Benzos I'm scared, need advice now please?! Kind of an emergency!

[xburtonchic]

Alright so I've been on benzos (namely, xanax) for a little over a year now. I use it daily, my anxiety levels are too ridiculous to describe, but I'm sure a few of you can feel me on that.

And now I have a problem - I am about to run out of xanax. Like, yesterday. I have one pill left. And my addiction specialist's office is closed until the 3rd because they're moving locations; my primary doctor's office is closed today as well for some reason that I don't know, but I keep getting the exchange each time I call them. My friends, either they won't give me any or they don't know where to get them. Case in point: it's Friday, and I'm going to be completely out of Xanax once I take the last pill I have, sometime today (I'm putting it off even though my anxiety is killing me, I feel like I should savor it lol), and I have absolutely NO way to get more.

So here is my question: what should I do? I'm scared of having a seizure. I'm not too thrilled about allowing my anxiety to run rampant for the next few days, but having a seizure is my main concern. Does ANYONE have ANY suggestions on what I can do to eliminate that risk? Are there any natural anti-convulsants out there, or any type of thing I can find over the counter to help? I've been on them a long time, and I didn't taper before I ran out. One time I "experimented" with not taking my Xanax for a day - I was sitting on a rolling chair in my garage when my leg twitched extremely violently, it was hard enough for me to kick the workbench and send me literally halfway across the garage on the chair. It sounds funny, but trust me it was not. I took a pill right after that and stopped my idiotic "experiment." And that was only after only one day, and we all know day one is not the worst of it. A full-on seizure is a very real possibility, and I am not down.

So, please, if anyone knows of anything I can do... anything at all, short of going to the emergency room (I can't even afford a pack of cigarettes right now, let alone the co-pay for the emergency room; I'm slowly but surely crawling out of the debt I accumulated in June, but I'm really having to pinch pennies right now)... please let me know. I don't care how disgusting it tastes, I don't care how expensive it is - I will beg the drugstore or wherever to give it to me for free as an IOU, I don't care if it's uncomfortable - I JUST DO NOT WANT TO HAVE A SEIZURE. There has to be SOME sort of natural or over-the-counter alternative that works as an anti-convulsant or something.

So. Advice would be very much greatly appreciated! thanks.

 

[BrokedownPalace]

How big is your habit, exactly? If you provide us with that information, it'll be a lot easier to give you an idea of what you should do..But, if you have to wait til the 3rd (Monday), it shouldn't be THAT bad, if you have one pill left. I also have extreme anxiety issues so I definitely can relate. The prospect of having to go thru benzo withdrawal over the weekend certainly does not help the level of anxiety festering in the brain. I can't think of any natural/OTC anti-convulsants, but maybe somebody else would know.

Something you should invest in, though, is Valerian Root. It's the closest thing to benzos that you can get over the counter, in my opinion. It is very similar in how it works, and it helps WONDERS with benzo withdrawal, and in general it helps a lot with reducing anxiety, and eliminating insomnia.

I know you said don't suggest the emergency room, but I have to disagree and suggest this to you. Sure, you'll get a bill in the mail, but if your health is at risk, it would be worth it, no? If you don't have insurance, most hospitals have charity care which you can apply for, which basically means your state will pick up the tab and you won't have to pay anything. They cannot deny you treatment simply because you don't have any money when you show up there. You shouldn't let the prospect of having a bill to pay, deter you from seeking the treatment that you need.

Benzodiazepine withdrawal is a VERY serious and real thing, and hospitals/doctors are obligated to treat it, since you are at a very real risk for having a seizure. If you go there and explain to them that you are out, and your doctor's office is closed until monday, they will certainly help you out. Don't be scared of them. It would be one thing if you showed up there dopesick and asked for painkillers or something. But if you are prescribed them, and are only out of them because your doctor is closed, they aren't going to look at you like an addict.

