Misc Has anyone successfully quit benzos (Valium in this case) with kava kava?

[BourbonMac]

I love this stuff. I've been on Valium for a year now, basically, minus a short period where I wasn't in August. I had Gabapentin on me to help but I was only taking 15mg which isn't that high of a dose. I started on 2-4mg, then 5mg, then 7.5mg, then up to 10mg, 12.5mg, 15mg, sometimes 17.5mg.

Now, I do take my nightly Valium and then the kava after, but the Valium honestly doesn't do much anymore. It's just become something ritualistic in a way. Like I've gotten so used to taking it that I'm not exactly addicted, it's just a habit. Like I have to have chamomile tea every night with some graham crackers for instance. It's an absolute requirement at this point because I've been doing this for awhile now. More importantly is cannabis. This is the kingpin nighttime drug for me. If I had to trade Valium CT over never being able to use cannabis again I'd ditch the Valium. Maybe with the Gabapentin I'd be fine, I was in August, though I did have some bad rebound anxiety at times (it was an anxious period anyway).

If anyone has done this, any input is appreciated. Though Kava works on GABA-A afaik and benzos GABA-B. Gaba gaba also works on GABA-A though, I think? I just have no reason to stay on Valium at this point, seriously. I'd wanted to be off it by July when I was pulled off anyway, but things shortly took a big turn for the worse after that in my life.

 

[negrogesic]

One would have to 1) be on a very low dose of said benzodiazepine, and 2) enjoy the effects of kava, for this to work. Even then I don't think it would work well due to the short acting nature and differing mechanisms. It's like using alcohol to get off of benzos (though certainly less poisonous).

I know I have tried to use kava out of desperation during benzo withdrawal for relief and found absolutely none. If anything it made me feel worse since I find the side-effects to be more prominent than any anxiolysis. Not only that, the anxiolysis from kava is similar to alcohol anxiolysis, short acting and fuzzy, more of an inebriation than anxiolysis. Might also hinder the healing process via continued GABAA receptor downregulation (though perhaps not, but certainly won't speed up the process).

 

[BourbonMac]

Yeah I guess i'd probably taper it then. I have to really make it a plan which won't be that easy. The short acting nature is no concern I think since I only take Valium a few hours before bed, then I vape some oil and that pretty much overrides everything. Valium doesn't do much at this point, I guess people would start taking way higher amounts but I've at least kept it around 15 max.

It does feels similar to being drunk inhibitions being lowered. And with caffeine, yikes, caffeine does nothing to me unless I've taken kava since it inhibits that enzyme. That's good for pain in general, it helped ibuprofen or tylenol work the other night with a killer headache, killer, and then caffeine and kava and it was completely gone. At the expense of feeling a bit overstimulated lol. Maybe the meds didn't have that much of an impact but it's in a lot like excedrin. Caffeine itself can just help headaches for me occasionally

 

[brokedownpalace10]

My lady has anxiety and I tried Kava on her. She certainly enjoyed it, but it didn't hit the mark like a benzo. The few times she's been prescribed a benzo, her reaction was like, "Wow, this is the stuff." That was without any prompting or questioning from me at all.

Kava was more like, "Yeah, that's nice, I guess." when questioned by me.

Not only that, the anxiolysis from kava is similar to alcohol anxiolysis, short acting and fuzzy, more of an inebriation than anxiolysis.

IMO, Kava may tend just slightly more towards a tranq, but yeah, more like alcohol if you had to pick between the two.

 

[G_Chem]

I’ve gotta agree Kava is more of an inebriation I guess you could say.. It’s also fuzzy as hell, when i was in opiate WD I took a massive dosage of tincture one time and time slowed to a standstill. I also recall everything having a fuzzy cannabis/alcohol vibe. Still trippy as hell tho.

-GC

 

[BourbonMac]

Valium as a benzo never really felt like it had any recreational qualities, kava feels 10x better than Valium for me as a result. Then again I never really increased my doses beyond 15mgish. If it was xanax or something else then I'm sure I'd find kava to be weak sauce. It makes me feel so warm and fuzzy, zen, calm.

