Need advice please Valium taper

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Since 7/23 I’ve tapered down from 30 mgs to 8 mgs of Valium. My question is, at each drop, I would feel lousy and eventually a bit better then drop again.  Will I (no matter how long it takes) begin to “normalize” at each subsequent decrease in dosage? I hope my question is clear. If the answer is yes, it REALLY gives me hope. If not, I’m really worried because I’m so uncomfortable. I was hoping for cessation in about 18 months.

Edited March 13 by [...]

[[Hu...]]

there is healing in tapering, otherwise tapering wouldn't work. It does take time for the receptors to heal so just do it as slowly as you can handle. 

[[ns...]]

[[kn...]]

I started down from 60mgs of Diazepam (Valium) 2.5 years ago.  I hit 10 about 1/23.  From 10 till now it's been pretty brutal.  I'm now at 4mg.  I, too, stabilized at each cut long enough to feel pretty decent until I got down to about 6 or so. Since then, the symptoms have been ongoing.  On the up side, they haven't gotten any worse, but you're probably going to have to slow down.  You've come a long way in a short time, but I've found that my taper was too steep, too fast and too much.  I up dosed from 2mg to 4mg on2/6 and am now starting to feel a bit more normal; functioning at least.  I held at 2mg for 5 months before I finally gave up and up dosed.  Waiting for 18 months to stabilize is probably too long.  If things are at an acute stage for you, and you're waiting to stabilize more than 2-3 months, you may have to do what I finally conceded to.  You also need to remember that while you don't have to be 'healed up' completely to move on, you need to be able to get out of bed, shower, eat and be mobile to some degree. Best wishes.  I'm sure you'll get more good advice on this thread.  

Edited March 13 by [kn...]

[[...]]

OMG, HUGE thanks to everyone! I’ve been looking for an answer to this specific question since I began tapering. While I understand there are no absolutes in this process, I think even if it’s months between drops, I feel like I can get there no matter how long it takes. I will definitely slow the taper down as well. THANK YOU 

[[or...]]

Sounds like you're doing well, @[...] It's a process: we cut, we don't feel that great, we recover and get feeling mostly okay, then we do it again. And eventually we're off. Just be sure to go as slowly as you need to, so you do feel mostly okay when you cut again. @[kn...] said it well: 

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

while you don't have to be 'healed up' completely to move on, you need to be able to get out of bed, shower, eat and be mobile to some degree.

Best wishes @[...].

[[Ca...]]

Hi -- I started  a daily microtaper in February 2022 from 45 mgs of valium and a half of a clonapin. The taper rate was 1.37 mgs a month but slowed to 1.0 mg a month a few months ago. I think you're doing great. I have been holding my taper for almost three weeks at 12.1 mgs and symptoms were so bad I updosed two days consecutively, four mgs each day, which did nothing. So, everyone is different and I also am very kindled. But the advice you've been given seems reasonable to me.

[[Bu...]]

Hi @[Ca...] how much do you reduce daily? Do you build in holds at all? Thank you 

[[Ca...]]

I had never done a hold until now and I had never updosed until this month. 

[[Ca...]]

I am not sure how much i taper daily but since it's one mg a month probably 1/30th of one mg daily.

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One more question if I may. I’ll be 65 soon and am from the NE but winter in FL. I have 2 Drs that I insist share everything with one another. The FL Dr said to consider staying @ 8 mgs because at my age, no point in undue suffering and I was prescribed the medicine for a reason. I have panic/anxiety and PTSD. Is there in anyone’s opinion, a reason to remain on my current dose (8 mgs) and can I take a LONG (maybe 6 months) break before deciding to beginning taper again if I wish? In other words, any harm in continuing to take 8 mgs/day for the foreseeable future? Hopefully, I got my point across. Again HUGE thanks to everyone. God bless. 

Edited March 17 by [...]

[[Ca...]]

My opinion is that if you are not in tolerance withdrawal and you are functional, I would hold and then maybe do a very slow taper. I have been in tolerance withdrawal since I started my taper a little over two years ago. I recently went back up to 14 mgs to try and stabilize from the updosing. I have been holding there. And I am still in terrible withdrawal.

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11 minutes ago, [[C...] said:

My opinion is that if you are not in tolerance withdrawal and you are functional, I would hold and then maybe do a very slow taper. I have been in tolerance withdrawal since I started my taper a little over two years ago. I recently went back up to 14 mgs to try and stabilize from the updosing. I have been holding there. And I am still in terrible withdrawal.

Thank you for your response and best of luck to you. 🙏