Z-Drug Support Group (Lunesta, Imovane, Zimovane, Ambien, Sonata, Zopiclone)

[[Tr...]]

Need help! Is anyone there?

[[wa...]]

Need help! Is anyone there?

What's up?

[[ga...]]

Thanks, Gaba.  I am still on 1.75 mg of Ativan and do not want to updose.  The Ambien withdrawal is very slow....I have sleeping from 0-2 hrs a night, am very anxious and shaky.  Sometimes I get nauseated with dry heaves and vomiting.  I have internal tremors and feel sick overall.  At this rate, it might take me a year or more to get off of the Ambien, and that increases my anxiety.  I will cut to 6.3 mg tonight and want to get off of this stuff asap.  I don't know what to do...if I make a big cut, I'll be incapacitated and not able to get out of the house.  I live alone and that scares me.

[[GA...]]

Thanks, Gaba.  I am still on 1.75 mg of Ativan and do not want to updose.  The Ambien withdrawal is very slow....I have sleeping from 0-2 hrs a night, am very anxious and shaky.  Sometimes I get nauseated with dry heaves and vomiting.  I have internal tremors and feel sick overall.  At this rate, it might take me a year or more to get off of the Ambien, and that increases my anxiety.  I will cut to 6.3 mg tonight and want to get off of this stuff asap.  I don't know what to do...if I make a big cut, I'll be incapacitated and not able to get out of the house.  I live alone and that scares me.

 

I'm surprised the Ativan isn't helping more than it seems to be. 1.75 sounds like a pretty hefty dose, but I suppose it's not if you're used to more.

 

From what I've read here on BB and on the Facebook benzo recovery forums, the main difference between a Z-drug and a benzo is that the benzo affects more brain receptors. In other words, the benzo affects the same receptors the Z-drug does and more besides that. Also the benzo has a longer half-life than the Z-drug has. So, while I'm sorry to hear about your troubles, just imagine how much worse it would be if you tried getting of the benzo FIRST. That is basically what I did, and it was easier when I reversed and got off the Z-drug first. If it's any consolation, it could be worse.

[[bu...]]

Thanks, Gaba.  I am still on 1.75 mg of Ativan and do not want to updose.  The Ambien withdrawal is very slow....I have sleeping from 0-2 hrs a night, am very anxious and shaky.  Sometimes I get nauseated with dry heaves and vomiting.  I have internal tremors and feel sick overall.  At this rate, it might take me a year or more to get off of the Ambien, and that increases my anxiety.  I will cut to 6.3 mg tonight and want to get off of this stuff asap.  I don't know what to do...if I make a big cut, I'll be incapacitated and not able to get out of the house.  I live alone and that scares me.

 

I'm surprised the Ativan isn't helping more than it seems to be. 1.75 sounds like a pretty hefty dose, but I suppose it's not if you're used to more.

 

From what I've read here on BB and on the Facebook benzo recovery forums, the main difference between a Z-drug and a benzo is that the benzo affects more brain receptors. In other words, the benzo affects the same receptors the Z-drug does and more besides that. Also the benzo has a longer half-life than the Z-drug has. So, while I'm sorry to hear about your troubles, just imagine how much worse it would be if you tried getting of the benzo FIRST. That is basically what I did, and it was easier when I reversed and got off the Z-drug first. If it's any consolation, it could be worse.

 

I did k first and it was miserable but I think it would have been more miserable for me if I did ambien first. Not sure really. I guess there just is no good way period. Our systems are just so dependent on it. But it really does get better I just want to keep coming back and saying that. I am off k now 3 mths, ambien 3 mths. I sleep quite a bit, still some issues but it does go back and forth and I think hormones play a role.

 

My advice is just get help if possible so that your you can get off this stuff somehow!!! And just keep life as simple as possible too.

 

Sending cyber hugs to who ever needs them!!!

[[GA...]]

I sleep better without the Ambien. That's not saying much, because I'm within a few days of finally stopping Ativan. I've been off the Ambien since Match 15 of this year.

 

I'll wake up about two hours after I first go to sleep, but I'll usually get back to sleep fairly soon on my own, and if I can't, I'll take an antihistamine.

 

For me, Ambien was worse than benzos. In 26 years of use, I never developed a tolerance on benzos, but I did reach that point with Ambien. It has a way of waking me up and demanding more. It is insidious and very addictive. I was watching an episode of Intervention where a guy that was addicted to heroin would occasionally shoot up Ambien just for kicks. I would sometimes get a euphoric high from it. Of course that lasts only so long until you require more to get that feeling. Whatever good you might get from it, it is not worth it.

