physical symptoms getting worse plz help

[[Hi...]]

Ive been two months off benzos. And my physical symptoms are becoming more pronounced and much worse. The things im feeling are itchy tingly burning skin, cant swollow tremors and nausea vommitting, hyperacusis feels like my organs are enflamed. Is it normal to have physical symptoms get worse after being benzo free. Mostly its this burning itching tingling and sharp pain in my toes thst have been worse. Im tapering off phenobarbital and now at a very low dose. Does this have something to do with it or has the pheno been masking these symptoms or is this permanent. Im already on gabspentin its getting so bad. I guess my question is does anyone have any experience with symptoms getting significantly worse and having new symptoms appear several months after a ct? Specifically nerve pain and sickness. Like they just apear outa nowhere and stick. Whats goin on? Its becoming intolerable and getting worse. Has the pheno been covering these symptoms up so now that im tapering off it these symptoms are surfacing? Any input theories or personal experience is greatly needed. Thank you

[Guest [Or...]]

Although my windows are good, every month for MW has shown a significant worsening of my symptoms. But my windows get better, although shorter. So, yes. Its normal unfortunately. And I only took the shit for 3 weeks at 1.5mg!

[[Hi...]]

Thats insane. Im sorry you have to suffer. Ive done several cts in a short period of time so i really think ive tottaly fried my brain. What is mw? My mental sx have gotten a littlr better but there are so many factors i dont know whats going on and its freaking me out. Im also concerned that gabapentin is causing a lot of problems bot theres no way to tell as i cant stop taking it

[Guest [Or...]]

MW = Me. Sorry. Lol. Still brain fogged. And that's good that the mental SFX are diminishing. This is a sign your brain is healing. I followed the same pattern in month 3. My mentals were a lot better and my ohysicals were worse. However, it switches up all the time. The good news is, eventually it will die down. Permanently. We just don't know when and that's the hardest part.

[[Hi...]]

Its so traumatic waking up every morning not knowing how the day is gana go. I just wish i knew what was causing what. Im in benzo withdrawal, tapering off phenobarbital, taking gabapentin, have hep c and gastritis, was a past alcoholic, snd took cipro for 6 weeks!!! So there are so many factors as to what could be going on with all my symptoms

[Guest [ma...]]

Ive been two months off benzos. And my physical symptoms are becoming more pronounced and much worse. The things im feeling are itchy tingly burning skin, cant swollow tremors and nausea vommitting, hyperacusis feels like my organs are enflamed. Is it normal to have physical symptoms get worse after being benzo free. Mostly its this burning itching tingling and sharp pain in my toes thst have been worse. Im tapering off phenobarbital and now at a very low dose. Does this have something to do with it or has the pheno been masking these symptoms or is this permanent. Im already on gabspentin its getting so bad. I guess my question is does anyone have any experience with symptoms getting significantly worse and having new symptoms appear several months after a ct? Specifically nerve pain and sickness. Like they just apear outa nowhere and stick. Whats goin on? Its becoming intolerable and getting worse. Has the pheno been covering these symptoms up so now that im tapering off it these symptoms are surfacing? Any input theories or personal experience is greatly needed. Thank you

 

Sorry for what you are going through and sorry for being so technical.........but if you have a good understanding about the Pharmacokinetics and Parmacodynamics of both Klonopin and Phenobarb/PB it will make sense to you why your symptoms are worsening at this time.

 

Yes the PB can and more than likely was partially masking the w/d from the K. It acts on the same receptors that K does. It has a very long half life of up to 96 hours. Since you are now tapering it, some of the w/d is no longer being masked.

 

Also b/c of the relatively long half life of K it can take 4 weeks or longer for some people to begin to feel the w/d from that drug. For me 8 weeks was when things began to increase and that's the same time frame you are at right now.

 

Please keep in mind that you were on a high dose and have c/t more than once. Kindling could also be contributing to your symptoms.

 

What you are experiencing is not out of the norm at all. The same thing happened to me. It's not nice but perhaps if you understand a bit what's actually going on that might help you to not fear the increase in symptoms.