Whatever you end up doing, I wish you luck, as I know how scary benzo withdrawal can be. If you don't go to the ER, I would strongly suggest cutting your lst pill into like 4 pieces. Hold out AS LONG as possible, and once you cannot bear the symptoms anymore take 1/4 of your pill. Rinse, and repeat. This should help you get thru the weekend until Monday when you can takl to your doctor.

 

[Brian242]

Seizure is unlikely unless you have been taking ridiculous doses for 20 years. My dad has taken valium 10's for Parkinsons deseise for 40 years and can stop just fine (He does that) And I take Ativan 1 mg as needed and have been doing so for 10 years and I stop taking it and don't have seizures. Try Valerian Root (I think it's what Valium is derived from) and take 8-9 of the 300mg capsules.

The more you think you're going to have a seizure, the more likely you ARE going to have one.

Also, there's no "Emergency!!! Please read!!!" Threads allowed. If it's an emergency an you fear for your life, go to the hospital even if your short on cash.

inb4close!

 

[BrainstormWithJace]

Seizure is unlikely unless you have been taking ridiculous doses for 20 years. My dad has taken valium 10's for Parkinsons deseise for 40 years and can stop just fine (He does that) And I take Ativan 1 mg as needed and have been doing so for 10 years and I stop taking it and don't have seizures. Try Valerian Root (It's what Valium is derived from) and take 8-9 of the 300mg capsules.

The more you think you're going to have a seizure, the more likely you ARE going to have one.

Also, there's no "Emergency!!! Please read!!!" Threads allowed. If it's an emergency an you fear for your life, go to the hospital even if your short on cash.

inb4close!

he hasnt even said what his normal dose is and your telling him its unlikely for him to get a seizure just because someone you knew took 10mg (only) daily for 40 years and didnt seize. depends on your dosage dude but to answer your question you want to split the bar into four and take it with tagamate around 9 hours part. take alot of valerian root as suggested and have someone with you if possible. ive seized off after a couple months on around 6mg a day. i did cold turkey and seized the day after. be careful.

 

[muvolution]

valium is not "derived" from valerian root. Please do not fill Bluelight with inane misinformation like that.


OP - either get your offices "on-call doctor" your PC physician should have one, at least, or go to the ER.

 

[Pegasus]

If you can find a clinic in the meantime to explain your situation, they should be willing to help you. ER is a good idea if it comes down to it, be sure to tell them that you had convulsions previously when you ran out.

 

[xburtonchic]

Thanks for all the info everyone Unfortunately I already took the last pill I had; I'd already held off as long as I could with that one! BUT I had my pharmacy fax a request to the on-call physician at my primary doctor's office... although he is NOTORIOUS for taking like a week to get me my scripts so I'm not counting on that lol... but luckily I found a friend who's willing to give me a few to tide me over for the weekend, I just have to wait a couple hours. No big deal. So I have two not-quite-set-in-stone plans in place, and I finally got my VA check so I have a fresh bank account, if one of the other options falls through I'll just go to the emergency room like you guys said and forfeit one of my other bills for this month... cause yeah. My health is more important than my credit score

Seizure is unlikely unless you have been taking ridiculous doses for 20 years. My dad has taken valium 10's for Parkinsons deseise for 40 years and can stop just fine (He does that) And I take Ativan 1 mg as needed and have been doing so for 10 years and I stop taking it and don't have seizures. Try Valerian Root (It's what Valium is derived from) and take 8-9 of the 300mg capsules.

The more you think you're going to have a seizure, the more likely you ARE going to have one.

Also, there's no "Emergency!!! Please read!!!" Threads allowed. If it's an emergency an you fear for your life, go to the hospital even if your short on cash.

inb4close!

