Symptoms following Liquid taper

[[ci...]]

1. Did you use tablets or drops or pharmacy compound solution to prepare your solution? (Tablets / Drops / Pharmacy) Tablets

   

2. Did you experience symptoms changing from (benzo) tablets to solution? (Yes/No) Very minor

 

3. What solvent did you use? (Water, alcohol, juice, milk, ...). If milk, what type? Alcohol with water to fill

 

4. How would you rate the average intensity of these symptoms on a scale of 10 (0: same as with tablets - 10: very strong like with cold turkey) 1

 

5. What did you do to address the problem? (Abandon liquid, increase liquid dose, hold, additional medications...) hold for 10 days (I planned that)

 

6. Based on your experience, would you recommend liquid taper to buddies who wish to taper? (Yes/No) Absolutely!  Cut and hold was very difficult sxs

 

 

[[Fr...]]

Following

[[ju...]]

 

1. Did you use tablets or drops or pharmacy compound solution to prepare your solution? (Tablets / Drops / Pharmacy)

2. Did you experience symptoms changing from (benzo) tablets to solution? (Yes/No)

3. What solvent did you use? (Water, alcohol, juice, milk, ...). If milk, what type?

4. How would you rate the average intensity of these symptoms on a scale of 10 (0: same as with tablets - 10: very strong like with cold turkey)

5. What did you do to address the problem? (Abandon liquid, increase liquid dose, hold, additional medications...)

6. Based on your experience, would you recommend liquid taper to buddies who wish to taper? (Yes/No)

 

 

1. Tabs

2. No

3. Alcohol

4. 0

5. Going well so far

6. Yes

 

 

[Guest [...]]

I'm just starting my journey so can't answer the questions but would like to make a point and some observations:-

1. It appears from reading all the posts that those taking short acting benzos do worse with liquid.

2. Those that go quickly appear to run into trouble (as with all tapering).

3. Milk doesn't seem as reliable as a solvent that poly glycol or alcohol.

 

A points to take note of is that:-

1. Plastic containers used to store liquid is not recommended as plastics can absorb diazepam (and maybe other benzos)http://www.elephantcare.org/Drugs/diazepam.htm

2. All diazepam products should be stored at room temperature (15°-30°C) and shielded from light. Same source as above.

 

Hope this helps and I'm liquid microtapering from day 1.

 

[[Ji...]]

Hi Staz

 

I'm liquid microtapering from day 1.

Congratulations! With this step you are halfway out! Wish you a smooth taper journey. Be soon fully recovered!

 

By the way what solvent do you use? What benzo concentration has your solution?

 

Thanks for your above remarks.

[Guest [...]]

Hi Staz

 

I'm liquid microtapering from day 1.

Congratulations! With this step you are halfway out! Wish you a smooth taper journey. Be soon fully recovered!

 

By the way what solvent do you use? What benzo concentration has your solution?

 

Thanks for your above remarks.

Hi Jim and thanks,

I'm using 80 proof vodka 2ml to a 2mg V tablet. When dissolved I'm topping this up to 50ml and dropping 1ml a day which gives me a 0.02mg drop a day. That's the plan. ATM I'm moving from dosing 3 times a day to twice a day over the next week so should be starting my taper the end of the month although I've made a small drop already. I was dosing 3 time a day but with liquid that gets to be akward and many people on longer lasting benzos dose once a day. I'm being probably overcautious in waiting a week or so to transition.

My main symptom is depression some of it situational and a lot of it down to my reaction to V. It's been bad since day 1 tbh and a c/t and reinstatement onto a lower dose. I'm hoping a slow liquid/solid taper will not make this any worse.

I've wasted 2 years in the health system with shrinks trying to prescribe a/d's and coming on and off them has just made it worse. It's the V at the route of it imho so it's got to go and hopefully I'll get back to my voluntary job on a heritage railway here in the UK.

One mistake I have made is I hadn't quit alcohol so that stopped this week. The other is spending money on supplements. Only reducing the benzo and time will help so that's the direction I'm heading in.

