The Big Sleep: Canada's Dangerous Love Affair With Tranquilizers

Hi,

I guess the title speaks for itself in this 2012 article:

http://www.canada.com/health/sleep+Canada+dangerous+love+affair+with+tranquillizers/6924323/story.html

Thank you for your links to these articles, Lapis!

There are so many differing views that it's hard to get a consensus on anything when it comes to benzos. There was a thread going for quite awhile here about banning benzos altogether vs. keeping them legal because there have been people here on BB who say they have greatly benefited from them. It was quite heated. Personally, on Klonopin, I felt as if I were hit over the head with a sledgehammer and that I might as well have had a frontal lobotomy, my brain was so screwed up. And it takes a hell of a very long time to even feel halfway normal again.

Hi Terry38,

I believe these medications do have their place in medicine. They should be used judiciously, i.e. in small amounts and for short periods of time. As most people here know, they become problematic when the doses are large and the timeframes become lengthy. So banning them outright seems extreme to me.

I've read a lot of literature on this topic, and from what I can tell, there's agreement that benzodiazepines are meant for short-term use. Some indications are for 2-4 weeks, while others might say a slightly longer time. I think the problem lies in how they are ACTUALLY used. It seems to me that there's a systemic problem, so likely a number of things need to change -- knowledge, attitudes, prescribing practices, informed consent, follow-up, etc. It's not just one factor; it's many.

I'm so glad that there's a section on this website for information sharing. Thanks, Terry38, for responding!

Regards,

Lapis2