Walking does wonders

[[Ja...]]

Between yesterday and especially today,.I could of easily jacked this taper in,and it went through my mind today a lot just because the way it was making me feel,

yesterday my head was done in,.today I just felt totally done in sick fed up with it,totally drained mentally.I couldn’t get a positive thought into my head once all negative.

im just back in from a good hour n a half walk,half way through the walking I started thinking about what we actually put up with in this withdrawal,and the length of time it goes on for etc.

and then I had my first positive thought of the day,and this goes for every1 going through this

The fact that we’re putting ourselves through this mental/physical pain,,while all the while there’s a few strips of pills there that could just take it all away.

that is a seriously strong mental mind to do that under these circumstances,.I would never of thought that today the way I was thinking/feeling,not having that calm affect any more as my dose is going down,today my head ran riot and it made me feel ill.

The walk itself,.the brain fog/headache has lifted,I can think better,.I feel better,.and I can honestly say today was 1 of the worst mentally,fresh air and exercise is not to be underestimated during this.

 

[[Le...]]

yes yes. i did walks and elliptical. so much help. 10miles a day even when every step seemed like a giant effort and almost impossible. 

[[Ja...]]

Lee1978a I’ve always depended on some exercise to feel better,.it looks like it’s exactly the same with withdrawal,.totally fliped my mood/thoughts,.I’ve done day on day of but I might just step it up to daily if it works like this most the time.

[[Kr...]]

People who have severe akathisia and walk and move and exercise because they can’t stay still don’t heal quicker than people who can hardly exercise. 
 Everyone is completely different. 

[[Le...]]

it always helps. 

[[Le...]]

not moving always hurts

[[Kr...]]

Yes, but I don’t want some poor bedbound person reading this to think they aren’t going to improve because they can’t physically move very much. 

[[Mi...]]

It helps me breathe deeper and it takes my mind off of the pain.  We are living in a tiny home right now and sometimes changing up the environment helps.  

[[ro...]]

I just went into Tolerance W/D after staying on the same dose of valium for 11 years. 

I believe the reason why this happened is because I stopped exercising. I had an injury and couldn't exercise anymore. This is when my awful symptoms came up. I was doing 30 minutes of intense exercise at the gym every day and I never had any symptoms but in the last month I stopped due to an injury

[[jo...]]

Excercise can only help, you just have to be careful as excercise intolerence is a real thing. I found out this the hard way after going for a run. Walking isn't to risky and I do it a lot but once went out walking all day and started to feel on the edge of a wave. I think we just need to ease ourself in to see what we can tolorate. Any excercise you can do is a good idea I think as our bodies are supposed to be moving. This can only help with healing imo.

[[Cr...]]

Walking helped me but it felt involuntary. Whenever my waves were at their worst my akathisia would act up and I walked miles and miles. I didn't walk thinking it would speed up my recovery, I walked because I had too or the restlessness would have gotten overwhelming.

The positives are that it gave me fresh air, sunlight/vit d, mild aerobic exercise (brisk pace walking). While I was already losing weight from withdrawal (began at 5'10 170 lbs) I ended up around 145 lbs after walking so much for a year. I could actually see my abs!

I hope walks continue to be a benefit for you @[Ja...]. There are really no downsides except rain and traffic.

 

Edited May 25 by [Cr...]

[[jo...]]

Akathisia scares the shit out of me. I have experienced extreme anxiety where I'm restless and un able to stay still for long but haven't had the constant pacing thing so I don't think it qualifies as aka. I'm not sure what the exact criteria is. I just walk when I can to take my mind of things and, like you say, it's good aerobic excercise and there isn't a downside.

Edited May 25 by [jo...]

[[Cr...]]

20 minutes ago, [[j...] said:

Akathisia scares the shit out of me. I have experienced extreme anxiety where I'm restless and un able to stay still for long but haven't had the constant pacing thing so I don't think it qualifies as aka. I'm not sure what the exact criteria is. I just walk when I can to take my mind of things and, like you say, it's good aerobic excercise and there isn't a downside.

