A thought on the low # of Success Stories

[[sc...]]

Like many of you, over the past year I have thought about why there are so few "sucess stories" posted.  I am just coming out of a horrific titration and withdrawal off K after 7-8 yrs of use.  Its a peculiar thing, as I sit here thinking about what I would write in my Success Story.  I know (intellectually) that things were bad, very bad, for a very long time.  But as I try to summon up a memory of my "felt experience" that I could put to words, I get very little.  I could rattle off a list of symptoms I experienced, but the memory of the feeling is gone.  As I look back on my years using K my memories are choppy, and lack continuity and connection to the present moment (if that makes sense).  And despite taking K for yrs. it is amazing how few memories from that period that I can bring to mind.

 

So what am I trying to say?...maybe the low # of success stories has alot more to do with the amnesia like effects that all benzos have.  Even I, freshly out of withdrawal, am having a hard time summoning up the words to describe my ordeal.  And quite frankly, despite my desire to help others, it is not a task I relish doing.  Not sure if anyone has heard about Eminem's recent interview with Rolling Stone where he talks about Ambien and Valium literally erasing 5 years of his life from his memory.  And although Ambien isn't a classic benzo, its impact and mechanism of action are similar. 

 

So if there is one saving grace from this experience maybe its that I won't fully be able to remember the pain that I experienced. 

 

Below is an abstract from research on benzos and memory.  Pretty interesting stuff if you google "benzodiazepines and learing" or "...and memory".  The good news, if there is any is that while some of the memories might be lost, the memory and skills around learning return after withdrawal.   

 

 

 

Tranquillising memories: a review of the effects of benzodiazepines on human memory.

Curran HV.

Abstract

Studies from 1973 to 1985 of the effects of benzodiazepines on memory are summarised and reviewed. Anterograde amnesia appears a common effect of all benzodiazepines although its onset and duration vary with the particular benzodiazepine, its dose and route of administration. Memory impairments increase with task difficulty. There is some evidence that partial tolerance to amnesic effects develops with repeated doses of diazepam, but research with other benzodiazepines is inconclusive. Amnesia is in part a by-product of the sedative action of benzodiazepines, although these drugs may also have a specific effect of disrupting the consolidation of information in long-term memory. State-dependent effects are partial and relatively small. Methodological problems are discussed and attention is drawn to the lack of repeated dose studies, of studies with patient populations and with anxious volunteers.

 

 

[Guest [Si...]]

That could be.. but I remember things I did on the Klonopin.

Yes there is amnesia.. I have it now.

But I can recall things I did on Klonopin.

 

I think all the memories come back as a whole eventually.

 

Billy.

[Guest [Si...]]

Here is a list of medications that cause Amnesia.

 

Abilify® - Otsuka America (aripiprazole) Tablets

Ambien® see note below - Sanofi-Synthelabo (zolpidem tartrate)

Abilify® - Bristol-Myers Squibb (aripiprazole) Tablets

Cogentin® Injection - Merck (Benztropine Mesylate)

Copaxone® - Teva Neuroscience (glatiramer acetate injection)

Copaxone® tablets - Roche Laboratories (ribavirin, USP)

Copegus® tablets - 6% - Roche Laboratories (ribavirin, USP)

Cozaar® tablets - Merck (losartan potassium tablets)

Effexor XR® - 44% - Osmotica Pharmaceutical Corp. (venlafaxine hydrochloride)

Eldepryl® capsules (Somerset) (SELEGILINE HYDROCHLORIDE)

Eskalith® - GlaxoSmithKline (lithium carbonate)

Eskalith® - GlaxoSmithKline (lithium carbonate)

Gleevec® - Novartis (imatinib mesylate)

Hyzaar® tablets - Merck (losartan potassium-hydrochlorothiazide tablets)

Imitrex® Nasal Spray - GlaxoSmithKline (sumatriptan)

Imitrex® tablets - GlaxoSmithKline (sumatriptan succinate)

Klonopin® tablets - 4% - Roche Laboratories (clonazepam)

Klonopin® wafers - 4% - Roche Laboratories (clonazepam orally disintegrating)

Lamictal® tablets - GlaxoSmithKline (lamotrigine)

Lamictal® chewable dispersible tablets - GlaxoSmithKline (lamotrigine)

Lupron Depot® 3.75 mg - 6% - TAP (leuprolide acetate for depot suspension)

Lupron Depot®-3 Month 11.25 mg - TAP (leuprolide acetate for depot suspension)

Lupron® injection - TAP (leuprolide acetate)

Maxalt® tablets - Merck (rizatriptan benzoate)

Maxalt-MLT® orally disintegrating tablets - Merck (rizatriptan benzoate)

Parcopa™ orally disintegrating tablets - Schwarz (carbidopa-levodopa)

Pegasys® - 5% - Roche Laboratories (peginterferon alfa-2a)

Prinivil® tablets - Merck (Lisinopril)

Prinzide® tablets - Merck (Lisinopril-Hydrochlorothiazide)

Rifamate® capsules - Aventis (rifampin and isoniazid)

Rifater® tablets - Aventis (rifampin, isoniazid and pyrazinamide)

Roferon®-A - Roche Laboratories (Interferon alfa-2a, recombinant)

Seromycin® capsules - Lilly (Cycloserine)

Stalevo® 50, 100 and 150 tablets - Novartis (carbidopa, levodopa and entacapone)

