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Greetings to all.  I found this site on a Google search and reluctantly joined.  You see, by joining, I am acknowledging my anxiety problem more bluntly, which makes it more difficult for me to minimize, which makes my anxiety even worse, which makes.........(maybe you know the feeling).  I am a 52 year-old man.  I began using Xanax at age 22 at low doses (.25mg. to .5mg.) as needed.  I used it periodically for anxiety flare-ups; maybe for one or two weeks.  Then I'd leave it alone for weeks or even months at a time.  I used it this way for 24 years.  Six years ago, at age 46, I had some marital and career problems, and my Dr. increased my 'scripts to 2mg. per day to get me through (.5mg., 4 times/day, at my own discretion).  I would often use less, and at times I had two or three bottles of Xanax stockpiled.  During the past year, my Dr. has been gradually cutting me back; not because I've been improving, but because he believes the Xanax was not doing me any good.  I ended up using all the pills I had in stock.  In January of this year, I started doing a lot of research on benzos, and the first of February, I decided I wanted to quit.  (My Dr. was surprised; he was not intending to stop my Xanax altogether.)  Curiously, my Dr. was not agreeable to following the Ashton taper schedule, so I found a Dr. who was.  He switched me over to Librium.  I am now down to 2.5mg./day of Librium, and in three weeks, the plan is to stop.  I suppose this is good news.  However, the bad news is I am a 52 year-old man who is terrified and confused.  I was excited about discontinuing the Xanax because I believed that by doing so, my anxiety would abate significantly.  Unfortunately, my anxiety is just as severe as it has been for the past six years.  I now feel that perhaps the Xanax wasn't doing any harm at all, and all this anxiety is due to my preexisting condition.  I suppose I must face that as a real possibility.  Sorry for the long introduction.  If you've read this far, I thank you. 

I will learn how to use this site, and will try to catch up on the previous posts.  Perhaps I can be of some help to someone; although I'm probably not in any condition to do so at this time.  My thanks again to anyone who may come upon this writing.     

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Welcome to the forum! We're glad to have you as a new member.  Unfortunately, one of the main symptoms during benzo withdrawal is anxiety (the other major one is insomnia), and there are many others.  When a long term user quits benzos there is often a rebound effect, when one's anxiety can be even worse than usual for awhile.  This is temporary, and will reduce in intensity as you heal. 

 

You'll find lots of information and support here.  Our members have been through all aspects of withdrawal, and you're likely to find  people who understand what you're going through. For those who are currently tapering, we suggest reducing no faster than 5-10% every 10-14 days, and some taper even slower than that.  One exception: very short-term users of a few weeks or less may be able to taper faster. 

 

Having some withdrawal symptoms is normal, especially near the end of a taper and for a few months after discontinuing the medication.  First/only withdrawals after a slow taper tend to be easier than multiple reinstatements/withdrawals over time, which may make symptoms worse and longer lasting. The most common symptoms are anxiety and insomnia but there are many others. These are temporary and will go away in time.

 

Here are a few links you may find useful:

 

Withdrawal Support Board

 

The Ashton Manual is an authoritative source on what to expect in withdrawal and recovery.  Dr. Ashton is an expert in the field. Section III explains and describes symptoms, and there is also a section with suggested taper schedules.

 

Please take the time to Create a Signature.  This will allow others to see where you are in the process so they can better support you.

 

Again, welcome!

 

:smitten:

 

 

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Hi Simon,

 

Welcome to the forum, you have found the right place to help you with your sound decision to get off of Benzos. You may feel overwhelmed but there are so many wonderful people here that have been exactly where you are, we have navigated these waters many times, you can ride in our wake. This may not be a picnic but it does bot have to be a nightmare. Make a plan, stick with it, find coping mechanisms and even some supplements that may help some of the specific symptoms, get your life back and move on.

 

I will address some of your specific comments in your post below in red.

 

 