 

[BourbonMac]

You know you're definitely right on that, the cannabis/alcohol vibe, maybe a bit speedy in a way as well. I feel a great relaxation similar to cannabis. Although (TMI) I'm pretty constipated lately. I don't know if it's due to this or not. My diet lately has been completely random off the wall garbage which certainly can't be helping. One night I got so baked I ate a whole batch of brownies, Idk what I was thinking. Dark chocolate ones and I seem to get along better but still, that was way excessive. I just get the munchies like, violently bad while high and 80% of the time end up suffering with a stomachache the next morning. One day I'll learn, one day.

 

[Keif' Richards]

To be straight up, with the way you have it worded in the title of this thread, I would say no. Kava and its kavalactones are known to produce pleasant, relaxing effects, but that doesn't mean they are a key to quitting Benzodiazepines. Quitting the Benzo's will be a complex task. You will need to use all of your advantages and draw strength from wherever you can to make it work.

If 90% of quitting Benzodiazepines is "every other thing", then I'm sure you could see something like Kava making that other 10% difference, but it's by no means going to solve the problem. I would say it's analogous to using Cannabis to quit Benzodiazepines. For some, Cannabis is sedating, relaxing and these effects might help alleviate some of the more severe symptoms of withdrawal, but that Cannabis is not going to be the deciding factor in your success.

 

[BourbonMac]

That's fair. I didn't want to CT it necessarily but I thought this might aid any discomfort in lowering doses. Last time I was pulled off in late July CT but I had Gabapentin which basically prevented what I read to be are common withdrawals. I ended up back on it though by mid September after a tinnitus induced nervous breakdown (which, in retrospect, had more to do with the Amitryptaline I was on). That stuff fucked me up. Ever since I quit it, despite being in worse circumstances now, I'm not freaking out or suicidal anymore.

Also, totally getting my wisdom teeth out in your location next month, haha. Seems you live pretty close to me.

 

[AngelsandFairiesarereal]

This is random & really doesn’t have to do with your title post but I’m glad you’re getting your wisdom teeth out. I remember you mentioned it in another post & I think it’ll give you a little piece of mind, it might even help your tinnitus out a little.

I ordered kava tea last month when I ran out of clonazepam early but it got delayed delivery & now I finally got it delivered after I got the refill of clonazepam. I still might try the tea, one of the reviews a girl called it Benzo tea lol but she probably doesn’t actually use Benzos because from what I’ve read it doesn’t replace it ^ like you guys were saying up there.

Maybe try to take a half of a Valium every night for a couple days & see how you feel, then you can take it from there with deciding if you wanna do that, or stay on it or whatever.

Sorry I tend to ramble a bit sometimes but I truly wish you the best whichever way you take it

 

[BourbonMac]

All good, thank you.

I am pretty scared about the surgery I can't lie. My headaches have randomly been a lot better so now I'm like... should I have them out? But I do need them out regardless, they will eventually rot otherwise and cause crowding. I also want braces.

I was taught growing up that guys shouldn't care about their looks, my dad was very abusive, but even some teachers at school would say things like 'if a guy spends more than 10 seconds on his hair in the morning he might as well not be a man" type of shit. Without a positive male role model, I just gobbled up whatever. Some of those teachers I looked up to because even if they could be brash many of them were quite kind, just wrapped up in toxic masculinity. And it wrapped me up like merry go round gum.

I genuinely believed for awhile that having crooked teeth and such was like, deemed as being more masculine and I even had this sense of pride in it. But, I want to straighten them out, even if 29 is a bit late. Invisaligns would be nice but they can be pricey and I don't know if they work as well as regular braces.

You're right it might help my tinnitus. I thought initially, too much THC caused it, and it might have to some extent, but lately I"ve been vaping excess for days and my tinnitus is so much less. Possibly from use of ibuprofen when I do get headaches. I've already practicing hitting my vape pen through my nose lol.

Then again, as far as headaches, I do take a pretty steady staggered dose of 400mg ibuprofen like 3 times a day, sometimes I mix 2g of Tylenol in there as well but it doesn't help all that much. I just had one now actually and after doing a sinus rinse, it went away. So some of the headaches are my sinuses, I had surgery on them last May, but it's also possible there is some kind of inflammation in my sinuses resulting from the wisdom teeth.

 

[simstim]

The biggest problem with benzo withdrawls are seizures and I don't think kava will help with that.

Be careful and taper when you come off.

I had seizures coming off of 20mg diazepam daily for five years or so.