 

If you happen to be taking benzos and a Z-drug, the advice I got when I first came here turned out to be very useful: get off the shortest half-life drug first.

 

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Need help! Is anyone there?

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Has anyone tried Belsomra ?

[[al...]]

Need help! Is anyone there?

[/quote

 

Has anyone tried Belsomra ?

 

Yes. It did not work from me and I have yet to hear of it working for anyone. It is a pharmaceutical failure and waste of money.

[[GA...]]

Need help! Is anyone there?

[/quote

 

Has anyone tried Belsomra ?

 

Yes. It did not work from me and I have yet to hear of it working for anyone. It is a pharmaceutical failure and waste of money.

 

 

My doctor mentioned it, but said that because it is so new most insurance won't cover it and it is quite expensive. I read the brochure in his office and the front page of the ad hinted around that is was safer than other prescription sleep aids. But when I looked on the back page, the side effects listed sounded a hell of a lot like the same ones for Ambien!

 

Another thing that comes to mind: In the magazines, they will usually say on that back page of side effects that if you discontinue use of them, you may have rebound insomnia for one or two nights. But as Aloha once said, that refers to people who take it as directed, which is like 7 days. So what happens if you take it for several months or a few years? Come on, does anyone take it for just 7 days? Of course not. But with that long term use you are opening yourself to a whole bunch of bad side effects as most of the readers of this thread know all too well.

[[wa...]]

Hi guys -- posting here since I think lots of folks just don't believe that Z drugs are so devilish and looking for validation is so important on BB.

 

I think that acute is slowly creeping back 2+months post jump and I'm doing my best not to freak out.  I mistakenly thought i was well enough to make a few commitments and Xmas plans even but now regret it.  Mornings are becoming so much more difficult the longer I am off.  Yes - I thought I could handle a little more stress -- I'm not looking for it but it comes looking for me.  Dizziness is back big time and that brain thing is as bad as it was a year ago.  I should probably stop driving again.  Sigh -- this is such a long, long process.  Just want to confide in Z drug users who won't trivialize the damage these drugs can do.  I pray every day it is not permanent cause it sure feels that way.  WBB

[[al...]]

Yes, Z-drugs can become an uncontrolled monster once tolerance is reached. When that happens there does not seem to be anyway to avoid major problems. After reading numerous accounts of fellow z-drug users who have crossed that line, I have come to the conclusion that a slow taper from a z-drug once tolerance has been reached only prolongs the withdrawal process. A true cold-turkey approach is not suggested because there are very real dangers regarding possible seizures, but these dangers can be avoided via a rapid taper of 7-10 days. A doctor recommended that I do a 7 day taper, but I extended that to 10 days just to be safe.

 

I did experience the unavoidable acute withdrawal and had a pretty long protracted withdrawal (mostly just insomnia), but I have not really read about anyone avoiding these trials via the slow taper method once they became tolerant to their z-drug. These drugs just have too short of a half-life in your blood for a slow taper. I can't comment on the validity of crossing over to a longer lasting benzo because I have not experienced that approach myself. I did not know about that option at the time. Had I known, I am not sure if I would have tried it since I don't really like the idea of trading one drug problem for another. I would not have had the satisfaction of throwing all of my pills away and never looking back.

[[ci...]]

aloha, I agree.

 

[[wa...]]

Far be it from me to criticize anyone's method to get off these drugs.  But if it were true that a rapid or C/t taper would prevent or stop one sx or another more quickly due to the short live of the drug,  I would be fine and dandy by now.  I was much better going slow and maybe it was not slowly enough for others.  It's all relative to the person. The first rapid I did was so terrifying - I would never suggest that to anyone.  Doctors don't know.  No one knows.  WBB

[[GA...]]

Far be it from me to criticize anyone's method to get off these drugs.  But if it were true that a rapid or C/t taper would prevent or stop one sx or another more quickly due to the short live of the drug,  I would be fine and dandy by now.  I was much better going slow and maybe it was not slowly enough for others.  It's all relative to the person. The first rapid I did was so terrifying - I would never suggest that to anyone.  Doctors don't know.  No one knows.  WBB

 

I've read of cases where these drugs, benzos and Z-drugs, are so toxic to some people that they have to do a rapid taper to get off them as quickly (and safely) as possible. In other words, staying on them for any length of time is causing more health problems than the withdrawal would.