Greetings to all.  I found this site on a Google search and reluctantly joined.  You see, by joining, I am acknowledging my anxiety problem more bluntly, which makes it more difficult for me to minimize, which makes my anxiety even worse, which makes.........Acknowledging is a good thing, by taking benzos to deal with anxiety you have been in denial and never really dealt with the cause of anxiety only the symptoms. There is a good chance that the underlying anxiety from many years ago is long gone and now you are only experiencing anxiety that is being cause by the insidious drug Xanax and worrying, We have seen this many times. It will do you good to learn some new coping skills, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, meditation, prayer and other tools that you will learn here at BB. But mostly just know that anxiety is a normal part of life, we all deal with it. Learning to stop the loop of thoughts that fuel full this anxiety is key. As you know our thoughts can cause chemicals to flow which ramp up the bad feelings, learning to shut them off naturally will be one of your missions. (maybe you know the feeling).  I am a 52 year-old man.  I began using Xanax at age 22 at low doses (.25mg. to .5mg.) as needed.  I used it periodically for anxiety flare-ups; maybe for one or two weeks.  Then I'd leave it alone for weeks or even months at a time.  I used it this way for 24 years.  Six years ago, at age 46, I had some marital and career problems, and my Dr. increased my 'scripts to 2mg. per day to get me through (.5mg., 4 times/day, at my own discretion).  I would often use less, and at times I had two or three bottles of Xanax stockpiled.  During the past year, my Dr. has been gradually cutting me back; not because I've been improving, but because he believes the Xanax was not doing me any good.  I ended up using all the pills I had in stock.  In January of this year, I started doing a lot of research on benzos, and the first of February, I decided I wanted to quit.  (My Dr. was surprised; he was not intending to stop my Xanax altogether.)  Curiously, my Dr. was not agreeable to following the Ashton taper schedule, so I found a Dr. who was.  He switched me over to Librium.  I am now down to 2.5mg./day of Librium, and in three weeks, the plan is to stop.  I suppose this is good news.  This is not good news and is fraught with potential problems. A slow and steady taper is best, cold turkey after such a long time of usage could really rock your world. It simply takes time for your brain to re-adjust and heal from long term benzo use. However, the bad news is I am a 52 year-old man who is terrified and confused. Gather your knowledge here and elsewhere and the confusion and fear will be addressed and mitigated.  I was excited about discontinuing the Xanax because I believed that by doing so, my anxiety would abate significantly.  Unfortunately, my anxiety is just as severe as it has been for the past six years.  I now feel that perhaps the Xanax wasn't doing any harm at all, and all this anxiety is due to my preexisting condition.  I suppose I must face that as a real possibility.  Anxiety while taking benzos is common, you may have reached tolerance withdrawal, at this point it could very well be that the anxiety is actually being caused by benzos. The bottom line is that you have anxiety with benzos and may have some without them for a while until you learn to deal with it in a less harmful way. Sorry for the long introduction.  If you've read this far, I thank you. 

I will learn how to use this site, and will try to catch up on the previous posts. Yes you have a lot to learn and you will. None of us including many doctors have no clue what is really going on with this class of drugs. As your knowledge grows so will your confidence. You will develop a good plan and you will succeed. Perhaps I can be of some help to someone; although I'm probably not in any condition to do so at this time. Don't worry about anyone but you for a while until you have this taken care of. After all of this is over maybe then you can come back and help others, you first for quite a while.  My thanks again to anyone who may come upon this writing.   

 

To get better tailored information, please let us know exactly what dose you are taking and how many times a day that you dose. Then others can really start to help you design a slow and steady taper. But again quitting cold turkey is NOT a good idea at all.

 

Good luck Simon,

 

Wilson  :angel:

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To Megan918:  Thank you for your reply.  I will look over the withdrawal support board.  I have also created a signature that should be helpful.  Thanks again.  -Jeff (Simonbarsinister)
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To Wilson/BuhbyeBenzos: I appreciate your taking the time to read and reply to my post!  Hopefully, much of this anxiety is caused by the Xanax.  I just thought it would have decreased by now.  I'm probably being impatient.  Either way, I know I need to learn (or re-learn) how to cope with anxiety, and this site looks like a goldmine for information.  I did taper too quickly, but I don't want to turn back now.  I'm currently on 2.5mg of Librium per day, which is a very small dose of benzo.  (Librium X 0.02 = Xanax).  Thanks again for your caring reply. 

By the way, I live in the western suburbs of Chicago, and your username and text remind me of the White Sox! 

-Jeff (Simonbarsinister)   

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To Wilson/BuhbyeBenzos: I appreciate your taking the time to read and reply to my post!  Hopefully, much of this anxiety is caused by the Xanax.  I just thought it would have decreased by now.  I'm probably being impatient.  Either way, I know I need to learn (or re-learn) how to cope with anxiety, and this site looks like a goldmine for information.  I did taper too quickly, but I don't want to turn back now.  I'm currently on 2.5mg of Librium per day, which is a very small dose of benzo.  (Librium X 0.02 = Xanax).  Thanks again for your caring reply. 

By the way, I live in the western suburbs of Chicago, and your username and text remind me of the White Sox! 

-Jeff (Simonbarsinister) 

 

 

Wishing you all of the best Jeff, You got this Man!!! embrace the Suck and power on, this too will end, God Bless You my Friend!  :angel:

 

Ethan, Craig and Jake! The famous Wilson's of White Sox lore!!!  :thumbsup: I too am in the Midwest, Go Mudhens!  ::)

 

Wilson  :mybuddy:

 

 

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