Jump to content

Will this go away?


[...]

Recommended Posts

I'm very much in need of reassurance. I've been taking care of my son who had his last dose around December 10th, not knowing anything about benzos. He had been taking dilasedan as needed since October, suffering interdose wd, and stopped ct unknowingly.

Since then symptoms have been intense dizziness, light and sound sensitivity, myoclonic jerks (have diminished), gi issues. Since yesterday the dizziness has increased terribly and he also has ongoing tinnitus. His mood is getting worse and worse, questioning that this is wd and that he will heal. He really is desperate and I'm finding it very hard to keep trusting that he will Indeed get better. I'm particularly scared of the tinnitus because I read here that it can become chronic.

I'm the only person keeping him from going to the ER and begin this whole process again, but it's taking a toll on my resilience as well.

He was doing fairly good until it all went downhill again.

Please tell me if his symptoms are normal and can abate in time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am sorry to hear that you and your son are going through this. My heart goes out to you.

 

He is still very early in the recovery process. I trust that things will continue to improve for him. Are you aware of the waves and windows pattern that can occur for some people withdrawing from benzos? Although doctors tell us these meds are "out of our systems," our systems are still processing and reconfiguring, and it just takes time. It could take 3-6 months, maybe more in some cases.

 

Reinstating the medication doesn't mean the symptoms will necessarily go away. It has risks and can actually make things worse for some people.

 

Tinnitus can disappear at any time, even if it is considered "chronic." Some members have had it for weeks, months, and even years, and it has disappeared. So please tell him he is not stuck with this symptom.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Rebecca29 is right, your son is very early in the process, it takes months and years to recover depending on length of use, genetics, general health, age and who know’s what else?  But I’m hopeful that since he’s young (I’m assuming he is) he’ll recover sooner rather than later but it will still take months.

 

I developed tinnitus while I was recovering and it went away so try not to panic about his. 

 

I have a friend who is going through this and he only took Ambien and he’s had just about every test imaginable in the last couple of months.  4 ER visits, 5 cat scans, an endoscopy, a colonoscopy, ultrasounds of his kidneys, liver, appendix, gall bladder and countless blood tests, all normal.  I keep telling him it’s the Ambien and he believes me until the fear gets to him and he heads to the hospital.

 

You’re doing the right thing in reassuring him but I know you have doubts too, we all do when faced with the pain of our loved one but if your son’s situation is anything like my friends then I think we can pretty much say for sure what this is and there isn’t anything the medical profession can do for them.  Its up to his body to fix this and it is but it’s just not happening fast enough for any of us.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I echo what Pamster said because I have lived it. I have also heard many stories of people getting misdiagnosed with other conditions they did not have while in withdrawal and put on medications they did not need. So I have guarded against that.

 

After six ER visits, a hospitalization, multiple doctor visits, and tests (CT, MRI, blood, etc.), everything came back normal despite my symptoms.

 

I was told by a benzo expert that there is no scientifically proven method to help withdrawal symptoms, so anything I do to try to help the symptoms would be considered "experimental." I would rather not risk it personally. I have thought about it. If you look at my posts, I have considered taking other medications during this process. But everything has a side effect profile, and I already have enough of those.

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you Rebecca29 and Pamster for your replies, that really helps. It is so hard to see a loved one going through this, I'd happily take over his symptoms myself if I could. I'm trying to calm him down over and over again all day but I notice I'm vulnerable to the benzo líes myself, when he tells me he must be having something else and that he's probably dying it does make me doubt myself.

Last night he was feeling so bad, with intense dizziness and flu like symptoms, he could barely walk, had to help him to the bathroom. I've never seen him look so bad, it scared me. And he has so much anxiety, I ended up sleeping on the floor next to his bed because he didn't want to be alone.

Your replies help a lot, I'll try to tell him and myself that he'll heal (he's in his early 20s so still young). It really is hard when you can't resort to other medications, we're probably all used to quick fixes whenever we're sick, but now I'm also wary of trying out other medications to help with these symptoms. I used to be very trusting of the medical community, it's very scary to realize they don't know as much as it seems.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am no expert but am having a very similar experience to your son. I on the advice is my gp went cut off of 1.75 mg of ativan in Nov. The next 3 weeks were hell on earth. I couldn’t take it anymore and asked to go to the hospital. Luckily I was put in contact with a very helpful and understanding psychiatrist. He was the first doctor who agreed with me that this was indeed withdrawal. He put me on a 1 mg of Clonazapam (kept it low because he knows my goal is to be med free) and Paxil for the extreme anxiety and depression I fell into. Most of my physical symptoms are gone and the anxiety and depression is slowly moving to neutral. I will be starting to slowly wean the Clonazapam starting this week. My psychiatrist told me it will be hard but not as hard as going ct. I will be going slow with low dose pills and a compounded solution once needed. I had wanted to go to the hospital earlier in the 3 weeks but kept talking myself out of it. I wish I would have followed my gut and went earlier before I had the panic attacks and the depression set in
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've experienced every last symptom you described. My heart goes out to you and your son. It's difficult but it definitely gets better. You both have to try your best to hang in there. It's a rough and long road, but there are many people (especially here) who are recovering and I believe you both will be rewarded as well.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm the only person keeping him from going to the ER and begin this whole process again, but it's taking a toll on my resilience as well.