 

Hope you feel better soon, mandala

[[Hi...]]

Thank you mandala. Ive actually been meaning to get ahold of you as some buddies have pointed me in your direction. It took eight weeks for things to get bad? I know everyone is different but how long did it take for things to get better? Also ive been on phenobarbital for several months tapering so im sure there is a lot of physical dependency. Im down to 5mg. And im supposed to jump but im so scared that things will get completely out of control. Which they pretty much are right now. Is the phenobarbital preventing me from healing? Some of the mental sx have gotten a little less intense. But this last week. Ths physical pain is unbearable. Espeacially the burning and tingling. And muscle pain ant twitching. It feels like im ganna start seizing any moment. Lol ive been there before. I guess im worried that the gabapentin is causing the burning and tingling pain. Or that ive been on phenobarbital for so long that i will get a discontinuation syndrome from that too. Does pheno cause a protracted withdrawal syndrome of its own? Do i need to get completely off the phenobarbital before i can start to heal? Has there been no healing taking place yet?' Thanks mandala

[Guest [ma...]]

Thank you mandala. Ive actually been meaning to get ahold of you as some buddies have pointed me in your direction. It took eight weeks for things to get bad? I know everyone is different but how long did it take for things to get better? Also ive been on phenobarbital for several months tapering so im sure there is a lot of physical dependency. Im down to 5mg. And im supposed to jump but im so scared that things will get completely out of control. Which they pretty much are right now. Is the phenobarbital preventing me from healing? Some of the mental sx have gotten a little less intense. But this last week. Ths physical pain is unbearable. Espeacially the burning and tingling. And muscle pain ant twitching. It feels like im ganna start seizing any moment. Lol ive been there before. I guess im worried that the gabapentin is causing the burning and tingling pain. Or that ive been on phenobarbital for so long that i will get a discontinuation syndrome from that too. Does pheno cause a protracted withdrawal syndrome of its own? Do i need to get completely off the phenobarbital before i can start to heal? Has there been no healing taking place yet?' Thanks mandala

 

Hi HipHop,

 

Some of your questions I cannot answer b/c I think they are beyond the scope of the forum and should be answered by a medical professional. I will answer what I can.

 

My symptoms after the K c/t kind of began around 4 weeks but were masked partially by the one drug I was still on which was Seroquel. The w/d was further complicated by the fact that I was then prescribed about 4 more drugs b/c the w/d was misdiagnosed. Fast fwd to about 8 or 10 weeks off the K and then stopping all drugs c/t and that's when the w/d worsened.

 

I can only say that I know PB can mask the w/d from K, but yes people can form a dependency on PB as well and yes there can be w/d related to that. My personal feeling is that it's almost impossible to separate the w/d at this point. However I do feel that the stronger w/d symptoms that you are experiencing would be benzo related. I am basing that solely on the dose of benzos you were on, the length of time you were on benzos compared to the PB, and the fact that you have been on and off benzos a few times (possible kindling).

 

I have opinions about healing from benzos while taking PB and other drugs but I have no facts to back that up. All I can say is that based on it's mechanism of action, the PB is more than likely masking some of the benzo w/d.

 

You might want to post in the other medication section about the Gabapentin/GP. I know others on here who were given that after a c/t. I'm not sure how the GP would cause those side effects of burning and tingling unless you were tapering it. GP does not actually bind to the GABA receptors but the mechanism of action is not really understood.

 

As far as my healing timeline goes I am not healed yet. However please do not fall into the trap of comparing your recovery to anyone else. As you can see from my signature I was on many drugs at the same time, some for well over 10 years and I never tapered from any of them. I am light years ahead of where I was even 6 months ago but have a ways to go yet.

 

Please taper safely from any drug that you are still on if you plan on tapering more. Are you under the care of a doctor? and do you have support in real life? ie someone you can talk to.

 

Sorry not sure if any of this helps you. I can only share my personal experience. I hope you feel better soon, mandala

[[Hi...]]

