Sleep

[[Ti...]]

I tapered off benzos 5 times. This last time I swore would be the last. But I was prescribed them for sleep.... well, I ended up in the hospital for not sleeping for weeks and they tried me on everything, combos of things and nothing got me to sleep. I waited it out another two weeks. I was a completely different person who needed to be cared for, who could not walk, move, eat, see. I could not function and was not getting microsleeps. I went to the sleep lab where they concluded I was getting 0 microsleep and not entering stage 1 of sleep. It got so dangerous, they finally put me on a different benzo from what I had tapered from. A very high dose... along with an antipsychotic. Finally, I slept for 3 nights in a row. I am still on these medications with no plans to come off unless they stop working completely. They told me though I want to be off the benzos, there are times people do need them and they aren't afraid to give me high doses since I'm my own individual case which is rare. So all of you who said sleep comes back, it didn't for me and it got really dangerous. On the new meds I got 7 hours sleep for a few nights, but since then, tolerance has happened a bit and I am only getting a few hours but I am blessed to get those hours and blessed to be on benzos again. I am sorry if this goes against what everyone here says but it has been worse than a nightmare and in my case, being on the benzo outweighs not being on it and not able to function outside of a hospital.

[[Th...]]

I'm sorry you have struggled so mightily with sleep. However, I believe your case is unique?  Very few people on this forum are ever in your situation when it comes to sleep?  In your case, Benzos can and did help in the short-term, but at some point they will probably stop working?  For the "average" person where Benzos are prescribed for sleep, sleep does return 99% or more of the time after they get off.  I have been averaging 7+ hours per night for years now without taking anything.  In the thick of my WD, I was averaging 5 - 10 hours per week for months.

I'm wondering what you did for sleep the 5 other times that you been on then tapered off of Benzos?  How was your sleep after you tapered off? And if it was poor what did you do? It's possible you "kindled" with so many times of starting and stopping Benzos in the past?  Kindling is a theory that states that each subsequent use of Benzos makes it increasingly difficult to heal with increased symptoms, symptom intensity and an increased length of time that it takes to heal?  It's possible after damaging or destroying your GABA receptors 5 times in previous years that they are taking much, much longer to heal and/or regrow?

Peace!

Edited December 6, 2023 by [Th...]

[[Ti...]]

The other times I tapered off, I did not sleep for weeks. I was reinstated by a doctor. I was non-functional. I never had any other wd symptoms. Even if I wanted to wait for my receptors to heal... there's no way I can go that long. I was confined to a hospital and even they didn't want to keep me any longer hence the high benzo dose. They said I can increase it as needed over time to function. I was off one time in the past for 2 months and slept 3 hours in all of the 2 months. Was hospitalized then also. I was not able to sustain life.

[[Ri...]]

I'm currently in a Valium taper from Xanax. Insomnia is pure torture. I went 6 days ZERO sleep. Finally went to hospital. Got some sort of shot and slept 6 hrs. Didn't sleep for 5 days...On..and On for 2+ months now. The damage this is doing can't be quantified. I was given 4mg XR and 3-.05 Xanax a day for 10-12 yrs. It just kept going up. Despite my constant questioning as to why more...more ? The one day its sorry you've been on this too long. We no longer will write a script". Put me on the street. I'm 63 and have been a athlete till 2 months ago. I've lost 35 lbs...that I couldn't afford to lose. I lay in bed all day because I don't sleep and have no strength. I have so many responsibilities' that are not being met. I joined this site to get information to move towards health. I see no light ...ever returning. These SOB's ruined me. I never abused it. But shame on me for trusting white coats.

GOOD LUCK BUDDIE

Edited December 6, 2023 by [Ri...]
spelling

[[Th...]]

@[Ti...] So technically you never truly tapered off and recovered/healed?  You just cycled through tapering off, being off for weeks or a month or two, and then going back on.  That fits the theory of "kindling" to a tee.  Sorry it's so difficult for you. 

[[Ti...]]

Because I don't sleep at all and could not function at all, was hospitalized and put on every other medicine there is. Not one thing helped. They could not release me from the hospital the way I was so I was put on benzos. However, before I was ever on benzos, I lost all sleep. That's why I was on them to begin with. It had nothing to do with kindling then and they believe that's what is happening. I literallly lost all sleep and was hospitalized for months prior to being put on a benzo to begin with. 

[[el...]]

I can sleep only with the white noise on. I was an Audio Engineer. I used to have extraordinary hearing with a range up to 22Khz and extreme sesitivity, I could hear better than dogs. I could hear sounds nobody else could and it amazed my frends many times. This was until I was in my mid thirties when my tinnnitus started. My older sibling warned me  that I might get it since she already had it. It started intermittantly in both ears. It drove me crazy and with time became more cnas more constant.. Now in My fifties It is constant. I have good hearing but not the extraordinary hearing I had. Going to contact hearing clinic staten island and see if they might offer some solution for my case.

Edited December 27, 2023 by [el...]

[[La...]]

On 07/12/2023 at 15:42, [[T...] said:

Because I don't sleep at all and could not function at all, was hospitalized and put on every other medicine there is. Not one thing helped. They could not release me from the hospital the way I was so I was put on benzos. However, before I was ever on benzos, I lost all sleep. That's why I was on them to begin with. It had nothing to do with kindling then and they believe that's what is happening. I literallly lost all sleep and was hospitalized for months prior to being put on a benzo to begin with. 

How's it going nowadays?

[[Ti...]]

I am reinstated on 6mg ati and 2mg klon and not sleeping even on that. No one knows what to do with me. I have been up for 24 days and very sick

[[Th...]]

In the fall of 2016 I did the flumazenil treatment about 7 weeks after I jumped CT.  Dr. Coleman from the Coleman institute wanted me to take Xanax for 5 days prior to starting the treatment and so I could survive the plane rides from where I live to Richmond, VA.  A 2 or 3mg dose of Xanax did nothing for me except "take the edge off."  Did not help with sleep at all.  So I am NOT surprised that 6mg of Ativan and 2mg of Klonopin did not help!

Edited February 6 by [Th...]

[[Ma...]]

Have you tried Remeron? Or Doxepin-an old, but very effective a/d, especially for sleep? Maybe your system is too ‘familiar’ with benzos?

[[Ti...]]

Yes I tried all the meds. None work for me. I also don't have a "crash" system that most ppl have when awake for too long. Been seen by sleep specialists and I'm med resistant and might only be able to survive off microsleeps. My life will be of poor quality. 

[[or...]]

@[Ti...] when I was in taper hell and couldn't sleep (like you, I tried many prescription meds) I finally gave Unisom a try. It's just a sedating antihistamine. The sleep tabs (as opposed to the gel caps) suited me best. You can order it from amazon. You can construct you own dosage . . . whatever helps you. I started with half a 25 mg  tab, and ended up with a whole tab. On bad nights, I took 2 tabs. I developed a tolerance to it of course, and spelled it off with melatonin and CBD, and later indica  mj (vaped, and then made gummy bears). That trio worked very well to get me through my taper. Now I don't need to take anything, usually. When I do, it's a low dose of one of the trio I mentioned. Hope this helps you.

Edited February 8 by [or...]

[[Ma...]]

Have you tried a low dose of Doxepin? It’s an old tricyclic but very effective at 1-3 mg with virtually no side effects…