Aka is kind of a spectrum with varying intensity. It could be minor like slow taper drug withdrawal causing you to need to tap your foot or change body positions constantly to severe where you literally cannot sit still and have to be moving. Severe forms often come from bad reactions to certain meds or cold turkeys from hard drugs or large doses of high dependency medications. 

 

[[Le...]]

i went months sleepless and unable to stop moving without feeling like i was going insane. stopped only when collapsed.  this was the time after i was able to stay on my feet again. before that just endless misery on bathroom floor or hosing myself off in shower.  ct from dick doc. didnt even know i was in WD.  had no clue what was happening

[[Le...]]

i really think that the experience should have left me completely insane besides any lingering damage. 

Edited May 26 by [Le...]
spelling

[[je...]]

2 hours ago, [[r...] said:

I just went into Tolerance W/D after staying on the same dose of valium for 11 years. 

I believe the reason why this happened is because I stopped exercising. I had an injury and couldn't exercise anymore. This is when my awful symptoms came up. I was doing 30 minutes of intense exercise at the gym every day and I never had any symptoms but in the last month I stopped due to an injury

The lack of exercise does not cause tolerance withdrawal, neither can exercise prevent tolerance withdrawal. Tolerance withdrawal is caused by the drug that stops working. In some instances it can happen within 2-4 weeks from starting the drug. The most likely explanation for your tolerance withdrawal is long term use of benzodiazepines. More info here.

[[ro...]]

I made an incorrect conclusion that the discontinuation of exercise caused these awful symptoms to appear. I was doing so well for 11 years on the same dosage of 15 mg. I never saw the tolerance withdrawal coming. I figured that after 11 years of not having symptoms, it would never occur. So there is no correlation between the discontinuation of exercise and the onset of severe withdrawal symptoms. Thanks for that link about Tolerance. It clarified what happened to me. I don't know that at my age if it would be even worthwhile to try and taper. I have heart disease Chronic Kidney disease and diabetes. I may die before I even finish a taper should I attempt it. I have a condition in my Aorta which could result in a dissection of the Aorta. The cardiologist said nothing can be done but monitor my heart and Aorta. My brother in Law was told the same thing that the aneurysm was minor but he died from the dissection of the Aorta, I am in the same situation as he was. I am feeling better at this moment. I took my sleep medication and my anxiety has decreased, The physical symptoms remain, I can mask the pain in my mouth and throat by using sore throat lozenges. I will probably get more symtoms as time goes on. It is what it is

[[Le...]]

everything will hit you harder and last longer cause it prevents healthy living.  doesnt mean the loss of healthy living is the cause but being brought to a standstill has extreme effects. 

[[Le...]]

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

I made an incorrect conclusion that the discontinuation of exercise caused these awful symptoms to appear. I was doing so well for 11 years on the same dosage of 15 mg. I never saw the tolerance withdrawal coming. I figured that after 11 years of not having symptoms, it would never occur. So there is no correlation between the discontinuation of exercise and the onset of severe withdrawal symptoms. Thanks for that link about Tolerance. It clarified what happened to me. I don't know that at my age if it would be even worthwhile to try and taper. I have heart disease Chronic Kidney disease and diabetes. I may die before I even finish a taper should I attempt it. I have a condition in my Aorta which could result in a dissection of the Aorta. The cardiologist said nothing can be done but monitor my heart and Aorta. My brother in Law was told the same thing that the aneurysm was minor but he died from the dissection of the Aorta, I am in the same situation as he was. I am feeling better at this moment. I took my sleep medication and my anxiety has decreased, The physical symptoms remain, I can mask the pain in my mouth and throat by using sore throat lozenges. I will probably get more symtoms as time goes on. It is what it is

that is a tricky situation and only you can decide. if you make it to the end you will have one leas thing dragging you down. how possible that is only you can say. 

[[jo...]]

2 hours ago, [[L...] said:

i went months sleepless and unable to stop moving without feeling like i was going insane. stopped only when collapsed.  this was the time after i was able to stay on my feet again. before that just endless misery on bathroom floor or hosing myself off in shower.  ct from dick doc. didnt even know i was in WD.  had no clue what was happening

That sounds f'ing terrifying. Especially not knowing what the hell it was. Well done for surviving that

[[je...]]