Cheers

Staz

 

[[Ji...]]

Hi Staz

 

I'm using 80 proof vodka 2ml to a 2mg V tablet

In pharma formulas it is not unusual to find 1 mg of benzo dissolved in 1 ml of PURE ethanol. Knowing that the commercial 80 proof Vodka contains 40% of alcohol (the other 60% being water) it is recommended to use 2 ml of Vodka to dissolve 1 mg of benzo.

 

...2mg V tablet. When dissolved I'm topping this up to 50ml and dropping 1ml a day which gives me a 0.02mg drop a day

With 2 mg Valium in 50 ml of solution, with your formula each ml will contain 0.04 mg (2/50) of benzo, exactly the double of your planned 0.02 mg per ml.

 

Now I have another question. When your coughing child needs to take a Rx syrup, would you drop anything of the Rx solution or you just take the prescribed tsp and leaving the rest in the bottle for next use? Taking doses in liquid taper is no different and when you know what dose you will take each time, you just draw up the wanted dose from the bottle and drink. If you want to drop 1% or more then use this online planner http://benzo.alwaysdata.net/ to know what you will take for each dose. Then based on it, use a syringe to draw up the needed quantity. There is nothing to drop nor to dispose.

 

I'm moving from dosing 3 times a day to twice a day over the next week

It will work nicely. Especially with Valium with its long elimination half-life.

 

Have a good start!

 

 

[Guest [...]]

Hi Staz

 

I'm using 80 proof vodka 2ml to a 2mg V tablet

In pharma formulas it is not unusual to find 1 mg of benzo dissolved in 1 ml of PURE ethanol. Knowing that the commercial 80 proof Vodka contains 40% of alcohol (the other 60% being water) it is recommended to use 2 ml of Vodka to dissolve 1 mg of benzo.

 

...2mg V tablet. When dissolved I'm topping this up to 50ml and dropping 1ml a day which gives me a 0.02mg drop a day

With 2 mg Valium in 50 ml of solution, with your formula each ml will contain 0.04 mg (2/50) of benzo, exactly the double of your planned 0.02 mg per ml.

 

Now I have another question. When your coughing child needs to take a Rx syrup, would you drop anything of the Rx solution or you just take the prescribed tsp and leaving the rest in the bottle for next use? Taking doses in liquid taper is no different and when you know what dose you will take each time, you just draw up the wanted dose from the bottle and drink. If you want to drop 1% or more then use this online planner http://benzo.alwaysdata.net/ to know what you will take for each dose. Then based on it, use a syringe to draw up the needed quantity. There is nothing to drop nor to dispose.

 

I'm moving from dosing 3 times a day to twice a day over the next week

It will work nicely. Especially with Valium with its long elimination half-life.

 

Have a good start!

Sorry Jim. I meant 1mg in 50mg of 2ml vodka and topping up to 50ml with water. Just rechecked my spreadsheet.

Thanks for the link to your planner I'll take a good look at it.

I tend not to keep the V solution for long so the pills cost 2p each so I bin the residue at the minute. But make up a batch that lasts a few days drawing off the required dose. I don't like to keep the mix for longer than 3 days as I'd be concerned about the degrading of the V and potential contamination from the water or bottling process.

I will be starting the move to twice a day dosing from today and completing it over the next week so thanks for the endorsement of that idea. Trying to deal with liquid when out and about is an utter pain.

Thanks for your helpful advice.

Staz

 

[Guest [mi...]]

Hi Jim!

First, thanks a lot for the help you give to all of us here.

I started the taper in April this year. The last  three months was mostly liquid (using ora plus). It's been a roller coaster. I felt somewhat better during the first half when I was tapering faster on pills only. Since I started liquid it's been kind of a challenge. But the reality is that I don't know really if I ever was stabilized since I started with al this poison drugs. I'm running now in the last phases of the taper. 

