Tritrate Temazepam or switch to valium

[[ba...]]

I'm getting ready to taper off benzos - I've taken zanax for years lowest dose only as needed

Started Norcos 3 years ago trying to sleep and survive chronic debilitating pain

( which I am now pain free)

 

During this time I was prescribed 15mg  for sleep the longest period of use was 2 weeks consecutively then only as needed

About a year ago I Started feeling really weird, head pressure, tinnitus, severe insomnia, headaches 

Heart palpitations, just strange stuff at night after a few nights of no benzos and no sleep

Had no idea what tolerance w/d was nor did I tie my symptoms to the benzos

 

The light has turned on!  Now I know - geese I spent a ton of money on Dr's and tests to find the problem

I'm currently taking 7.5 mg  nightly which does not get me through the night.

Should I continue to taper  or switch to Valium my Dr is not that great to work with

She stopped my  and gave me 30 5mg Valium

Ummm might take a wee bit longer than that

 

I guess this is a subjective question - just confused on which way to go

Thanks

 

[[me...]]

I would stay on the Temazepam. You can split the dose up--like 2/3 rds at the beginning of the night, and 1/3 for when you wake up later. This should help you get a little more sleep. Get yourself some small syringes (should be able to get those at a pharmacy) and you will be able to titrate quite accurately. You might even want to save small doses to help you get through the day, like 1 mg., that worked well for me.

 

Valium is really a crap shoot and many people do not do well on it. Many Temazepam users have had success getting off of it directly, without too much issue. I would not switch to a longer acting drug like Valium unless the inter-dose withdrawal becomes totally unbearable, and you have tried every other trick in the book (like split dosing).

[[ba...]]

Thank you for your input!  Intuitively, I felt this was the best option but kept reading otherwise. 

Like the idea of splitting the dose through the night.  I watch my 3 month old grandson and the Valium just leaves me so spacey and I can't risk that with him.

Well hopefully my doc will switch me back over and I just need to relax into this. 

I want to go fast but I now realize this could mean disaster.

It so nice to have people that understand.

[[me...]]

Good luck, I think you will do fine. Let your body tell you how quickly you can taper--it might be faster than the usual 10% every 2 weeks, or it might be slower.