Mandala in your personal opinion do you think that phenobarbital contribites to the kindling i just dont know how much more of this i can handle. Im down to 5mg of pheno. I sleep pretty good 5 hours a night which confuses me. I know your not a doctor but the docs that are helping me know nothing of this so i kind have to get my knowledge here and share it with my doctor. Thank you

[Guest [ma...]]

Mandala in your personal opinion do you think that phenobarbital contribites to the kindling i just dont know how much more of this i can handle. Im down to 5mg of pheno. I sleep pretty good 5 hours a night which confuses me. I know your not a doctor but the docs that are helping me know nothing of this so i kind have to get my knowledge here and share it with my doctor. Thank you

 

Hi HipHop,

 

I don't think there are cut and dry answers when it comes to people like you and me who have been on and off benzos several times and as well prescribed more than one drug during the initial stages of w/d. It's complicated and often with psych drug w/d and recovery there are no definitive answers. The only thing that has been a given for me is that with the amount of time that is right for me, and my psych drug history I am healing. You will heal too.

 

Here is a link to some info regarding kindling

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kindling_%28sedative-hypnotic_withdrawal%29

 

Phenobarb as you know has a different mechanism of action than benzos, but it still acts on the (a) subunit of the GABA receptors. As mentioned before my best guess based on my own personal experience is that the PB is temporarily masking some of the benzo w/d. Yes you have been on and off PB a few times recently. This does not mean when you taper off the PB things will escalate w/d wise. Nobody knows that until they taper off. I understand your concerns, and I do believe they are normal concerns which may be accentuated by your heightened state of awareness due to the temporary GABA/Glutamte imbalance until you heal more.

 

Is there any way you could contact one or a few Pharmacists and ask them their opinion? I always believe in asking the same question to at least 3 different people when it comes to matters like this. If a Pharmacist can't answer your question, can s/he perhaps suggest someone else who you can talk to?

 

Many of us have been on our own throughout our w/d and recovery time. The lack of knowledge in the medical profession regarding w/d and recovery from these drugs is fairly widespread. I experienced the same thing from doctors who prescribed the drugs to me, and I worked directly with them in the hospital for years. I had no support, or any reassurance from my doctor. He told me that I knew more about the drugs he prescribed to me and their mechanism of action than he did. That was my last appointment with him. I knew I was on my own from then on. I accepted that.

 

You are doing the right thing by arming yourself with as much information as possible so you can help your doctor help you through this recovery process. I am sorry that I can't help more. Maybe someone else will read this and offer their opinion.

 

It's a very good thing that you are sleeping 5 hours a night. Please take good care, mandala

[[Hi...]]

Youve been a tremendous help. Any feedback at all is helpful at this point. I take what i can use and discard the rest. Just like with my alcoholism. Which i think has a huge role in this. Also right before i went on benzos. I was treated for six weeks with cipro and often wonder if that primed this whle thing

[[Ch...]]

Youve been a tremendous help. Any feedback at all is helpful at this point. I take what i can use and discard the rest. Just like with my alcoholism. Which i think has a huge role in this. Also right before i went on benzos. I was treated for six weeks with cipro and often wonder if that primed this whle thing

 

A course of fluoroquinolones may well have some bearing on how you're feeling.  If you want to know more about this, I'd post in Other Medications and ask how it might have impacted withdrawal and recovery.  I don't know much about it but I know quinolones have caused problems, especially when combined with benzodiazepines.  Luckily you weren't taking them at the same time, sounds like.

[[Hi...]]

No it was before. But after my course i started having weird waves and Windows patterns where i would get sick. A lot like how im doing right now. I went to so many doctors and did so many tests and everything wss normal and that it was anxiety. Which led me to the klonopin. I hate how hindsight is always 20/20. I hope that those antibiotics didnt set me up for protracted withdrawal. I feel this is not going away anytime soon. Plus with all the cts. I wish i could see some improvements. Imi need hope. Im starting to get very scary chills and hot flashes

[Guest [ma...]]