The big dilema related to what you are asking is that there are too many variables that can affect how you feel that at the end of the day, if I feel bad, I'm really not sure who's the culprit. I 100% agree with you that depending how and what you use to digest this drugs is related as how you feel afterwards. I just read for instance that if you eat a piece of meat it takes 12+ hours to digest it, so taking the drug before or after the meal has a lot to do how you may feel afterwards. By the same token anxiety and psychological conditions play a big roll too. 

Looking at what you experienced yourself I would like to ask you the following. (I'll understand if some of the questions you want to keep personal)

When you say you had 0 symptoms during the taper, did you feel then (during taper) as you feel now?Did you improve since you jump?

Did you try to do it faster and failed?

Were your symptoms more physical than mental?

I read in one of your posts that you reinstated at the end, if I may, did symptoms push you to do that?

Is there such a thing that if you finish the taper successfully, you feel the same as before you started with the drugs? different ? better?

 

Please, if you are busy helping others, don't worry about my questions.

 

Thanks a lot for your time and efforts! 

 

Miguel

 

 

 

 

[[Ji...]]

Hi micedana

 

When you say you had 0 symptoms during the taper, did you feel then (during taper) as you feel now?

I did not have destabilizing symptoms. The symptoms I've got before and during taper related to a skin problem on the shoulder, memory loss, weight loss and freezing cold in the middle of the night. Nothing unbearable. Besides that, I think the rest is more or less the same as how I feel nowadays.

 

Did you try to do it faster and failed?

Of course I did! With the most elementary error one can imagine . My daily dose was actually made of 5 drops of Clonazepam with 0.1 mg/drop. I reduced one drop every month happy to not have to split my tablets to 4 . After about 5 months with no symptoms I took the the last drop and thought I was healed. 10 days later symptoms kicked in so violently during the night and terrorized me. I though a dog has just bitten my leg. Immediate reinstatement was made. From there I further diluted each drops with water and properly tapered until the end with no issue. It is a typical case when one learns by errors. Lesson was not free!

 

Were your symptoms more physical than mental?

Apart from the memory deficiency and the incapability to resolve even the smallest problem, my symptoms at that time were more physical. I had no particular anxiety, insomnia, fear, anger or similar.

 

I read in one of your posts that you reinstated at the end, if I may, did symptoms push you to do that?

Yes.

 

Is there such a thing that if you finish the taper successfully, you feel the same as before you started with the drugs? different ? better?

During a period of 7 months after the last dose, I was in kind of honeymoon. I felt good like before benzo and happy. Then doctor asked me to take Melatonin in a large quantity for my sleep problem. After 10 days I had the very first wage ever since I started to use benzo 4 years earlier. Pressure in the head, complete lack of strength, tinnitus, blurry vision (typing errors x 10), dizziness, unstable on my legs like the ground was moving...Doctor feared brain cancer. MRI cleared it off. Few months later all of a sudden both eyes got floaters. Ophthalmologist found out that for both eyes, the vitreous body has shrunk and has detached from the retina. He is certain that is was due to the long use of benzo. I lost in the process about 15-20% of my vision capability and new spectacles have been necessary. Nowadays I feel again in excellent shape and restored all the lost weight. 5 miles walk every 2 days. Eyes still with floaters but they say the brain will learn to live with it.

 

Hope to see you soon out of benzo.

 

Edit: Corrected number of days

[[So...]]

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[[Ma...]]

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[[up...]]

Thanks for the bumps.

 

When I’m into my DLMT, I’ll post.

 

Annie

[[Ho...]]

I just started about 8 days ago, dropping 0.01 mg per day, but here's my experience so far...