 

In my case, I was already taking the longer half-life Ativan, so the 6 week rapid taper from Ambien went rather smoothly. But now that the Ambien is history and I'm tapering off Ativan only, I see the the value of the very slow taper!

 

If I had been taking a Z-drug only, no additional benzo I'm sure I would have went the slow taper route with that, too. I wonder what it's like to withdraw from the Z-drug by itself, but I'll take the word of those that have that it is none too pleasant.

[[Fr...]]

Hi everyone, it's been ages and thought I would drop in to fill everyone in on how I'm doing with everything.

So I'm OFF Lunesta and have been for several months now, since August! I was determined and I pulled through! If I can do it than you certainly can, you just need to want it bad enough!

 

I'm sleeping great! I mean way better than on that crap! I take 2 MinTran which is a natural mineral supplement. One day I want to sleep with nothing but your belief can literally be all you need to sleep or NOT!

 

So stay positive and keep at it!

[[me...]]

Great to hear things are going well, Freespirit. Thanks for stopping by with a positive report.

 

I'm having a rough patch right now with pain, but hopefully I can get a better handle on this soon.

[[bu...]]

Far be it from me to criticize anyone's method to get off these drugs.  But if it were true that a rapid or C/t taper would prevent or stop one sx or another more quickly due to the short live of the drug,  I would be fine and dandy by now.  I was much better going slow and maybe it was not slowly enough for others.  It's all relative to the person. The first rapid I did was so terrifying - I would never suggest that to anyone.  Doctors don't know.  No one knows.  WBB

 

I've read of cases where these drugs, benzos and Z-drugs, are so toxic to some people that they have to do a rapid taper to get off them as quickly (and safely) as possible. In other words, staying on them for any length of time is causing more health problems than the withdrawal would.

 

In my case, I was already taking the longer half-life Ativan, so the 6 week rapid taper from Ambien went rather smoothly. But now that the Ambien is history and I'm tapering off Ativan only, I see the the value of the very slow taper!

 

If I had been taking a Z-drug only, no additional benzo I'm sure I would have went the slow taper route with that, too. I wonder what it's like to withdraw from the Z-drug by itself, but I'll take the word of those that have that it is none too pleasant.

 

I think it just depends on what is going on. I was in a decent place by the time that I decided to go to detox for ambien. I had been off of klonopin for about 6 weeks, had tried to taper ambien and just could not do it on my own, addiction and fear were too strong. A rapid taper with phenobarbital was the more humane way for me. I am still dealing with issues but no way to tell what is from ambien and which from klonopin. I sleep ok at times but I am having tons of nerve and muscle pain again. I am guessing it is the combination  of too many years on both drugs. I can still get out and  live life for the most part but I am in a lot of pain and taking very little pain reliever. I believe in getting moderate exercise and mediation as much as possible.

 

I think the cold winter is making things worse also so I am just slowing down and taking it easy on myself. I am grateful to have my old child grown and I am on disability and my husband helps a ton.

 

I will keep checking on once in awhile to reassure everyone that there really is a good life to look forward to. A year ago I was just barely beginning to see that again!

[[GA...]]

Far be it from me to criticize anyone's method to get off these drugs.  But if it were true that a rapid or C/t taper would prevent or stop one sx or another more quickly due to the short live of the drug,  I would be fine and dandy by now.  I was much better going slow and maybe it was not slowly enough for others.  It's all relative to the person. The first rapid I did was so terrifying - I would never suggest that to anyone.  Doctors don't know.  No one knows.  WBB

 

I've read of cases where these drugs, benzos and Z-drugs, are so toxic to some people that they have to do a rapid taper to get off them as quickly (and safely) as possible. In other words, staying on them for any length of time is causing more health problems than the withdrawal would.

 

In my case, I was already taking the longer half-life Ativan, so the 6 week rapid taper from Ambien went rather smoothly. But now that the Ambien is history and I'm tapering off Ativan only, I see the the value of the very slow taper!

 

If I had been taking a Z-drug only, no additional benzo I'm sure I would have went the slow taper route with that, too. I wonder what it's like to withdraw from the Z-drug by itself, but I'll take the word of those that have that it is none too pleasant.

 

I think it just depends on what is going on. I was in a decent place by the time that I decided to go to detox for ambien. I had been off of klonopin for about 6 weeks, had tried to taper ambien and just could not do it on my own, addiction and fear were too strong. A rapid taper with phenobarbital was the more humane way for me. I am still dealing with issues but no way to tell what is from ambien and which from klonopin. I sleep ok at times but I am having tons of nerve and muscle pain again. I am guessing it is the combination  of too many years on both drugs. I can still get out and  live life for the most part but I am in a lot of pain and taking very little pain reliever. I believe in getting moderate exercise and mediation as much as possible.

