In need of support, SO withdrawing from Klonopin and now. Album

[[Bu...]]

My girlfriend was prescribed Klonopin for over half a decade before we met. Her last year on it was when we did meet. Her doctor decided to not make arrangements on her next rf, and she essentially had to go cold turkey. Days later she was in the hospital vomiting uncontrollablly. She's now on Valium and tapering off. We've since had a soft breakup. We both want us to work, but she has to get through this on her own. I hate that I can't do anything to help her. But this is about her. We had talked about getting married. How can I support her and see us through? Even if we don't work I still want her healthy and happy. What can I do?

[[be...]]

Hi Butterscotch88  Welcome to BenzoBuddies!

 

I am so happy you found us. You are already doing the right thing by asking how you can help her. In my opinion a slower taper can help minimize withdrawal symptoms. I think you found out that cold turkey is brutal. I went though one myself

 

You might like to check out The Ashton Manual it is an authoritative source on what to expect in withdrawal and recovery.  Dr. Ashton is an expert in the field.  She describes and explains tapering and withdrawal. If you get a chance please check it out. it will give you a much better understanding of what your girlfriend is going through.

 

Please feel free to post to any of the dedicated boards, we have a wonderful community of people here, who will give sound advice. Members have been through all aspects of benzodiazepine use and withdrawal and are more than willing to share their experiences.

 

Withdrawal Support (during your taper)

 

 

Please take the time to Create a Signature.  This will allow others to see where your girlfriend is in the process so they can better support you/her.

 

Again Welcome! 

 

benzos-R-cruel

 

[[De...]]

Hello Butterscotch88,

 

Welcome to the forum from me too 

 

You are commended for being an advocate for your girlfriend, good support is so needed when one is tapering from benzos.

 

I'm so sorry to hear about the cold turkey experience, cold turkey from benzos after long term use is never a good idea and can be dangerous with the risk of seizures. How much diazepam is your girlfriend now taking and what is her taper rate? General tapering guidelines are to reduce the daily dose by between 5% and 10% every 10 to 14 days according to how you are feeling, tapering slowly and carefully is advised to ensure that the withdrawal effects are kept to a minimum.

 

Perhaps your girlfriend would like to join us here when she's feeling a little better. Being in the company of others who are going through the same process can be very comforting and she'll be given plenty of support and tapering assistance if need be.

 

I'm glad you found us and I wish your girlfriend success with the taper.

 

Debbie

[[Br...]]

Hi Butterscotch.  It is really good that you want to help someone get off benzos.  I wish I had had someone close to help me taper because it can be a great help.

 

Assuming she wants to come off benzos, it would be worth your girlfriend having some understanding of what is happening to her.  I would suggest she might want to consider joining this forum herself because it is usually better if she can inform herself enough to control and manage her own taper rather than have it done "to her" by someone else. 

 

You can help by sharing any knowledge you gain about benzos and assisting her overcome the difficulties she faces when hit by symptoms.  Benzo withdrawal can cause many strange symptoms and you may need to show a lot of patience and forbearance. 

 

Five or six years of clonazepam is likely to have caused some dependency.  Switching to valium can be unsettling because the two are not exactly the same.  I suggest it is worth making sure she is truly stable on Valium before tapering.  If it was me I would wait 6 to 8 weeks before I decided I was on the right dose Valium.

 

 

 

[[Bu...]]

I think her tapering will be adjusted when she's discharged. Apparently, she has gastritis, and is incapable of dealing with any kind of stress; it exacerbates her symptoms. Can benzo WD causes gastritis? It seems iffy from what I've researched.

 

She's pushed me and everyone close to her (sans her parents) away while she's in the hospital. I don't know what's going to happen with anything at this point. Kills me to not be there but this is what she said she needed. Whatever. This isn't about me. Just want her healthy. I cant pretend this isn't killing me though. with the exception of two nights of the past 21, I haven't slept more than 2-4 hours per night. Keep waking up in a cold sweat thinking something happened to her. And I think about what she's going through and feel like a miserable excuse of a human being.

 

I don't know what to do.

[[Br...]]

I think her tapering will be adjusted when she's discharged. Apparently, she has gastritis, and is incapable of dealing with any kind of stress; it exacerbates her symptoms. Can benzo WD causes gastritis? It seems iffy from what I've researched.

 

She's pushed me and everyone close to her (sans her parents) away while she's in the hospital. I don't know what's going to happen with anything at this point. Kills me to not be there but this is what she said she needed. Whatever. This isn't about me. Just want her healthy. I cant pretend this isn't killing me though. with the exception of two nights of the past 21, I haven't slept more than 2-4 hours per night. Keep waking up in a cold sweat thinking something happened to her. And I think about what she's going through and feel like a miserable excuse of a human being.

 

I don't know what to do.

 

Hi Butterscotch.  I'm sorry to hear things are already a bit challenging for you.  The psychological benzo symptoms can put a huge strain on relationships.

 

Unfortunately tapering off benzos is a marathon rather than a sprint, so there is likely to be very much more of the same before it's over.  It may be wise to think in terms of months rather than weeks.

 

Benzos can definitely cause acid reflux by relaxing the espohageal sphincter.  I don't know if some benzos do this more than others.  There are other routes which benzos can take to cause gastric problems.  There are many posts here about this which you can find if you do a search.  Here's one  http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=13557.msg190599#msg190599

 

Her inability to deal with stress is very likely to be caused by benzos.  You may find that if she tapers too quickly she goes into states of fear and dread for days on end.  In such states the merest trigger can precipitate a panic attack.  I tend to see this as a sign that the dose of benzo is too low.  You may want to research whether she has crossed over to the right dose of Valium.

 

 

 

 

[[Bi...]]

I think her tapering will be adjusted when she's discharged. Apparently, she has gastritis, and is incapable of dealing with any kind of stress; it exacerbates her symptoms. Can benzo WD causes gastritis? It seems iffy from what I've researched.

 

She's pushed me and everyone close to her (sans her parents) away while she's in the hospital. I don't know what's going to happen with anything at this point. Kills me to not be there but this is what she said she needed. Whatever. This isn't about me. Just want her healthy. I cant pretend this isn't killing me though. with the exception of two nights of the past 21, I haven't slept more than 2-4 hours per night. Keep waking up in a cold sweat thinking something happened to her. And I think about what she's going through and feel like a miserable excuse of a human being.

 

I don't know what to do.

 

Hi Butterscotch.  I'm sorry to hear things are already a bit challenging for you.  The psychological benzo symptoms can put a huge strain on relationships.

 

Unfortunately tapering off benzos is a marathon rather than a sprint, so there is likely to be very much more of the same before it's over.  It may be wise to think in terms of months rather than weeks.

 

Benzos can definitely cause acid reflux by relaxing the espohageal sphincter.  I don't know if some benzos do this more than others.  There are other routes which benzos can take to cause gastric problems.  There are many posts here about this which you can find if you do a search.  Here's one  http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=13557.msg190599#msg190599

 

Her inability to deal with stress is very likely to be caused by benzos.  You may find that if she tapers too quickly she goes into states of fear and dread for days on end.  In such states the merest trigger can precipitate a panic attack.  I tend to see this as a sign that the dose of benzo is too low.  You may want to research whether she has crossed over to the right dose of Valium.

 

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: