Hello

[[Du...]]

I have suffered from clinical depression, anxiety and insomnia for the past two years and also have high blood pressure. I am 72 yrs old.  Two years ago my doctor put me on Zoloft and Xanax which I took for several months but they did not work. He then placed me on valium and another anti depression drug which did not work.  after about six months nothing worked and I stopped taking my meds and started taking a variety of natural remedies and over the counter sleeping aids. I currently take lunesta for sleep which works sometimes but after waking up I have high anxiety and feel very depressed.  I still feel the same as I did two years ago and dont know what to do any more.

[[Ju...]]

Hello duke1944 and welcome to Benzobuddies

 

I'm so glad you are here and at the same time so sorry that you need to be here. Two of the medications that you listed are benzodiazepines (xanax and valium). Lunesta is what is known as a Z-drug, it isnt a benzodiazepine but acts in a similar way and can cause some of the same problems. I know from personal experience that switching medications can be very difficult and sometimes the effects are worse than the problem that you were trying to treat. People experience all kinds of unexpected and sometimes difficult things in benzodiazepine withdrawal, which can happen after even short term use and taking only as prescribed. The good news is that you are currently off the benzodiazpines and some people find the Z-drugs less difficult to taper.

 

For people that have taken benzodiazepines for more than a few months, a place to start tapering is to reduce your daily dose by 5-10% every 7-14 days. You can then adjust the taper depending on how you respond. Benzobuddies has a wealth of information and support for people experiencing tapering, withdrawal and recovery. The amount of information might feel overwhelming at first, so please keep in mind that you only need to walk your path, and dont worry too much about what you read in another person's experience.

 

A good source of information on benzodiazepines is The Ashton Manual

 

These places on the forum may be helpful to you:

 

General Taper Plans   

 

Withdrawal Support (during your taper)

 

Post-withdrawal Recovery Support 

 

There is also a thread for Z-drugs but I cant find it right now and I want to get this out to you! I will look for it and post to this thread.

 

This is a friendly and open minded community of people who have experienced the many facets of benzodiazepine withdrawal, including many who have fully recovered and are staying to help others.  Feel free to post any questions that you have and members will share their experiences with you.

 

Members can respond best if they know your medication history. Please take a moment to create a signature line, listing your medication, dose and any relevant history.

Go to the top of the page and select Profile, then choose Forum Profile, insert drug history/timelines into the text box and click Change Profile.

 

With many good wishes for your recovery,

JKS

[[Ju...]]

Here you go:

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=97331.0

 

[[ne...]]

I found these 2 links when I first joined. They help to understand the healing process.

 

What is happening to us:

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=66397.0

 

Layman's Guide

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=77803.msg1026651#msg1026651