 

I think the cold winter is making things worse also so I am just slowing down and taking it easy on myself. I am grateful to have my old child grown and I am on disability and my husband helps a ton.

 

I will keep checking on once in awhile to reassure everyone that there really is a good life to look forward to. A year ago I was just barely beginning to see that again!

 

 

What was that medical detox like? I'm just curious as to what they do. I know you mention phenobarbital, are you still taking that, and if not did you have any withdrawal issue from it? I don't hear much about the barbiturates any more. I know that the benzos more or less replaced them because benzos were thought to be safer. But tye barbs and the benzos and alcohol are all related as to the brain receptors they affect.

[[bu...]]

Far be it from me to criticize anyone's method to get off these drugs.  But if it were true that a rapid or C/t taper would prevent or stop one sx or another more quickly due to the short live of the drug,  I would be fine and dandy by now.  I was much better going slow and maybe it was not slowly enough for others.  It's all relative to the person. The first rapid I did was so terrifying - I would never suggest that to anyone.  Doctors don't know.  No one knows.  WBB

 

I've read of cases where these drugs, benzos and Z-drugs, are so toxic to some people that they have to do a rapid taper to get off them as quickly (and safely) as possible. In other words, staying on them for any length of time is causing more health problems than the withdrawal would.

 

In my case, I was already taking the longer half-life Ativan, so the 6 week rapid taper from Ambien went rather smoothly. But now that the Ambien is history and I'm tapering off Ativan only, I see the the value of the very slow taper!

 

If I had been taking a Z-drug only, no additional benzo I'm sure I would have went the slow taper route with that, too. I wonder what it's like to withdraw from the Z-drug by itself, but I'll take the word of those that have that it is none too pleasant.

 

I think it just depends on what is going on. I was in a decent place by the time that I decided to go to detox for ambien. I had been off of klonopin for about 6 weeks, had tried to taper ambien and just could not do it on my own, addiction and fear were too strong. A rapid taper with phenobarbital was the more humane way for me. I am still dealing with issues but no way to tell what is from ambien and which from klonopin. I sleep ok at times but I am having tons of nerve and muscle pain again. I am guessing it is the combination  of too many years on both drugs. I can still get out and  live life for the most part but I am in a lot of pain and taking very little pain reliever. I believe in getting moderate exercise and mediation as much as possible.

 

I think the cold winter is making things worse also so I am just slowing down and taking it easy on myself. I am grateful to have my old child grown and I am on disability and my husband helps a ton.

 

I will keep checking on once in awhile to reassure everyone that there really is a good life to look forward to. A year ago I was just barely beginning to see that again!

 

 

What was that medical detox like? I'm just curious as to what they do. I know you mention phenobarbital, are you still taking that, and if not did you have any withdrawal issue from it? I don't hear much about the barbiturates any more. I know that the benzos more or less replaced them because benzos were thought to be safer. But tye barbs and the benzos and alcohol are all related as to the brain receptors they affect.

 

I wish I knew the exact doses, but I was put on it full strength (3 doses. Not sure how much, I might have it in the record though...) I believe for just 1 day so that I was right back off it after a week. It felt quite smooth. I was shocked how easy it went. He first night they had me try buspar and trazadone. The  buspar may have taken the edge off the sudden loss of ambien but trazadone made me sick so I never took it again. I think I took buspar again second night with no problem and I slept decent that night. They also gave me melatonin every night. As time went on I didn't sleep great every night, some nights only a few hours but I felt ok. Everyone there feels like crap so you just sit around listening to talks on mamnaging addiction and go to counseling.

 

I felt good enough to exercise a lot so I did that as much as possible!

[[Lo...]]

Yes, Z-drugs can become an uncontrolled monster once tolerance is reached. When that happens there does not seem to be anyway to avoid major problems. After reading numerous accounts of fellow z-drug users who have crossed that line, I have come to the conclusion that a slow taper from a z-drug once tolerance has been reached only prolongs the withdrawal process.....

 

... but I have not really read about anyone avoiding these trials via the slow taper method once they became tolerant to their z-drug. These drugs just have too short of a half-life in your blood for a slow taper....

I totally disagree!!! SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE! I did a steady taper over 6-7 months or so and have had few problems once off. I am truly amazed at my sleep now! Although I occasionally have a bad night (especially if I mess up and have too much caffeine or have alcohol) I am sleeping @7 hours straight through most nights!!!

