Can you have withdrawal symptoms shortly after you begin your taper?

[[Md...]]

I'm just wondering if you start reducing 5 to 10 percent each month if you can experience withdrawal symptoms shortly after. If so, is this normal? I'm about 4 months into what was supposed to be a 20 month long taper. It will be longer now because there are times where I felt like I needed to hold or even updose a little. 

Lethargy, brain fog, and random bouts of anxiety seem to be my main symptoms so far, but there have been others. 

The drug still works, so I don't think I'm in tolerance, but sometimes I can't tell if the symptoms are from the drug or the withdrawals themselves. 

Thanks

 

 

[[Le...]]

i would say almost definitely.  the part that makes this so difficult is the wd symptoms are so similar to other things that worrying to much after reading lots here is confusing.

 

If you get symptoms you can endure them if not well…um… yay. 

if you were on long or a long acting benzo expect wd symptoms to come way later than most will tell you. 

 

i started to feel off around 2 weeks and was a mess at 3 weeks. 

[[Md...]]

10 minutes ago, [[L...] said:

i would say almost definitely.  the part that makes this so difficult is the wd symptoms are so similar to other things that worrying to much after reading lots here is confusing.

If you get symptoms you can endure them if not well…um… yay. 

if you were on long or a long acting benzo expect wd symptoms to come way later than most will tell you. 

i started to feel off around 2 weeks and was a mess at 3 weeks. 

Thanks for sharing. I've been tapering off Valium, and probably didn't notice much of anything until maybe a month into tapering. 

[[Md...]]

Bump

[[Ca...]]

Most definitely. I am tapering valium and almost immediatelywent into tolerance withdrawal despite a microtaper

[[Md...]]

14 hours ago, [[C...] said:

Most definitely. I am tapering valium and almost immediatelywent into tolerance withdrawal despite a microtaper

Thanks for chiming in. How does one differentiate the difference between normal withdrawal and tolerance withdrawal, especially if it occurs after you start to taper?

Edited May 4 by [Md...]

[[Tw...]]

If it occurs after you start to taper, I believe that your body is already going through withdrawals from benzodiazepines. 

[[Tw...]]

Just now, [[T...] said:

If it occurs after you start to taper, I believe that your body is already going through withdrawals from benzodiazepines. 

I would call this normal withdrawal 

[[Tw...]]

I do believe that you can have withdrawals any time after tapering. I quit benzodiazepines seven weeks ago. I still have the brain fog. I don't drive or work a job again because I don't trust my brain yet to function normally. At what point do all of you drive and return to work? How did you know you are ready? 

[[Md...]]

14 minutes ago, [[T...] said:

I would call this normal withdrawal 

Thanks for your input. 

I have recently been informed by Dr Josef that in his opinion what I'm experiencing is neurological damage/protracted withdrawals (which apparently can occur at any time during your taper, according to him), because I haven't tapered enough (down 27mg of diazepam from 30mg) in order for it to be normal withdrawals. It's very confusing. 

I mean, at what point do "normal" withdrawals begin?

Makes no sense to me. 

 

Edited May 4 by [Md...]

[[Le...]]

i drove during acute. ran into my house three times.

[[Tw...]]

4 minutes ago, [[M...] said:

Thanks for your input. 

I have recently been informed by Dr Josef that in his opinion what I'm experiencing is neurological damage/protracted withdrawals (which apparently can occur at any time during your taper, according to him), because I haven't tapered enough (down 27mg of diazepam from 30mg) in order for it to be normal withdrawals. It's very confusing. 

I mean, at what point do "normal" withdrawals begin?

Makes no sense to me. 

I honestly don't know when you will experience ",normal" withdrawals when tapering down from your benzodiazepine. I was forced to quit benzodiazepines cold turkey so I experienced all of the symptoms of benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome. Perhaps if you read the symptoms by reading Wikipedia on the topic of benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome, and see if you you are experiencing those symptoms, then you will be able to differentiate if you are experiencing normal withdrawal or not . I have read Alot that tapering off of benzodiazepines will significantly reduce withdrawal symptoms. Good luck on your journey. Never give up, and  have faith, hope and courage. 

[[Tw...]]

Just now, [[T...] said:

I honestly don't know when you will experience ",normal" withdrawals when tapering down from your benzodiazepine. I was forced to quit benzodiazepines cold turkey so I experienced all of the symptoms of benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome. Perhaps if you read the symptoms by reading Wikipedia on the topic of benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome, and see if you you are experiencing those symptoms, then you will be able to differentiate if you are experiencing normal withdrawal or not . I have read Alot that tapering off of benzodiazepines will significantly reduce withdrawal symptoms. Good luck on your journey. Never give up, and  have faith, hope and courage. 

I also believed that I had neurological damage, because the withdrawal symptoms were so bad. However, my brain healed itself. It is truly a miracle. I quit benzos 7 weeks ago. 

[[Md...]]

5 minutes ago, [[T...] said:

I honestly don't know when you will experience ",normal" withdrawals when tapering down from your benzodiazepine. I was forced to quit benzodiazepines cold turkey so I experienced all of the symptoms of benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome. Perhaps if you read the symptoms by reading Wikipedia on the topic of benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome, and see if you you are experiencing those symptoms, then you will be able to differentiate if you are experiencing normal withdrawal or not . I have read Alot that tapering off of benzodiazepines will significantly reduce withdrawal symptoms. Good luck on your journey. Never give up, and  have faith, hope and courage. 

Thanks.

Sorry you were forced to quit. Was that by the hand of your psychiatrist, if you don't mind me asking?

And you were able to mostly heal within 7 weeks?

Edited May 4 by [Md...]

[[Ja...]]