There was nothing wrong with this thread... I never told anyone to read this, I said I needed quick advice because it was kind of an emergency. There are tons of threads like this around Bluelight about various drugs; the titles are just worded differently. This is a harm reduction community - my question was not inappropriate for this site lol. Also benzo withdrawals are dangerous in and of themselves, regardless of how much you take. I see an addiction specialist and am considered a "high risk" patient because I'm also taking Suboxone. That's coming straight out of my addiction specialist's mouth, adding that with the fact that I started having small convulsions the last time I tried doing this (although last time was on purpose) going cold turkey with the Xanax is obviously detrimental to my health - it is for a lot of people - maybe you and your father just have good genes when it comes to seizures? Idk. But if your body and brain are dependent on any substance and you stop taking it abruptly, bad things are going to happen. Some withdrawals like opiates are just really uncomfortable... others, like Xanax and alcohol, are life-threatening. Sure, you might have less of a risk than if you're taking ridiculous doses for 20 years, but the risk is there regardless if you're already dependent. It's not a good idea to tell people they're not at risk just because they don't take the amount you described... say if you were the only person to post on that thread (unlikely, since there's always mods around but just as an example) and they took your word for it that they weren't in danger, well... they would be putting themselves in more danger. I'm not trying to seem rude or condescending, I'm just letting you know that benzo withdrawals are never to be taken lightly.

 

[muvolution]

In my (very extensive) personal experience, probably about 10-20% of people don't experience wd when quitting benzos. I realized that this month, I took all mine in like 10 days (extremely stressful week) and I had been on Ativan continuously for the past 6 months, 4 years of valium and clonazepam before that, and I had no wd's. I have probably ct'd benzos 15-20, @ anywhere from 5mg diazepam a day, up to 110-120mg diazepam a day. (using diazepam because it is the standard for comparison)

So, obviously, there is a small portion of the population that is either immune to GABAgeric drugs largely, or who are immune to wd's from them, or some combo. I also had no problem coming off Lyrica, which is a common problem apparently. Just to show how different everyone's brain chemistry is, I don't even wd off anti-depressants either.

 

[burn out]

I doubt you're "immune" just much more resistant than normal.

 

[xburtonchic]

In my (very extensive) personal experience, probably about 10-20% of people don't experience wd when quitting benzos. I realized that this month, I took all mine in like 10 days (extremely stressful week) and I had been on Ativan continuously for the past 6 months, 4 years of valium and clonazepam before that, and I had no wd's. I have probably ct'd benzos 15-20, @ anywhere from 5mg diazepam a day, up to 110-120mg diazepam a day. (using diazepam because it is the standard for comparison)

So, obviously, there is a small portion of the population that is either immune to GABAgeric drugs largely, or who are immune to wd's from them, or some combo. I also had no problem coming off Lyrica, which is a common problem apparently. Just to show how different everyone's brain chemistry is, I don't even wd off anti-depressants either.

Yeah my doctor told me about some dude, he'd been on a truck load of opiates in strong dosages for years and he finally had surgery, so he wasn't going to need them anymore... they got him all set up for the Suboxone program, and then it turned out he didn't even need it because he didn't have any withdrawals. Like, at all.

Oh so jealous of people like you and him, muvolution!

EDIT: Oh and I got some Xanax... not much, but enough until I can speak to a doctor. So this thread can be closed well unless you want to keep it here for harm reduction purposes if anyone else happens to need the info someday... but yeah. I'm good for now

 

[muvolution]

opiate wd's incapacitate me.

It is fascinating how differently everyone can react to drugs. i.e. I can't ever imagine anyone taking benzos recreationally, because for me, they just aren't that good, but lots of people fucking love them.

Anyways, this is turning into a macro-discussion, so I am going to go ahead and close it, that is, if you got the info you needed and your problem is sorted.

 

[obscure]

I'll hop on with Valerian Root that BrokedownPalace mentioned. That has defiantly helped me with a few kinds of WD's. There are OTC sleeping pills that are all natural and contain Valerian Root. I felt almost normal during a recent opiate WD by using that stuff and was awful glad about that. Plus if they work well and you do fall asleep, even better.

 

[muvolution]

closing this.