He was doing fairly good until it all went downhill again.

Please tell me if his symptoms are normal and can abate in time.

 

This made me appreciate my mom even more since I was that son doing this with her. The symptoms are normal, yet nothing about Benzo wd feels normal. It is also normal that it can get better only to get worse again, which is the most frustrating part. I was roughly the same age as your son, though I got off relatively easy; the unbearable part lasted only a bit over a month after four years of use. By unbearable, I mean I was totally incapacitated, including but not limited to the symptoms you described. Afterwards, I felt like the process was that my body was trying to calibrate every single sensor and part of the body again to function without the benzos: the gi, the ears, the eyes, all parts of the brain, perception, and emotions. It did not do it gently, consistently or in any particular order, but ultimately it got it right, and I did heal as your son will too.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Thank you for your replies, I've only just seen them. Was actually off the forum because I noticed at some point it was giving me some level of anxiety.  It's been about two months since his last dose and there have been changes but it goes so slowly it's almost imperceptible. I'm now at a point where I can believe it myself when I tell him it'll go away but it breaks my heart that he's become so thin and scared and just vulnerable!

 

Dizziness is still very strong, I'd say it's the most invalidating symptom and has kept him bedridden for the last 3 weeks. Last weekend was rough again but not as much as the last time, which was very scary. I suppose it's normal to have symptoms flare up again after a while.

 

I try to take note of the little signs that he is a bit better: being able to sleep, eat without feeling worse, moving his arms and legs with more confidence (before any movement intensified the dizziness and nausea), yesterday he smiled for the first time in weeks. He isn't up to do much as a distraction so he asked me to read to him, not too loud. I think his initial choice of book wasn't the best one as his symptoms increased (it was The Shining), so we went with something lighter instead. I'm now thinking anything can set him off again, he hasn't looked at his phone in weeks and I think it might be stressful once he does again.

 

I was thinking he should take his b12 supplement again (he's been vegan for years so he does need it), he stopped it 3 weeks ago when he had the worst wave. He started on a tiny dose of methylcobalamin to see what happens, I feel like I'm holding my breath every time we make a small change in his diet and routine.

 

I'm really very thankful for this forum, am hearing of so many people with what seem to be benzo-symptoms who have no idea what's happening to them, I'm telling them about our experience so they can inform themselves too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just wanted to add that I read him your reassurances and well wishes and it made us both tear up. This can be such a lonely and scary road and your kindness means so, so much. So thank you again.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Mom,

I just want to share one more thing. Many times during my withdrawal so far, I used to seek comfort in my bed as well. I know this is hard, but in my experience I found that getting out of bed and trying to establish a routine outside of it made me feel better, whether that's hanging out in another room, or going for a walk. I went to a facility for PHP which got everyone out of bed and drove us to another building about 10 minutes away. There were many times I didn't want to go but was forced to. I was resentful at first but in a short time I realized how beneficial that was. The main lesson it taught me was about distress tolerance and that even though I felt horrible I was able to function better than I thought.

 

It just breaks my heart to hear when someone is bedridden due to their withdrawal symptoms. I was there and I just wanted to see if I could help anyone not go through what I did.

 

Once again, your son will feel better over time, and I'm sorry he's had to go through this at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you for your replies, I've only just seen them. Was actually off the forum because I noticed at some point it was giving me some level of anxiety.  It's been about two months since his last dose and there have been changes but it goes so slowly it's almost imperceptible. I'm now at a point where I can believe it myself when I tell him it'll go away but it breaks my heart that he's become so thin and scared and just vulnerable!

 

Dizziness is still very strong, I'd say it's the most invalidating symptom and has kept him bedridden for the last 3 weeks. Last weekend was rough again but not as much as the last time, which was very scary. I suppose it's normal to have symptoms flare up again after a while.

 

I try to take note of the little signs that he is a bit better: being able to sleep, eat without feeling worse, moving his arms and legs with more confidence (before any movement intensified the dizziness and nausea), yesterday he smiled for the first time in weeks. He isn't up to do much as a distraction so he asked me to read to him, not too loud. I think his initial choice of book wasn't the best one as his symptoms increased (it was The Shining), so we went with something lighter instead. I'm now thinking anything can set him off again, he hasn't looked at his phone in weeks and I think it might be stressful once he does again.

 

I was thinking he should take his b12 supplement again (he's been vegan for years so he does need it), he stopped it 3 weeks ago when he had the worst wave. He started on a tiny dose of methylcobalamin to see what happens, I feel like I'm holding my breath every time we make a small change in his diet and routine.

 

I'm really very thankful for this forum, am hearing of so many people with what seem to be benzo-symptoms who have no idea what's happening to them, I'm telling them about our experience so they can inform themselves too.

 

I relate to all of this so much. I had dizziness and it went away. I have been basically bedridden myself. We will be alright I just don’t know when.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...