Brutal insomnia, need to take rescue dose

[[Th...]]

No, don't try to spin it around.  I am not promoting lack of sleep or saying it's a good thing. No one is saying that zero sleep is OK or good.  Unfortunately it's part of the withdrawal process for many.  Most people going through withdrawal get some degree of insomnia.  I have yet to see anyone pass from lack of sleep.  Of course you want as much sleep as possible.  You're adding in things I never said.  The INTENT was to let people know that poor sleep would not kill them until it starts to improve and since there isn't much you can do about that poor sleep until it evens out, don't let it send you into panic mode and fear for your life.  I was in my 50s when I went through WD and had severe insomnia for about 10 months and never did I get sick from the flu or a cold when they ran rampant through my house.  In addition, I had every medical test done that my doctor and insurance would allow and I never developed HBP, diabetes, or anything else from lack of sleep.

Telling people they have to sleep or else is reckless because it could cause them to reinstate or prolong their recovery.  I know a lot of other buddies on this forum that recovered from withdrawal that would have been dead or in serious medical trouble given how poorly they slept and in some cases that poor sleep lasted for years.  But none of that happened.  

I agree that a slow taper is usually the best approach to getting off of Benzos and other psycho-active drugs, but a CT worked for me at the recommendation of my doctor and it has worked for others as well.  Each person needs to decide what is best for her/him.  And if most doctors even had a modicum of Benzo withdrawal knowledge, we would not be in this mess in the first place.  Almost all doctors in the US do not recognize or acknowledge Benzo withdrawal as even existing and if they do, almost all believe symptoms end in a few weeks.  If they would stick to prescribing guidelines of no more than 2-4 weeks maximum for Benzos, we wouldn't be in this mess either.

Please stop acting as if the "problem" is saying lack of sleep will not kill you. That's been proven time and time again.  That's not the problem.  This site came into existence from Doctors NOT doing their jobs properly and over prescribing Benzos and then dismissing any patient claims regarding Benzo withdrawal.   I know, as I experienced it first hand and that was the cumulative knowledge from 5 different MDs and 2 psychiatrists...that after the Benzos were out of my system, they could NOT cause the symptoms I was experiencing and I had other mental conditions and illnesses for which they wanted to prescribe even more Rx drugs.  NONE of that was true!  It was always Benzo withdrawal.

Edited January 15 by [Th...]