Do people really heal?

[[Go...]]

Do people really heal, or do they just go back to the crippling level of anxiety they had when they started the benzo?

[[In...]]

People heal, but maybe not in such a way that they can take GABAergics like they could before BIND. 

Speaking only for myself, at the end of my first taper, I slept better than I ever did before taking benzos. And I no longer had any of the anxiety or depression that I had prior to taking benzos (although part of that may be due to a change in my diet during my first taper, where I started a low glycemic diet due to diabetes). 

Edited August 13, 2023 by [In...]
missing word

[[le...]]

God I really hope everyone heals. I only ever took zop for insomnia,being made to CT, then sticking me on anti depressants caused the bad mental stuff, Just have hope all the therapists are right that say everyone heals,.

[[Go...]]

6 minutes ago, [[I...] said:

People heal, but maybe not in such a way that they can take GABAergics like they could before BIND. 

Speaking only for myself, at the end of my first taper, I slept better than I ever did before taking benzos. And I no longer had any of the anxiety or depression that I had prior to taking benzos (although part of that may be due to a change in my diet during my first taper, where I started a low glycemic diet due to diabetes). 

This is what I meant with the question.  In other words, if you make some lifestyle changes, such as not drinking, do you have less anxiety and fear than you did prior to benzos?  Do you notice the difference, or do you have to struggle to get your mind off anxiety and panic?

[[Go...]]

4 minutes ago, [[l...] said:

God I really hope everyone heals. I only ever took zop for insomnia,being made to CT, then sticking me on anti depressants caused the bad mental stuff, Just have hope all the therapists are right that say everyone heals,.

So you didn't have anxiety before, it was primarily for sleep problems?

[[PG...]]

3 hours ago, [[G...] said:

This is what I meant with the question.  In other words, if you make some lifestyle changes, such as not drinking, do you have less anxiety and fear than you did prior to benzos?  Do you notice the difference, or do you have to struggle to get your mind off anxiety and panic?

I think you're asking a really good question.

While it's probably different for everyone, most people will tell you that they had some things they needed to heal before even starting benzos. Withdrawal magnifies the negatives that are already there (and add in plenty of new ones) but I do think it helps to eliminate anything that the withdrawal can take advantage of.

Healing that other stuff usually takes time, and I've found that I have to be more vigilant with avoiding things that I know the withdrawal can take advantage of. The good news is that eliminating things does have a healing effect above and beyond just eliminating the withdrawal, you get to feel better in general. I never used to pay attention to my diet and rarely exercised but doing both has helped with withdrawal and also just feeling better in general. Cutting out alcohol has been good for me also. Changing behaviors is hard (really hard) work, but it's kind of like cutting off the food supply for anxiety/panic: your anxiety will probably always be there but you can weaken it substantially which will make it a lot easier to fight, and even someday ignore.

[[le...]]

1 hour ago, [[G...] said:

So you didn't have anxiety before, it was primarily for sleep problems?

No anxiety at all just insomnia. I have had lot family issues over the years but they didn’t give any problems before I was CT. More emotional stress rather than anxiety.

[[In...]]

58 minutes ago, [[G...] said:

This is what I meant with the question.  In other words, if you make some lifestyle changes, such as not drinking, do you have less anxiety and fear than you did prior to benzos?  Do you notice the difference, or do you have to struggle to get your mind off anxiety and panic?

Even before the low glycemic diet though, my anxiety and depression were WAY better than before taking benzos--pretty much non-existent. My first taper was done properly, so I believe I not only healed, but the taper made me better than I was before taking benzos. I believe you can use a good taper to fix not only BIND, but whatever led you to benzos in the first place. It makes sense if you think of the taper as a way to train your body to have the same functionality as it did when you were at a full dose of benzo. And here I am speaking only about tapers where you do not make cuts that cause symptoms or make existing symptoms worse; I think those kinds of tapers are much, much more difficult to recover from and they don't train your body to heal in any meaningful way. 

HOWEVER, I do believe that BIND alters your body so that even if you feel like you are fully healed, and even if you feel better than you were before benzos (like me), it is EXTREMELY dangerous to take a benzo or drink alcohol again, even once, regardless of what Ashton said. You don't know how you are going to react, and neither does anyone else at this point in human history. Of course, many people here may chime in and say "I took a benzo once and I was fine!" or "That's fearmongering! You're scaring people!". To them I say "I know many people who have taken benzos long-term and stopped without any issues, sometimes several times in their life. Would you use these anecdotes to reassure people that taking benzos long-term is okay?"

[[Go...]]

@[In...] you talk about tapers.  What about C/T?

[[In...]]

42 minutes ago, [[G...] said:

@[In...] you talk about tapers.  What about C/T?

I think people heal after a CT. I just think recovering from CT takes much longer than recovering from a proper taper (i.e., tapering according to symptoms, where the recovery sometimes occurs even before the taper ends). 

[[hl...]]

I don’t think so. I tapered over 8 months, 13 months since my last dose and I feel horrible. Haven’t seen any improvement really. I don’t believe in healing 

[[Go...]]

@[hl...] is it still mental or physical for you?

 

[[hl...]]

1 minute ago, [[G...] said:

@[hl...] is it still mental or physical for you?

Both. Infact my life has never been worse than it is now. I have horrible overstimulation, akathisia, anxiety, agoraphobia too.

I can’t leave my home without panicking and becoming overstimulated.

[[Ma...]]

I think it’s relative. If you research Substance Related Brain Impairment ‘healing/recovery’ can be months, years or a life long struggle.

Not to be morose, I’m not, I’m trying to figure out what is going on with me. And I am not only looking to survive but somehow create a semblance of a life around this nightmare.

Remember though I am in the .0001 MINORITY! I’m sure non of you are 🤞❤️‍🩹