i did for around 18 months.

Honestly though it realy is worth it to get off them, because it seems when your on quite high doses of benzo's the longer you do them and your tolerance builds the original reason you took them doesnt even work any more and it ends up causing what you were originaly taking them to get away from ( If that makes sense ? )

Realy, Keep at it, and i wish you the VERY best of luck in your journey, once its over i garauntee you will be well glad you did it !

Remember, Good times are just around the corner ..

 

[Morry27]

Thanks for sharing, sound like you had a hellish time, those were some mega doses you were on ! so well done getting through the other side, this is a roller coaster at the moment, seems to be coming in waves, only today I was in a social situation, next thing its like Im in a waking dream! Sweating, panicky, head spinning. So I slow my breathing down and somehow I get through it, rest of the day was relatively ok. its like my brain is saying "hey I need more valium ! this 1mg aint enough anymore" well it can sod off, Im gonna beat this..

Cheers

 

[Moredopamine]

yes it's very normal to have trouble at the end of a taper, in fact that's the time you'll probably most feel the withdrawal. Caffeine definitely does not help, cut it out as much as you can and alcohol will just worsen things as well. Cut both caffeine and alcohol out and you'll feel better guaranteed. In terms of what you can do to make things better, try valerian root or valeric acid it may help, may not, get exercise and eat healthy, the rest will get better in time. I found mindfulness therapy to help the most out of all the things i've tried.

good luck, it's a tough thing to get out of.

i'd avoid gabapentin or lyrica or other gabaergics - they may help but can also create a new addiction/dependency, may not be worth the risk, it's variable though.

Pregabalin and gabapentin aren't GABAergics at all. Although they're CNS depressants that feel similar to benzos, they work through a fundamentally different mechanism, so cross-tolerance is minimal.

Though I do agree that using pregabalin or gabapentin for benzo w/d is potentially opening up another can of worms.

 

[Moreaux]

I've been off of a nasty benzo habit for three years. First, you really need a doctor involed(depending on your habit) - for anti- seizure meds. Vitamins are going to be your best friend, along with decent hydration - h20, and good nutrition. You need a solid support system - ie family and friends. You will experience anxiety like you have never known in life - for a long time. You will feel that reality is distorted, and you need a sober companion to keep you grounded and focused.

That being said, depending on your benzo of choice is going to determine when the worst of the withdrawal sets n in, and how long it will last. I was a chronic Xanax abuser for ten years, and the bulk of my withdrawal didn't begin until 45 days after I took my last pill. I had horrible seizures, and even worse anxiety. My anxiety that I experienced prior to xanax did not compare to what I experienced getting off of it. Magnesium is essential in the first six months to control the heart palpitations. Whatever you do, DO NOT DRINK alcohol, as it will only being your withdrawal cycle from the beginning as benzos and alcohol act on the same receptors and are interchangeable in effect. You are not going to feel 'right', for over a year, if not, longer. Yor withdrawal should peak around month six, and then slowly get better. Do not give up - it genuinely does get better - significantly so. As bad as it may get - you will feel alive again. I strongly recommend getting a GOOD General Practioner, and be HONEST about your situation so you can get the appropriate, non-addictive meds to get you through this period.

I say this because I have been benzo free for three years, but I still get partial seizures and horrible anxiety, but the instances are fewer and farther between.

I wish you the best of luck, if you want to speak one on one, feel free to message me,