Benzos Diazepam Elimination in Young Adults?

[Cone]

So I'm starting down the path to kicking a 2-year long benzo habit, and I've gone the whole 9 and yards and created an excel spreadsheet to fine tune my taper.

Anyone whos read a wikipedia article on Diazepam knows that it has a wildly varying elimination half life. Diazepam itself is listed as 20-100 hours, and 50-200 hours for its main active metabolite (the N-demethylated Nordiazepam). Times vary depending on the source as well, but most fall within this range so I consider it a reasonable assessment.

As part of my taper schedule, it would be incredibly helpful to get an accurate estimate as to how much is actually floating around in my body and adjusting my dosing schedule/frequency according to this criteria.

I read on a .gov website that the elimination half-life rate for Nordazepam can be as low as 18 hours for "young children" (nonspecific).

My understanding is that the ultra long 200 hour half-life is only a factor in the elderly or those with renal impairment.

Since I'm a young adult with healthy liver/kidneys, would it be safe to assume that in my particular instance the elimination half-life of Diazepam + Nordiazepam (and other minor short-lived metabolites) would be shifted toward the shorter end of the given spectrum (~20 and ~50 hours respectively)?
If I can get a rough estimate on my body's elimination rate, then I can alter my taper plan accordingly and start off at the "sweet spot" with my dosage instead of beginning with a higher than necessary dose and causing further damage to my GABA receptors.

Right now I'm sitting at taking 20mg/day, which according to my calculations leave me with almost quadruple or so the amount necessary to "sustain" floating around in my system after the first week (even when calculated at the shortest listed half-lives). This is much higher than I need to sustain" and in fact is probably driving me in the opposite direction of where I want to be headed - benzo-free with as little damage to my GABA system as possible.

I have a limited supply of substance so I don't have much wiggle room to figure out where my sweet spot is.

Is it safe to say that since I'm young and in good health, my elimination of diaz and its metabolites is shifted toward the shorter end of the spectrum?

Thanks.

 

[VerbalTruist]

I've recently finished a diazepam taper.

I was at 20mg a day like you. I took my dose down to 10 mg right at the start. I hung there for a month. Then I reduced by 2.5mg every two weeks. Once I got down to the zero point I did 2.5 every other day for another two weeks. At the end of that time I stopped completely. PM me if you have questions.

 

[Blind Melon]

I once took 1,000mg of Diazepam (100x10mg blues) in 4 days. I tested positive for benzos at my Methadone Clinic for 2 months. At the time I was both healthy and young. So, in answer to your question, a long fuckin time.

 

[The Dr]

I've recently finished a diazepam taper.

I was at 20mg a day like you. I took my dose down to 10 mg right at the start. I hung there for a month. Then I reduced by 2.5mg every two weeks. Once I got down to the zero point I did 2.5 every other day for another two weeks. At the end of that time I stopped completely. PM me if you have questions.

Good information

 

[midnight11]

Is seriously is like the benzo that doesn't quit. I actually went onto diazepam from clonazepam for the half-life, as I've found it tends to make me feel way more level and has a more consistent anxiolytic effect. In short, I've gone from 15mg daily for a couple months down to 5mg daily without feeling much of anything, but maybe I'm just weird. TBH, I would drop from 20 to 15 first, as I don't think you'd find this to be as severe as it may sound, but it's up to you. Once you're at 10mg a day for a month or so, 2.5mg is more noticeable than 5mg from 20.

 

[Dagda Mochta]

It would be impossible to say exactly how fast any one individual will eliminate diazepam and it's metabolites (or any drug for that matter). If you are worried that you're starting off with too much at 20 mg/day, see if 15 will hold you. It probably will. midnight11 is right, the decreases in dosage are more noticeable when you drop below 10 mg or so. Good luck with you're taper, I've been there and know how rough it can be. But I don't think you need to worry so much about the precise rate of elimination.