Dissociation, neuropathy issues. It’s only just begun, hasn’t it?

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Cold turkeyed high dose Xanax & Zoloft 20+ days ago. Last night my legs were burning and today they’re numb and tingling. Do I have permanent nerve damage? I also feel like someone drugged me. Out of it - I have a bad feeling I’m going to have PAWS bc of how long I was on the meds & the high dose. 
 

My hands feel uncomfortable, same with my legs. Cold/ hot alternating. Can’t do this for long.

Horror stories everywhere. What have I done? Mad a drs for keeping me on so long and at a high dose but it’s not their fault. Knew better than to quit. Had a chance to start healing from hyperacusis/tinnitus. Now tinnitus is WAY worse and I have withdraws. Two awful conditions at one. My doing. No excuse. 

 

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Hi Scsred8,

I didn't cold turkey so I don't have a lot of experience in that part of it! It's not recommended, simply because it throws you off so badly and so fast that it's hard to even think!

First, it's not your fault. Not in any way, shape or form. You relied on the professionals who are supposed to know. That's why we go to them.

Most importantly, you don't have permanent nerve damage. Your brain and CNS, with all their neurons, have the capacity to restructure and figure out how to get you back to homeostasis. It's called neuroplasticity and it happens over a long period of time. In the meantime, your job will be to figure out how to get through your time of healing.

On these boards you'll get a lot of information that can help you! Distraction, deep breathing, light exercise, healthy eating are some, along with plenty of people who will chime in with information or at the very least, commiseration! You aren't alone, that's for sure!

Concentrate on the stories that are not horror stories. There are plenty of them! Here I've encountered people who cold-turkeyed and got better in 12 months, 14 months, 18 months. There's no correlation between how you came off and how long it takes to heal, either. There is only one truth, and that is you will indeed heal.