Anyone advice/ experience with getting surgery after coming off benzo's?

[[Du...]]

Hi there, 

1 year of lorazepam use. Followed doctors advice and tapered in 8 weeks (through diazepam). Last dose 3th of August. Definitely having a lot of symptoms. 

I have to get a inguinal hernia surgery and want to be informed properly before making decisions. 

Its not urgent, but I'm on the waiting list for surgery. 

The Ashton manual describes it not being an issue, but I'm not sure.

Anyone with experience/knowledge in this? 

I can wait, but would you wait till all symptoms are gone (which can take a long time)? 

Thanks

[[co...]]

I've had endoscopies, a colonoscopy, injections to my neck and back, dental procedures--all without problems.  I had procedures while tapering and after coming off.  I have had propofol used, as well as a mix of propofol, versed (a benzo) and some opioid which name I cannot remember.

[[pi...]]

Because of a very bad shoulder due to a failed first rotator cuff surgery, I have had surgery many times during withdrawal, recovery and when healed. Benzos are listed as an allergy in my chart so I never have them. I do fine without, it’s ‘old hat’ for me so I don’t have excessive pre surgery anxiety. That being said, Ashton states a one off use of benzo for surgery is fine. Many members have said they did fine with the use of a benzo for surgery. Try not toworry, it should be fine.

[[Ke...]]

Hello. Me too. I need surgery on my veins. I'm worried

[[Co...]]

Hello @[Ke...]. Welcome to BenzoBuddies.

If you start your own thread to describe your concerns about the surgery, I am sure members will provide you with some feedback to help alleviate your worries.

[[or...]]

@[Ke...] and @[Du...] I had back surgery while I was tapering -- fusion of L4and L5.  I sure wasn't s/x free at the time, but the surgery didn't make things worse. Also, like others here, I've had colonoscopies, endoscopies and cataract surgeries on and off my taper with ho ill effects. My anesthesiologists used propofol at times and versed at other times. No problems with the versed. Good luck and don't worry too much. 

Edited October 18, 2023 by [or...]

[[In...]]

On 12/10/2023 at 11:28, [[D...] said:

Hi there, 

1 year of lorazepam use. Followed doctors advice and tapered in 8 weeks (through diazepam). Last dose 3th of August. Definitely having a lot of symptoms. 

I have to get a inguinal hernia surgery and want to be informed properly before making decisions. 

Its not urgent, but I'm on the waiting list for surgery. 

The Ashton manual describes it not being an issue, but I'm not sure.

Anyone with experience/knowledge in this? 

I can wait, but would you wait till all symptoms are gone (which can take a long time)? 

Thanks

Nobody will be able to tell you if the anesthesia/pre-op drug will cause you any problems. Just like some people--many people, actually--can take and stop benzos long-term without any problems, there are people in our situation who can get a one-time dose of versed, propofol, or some other GABA A receptor agonist/PAM without any issues.

You have to do what you think is right for you. I have seen many people make the mistake of using other people's experiences as a guide to what they should do...

[[re...]]

5 hours ago, [[I...] said:

Nobody will be able to tell you if the anesthesia/pre-op drug will cause you any problems. Just like some people--many people, actually--can take and stop benzos long-term without any problems, there are people in our situation who can get a one-time dose of versed, propofol, or some other GABA A receptor agonist/PAM without any issues.

You have to do what you think is right for you. I have seen many people make the mistake of using other people's experiences as a guide to what they should do...

I take it that the whole purpose of this forum is using other people's experiences as a guide to what we should do. I can't see any other reason to be here, and there's nothing wrong with doing that, provided that you use other people's experiences only as a guide, and not a prescription. Of course you have to do what you think is right for you. But that doesn't mean you can't ask for information and advice to help you decide what is right for you - which, again, is the whole purpose of this forum.

I'll tell you my experience with surgery, @[Du...]. I had a long hard recovery that took years, and during that time I had several procedures that required anesthesia or sedation, using drugs such as Versed (midazolam) and Diprivan (propofol). It never caused me any problems, never made me relapse, never put me in a wave. And from what I've seen on this forum over many years, my experience is typical, more the rule than the exception. Of course, that may not be your experience, but I assume you're asking about other people's experience because you know that nothing in this world is certain, that you always have to play the odds - and you're just trying to determine what those odds are, before you decide what to do. So get all the information you can. That's what I'd do too. But I think the odds are you'll be fine.

 

 

Edited October 18, 2023 by [re...]

[[Ke...]]

The fact is that I need an operation without general anesthesia. But only injections with an anesthetic in the leg. I'll be conscious. I'm afraid of this and how my body will react.

[[Ke...]]

11 hours ago, [[o...] said:

@[Ке...] и@[Да...]Во время снижения дозы мне сделали операцию на спине – слияние L4 и L5. Конечно, в то время я не был свободен от секса, но операция не ухудшила ситуацию. Кроме того, как и другие здесь, мне делали колоноскопию, эндоскопию и операции по удалению катаракты с тяжелыми последствиями. Мои анестезиологи иногда использовали пропофол, а иногда разбирались. Никаких проблем с разбирающимися. Удачи и не волнуйтесь слишком сильно. 

The fact is that I need an operation without general anesthesia. But only injections with an anesthetic in the leg. I'll be conscious. I'm afraid of this and how my body will react.

[[Ke...]]

14 hours ago, [[C...] said:

Привет@[Ке...]. Добро пожаловать в BenzoBuddies.

Если вы создадите собственную тему, чтобы описать свои опасения по поводу операции, я уверен, что участники предоставят вам отзывы, которые помогут облегчить ваши опасения.

And how to create a theme here? I'm new and I don't have access to this

[[Co...]]

