Recovery Neurological damage, medication intolerance and dark thoughts

[Snafu in the Void]

Kava seems like it would be the best option for cold turkey benzo withdrawal

I tried whisky and it was a complete disaster

I've been experimenting with kava for the last couple weeks. It seems to provide some level of relief, but for some reason after it wears off a few hours later it gives me pretty bad anxiety, also seems to aggravate my sound sensitivity. Not sure why. Maybe it's effects on norepinephrine.

And yeah alcohol is a disaster for benzo wds. Awful.

It seems to be having that effect on me now as well which is why I can't drink.

 

[Nas47]

Kava seems like it would be the best option for cold turkey benzo withdrawal

I tried whisky and it was a complete disaster

Yeah...you cannot substitute alc.for benzn the contrary.Must looking online for some good quality kava products.Theres a plenty.Don't inow,which are good.Def.wanna try this.Is legal also.

 

[Conky]

I've been experimenting with kava for the last couple weeks. It seems to provide some level of relief, but for some reason after it wears off a few hours later it gives me pretty bad anxiety, also seems to aggravate my sound sensitivity. Not sure why. Maybe it's effects on norepinephrine.

And yeah alcohol is a disaster for benzo wds. Awful.

It seems to be having that effect on me now as well which is why I can't drink.

You should look into a ketogenic diet

The Neuropharmacology of the Ketogenic Diet

The ketogenic diet is a valuable therapeutic approach for epilepsy, one in which most clinical experience has been with children. Although the mechanism by which the diet protects against seizures is unknown, there is evidence that it causes effects on ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Ketosis and Brain Handling of Glutamate, Glutamine and GABA

We hypothesize that one mechanism of the anti-epileptic effect of the ketogenic diet is to alter brain handling of glutamate. According to this formulation, in ketotic brain astrocyte metabolism is more active, resulting in enhanced conversion of glutamate ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[DeathIndustrial88]

Yeah definitely wasn't placebo. I slept pretty well for 3 hours before waking up which is an improvement, and then fell asleep again without much trouble. 10 bags was much more noticeable than 1 or 2.

That's really great to hear!

Even just a few hours is giving your brain the time to rest and repair.

@nomorebenzos mentioned Kava, which totally slipped my mind! But it too can really help. Kava needs a little more preparation though. It is only fat soluble, so it must be mixed with something like milk. And making it very cold helps the extraction process. It does have some odd effects though, where as chamomile is much more gentle.

 

[n3ophy7e]

Yeah definitely wasn't placebo. I slept pretty well for 3 hours before waking up which is an improvement, and then fell asleep again without much trouble. 10 bags was much more noticeable than 1 or 2.

Excellent. Maybe try 5 bags rather than 10, purely from an economical perspective. Make the box of teabags last a bit longer if you can.

 

[Jabberwocky]

You should look into a ketogenic diet

ha i was going to originally rage at you that this is bollocks, then actually clicked the links and remembered vaguely that the keto diet was developed for medical purposes. this is really interesting.

my kneejerk reaction was cos i did not tolerate ketosis well at all. but the only times i've been in ketosis was due to anorexia, already well into essential fat stores and metabolising my organs so i wasn't really tolerating anything. wish i was exagerrating but if you lose 2-3 kg in a week in that state, its coming straight out of your muscle, bone, and organs. glad i fact checked myself before posting.

@Negentropic i'm glad your mum is out of hospital, and that you managed to get some reasonable sleep. that is huge!!! so many good suggestions.

i might try megadosing chamomile tea too as i stupidly lost my hard fought for ability to sleep naturally recently.

 

[Snafu in the Void]

Man covid is hitting me hard. One of the worst headaches I've ever had. Barely slept last night. Been using an ice pack on my head ibuprofen doesn't do shit.

The good news is it's distracting me from my despair about my current state. The bad news is my stupid fuck brain can't help but become anxious and think I'm going to die or something. I assume my immune system is already compromised from having a runny nose for 3 weeks.

I might have that new strain, I got it after my parents went to a basketball tournament in Las Vegas with people attending from all over the country.

C'est la vie

 

[n3ophy7e]

Shit man I hope you recover quickly!! How awful

 

[Jerry Atrick]

Man covid is hitting me hard. One of the worst headaches I've ever had. Barely slept last night. Been using an ice pack on my head ibuprofen doesn't do shit.

