Is this withdrawal? Valium 2.5-10mg for 7 years (not 100% daily)

[[en...]]

Been on valium for 7 years. 

But stated taking it more often as I became a full blown alcoholic. 20 standard drinks a day. I would use the diazepam to counter the anxiety.

I detoxed from alcohol and am taking a little bit of diazepam.

I keep a record of my doses. My last dose was 2.5mg 48 hours ago.

I seem to be on 5mg every 2 days. Sometimes 2.5

I'm diagnosed the vaiium for anxiety so the doctor has a record of my purchase history so he'd tell me if I was taking too much I'd assume?

I'm just not sure if it's withdrawal I'm going through or just the anxiety I've allways had. I can feel my heartbeat in my guts. Anxiety pretty high. I know if I pop a 2.5mg I'll feel fine. 

Are my doses even high enough to trigger withdrawals?

So lost. Anyone experienced withdrawals from such low doses?

Edited January 23 by [en...]
More detailed topic title and spelling mistake

[[Co...]]

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

It might be better to take 2.5mg per day rather than 5mg every other day, and then taper off from there.

Since you mention doses of 5mg and 2.5mg, I assume that you have 5mg diazepam tablets. If you obtain 2mg tablets, this will help you taper off more comfortably. Splitting 2mg diazepam tablets in two is usually straightforward, and many find they can even quarter them for dose decrements of 0.5mg.

[Guest [...]]

Hi @[en...]

A warm welcome to BenzoBuddies. 

I completely agree with Colin.

We can talk more about your taper strategy when you are ready. I would simply allow yourself to become comfortable on the 2.5mg per day before you begin to taper. Just take your dose at the same time every day. 

[[WU...]]

Yes! I only ever took 5mg or 2.5 mg on and off, here and there. A few days would pass and then I'd pop another. This went on for years. Then feeling worse over time and other symptoms appearing like insomnia which I never had before, muscles contracting tighter than ever, agitation and agoraphobia creeping in. I would say there is no such thing as a low dose as these pills are cumulative so the brain never gets a chance to reset back to its normal state if we keep popping them here and there.

Difficult when it comes to tapering when you haven't been taking them every day. I didn't know what to do so I went CT, which wasn't one of my best ideas!   An every day smaller dose and then taper is probably the way to go and accept it might take a while.

[[Ta...]]

Sorry, 1988, that you are going thru this. The alcohol can really make things worse for Benzo withdrawal. Both alcohol and valium act on our nervous system in the same way.  And yes, it definitely appears that you are in withdrawal. But, there's hope! Tapering a little at a time, and taking your time can slowly get you to a better place. And everyone here will help you! All the best to you!