New to the community

[[ML...]]

Hello new friends.  I went to the psychiatrist five years ago (33 years old) to help me with sleep problems.  I was put on a medication called Seroquel which worked wonders for my sleep, but eventually made me so tired and lethargic during the day that I could barely function.  So I stopped taking the medication cold turkey!  This is when the cold reality of psychotropic drugs hit me hard.  I had no idea what I was on and what dependency nor withdrawl were.  unfortunately, I learned the hard way.  I could not sleep, would cry all the time, and had overwhelming fears of impending doom.  I have never been through anything so awful in all my life.  That is when I started educating myself and found out that I was on an antipsychotic medication which is very powerful.  So I decided to taper off the seroquel, but the side effects were so terrible that I went back to the psychiatrist and unfortunately was introduced to xanax.  It helped me immediately.  My fears were gone.  I could sleep.  I felt likemyself again.  For a couple of months I was feeling great.  Then the new dependency kicked in and the depression and emptyness started settling in as my new companion.  I also started having worse anxiety between doses and terrible insomnia if I don't take the xanax.  At this point I realized I had traded one depencency for another and was no better off.  I have been off the Seroquel for about nine months and have taken xanax every day for the past seven months.  I am currently tapering down from two mgs/day and am down to .75 mgs/day.  I am struggling with depression, pains in the muscles in my back, anxiety, and worse of all, nerve pain in my feet.  I am wondering if anyone else has experienced nerve pain in thier feet.  It feels like I am walking on electricity and I am wondering if this is a symptom of withdrawl and will go away.  Thanks for letting me vent and I hope to hear your stories as well.     

[[ma...]]

Hi ML1100 Welcome to Benzobuddies

 

Well done on the Seroquel taper , sorry you ended up taking benzos, never mind you will get through this taper.  Withdrawal symptoms are tough, tapering slow can help to minimize withdrawal effects.  It is generally recommended to taper no more than 5-10% every 10-14 days. 

 

The  symptoms you describe, are common in tolerance/withdrawal, depression, nerve pain.  My whole body felt like it was wired to an electric socket, i couldn't wear shoes.  Feel free to vent as much as you like, we all know what your going through.

 

We have a great community of knowledgeable and friendly people who understand this process.  They will be willing to share their experience with you.  Feel free to ask questions so that members can respond

 

Are you familiar with the  Ashton Manual , it is an excellent resource for information about these medications and gives a lot of information about withdrawal/tapering. 

 

Here are some helpful links:

 

The Ashton Manual. 

 

General Taper Plans

 

Withdrawal Support

 

If you would be so kind as to add a signature (history of meds/doses etc) it will help members give you relevant advice this link will show you how to”Create a signature”

 

Welcome aboard

 

Magrita

 

[[be...]]

hi, ive only been a member for a couple weeks,but have found alot of valuable information, im currently tapering off of xanax, and this place has helped. i was on seroquil at one time but years ago, i remember it knocking me out pretty good,and it put alot of weight on me too. i hope you find this site helpful.