The good news is it's distracting me from my despair about my current state. The bad news is my stupid fuck brain can't help but become anxious and think I'm going to die or something. I assume my immune system is already compromised from having a runny nose for 3 weeks.

I might have that new strain, I got it after my parents went to a basketball tournament in Las Vegas with people attending from all over the country.

C'est la vie

I heard acetaminophen (tylenol) should be taken for covid headaches, not ibuprofen.

 

[Mjäll]

Maybe you guys have shit loads of earwax or even other crap in your ears which can do stuff to hearing as well as neural fuckery and even biomechanical fuckery.

I suspect this one may be a bit of an epidemiological sleeper... Like obesity it is probably in part a "welfare disease", exacerbated by sedentary lifestyles.

I do not intend to diminish the suffering by suggesting such a seemingly banale and harmless cause. Just a thought.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Maybe you guys have shit loads of earwax or even other crap in your ears which can do stuff to hearing as well as neural fuckery and even biomechanical fuckery.

I suspect this one may be a bit of an epidemiological sleeper... Like obesity it is probably in part a "welfare disease", exacerbated by sedentary lifestyles.

I do not intend to diminish the suffering by suggesting such a seemingly banale and harmless cause. Just a thought.

sorry, how is this a) relevant to the topic - what evidence do you have that this would cause the OPs symptoms, or b ) based in fact, references please- why do you think this is an epidemiological sleeper?

i have damaged my hearing because i injected drugs that damaged my cardiovascular system. no amount of removal of crap is going to undo that.

and its pretty fucking offensive to suggest its a 'welfare diisease' caused by sedentary lifestyles. @Negentropic was in work until this problem made that impossible, and is an avid runner.

 

[Mjäll]

sorry, how is this a) relevant to the topic - what evidence do you have that this would cause the OPs symptoms, or b ) based in fact, references please- why do you think this is an epidemiological sleeper?

i have damaged my hearing because i injected drugs that damaged my cardiovascular system. no amount of removal of crap is going to undo that.

and its pretty fucking offensive to suggest its a 'welfare diisease' caused by sedentary lifestyles. @Negentropic was in work until this problem made that impossible, and is an avid runner.

I don't think we need evidence to see that some of the symptoms (hearing problems, general malaise and frustration) described by OP and at least one other poster, can be caused by ear blockage. I was not directing my reply toward you at all. Neither am i suggesting that all hearing damage is caused by ear blockage.

It was a friendly suggestion. Sorry if i provoked you. Hopefully OP can appreciate or duly disregard my suggestion, depending on its pertinence.

About sedentary lifestyle, it's a general population trend and not a personal accusation. I don't know the lifestyle/medical history of OP and he hasn't specifed that he wants replies from close friends only.

Do you think i'm "trolling" or something? Btw did you read the last paragraph of my short post before replying?

 

[Jabberwocky]

I don't think we need evidence to see that some of the symptoms (hearing problems, general malaise and frustration) described by OP and at least one other poster, can be caused by ear blockage. I was not directing my reply toward you at all. Neither am i suggesting that all hearing damage is caused by ear blockage.

yes you do need evidence. its a pretty outlandish claim.

i know it wasn't directed at me but as i mod this forum its my job to keep things on topic and supportive. i did not find your post to be such and therefore challenged you.

Do you think i'm "trolling" or something?

yep.

show some papers demonstrating the link you claim, and i'll revise my opinion.

 

[Snafu in the Void]

It's ok I'm not offended, but the symptoms started immediately after drug interactions and it's easy to correlate the cause. I mean shit, I went to the hospital for a reason.

I've had hearing loss before from using q-tips and compacted ear wax, stopped using q-tips a decade ago.

I don't see how ear wax could cause the opposite, sound hypersensitivity and accompanied brain zaps.

I'm relatively fit, jog at least 10mi per week.

But yeah such assertions remind me of shitty doctors blowing off my symptoms as anxiety or whatever. Annoying.

 

[Nas47]

Man covid is hitting me hard. One of the worst headaches I've ever had. Barely slept last night. Been using an ice pack on my head ibuprofen doesn't do shit.

The good news is it's distracting me from my despair about my current state. The bad news is my stupid fuck brain can't help but become anxious and think I'm going to die or something. I assume my immune system is already compromised from having a runny nose for 3 weeks.

