Intro. I was just planning on reading for hope but here’s part of my story.

[[Sm...]]

Hey everyone,

After a lot of research I stumbled across something regarding this group. I used to do drugs recreationally without dependence, then I smoked marijuana almost daily for 10 + years, then I got completely sober for a year or so from that. Clean from the harder stuff for a long time now - 10 years maybe. Anyways, idk how long it’s been now but I think it’s getting close to 6-12 months I’ve been off and on benzos.

I was prescribed ADD meds (zenzedi) which gave me anxiety and a worse case of insomnia. The insomnia randomly appeared before any prescriptions. Then came the benzos to curb the anxiety associated with ADD meds, and to help me sleep. All was good for a bit. Then a made a series of mistakes in my attempt to get sober. First I self weaned off the ADD meds without issues, then over about 1 week I got off benzos too. (2mg lorazepam and .5mg clonzepam) I was fine for about a week aside from anxiety here and there. I started having weird episodes of what the doctor called “subclinical seizures” I had no idea what it was from until I basically had a panic attack at work and went to the hospital...doctor knew right away and said get back on the benzos and taper off. That was a couple months ago. I got to where I was so tired daily that i started taking my ADD meds again just to offset the daytime sleepiness, lack of concentration, etc....my life is falling apart and coming together in different ways. I feel numb to emotions, music, and other things I was passionate about. I almost feel hopeless but I still believe God can heal and do miracles so I won’t give up on wanting to quit. I have an appt in a week to talk to my doctor about weaning off both ADD and benzos. 2mg lorazepam at night to sleep, and .5 throughout the day to keep from the “subclinical seizures” or anxiety attacks or whatever they are. I miss the old me. Tired of being scatter brained and numb to emotions. I miss the sober me. That’s my end goal. The ADD meds I’ll stop as soon as the benzos are tapered down enough to where I feel like I can function at work without being so tired and slow. I’d prefer to quit the benzos and then the ADD meds won’t be a problem as I’ve come off those a few times without issues this year only to relapse to offset the benzos. I’ve always been a happy person, chill, clear headed, etc...now I’m just frustrated, a slave to these pills, scared to miss a dose, numb, too serious, etc...I’m not me. Just looking to get some hope that I can try to come off these benzos again, prepared this time instead of cold turkey basically. Thanks in advance and sorry for going on and on and prob making no sense.

[Guest [Le...]]

Hello, SmileMore — welcome to BenzoBuddies!

 

Sorry you got caught up, just as I did, with ADD medication and benzos. I was taking both Adderall and Ativan, and also lost interest in music, and just about everything else in my life.

 

Luckily, once you get off everything, all of the good stuff comes back. You’ve come to the right place to plan a comfortable taper. 

 

I'm glad that you decided to join the forum. Our members have gone through benzodiazepine use and withdrawal themselves, so you'll find plenty of information and support here.

 

Here are a few links that may be a good starting place for you:

 

  General Taper Plans

  Titration Taper Plans

  Withdrawal Support

 

Please take a moment to Create a Signature — you can enter your pertinent drug and taper history in the box at the bottom. This will allow members to see where you are in the process, so that they can better support you.

 

Looking forward to seeing you on the forum!

Leslie 

 

 

The Ashton Manual provides information that can be useful during any stage of withdrawal and recovery, and includes a list of common symptoms with helpful explanations.

 

For those who are currently tapering, a starting guideline is that the dosage not be reduced faster than by 5-10% every 10-14 days, although some taper even more slowly than that. One exception: very short-term users of a few weeks or less may be able to taper somewhat faster.

[[La...]]

Welcome to the Group!