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Benzos withdrawl from the evil lorazopam

T

toronto guy

Greenlighter
Joined
May 19, 2012
Messages
3
I am suffering from the detox of ativan. My heart is racing and I can't seem to have any influence on it. My face is flush and I feel hot. What have you done to be able to get through this. And how long can I expect for these symptoms to last.
 
Yeah you definitely want to taper down, don't quit cold turkey with benzos, seizures are an actual risk - I can testify, I had two. It has to be a gradual process. Otherwise, to answer your questions you can expect the most intense symptoms to last ~1 week, but then if it was a strong habit you can get strong symptoms for a couple months, and I think it takes about two years or so for your body to recover completely...I don't really know, I was only on week 3 when they put me back on benzos because of the seizures XD.
As far as I know there isn't much to be done to alleviate the symptoms as a whole, just be sure to do really relaxing activities since benzo w/d will most likely put you on edge 24/7. But if you aren't suffering from more than what you described (and I hope you aren't), then consider yourself lucky! :\
 
The Ashton Manual (it can be found on the internet) says to switch to diazepam (Valium) before the withdrawal, I dont know if thats possible for you.
 
yeah, chlordiazepoxide (librium) and diazepam (valium) are common choices, but it depends on the clinic, in the first detox i was they used clonazepam mainly. i personally find clorazepate to be the best choice, but that's just me personally.
but this is besides the point.
every benzo withdrawal should be handled the same way: controlled taper + anticonvulsants, the clinics i've been to favored sodium valproate or carbamazepine for this, although gabapentin was also used.

edit: i did a cold-turkey withdrawal at home once, after a three-month flunitrazepam/alprazolam habit, taking ungodly amounts of them daily and IVing them too quite often. what can i say, i was 19 and dumb. don't do this. even if you don't get a seizure (which can kill you, grand mal seizures are nothing to take lightly) it will be excruciatingly horrible. even with a taper it's gonna suck, but not nearly as bad. also i had both gabapentin and sodium valproate at my disposal, otherwise i would have checked myself in.
benzo WD really is serious shit.
 
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Even if you have the necessary anti-convulsants on hand at home it won't do you jack shit when you seize and can't administer it, or complications arise. This is why a controlled medical environment is necessary.
 
Hi Toronto,

How long have you been taking the ativan?

You need to know that abruptly stopping benzos after taking them daily for more than say 3/4 weeks can result in serious side effects besides feeling like hell. If you can, i recommend getting your hands on some valium to ease off the wd from lorazepam. If you cant then opiates can bring some releif from these symptoms

Aside from that ( seeing a doctor for a few long acting benzos - klonopin/valium/librium, or taking small amounts of an opiate ) there's no much else that can help the physical effects you're describing. Maybe try sex, getting out of the house to take your mind of what's going on
 
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tricomb said:
Even if you have the necessary anti-convulsants on hand at home it won't do you jack shit when you seize and can't administer it, or complications arise. This is why a controlled medical environment is necessary.
Click to expand...

yes, i was not advocating doing it at home, i just said that i did it once, and it was a shitty idea. in detox i saw a guy have a seizure in spite of being on a taper and getting anticonvulsants.

edit: alcohol is a shitty idea by the way. as someone pointed out in a similar thread, it lowers the seizure threshold, which is a no no. also, my rampant drinking during my own home detox led to an alcohol problem i've still not gotten over. and that was seven years ago.
 
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amen to that.
i'd say that benzo withdrawal and bad alcohol withdrawal should always be treated in an in-patient setting. everything else could become a gamble with your life.
 
Seriously, it's not like opiate WD where you can just sweat/shit/puke/scream it out at your house. Don't make excuses or exceptions, don't take shortcuts.
 
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