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

I made an incorrect conclusion that the discontinuation of exercise caused these awful symptoms to appear.

No problem at all. I just didn't want you to feel you could've prevented it through exercise. 

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

I have heart disease Chronic Kidney disease and diabetes. I may die before I even finish a taper should I attempt it. I have a condition in my Aorta which could result in a dissection of the Aorta. The cardiologist said nothing can be done but monitor my heart and Aorta. My brother in Law was told the same thing that the aneurysm was minor but he died from the dissection of the Aorta, I am in the same situation as he was

I am so sorry. You clearly have a lot on your plate. 

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

I am feeling better at this moment. I took my sleep medication and my anxiety has decreased,

It's good that you're having some windows and moments of relief. Hopefully when you have recovered from injury you'll be able to do some exercise again.

[[re...]]

 

Exercise won't be a SHORT TERM solution for your symptoms but if you keep going healing will take place faster.

One word....... BDNF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

AEROBIC exercise is what you need most for brain healing. I have read sooooooo many pub med/ nih articles on aerobic exercise and the brain and two books come to mind Jon Ratey's "Spark" as well as a book called "The brain changes itself" and this second reading is more about the power of neuroplasticity, but it also mentions aerobic exercise as a tried and proven benefit for the brain. Even Peter Attia researched and found aerobic exercise actually has just as much benefit as SLEEP for god's sakes in terms of beta amyloid cleaning out. These are bold discoveries. 

My new moniker is this. First heal the brain with the aerobics then get the upper body going with the weights. Yes weight training has SOME cardio. But just nowhere near the steady cardio and max heart rate you will get from power walking and hiking,  cycling, swimming, etc. 

Now most studies of aerobic exercise have discovered that most will not see results for 16 weeks minimum. But if you are doing a taper or even post jump then why not do some good ole aerobic exercise like power walking, cycling, swimming, etc to really get the blood flow to the brain going. 

 

Being outdoors with major oxygen intake and your not breathing in others co2 alone indoors in a gym is good for the brain and I think it is why so many claim success with some HBOT. 

And just being outside with the birds chirping and the moving thru space and time is MUCH better for your spirit. I don't think too many can claim other wise. Even if you are in an urban jungle. There are usually tree lined parks where you could go and do some good old aerobic exercise.  

 

[[re...]]

To anyone wondering about the 16 week study I mention. There are many out there I have seen, but here is kind of what I am talking about and these are double blinds so pretty good stuff. And it was exercise vs Zoloft on depression. Starts at the 17:00 mark. I would watch this whole video though. It has wonderful info and he is so well spoken. This is Jon Ratey. He also talks about GABA in the Hippocampus at 24:40. Just GREAT GREAT stuff and hopefully will give some of you hope about the power of exercise.  And all you CBD junkies  check out 23:18 it will blow your mind. To me way cheaper than all that CBD you are doing which you don't even know where it is coming from and how you will react to that certain strain. 

 

[[re...]]

 

To anyone contemplating exercise. Just MOVE!!!!!!!!!!! It doesn't have to be a fight with yourself and a competition. Even take lots of breaks if you need to. Just get moving regardless of the withdrawal or taper or whatever. If you can walk even around your house that is great. Outdoors is better for you though if at all possible due to the higher oxygen levels you will receive.  Just don't push it TOO much, but I would suggest going a bit out of your comfort zone cause lets be honest your benzo/psych medicated and withdrawal brain is gonna tell you not to when you feel every weird heart skip and tingle, double vision, chest tightness and what ever else. Just try and push through these and it will teach your brain to not associate exercise with death and your symptoms. You will learn to not give these uncomfortable sensations power and control over you and it will be a HUGE positive  in your progress. And this my friends is better than all the CBT sessions you would pay big bucks for otherwise. Exercise is FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If it makes you feel better then get a doctor's permission before you start. 

 GET MOVIN PEEPS!!!!!!!!!!

 

Edited May 26 by [re...]