Symptom Management Suggestions?

[[Ro...]]

 

I’m supporting my husband through his benzo taper and we wanted to pose a question and see if anyone has a similar situation/journey and could share suggestions or info on what worked best for you.  

A little background.  My husband has ADHD and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD).  Both were well managed with meds prior to the introduction of a benzo.  His benzo withdrawal symptoms manifest as sensitivity to overstimulation, especially sounds and stress and he has a persistent jaw tremor that is a warning sign his system is overstimulated.  Sometimes when the jaw starts it doesn't go beyond that, but other times he will get light headed and nauseous and must go lay down to destimulate (maybe take a nap or just get away from work, sounds, tv, games,  etc…).  The overstimulation can happen from fun things too like watching tv or playing video games, it's not all about the negative stressors.  He also struggles with executive function (which we suspect is just his ADHD being more negatively impacted due to the benzo taper).  During the taper, he also gets worn out/tired more easily which seems to be more prevalent after a step down.    

That said, when you’re experiencing a wave and/or the more acute withdrawal symptoms immediately after a step down, what does everyone find most helpful to mitigate the symptoms?  Is it better to take it easy, not over do it, sleep/rest a lot (if you have the ability) so you conserve your energy for the things you need/must get done during this wave (i.e. work, personal care) or can spending too much time in bed trying to proactively rest end up being a negative?  Is it better to try and get up, change the scenery, go through a few motions even if you start to get overstimulated and then just rest as needed?  Bottom line, we know pushing too far and overdoing it is not good and can slow things down, but can “underdoing it” be a negative too or should we not let that be a worry/concern?  

Here’s a bit more of a background on his benzo situation:  

My husband is about halfway through a taper from 30mg of Valium (originally on 2mg Klonopin, transitioned over to V from 1.5mg of K).  He went from 30 to 16.5mg of V from March ‘23 - August ‘23 and then held for 6 months as he hit a point where it felt like the back to back tapers were catching up to him and/or the percentage reduction was starting to be too high.  He had also just gone through the stress of being let go from the small company he worked at for 11 years (in May), some ridiculous family drama, and then the exciting stress of being offered a new wonderful work opportunity which he started in August. 

He just stepped down .5mg on 3/5/24 (now at 16mg V).  He started feeling tired and some intrusive thoughts/neurogenic emotions 4 days later.  He ended up taking most of the next week off work and then was back to work last week.  He was going to try and be up and about this weekend but was exhausted and has mostly stayed in bed resting with light entertainment type stimulation.  

Any thoughts, ideas, or suggestions are welcome!  

Thank you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[[je...]]

I never had the over stimulation so unfortunately I cannot comment from that point of view but when I was working I only did the bare minimum on my weekends. I felt so sick that I really didn’t want to do anything else other than being on the couch. If I needed to go out I would but I would not push myself to do more. I didn’t find any joy in pushing myself either so yes, I just vegetated. For me it helped to get me recharged for the following week. 

[[ns...]]

RoxieB

Hi, I'm so sorry your husband is going through this.

There are many here that will probably stop by with their experiences and offer different opinions and ideas. The support here is very helpful!

A brain injury is difficult to see, that's what your husband is experiencing right now from benzo withdrawal. 

I also have an over stimulated nervous system and hypersensitivity. I dont think i have ADHD.

Anxiety, panic attacks, and hyperactivity in my muscles and nerves due to the over simulation. All related to withdrawal.

Ive found that keeping busy and distracting myself help quite a bit, while at the same time finding a balance is important for me.

I Keep my hands and mind busy, so I'm not symptoms focused. If I focus on the symptoms, they seem to dig in and get worse and last longer.

We need rest, and need to listen to our bodies, but, we also need to move. Getting stiff can keep you immobile and it's difficult to get out of that. 

I have sound sensitivity, even my own voice is uncomfortable, touch, smell. Tinnitus doesn't help either.

Even emotions, happy, stress, sadness and frustration bring unwanted symptoms. Sugar, smoking, caffeine all stimulants I avoid.

Our central nervous system is highly affected by benzodiazepines withdrawal and I believe this is what's causing my hypersensitive and over stimulated system to respond the way it does. I often describe my symptoms as being like a sparkler from the 4th of July holiday, going throughout my brain and body, or being plugged in to an electrical socket!

I mostly push through this. I've found that the less I do, the worse I feel, but I do get rest. 

I do exposure therapy, going to stores, walking around amongst noise, people.

Eventually my plan is to get to a place where i can visit my grandchildren

I stretch, walk around, sit in the living room around the TV and everyday noise, even though it's difficult. It gets easier over time. My husband uses head phones on the TV for when I need quiet.

I can always use earplugs and I keep them close If it gets to difficult for me.

We don't have children In the house now, so it's just the 2 of us. My husband is so supportive and helps me with whatever I need. I'm afraid I might be becoming too dependent on him.

 Finding balance as I mentioned is key.

I sit alot as well, mostly because I'm numb and it's difficult to do too much, but I still excercise and walk as I mentioned. Using my mind, rewiring my brain by doing everyday things, getting on the computer, my phone here on BB is also therapeutic.

Our brain is healing and needs time but also lite stimulation as well, so keep this in mind. 

Diet is very important.

Foods high in magnesium, potassium, b vit. Protein and healthy fats, healthy  diet, again, balance. 

I've found that certain foods cause more symptoms, odd but true, even canned foods. You learn over time what works for you and you adjust. 

The good news, I feel healing. It's a slow process for some, but for others not so slow. 

Spring is here. Getting outside will help so much and I know I need that.

I'm smiling more, laughing and wanting to go more, so thats more like me! 

It's a process but he'll get there.

Have patience and compassion

Tip.

For anxiety 

Trey Jones anxiety on YouTube and Therapy in a nutshell with Emma on YouTube 

Great help!

I hope it helped a little, 

And I hope your husband will heal soon.

He's blessed to have you!

Take care 

Ns

 

 

[[Ro...]]

Bumping up to see if there are any other suggestions/feedback.  Greatly appreciated! 

He's still dealing with fatigue if he over does it any given day.  He learned quickly that if he works longer hours early on in the week,  he's worthless come Thurs/Fri and through the weekend so he's trying to balance out his week and keep it under 5 hours of work a day.  Luckily he has the luxury of doing this with his schedule. 

He's also shying away from hobbies like watching tv/movies or video games for fear of overstimulation.  He's too worried it will just add to the energy drain but then he's not doing anything "fun" which is a bummer and adds to anxiety.  

I suspect the stress of not truly understanding what's happening inside his brain/body is causing anxious overstimulation that just makes everything worse.  He's also prone to waking up with what we suspect are cortisol dumps in the morning which can take like an hour to pass.  I need to do some research on that.