Hello

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Hello,

 

My name is Christa and I am looking for support. I have tapered my xanax and valium recently, and I am still in full withdrawal. I have used it for five years on precription. First xanax and after that Valium. Just over a year ago I hit tolerance and needed more and more of it. After that I decided to quit and tapered down in just a couple of weeks from 40mg of valium. I am off of it for 9 weeks now and have symptoms of tingling, burning skin, numbness, headaches, anxiety, muscle pain and more. It is scary and sometimes I am thinking this could not just be withdrawal. It would be nice to share my story with other people that are going through this.

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Welcome to BenzoBuddies!  We are glad you decided to join us.  You'll find a lot of support and information on this forum, which is the only one of its kind online. It sounds like you may have done a somewhat fast taper.  The first few months off are called acute withdrawal, and it's usually when symptoms are strongest.  Your symptoms sound like normal benzo w/d symptoms.

 

For those starting a taper, we generally recommend starting out at a rate of 5 to 10% every 10-14 days, then adjusting the taper to suit your own needs.  Note: very short term users may be able to taper faster.

 

Withdrawal symptoms, which vary widely but commonly include anxiety and insomnia, often occur during a taper, but these are temporary and will get better in time.  In general, first tapers are easier, but cold turkeys or multiple withdrawals may be more severe and longer lasting.  Here are a few links to get you started:

 

The Ashton Manual, a concise reference for tapering and symptom issues.  Chapter III contains excellent descriptions of common symptoms such as muscle issues, anxiety, and hyper-awareness

 

Post Withdrawal Support

 

Once again, welcome!

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Thank you Megan, I did already read the Ashton Manual a while ago. Most of the time I do know these are classic withdrawal symptoms, but it is frustrated that doctors keep telling me it can’t be. Shouldn’t they know more about it when they describe it? I quess they do not.

 

I have no insomnia, maybe because I am still on 50mg Seroquel before bedtime. My anxiety is going through the roof at this moment, mostly because of the numbness feelings and tingling sensation. They scare me, even if I know it is just withdrawal.

 

Thank you for your reply, I really appreciate it.

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Hi Smudgeke1983 and welcome to BB. Congrats on being off for 9 weeks. Why did you decide to do a fast taper as opposed to a slow one?

You said>>> After that I decided to quit and tapered down in just a couple of weeks from 40mg of valium

 

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❤

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Hi Smudgeke1983 and welcome to BB. Congrats on being off for 9 weeks. Why did you decide to do a fast taper as opposed to a slow one?

You said>>> After that I decided to quit and tapered down in just a couple of weeks from 40mg of valium

 

Thank you. I did not know it was too fast to begin with. I asked my doctor for help with tapering, but he would not do it. I decided that I wanted it out of my body fast, because it was making me very ill. When I was still on it, it got me to the ER many times. Everybody was telling me it was just stress, but after that my boyfriend said could it be tolerance, and he was right about that. I forgot to say that in those five years I once quit cold turkey after two years on xanax, because I did not know the effects of the medication, nobody warned me about it. After 6 months I started again with valium, until I jumped 9 weeks ago.

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Hi,

The tingling sensations really bothered me the first 3-4 months after I jumped. Im almost 7 months off now and no longer have these tingling sensations. They scared me and I thought this may be my new normal. But that's not the case. They are withdrawal side effects and they will all go away in their own time. Try to take comfort in knowing it's just your brain working on getting everything back to homeostasis. Its a process, but it will happen. ALL of the symptoms you listed are classic withdrawal symptoms. Be patient and kind to yourself. You're healing and you'll be fine, just give yourself some time.

Take care,

Fp

[[Sm...]]

Hi,

The tingling sensations really bothered me the first 3-4 months after I jumped. Im almost 7 months off now and no longer have these tingling sensations. They scared me and I thought this may be my new normal. But that's not the case. They are withdrawal side effects and they will all go away in their own time. Try to take comfort in knowing it's just your brain working on getting everything back to homeostasis. Its a process, but it will happen. ALL of the symptoms you listed are classic withdrawal symptoms. Be patient and kind to yourself. You're healing and you'll be fine, just give yourself some time.

Take care,

Fp

 

Thank you for your support. I will keep that in mind and hopefully they will soon dissapear. Glad to hear that you are healed from these sensations.