 

1. Did you use tablets or drops or pharmacy compound solution to prepare your solution? (Tablets / Drops / Pharmacy)  Tablets

 

2. Did you experience symptoms changing from (benzo) tablets to solution? (Yes/No) No

 

3. What solvent did you use? (Water, alcohol, juice, milk, ...). If milk, what type? Alcohol to dissolve, water to bring to volume

 

4. How would you rate the average intensity of these symptoms on a scale of 10 (0: same as with tablets - 10: very strong like with cold turkey) 0

 

5. What did you do to address the problem? (Abandon liquid, increase liquid dose, hold, additional medications...) No issue so far

 

6. Based on your experience, would you recommend liquid taper to buddies who wish to taper? (Yes/No) So far, yes

 

I've come along quite far in my taper since I first replied here. So I'll reply again. I'm tapering off xanax. Someone responded earlier that people coming off short-acting benzos seem to have a harder time with liquid tapers. I did not find that true at all in my experience.

 

1. Did you use tablets or drops or pharmacy compound solution to prepare your solution? (Tablets / Drops / Pharmacy)  Tablets

 

2. Did you experience symptoms changing from (benzo) tablets to solution? (Yes/No) No

 

3. What solvent did you use? (Water, alcohol, juice, milk, ...). If milk, what type? Alcohol to dissolve, water to bring to volume

 

4. How would you rate the average intensity of these symptoms on a scale of 10 (0: same as with tablets - 10: very strong like with cold turkey) 0

 

5. What did you do to address the problem? (Abandon liquid, increase liquid dose, hold, additional medications...) No issue switching to liquid

 

6. Based on your experience, would you recommend liquid taper to buddies who wish to taper? (Yes/No) A resounding YES!

[[So...]]

Great to hear this Hope - I am very hopeful the DLMT will help me have a smoother taper

[Guest [NM...]]

following.

[[So...]]

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[Guest [NM...]]

It's been a week since I started my DLMT. If anything changes I'll update this.

 

1. Did you use tablets or drops or pharmacy compound solution to prepare your solution? (Tablets / Drops / Pharmacy) Tablets

 

2. Did you experience symptoms changing from (benzo) tablets to solution? (Yes/No) No

 

3. What solvent did you use? (Water, alcohol, juice, milk, ...). If milk, what type? Alcohol to dissolve, water to bring to volume.

 

4. How would you rate the average intensity of these symptoms on a scale of 10 (0: same as with tablets - 10: very strong like with cold turkey) 0-in fact, my symptoms improved dramatically within 2-3 days.

 

5. What did you do to address the problem? (Abandon liquid, increase liquid dose, hold, additional medications...) No issue switching to liquid.

 

6. Based on your experience, would you recommend liquid taper to buddies who wish to taper? (Yes/No) A resounding YES! I so wish I'd started this sooner.

 

[[ba...]]

1. Did you use tablets or drops or pharmacy compound solution to prepare your solution? (Tablets / Drops / Pharmacy)  Tablets

 

2. Did you experience symptoms changing from (benzo) tablets to solution? (Yes/No) Yes

 

3. What solvent did you use? (Water, alcohol, juice, milk, ...). If milk, what type? Alcohol and water

 

4. How would you rate the average intensity of these symptoms on a scale of 10 (0: same as with tablets - 10: very strong like with cold turkey) 8

 

5. What did you do to address the problem? (Abandon liquid, increase liquid dose, hold, additional medications...) hold

 

6. Based on your experience, would you recommend liquid taper to buddies who wish to taper? (Yes/No) Yes.

[[Pe...]]

1. Did you use tablets or drops or pharmacy compound solution to prepare your solution? (Tablets / Drops / Pharmacy)  Tablets

 

2. Did you experience symptoms changing from (benzo) tablets to solution? (Yes/No) Yes, a mild uptick - likely my anxiety over yet another change to regimen

 

3. What solvent did you use? (Water, alcohol, juice, milk, ...).  Vodka

 

4. How would you rate the average intensity of these symptoms on a scale of 10 (0: same as with tablets - 10: very strong like with cold turkey) 1

 

5. What did you do to address the problem? (Abandon liquid, increase liquid dose, hold, additional medications...) short hold

 

6. Based on your experience, would you recommend liquid taper to buddies who wish to taper? (Yes/No) Yes, absolutely!

 

[[Mi...]]

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