51 minutes ago, [[T...] said:

I also believed that I had neurological damage, because the withdrawal symptoms were so bad. However, my brain healed itself. It is truly a miracle. I quit benzos 7 weeks ago. 

Hi,.I’ve seen your post on your cold turkey withdraw,.what was your last dose at,.I went through the same ordeal 15 year ago,.cold turkeyd from a high dose of Valium I had no choice ether,.It was an absolute nightmare,.and so unbelievable that I came back near this crap again after some troubles I couldn’t deal with,now I’m back in the same boat,.but tappering,.if I didn’t have a family to manage I think I’d just go for a ct again from a lowish dose and just add an anti seizure med,.like I’ve put a post up on here,.my daily dose is making me feel worse than in between it crazy like

[[Tw...]]

1 minute ago, [[J...] said:

Hi,.I’ve seen your post on your cold turkey withdraw,.what was your last dose at,.I went through the same ordeal 15 year ago,.cold turkeyd from a high dose of Valium I had no choice ether,.It was an absolute nightmare,.and so unbelievable that I came back near this crap again after some troubles I couldn’t deal with,now I’m back in the same boat,.but tappering,.if I didn’t have a family to manage I think I’d just go for a ct again from a lowish dose and just add an anti seizure med,.like I’ve put a post up on here,.my daily dose is making me feel worse than in between it crazy like

What are you currently taking for medications? I did quit cold turkey from benzodiazepines. I was forced to quit the benzos from my family and doctors and medical professionals. I would have preferred a slow taper, but no one else was in agreement with that. I have read extensively that tapering off of Benzodiazepines leads to a less severe and safest withdrawal. 

[[Tw...]]

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

Thanks.

Sorry you were forced to quit. Was that by the hand of your psychiatrist, if you don't mind me asking?

And you were able to mostly heal within 7 weeks?

Yes I healed from all of the withdrawal symptoms in seven weeks, and I was taking extremely high doses of benzodiazepines from Mexico. All I have left in my fear and my family's fear of me driving and also returning to work at a job. 

[[Md...]]

Just now, [[T...] said:

Yes I healed from all of the withdrawal symptoms in seven weeks, and I was taking extremely high doses of benzodiazepines from Mexico. All I have left in my fear and my family's fear of me driving and also returning to work at a job. 

That's a fast recovery. Congrats! I'm sure that fear will fade away sooner rather than later.

[[Tw...]]

6 minutes ago, [[M...] said:

That's a fast recovery. Congrats! I'm sure that fear will fade away sooner rather than later.

Thank you for all of your kind words and encouragement. I did have a fast recovery after quitting benzodiazepines that I had taken for over twenty years with very high doses that I got from Mexico, close to where I live. 

 

[[Ja...]]

12 minutes ago, [[T...] said:

What are you currently taking for medications? I did quit cold turkey from benzodiazepines. I was forced to quit the benzos from my family and doctors and medical professionals. I would have preferred a slow taper, but no one else was in agreement with that. I have read extensively that tapering off of Benzodiazepines leads to a less severe and safest withdrawal. 

No other meds yet,not even a pain killer as my head just needs the break,.but I have read that an anti seizure is a first line to have when it starts getting rough,.I only dealt with the first cold turkey with an anti d,.but was left with severe anxiety for a good few year,.thing is when you say you were kind of ok after 7 week,.I was around a 4 week ordeal,lost a lot of weight and yea started an anti d to stabilise my mind from it.

[[Tw...]]

1 minute ago, [[J...] said:

No other meds yet,not even a pain killer as my head just needs the break,.but I have read that an anti seizure is a first line to have when it starts getting rough,.I only dealt with the first cold turkey with an anti d,.but was left with severe anxiety for a good few year,.thing is when you say you were kind of ok after 7 week,.I was around a 4 week ordeal,lost a lot of weight and yea started an anti d to stabilise my mind from it.

Yes I was prescribed anti seizure medicine from the day I first quit until now. The anti seizure medicine has given me some comfort and peace that at least I won't die from seizures while experiencing all of the withdrawal symptoms. 

[[Le...]]

those medicines also are very similar and you have to be careful with them too. 

[[Do...]]

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

How does one differentiate the difference between normal withdrawal and tolerance withdrawal, especially if it occurs after you start to taper?

Hi there,

You have to understand this, if you are tapering in you are in tolerance, if you are not tapering but you dont updose you are or will be in tolerance in a few days. Everything that is not updosing every certain time is getting strainght into tolerance. I had horrible withdrawal symptoms even while taking the posion and before start tapering.

We all are in tolerance all the time, and those symptoms are exactly they same as "normal" withdrawal, they are the same. Once you decide you wanna stop taking with poison and stop updosing you are doomed to the tolerance/withdrawal syndrome. If you hold you will stabilize from acute, you stop tapering and wait till the storm has passed and then resume the taper. This is how it works, you play seek and hide with the symtoms and as long as you dont updose you will eventually get out of this nightmare.

You should take a look at the Ashton manual. If you are tapering from 30mg diazepam you could go much faster. Also check the hyperbolic theory that syas on those high doses you shouldnt feel much big cuts.

 

 

[[Ja...]]

Yea that kinda explains what’s been happening then,.just before the tapper I’d leave the house after a tablet and coffee and feel shit,.started the tapper  from 30 mg in January,and I’m literally down to 10 mg from 15mg just this last couple week,.and I feel ok in between doses,.after a dose though it’s the opposite,.I can only explain it like if you started a new medication and you new this isn’t right right away,.that’s how my daily dose has become untill it wears of like now and I’m not to bad sitting content,.I don’t feel the night dose as I’m asleep,but the afternoon dose feels bizarre 

[[Le...]]

you are likely a bit afraid of meds too after reading stuff on here. it has an effect.