Timolide® tablets - Merck (Timolol Maleate-Hydrochlorothiazide)

Topamax® tablets - 3.2% - Ortho-McNeil (topiramate)

Topamax® sprinkle capsules - 3.2% - Ortho-McNeil (topiramate capsules)

Transderm Scop® - Novartis (scopolamine 1.5 mg Transdermal Therapeutic System)

Vesanoid® capsules - 3% - Roche Laboratories (tretinoin)

Wellbutrin® - GlaxoSmithKline (bupropion hydrochloride)

Wellbutrin SR® sustained-release tablets - GlaxoSmithKline (bupropion hydrochloride)

Wellbutrin XL™ extended-release tablets - GlaxoSmithKline (bupropion hydrochloride)

Xanax® - 33.1%- Pharmacia & Upjohn (alprazolam)

Xanax XR® - 15.4% extended-release tablets - Pharmacia & Upjohn (alprazolam)

Zonegran® capsules - 6% - Eisai (zonisamide)

Zyban® Sustained-Release tablets - GlaxoSmithKline (bupropion hydrochloride)

[[br...]]

Scott,

 

Interesting thought and for some... that could be part of it. But, I wrote on another thread today... I honestly believe people just want out.

It's like being trapped in a cage and one day, you're suddenly set free. The natural response is to run!

 

Some people are particularly thoughtful and do write success stories. We are all grateful for those people. But, I would really imagine that 70% or so

of the users here who get better just never get around to it. I know I've been feeling better some for the past month, and my time here has dwindled.

It's a natural thing. I do think people should TRY to stay and extend help, and bless those who do. But, the average person is going to follow their instincts

and just go live their life.

 

Also keep in mind, the users on these boards represent a small fraction of the people who actually get better.  There are scores of people that come through

WD without ever setting eyes on a message board like this.

 

If people DIDN'T get better... this would be a global epidemic. Courts would be jammed with cases, it would be all over the news. But, the truth is... people

simply do get better. Most quickly without terrible suffering. Then, there's the rest of us who have a hard go of it. But, even we all get better.

Are there a few examples out there of people who never returned to normal?  Maybe. I've never heard of it. People also get struck by lightning.

I'm not worried about that, either.

 

Not downplaying any of this, of course. It's awful. But, people do get better... and I just think when they do, they can't get away from this kind of conversation

fast enough. Most would rather just forget, and move on.

[[ch...]]

As a relative newcomer to this site I was wondering how many active members there are? I have made a promise to myself to write a success story if, I mean WHEN, I have one to write. And then I am going to bid a fond farewell. I have received a lot of support from this group and have tried to GIVE support also ... I greatly admire those who stay on and mentor. For me, I am going to give back by hopefully being once again engaged in life I don't even remember what it is like anymore to not be sick. For years I have thought I had CFS etc and now I am starting to believe that it was the BENZO. I can't even BEGIN to process that right now.

LOVE,

Chrysanthemum

 

 

[[mi...]]

Like many of you, over the past year I have thought about why there are so few "sucess stories" posted.  I am just coming out of a horrific titration and withdrawal off K after 7-8 yrs of use.  Its a peculiar thing, as I sit here thinking about what I would write in my Success Story.  I know (intellectually) that things were bad, very bad, for a very long time.  But as I try to summon up a memory of my "felt experience" that I could put to words, I get very little.  I could rattle off a list of symptoms I experienced, but the memory of the feeling is gone.  As I look back on my years using K my memories are choppy, and lack continuity and connection to the present moment (if that makes sense).  And despite taking K for yrs. it is amazing how few memories from that period that I can bring to mind.

 

So what am I trying to say?...maybe the low # of success stories has alot more to do with the amnesia like effects that all benzos have.  Even I, freshly out of withdrawal, am having a hard time summoning up the words to describe my ordeal.  And quite frankly, despite my desire to help others, it is not a task I relish doing.  Not sure if anyone has heard about Eminem's recent interview with Rolling Stone where he talks about Ambien and Valium literally erasing 5 years of his life from his memory.  And although Ambien isn't a classic benzo, its impact and mechanism of action are similar. 

 

So if there is one saving grace from this experience maybe its that I won't fully be able to remember the pain that I experienced. 

 

Below is an abstract from research on benzos and memory.  Pretty interesting stuff if you google "benzodiazepines and learing" or "...and memory".  The good news, if there is any is that while some of the memories might be lost, the memory and skills around learning return after withdrawal.   

 

 

 

Tranquillising memories: a review of the effects of benzodiazepines on human memory.

Curran HV.

Abstract

Studies from 1973 to 1985 of the effects of benzodiazepines on memory are summarised and reviewed. Anterograde amnesia appears a common effect of all benzodiazepines although its onset and duration vary with the particular benzodiazepine, its dose and route of administration. Memory impairments increase with task difficulty. There is some evidence that partial tolerance to amnesic effects develops with repeated doses of diazepam, but research with other benzodiazepines is inconclusive. Amnesia is in part a by-product of the sedative action of benzodiazepines, although these drugs may also have a specific effect of disrupting the consolidation of information in long-term memory. State-dependent effects are partial and relatively small. Methodological problems are discussed and attention is drawn to the lack of repeated dose studies, of studies with patient populations and with anxious volunteers.

 

 

 

Hi this is mishi hope yu feel better soon... I have amnesia like billy i am forgetting and cannot remember.. It is all suppose to come back.. Please take care it will come back