I might have that new strain, I got it after my parents went to a basketball tournament in Las Vegas with people attending from all over the country.

C'est la vie

ha i was going to originally rage at you that this is bollocks, then actually clicked the links and remembered vaguely that the keto diet was developed for medical purposes. this is really interesting.

my kneejerk reaction was cos i did not tolerate ketosis well at all. but the only times i've been in ketosis was due to anorexia, already well into essential fat stores and metabolising my organs so i wasn't really tolerating anything. wish i was exagerrating but if you lose 2-3 kg in a week in that state, its coming straight out of your muscle, bone, and organs. glad i fact checked myself before posting.

@Negentropic i'm glad your mum is out of hospital, and that you managed to get some reasonable sleep. that is huge!!! so many good suggestions.

i might try megadosing chamomile tea too as i stupidly lost my hard fought for ability to sleep naturally recentl

Excellent. Maybe try 5 bags rather than 10, purely from an economical perspective. Make the box of teabags last a bit longer if you can.

When I am in remission,a cup or two camomille(Tillia flores) after hardworking day makes me nod...no joke

 

[Jabberwocky]

Strong chamomile, just like valerian tea works on GABA. Very subtle benzo like feeling.

I am not giving a medical advice but is Prozac 10mg off the table? In past I found fluoxetine to be most forgiving SSRI and if your "serotonin circuitry" is a mess small doses of it could in theory restore some balance. It is an artificial balance but you are taking quetiapine... Maybe somting to consider with your psychiatrist...

Hope you figure this out...you seem like a fighter and a great guy. I wish the best for you.❤

 

[Mjäll]

yes you do need evidence. its a pretty outlandish claim.

i know it wasn't directed at me but as i mod this forum its my job to keep things on topic and supportive. i did not find your post to be such and therefore challenged you.


yep.

show some papers demonstrating the link you claim, and i'll revise my opinion.

Ok so because you're a mod you felt the need to start talking about your own symptoms as if they were the target for my suggestion?

Do you need evidence for the link to hearing problems or just neural fuckery?

 

[Mjäll]

It's ok I'm not offended, but the symptoms started immediately after drug interactions and it's easy to correlate the cause. I mean shit, I went to the hospital for a reason.

I've had hearing loss before from using q-tips and compacted ear wax, stopped using q-tips a decade ago.

I don't see how ear wax could cause the opposite, sound hypersensitivity and accompanied brain zaps.

I'm relatively fit, jog at least 10mi per week.

But yeah such assertions remind me of shitty doctors blowing off my symptoms as anxiety or whatever. Annoying.

Yeah, disregard my suggestion if it's no good. Onviously you know more about your own situation. I just felt like it was relevant enough to bring to the table. An assertion it was not!

 

[Jabberwocky]

Ok so because you're a mod you felt the need to start talking about your own symptoms as if they were the target for my suggestion?

nope, i often bring my own symptoms in where they are relevant to what is posted.

you addressed your post to 'you guys' which as someone who has hearing problems and a load of other stuff, i interpreted as including, though not necessarily directed at, myself. i brought them up because there is a clear physiological reason for my poor hearing which is not going to be impacted by 'crap' in my ear.

Do you need evidence for the link to hearing problems or just neural fuckery?

neural fuckery, you specifically mentioned general malaise and frustration.

this is the last time i'm going to request this because i don't want to derail the thread further. please evidence your claims or stop posting about them in this thread.

 

[Mjäll]

nope, i often bring my own symptoms in where they are relevant to what is posted.

you addressed your post to 'you guys' which as someone who has hearing problems and a load of other stuff, i interpreted as including, though not necessarily directed at, myself. i brought them up because there is a clear physiological reason for my poor hearing which is not going to be impacted by 'crap' in my ear.


neural fuckery, you specifically mentioned general malaise and frustration.

this is the last time i'm going to request this because i don't want to derail the thread further. please evidence your claims or stop posting about them in this thread.

Why would i continue posting about this? I just wanted to drop it as a friendly suggestion about possible contributing factors.

Ok good to know you don't demand evidence for the connection between ear blockage and hearing... As for the general malaise connection, i cba look for sources. I've experienced that myself. You calling it "outlandish" is obviously more outlandish.

Btw is there a reason you're not dismissing suggestions of valerian root as an insult to serious problems discussed? One might have thought that's on a similar level in that regard.