 

I had bad insomnia for 25 years!!! A few nights lately I have slept 8-9+ hours - straight through!!! I am getting on with my life. I am not feeling anxious in the daytime either.

 

I do take a few things to help with my sleep. Magnesium Threonate (2 or 3), 1 slow release 3 mg melatonin (which I have taken for past couple of years), 1 Krill oil (I read in Dave Asprey book that it helps with sleep), sometimes 100 mg 5-HTP if I think I've pushed things and may not sleep. My doc says that amount is nothing.

 

I am taking B vitamins and I think they really help. Most in the morning but B6 (P5P) at bedtime as it helps with sleep. I take 100 mg. It is needed for my genetics as determined by the 23andme test. I think knowing and supporting my genetics has really helped me.

 

I do have a problem if I wake in the night. I find it very difficult to get back to sleep UNLESS I carb load. ie eat banana or cookies! Not sure what that is all about. Fortunately it does not happen a lot. I have gained some weight over the past 9 months since starting the taper as I've been having a snack before bed. I'm not happy about the weight gain!

 

I do need to pay attention to sleep hygiene but I am so grateful that I have reached this point. I just want you all to know that there is life after Zopiclone!

 

I wish you all improvement SOON. Season Greetings to All.  LL

[[ga...]]

Thought I would let people know that it is possible to slow taper off of Ambien without cross tapering to Valium.  I recently completed my taper off of 10 mg of Ambien.  I decreased my dose by 5% every three days for about five weeks and was able to go from 10 mg to 5 mg.  It wasn't that bad although I had two bouts of nausea and vomiting.  When I got to 5 mg, it became easier so I increased my cuts to 10% and then when I got to 4 mg, I cut .5 mg per night.  I took one 25 mg. tablet of benadryl which seemed to help with sleep.  I also take 50 mg of Vistaril (hydroxyzine) which is an antihistamine similar to benadryl but it works a bit differently. It helps me back to sleep if I wake up in the night.

 

Now I am ready to tackle the taper off of 1.75 mg of Ativan.  My doctor is going to cross taper me to Valium.  I hope this will encourage those who are kindled like me and have to go slowly with the taper off of a Z drug while also on another benzo. 

[[19...]]

Can anybody tell me what to expect from zopiclone withdrawal . Taking 7.5mg and 2mg diazapam.  I need some support

 

 

 

 

[[Na...]]

Can anybody tell me what to expect from zopiclone withdrawal . Taking 7.5mg and 2mg diazapam.  I need some support

 

How long have you been taking these respective drugs?

 

I got off eszopiclone which is the active isomer of the drug you are taking, so very similar.  I was on that drug and ambien before that for 18 years.  It has been a rough road but I'm better off than I was when I was on it.

 

I jumped off after a long taper and things weren't *too* bad for about 2 weeks, then was hit with acute withdrawal.  I'm not gonna lie to you, it wasn't pretty.  And I'm still suffering some issues after almost 18 months.  But, long term this stuff is poison.  If you stay on it you're only headed in one direction .... down. 

 

 

[[me...]]

Thought I would let people know that it is possible to slow taper off of Ambien without cross tapering to Valium.  I recently completed my taper off of 10 mg of Ambien.  I decreased my dose by 5% every three days for about five weeks and was able to go from 10 mg to 5 mg.  It wasn't that bad although I had two bouts of nausea and vomiting.  When I got to 5 mg, it became easier so I increased my cuts to 10% and then when I got to 4 mg, I cut .5 mg per night.  I took one 25 mg. tablet of benadryl which seemed to help with sleep.  I also take 50 mg of Vistaril (hydroxyzine) which is an antihistamine similar to benadryl but it works a bit differently. It helps me back to sleep if I wake up in the night.

 

Congratulations Gardenlady--I know you were having a tough time, sounds like things are doing okay now? I'm curious about why you are crossing over to Valium--are you really uncomfortable on the Ativan?

[[me...]]

Can anybody tell me what to expect from zopiclone withdrawal . Taking 7.5mg and 2mg diazapam.  I need some support

Dobby--how long have you been on zopiclone? Also how long on diazepam? Have you tried to stop taking it before? You should be able to taper it without too much issue, as it has a longer half-life, and you have the diazepam as a back up drug. Sleep will be bumpy for a while, there's no getting around that, but it will improve over time.

 

Also noticed you may have some neuropathy issues (like me)--are you on other drugs such as an opioid?