No it was before. But after my course i started having weird waves and Windows patterns where i would get sick. A lot like how im doing right now. I went to so many doctors and did so many tests and everything wss normal and that it was anxiety. Which led me to the klonopin. I hate how hindsight is always 20/20. I hope that those antibiotics didnt set me up for protracted withdrawal. I feel this is not going away anytime soon. Plus with all the cts. I wish i could see some improvements. Imi need hope. Im starting to get very scary chills and hot flashes

 

Not to undermine what you are going through but the chills and hot flashes are quite common. Benzos affect the Hypothalamus which is involved in temperature regulation. In my opinion what makes them feel scary is the absence of something rational that you can link those physical symptoms to, the unpredicable nature of them, but more importantly the temporary heightened state of our CNS ie the organic fear. I had them and they began while on the benzos. In some respects I consider myself fortunate b/c I was able to experience direct cause and effect for some of the w/d symptoms before stopping the drugs. Try if you can to not label the symptoms.

[[Hi...]]

Ok ill try. I just cant like get it outa my head that the gabap is causing some of these things or making them worse. But theres no way to tell cuz i was put on it durring ct. I just dont get why im experiencing all this nerve pain suddenly. A few weeks ago it was a non issue. My feet are tingling on fire! I experienced this burning tingling pain a long time ago while attempting to taper it. Tolerance wd??? Hmmm. Also my liver and kidneys hurt but the function test comes bsck normal. Sigh. Im trying to learn acceptance. But i wish i could see a little bit of hope. I see people on here who been in acute for a year or more and thats not hopeful. I feel much worse than the actual detox. Probably cuz meds though. Oh well. I think i need to give it a few more months and hopefully it will get a little better. I still gotta come off the gaba to which is extremely painful and mind shattering. Short half life. I need a good window

[[Co...]]

I'm pretty sure it's the benzo withdrawal dude. Gabapentin will usually mess with your head or cause fatigue if it does anything. You can try lowering it but do so very slowly. 

[[Hi...]]

Its hard to tell if its messing with my head cuz my head is a absolute complete mess. But dont know if its benzo withdrawal or gabap or both. I do have monster fatigue. But again not sur if its just benzo withdrawal

[[sa...]]

I had the exact same thing happen to me.  I took Cipro and it made me depressed and anxious.  Then took 16mgs total of klonopin over 60 days and got dependent.  Went immediately into tolerance.  I am convinced the Cipro set me up.

 

[[Hi...]]

Wow that's crazy satch. Thank you for posting here i dont feel so crazy now. The fucked part is i was experiencing benzo withdrawal symptoms before i started the benzos. Ive read that cipro toxicity can be permanent and that scares me

[[so...]]

So sorry you are going through all this.  I feel discouraged like you not knowing what's causing what and waking up every morning wondering how crappy I'm going to feel today.  I was prescribed gabapentin 900 mg and Norco 10mg 3x day for spinal stenosis pain for 2 yrs.  Then had spinal fusion surgery and hospital ramped up my pain meds.  Gabapentin 1500mg  Norco 100mg, Fentanyl patch 25mg, Oxycontin 80mg.  Got off the patch and oxycontin myself no problems.  Went to detox to get off opiates.  GP tried to get me to take Prozac, hated it and stopped. She also Rx'd ativan.  Took those for a couple of months intermittently.  Was having major nausea and drugged out feeling whole time.  CT gabapentin after detox facility.  The sh**, as they say, hit the fan and I ended up in ER.  All doctors told me to CT gabapentin and I am in hell now.  Drug free since Nov. 8, 2014.  Have just had three sort of windows the last 2 weeks.  I call them dirty windshields.  I feel for you.  Don't know if all this is gaba or short term Adivan use as needed.  It all sucks.  My symptoms are severe fatigue, insomnia, heart racing and whooshing in my ears,  drunk feeling, dizziness, no appetite, 40 lb. weight loss, and more.  Some symptoms have lifted a bit.  You'll get better.  Taper one drug at a time. Save the gab for last I have read on these threads.  (((sofa hugs)))

[[Hi...]]

How long have you been off gaba. Did you have any bad sx from it i feel like maybe its responsible for some of my sx