7 hours ago, [[K...] said:

And how to create a theme here? I'm new and I don't have access to this

'Thread' (topic) - yes? Just click the 'Start new topic' button.

[[In...]]

16 hours ago, [[r...] said:

I take it that the whole purpose of this forum is using other people's experiences as a guide to what we should do. I can't see any other reason to be here, and there's nothing wrong with doing that, provided that you use other people's experiences only as a guide, and not a prescription. Of course you have to do what you think is right for you. But that doesn't mean you can't ask for information and advice to help you decide what is right for you - which, again, is the whole purpose of this forum.

 

I thought I was giving advice to help them decide!  But I will change my approach and be more blunt. 

 

Asking about people's experiences in this scenario is not at all the same as asking about people's experiences with different methods of tapering or taking a mildly GABAergic supplement. It just isn't. 

 

When you take a drug that is cross-tolerant with benzos after finishing your taper, the odds of reactivating the benzo withdrawal syndrome are not high, but if the syndrome is reactivated, the current odds of finding a medical professional (or anyone) who can safely and effectively reverse this reactivation are 0. Of course, if there is such a person, I think we would all love to know!

 

[[re...]]

@[In...]

Well as long as we're being blunt, let me amplify what I said in response to your previous statement:

 

On 18/10/2023 at 12:30, [[I...] said:

I have seen many people make the mistake of using other people's experiences as a guide to what they should do...

 

...to which I objected that it is certainly not a mistake to use other people's experience as a guide to what we should do - which is actually the entire purpose of this forum. It really makes no difference whether we're asking about sedation and anesthesia, or about other drugs, or supplements, or exercise, or diet, or napping: any of those things can cause problems, and everyone will react differently to them. So my advice applies to all those cases: it is perfectly reasonable to use other people's experience as a guide, though not as a prescription.

Now our @[Du...] will need surgery, which will require anesthesia, and she's worried that might cause a relapse or a wave, but she's not sure how likely that is, so she decided to ask about other people's experience here on this forum. And then along comes @[In...] to tell her bluntly that it would be a mistake to use other people's experience as a guide. I am sorry if my bluntness offends you, but that particular statement is one of the most absurd I've yet seen on this forum, because it actually means that this forum serves no purpose at all - unless you believe we're here just to send each other hugs and hearts and puppydog pics. Is that really why you're here?

Ah, but no, not at all. I see that you have actually ignored your own advice, that you yourself have asked about other people's experiences to help you decide what you should do. For example, one of your earliest posts asked about other people's experiences with melatonin:

I might very well find other examples of this, if I had the time to go through all your posts. But I'll leave that to others, if they're interested.

Perhaps in the future, when you post such advice as you did, you should aim for precision, rather than bluntness.

 

[[Du...]]

Guys, don't fight over this please. Everything is helpfull and I think we all agree on not following anyone's advice blindly. I'm thankful for all the advice given. 

(Also, I'm a "He" not a "She" 😁) 

[[In...]]

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

@[In...]

Well as long as we're being blunt, let me amplify what I said in response to your previous statement:

...to which I objected that it is certainly not a mistake to use other people's experience as a guide to what we should do - which is actually the entire purpose of this forum. It really makes no difference whether we're asking about sedation and anesthesia, or about other drugs, or supplements, or exercise, or diet, or napping: any of those things can cause problems, and everyone will react differently to them. So my advice applies to all those cases: it is perfectly reasonable to use other people's experience as a guide, though not as a prescription.

Now our @[Du...] will need surgery, which will require anesthesia, and she's worried that might cause a relapse or a wave, but she's not sure how likely that is, so she decided to ask about other people's experience here on this forum. And then along comes @[In...] to tell her bluntly that it would be a mistake to use other people's experience as a guide. I am sorry if my bluntness offends you, but that particular statement is one of the most absurd I've yet seen on this forum, because it actually means that this forum serves no purpose at all - unless you believe we're here just to send each other hugs and hearts and puppydog pics. Is that really why you're here?

Ah, but no, not at all. I see that you have actually ignored your own advice, that you yourself have asked about other people's experiences to help you decide what you should do. For example, one of your earliest posts asked about other people's experiences with melatonin:

I might very well find other examples of this, if I had the time to go through all your posts. But I'll leave that to others, if they're interested.

Perhaps in the future, when you post such advice as you did, you should aim for precision, rather than bluntness.

Yes, it would be a mistake to use other people's experience as a guide when it comes to taking benzos long-term or taking a benzo or cross-tolerant substance after one has needed to taper (not everyone needs to taper, but you probably know this--at least I hope you do).

And I was following my own advice: I asked about taking a mildly GABAergic supplement, which I said was reasonable in my response to you. I wasn't asking if I should take a benzo or drink alcohol again. And I also said that asking about people's experiences with different tapering methods is not the same as asking people's experiences with taking a benzo again. That's a leap of logic on your part to say that I am saying the forum is not valuable: I am saying asking about people's experiences with taking benzos is not valuable. Your snarky response about odds is one of the most reckless things I've read in 12 years of benzo groups. So YOU didn't go back into withdrawal/reactivate BWS. So what? If someone goes into withdrawal/reactivates BWS because someone has been given false hope after reading your response, who is going to safely and effectively heal them? You? Are you holding out on everyone here?

Edited October 20, 2023 by [In...]

[[...]]

On 19/10/2023 at 04:50, [[K...] said:

The fact is that I need an operation without general anesthesia. But only injections with an anesthetic in the leg. I'll be conscious. I'm afraid of this and how my body will react.

@[Ke...]Perhaps it' s better to postpone the operation and have it done a bit later when you are not in acute. Hope your legs will let you do it. Good luck)