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2011 BBC online article plus radio program: Life addicted to prescription drugs


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Hi All,

I'm not sure if this link has already been shared, but there's a BBC online article about the effects of benzodiazepine dependence and the extent of the problem in the UK. I highly suggest you also listen to radio program called "Face The Facts", which can be accessed by clicking on the highlighted link at the bottom of the article.

 

NB. I notice the use of the word "addiction" here. In my (North American) understanding, that term refers to people who engage in "drug-seeking behaviour" and who take increasing amounts of a substance in order to reach a desired effect, despite knowing the dangers of doing so. Another, less blame-the-victim description might be "iatrogenic physiological dependence", which could refer to people who took the medication as prescribed by a medical practitioner. I'm unaware if the term "addiction" has different meanings in different parts of the world, e.g. UK vs. North America.

 

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-14299501

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[3f...]

Thanks for posting, Lapis2.

 

What I find very alarming is the fact that all of this was known many, many years ago.

 

Here's a documentary I found. Keep in mind it's from 1987:

 

Dangers of Benzodiazapenes - Part 1 - Youtube

 

Dangers of Benzodiazapenes - Part 2 - Youtube

 

I'm not sure at what point this will be stopped. It just seems to be getting worse.

 

Part 2 shows a much younger Dr. Ashton. I'm so glad she didn't lose faith and kept up her research and shared it with us. That part gives me hope.

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Yes, the UK is ahead but still, GP lobbying group saying the drugs are great, and that they have reformed their prescribing practices. In the radio version, it's interesting that they intimate that fear of huge legal costs are what keeps it all under cover, with government complicity - it has to be the only way that this has stayed under the radar for 30 years.
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Of course, I think the legal issue is potentially very big. But I do feel heartened to think that prescribing practices are changing somewhere. I feel so strongly that this problem should be prevented as much as possible. I doubt anyone is working on a true cure, but at the very least, if no more people have to experience this hell, I'd say that things are moving forward.

 

We need some leaders, and perhaps, the UK GPs are playing that role. I hope others will follow the lead.

 

 

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[3f...]

Hi All,

I'm not sure if this link has already been shared, but there's a BBC online article about the effects of benzodiazepine dependence and the extent of the problem in the UK. I highly suggest you also listen to radio program called "Face The Facts", which can be accessed by clicking on the highlighted link at the bottom of the article.

 

NB. I notice the use of the word "addiction" here. In my (North American) understanding, that term refers to people who engage in "drug-seeking behaviour" and who take increasing amounts of a substance in order to reach a desired effect, despite knowing the dangers of doing so. Another, less blame-the-victim description might be "iatrogenic physiological dependence", which could refer to people who took the medication as prescribed by a medical practitioner. I'm unaware if the term "addiction" has different meanings in different parts of the world, e.g. UK vs. North America.

 

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-14299501

 

Hi, Lapis.

 

Okay, I just listened to the radio part (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b012wxxw) for the second time.

 

At 19:53, the interview turns to Dr. Clare Gerada who is Chair of Clinical Board, Primary Care Transformation, NHS England (London Region). I live in the states, so I'm not exactly sure what that means, but it sounds important.

 

She says that benzo withdrawal is not a problem and prescribing rates are going down (even though the interviewer gives her statistics that contradict that).

 

She responds that she doesn't see a problem. But she states that "some people may be on them for life." So basically that's her answer for how to solve the problem.

 

Wow. You know what they say about addiction - the first step is to admit there is a problem. If doctors can't admit it, how are they going to find a solution?

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Hi,

First, the NHS is the National Health Service.

 

One of the (long) medical journal articles I read featured the perspectives of doctors in a certain region in the UK. There was a notable difference between the prescribing practices and attitudes of the younger doctors vs. the older ones. The older ones felt the benzos were fine -- perhaps a good way to keep everyone quiet-- but the younger ones wanted to do things differently and to get people off the drugs. In order to get a wider picture of the issue, it would be important to look at details like that.

 

In a related experience, I recently spoke to someone who had completed some psychology studies at an undergraduate level, and she had taken a whole course on the side effects and withdrawal effects of medication. I was thrilled to hear it! Hopeful news.

 

 

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Yessiree! I was starting to tell her a bit about my experience, and she sort of said, "Yup, yup, I know. I just studied that."

 

"Woohoo," I thought! "They're studying it!"

 

Yes, we must be hopeful (....she said, timidly, wondering if she could really be hopeful.....).

 

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That they are studying this stuff is really great news.

 

They are starting to understand. I have some friends who tried to withdraw and failed and decided to stay on for life, with their doctors' support. On the other end of the spectrum, my doctor said, "clearly, the right thing for you is to be off all medication," and he supports me in this. I have no doubt that he has other patients on for life, and that he supports them too.

 

This might be the new GP trend - let the patient choose, (usually without giving us all the info) and supporting whatever the patient choses.

 

The new findings re: Alzheimer's and Dementia may through a wrench into this approach. We are going to see many botched and horrific tapers in the near future.

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Okay, I just listened to the radio part (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b012wxxw) for the second time.

 

At 19:53, the interview turns to Dr. Clare Gerada who is Chair of Clinical Board, Primary Care Transformation, NHS England (London Region). I live in the states, so I'm not exactly sure what that means, but it sounds important.

 

She says that benzo withdrawal is not a problem and prescribing rates are going down (even though the interviewer gives her statistics that contradict that).

 

She responds that she doesn't see a problem. But she states that "some people may be on them for life." So basically that's her answer for how to solve the problem.

 

Wow. You know what they say about addiction - the first step is to admit there is a problem. If doctors can't admit it, how are they going to find a solution?

 

Hiya MindSeeker.  Dr. Clare Gerada's comments suprised a lot of people. If you are interested, there is a discussion here. http://www.benzo.org.uk/perrott11.htm

 

Clare Gerada is very influential in the U.K. but sadly she does not seem to acknowledge the extent and severity of benzo dependency.

 

 

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[3f...]

Okay, I just listened to the radio part (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b012wxxw) for the second time.

 

At 19:53, the interview turns to Dr. Clare Gerada who is Chair of Clinical Board, Primary Care Transformation, NHS England (London Region). I live in the states, so I'm not exactly sure what that means, but it sounds important.

 

She says that benzo withdrawal is not a problem and prescribing rates are going down (even though the interviewer gives her statistics that contradict that).

 

She responds that she doesn't see a problem. But she states that "some people may be on them for life." So basically that's her answer for how to solve the problem.

 

Wow. You know what they say about addiction - the first step is to admit there is a problem. If doctors can't admit it, how are they going to find a solution?

 

Hiya MindSeeker.  Dr. Clare Gerada's comments suprised a lot of people. If you are interested, there is a discussion here. http://www.benzo.org.uk/perrott11.htm

 

Clare Gerada is very influential in the U.K. but sadly she does not seem to acknowledge the extent and severity of benzo dependency.

 

Hi, Braban. I'm interested. Thanks! Just printed it out so I can read it on the subway ride home.  :thumbsup:

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Hey Qui-Gon,

It's great to hear that your doctor is supportive of your efforts and goals! Of course, I aware that many others prefer to stay on the medications "for life", which is sad. But I think that the benzo-Alzheimers studies that recently came out might give a push towards getting people off them -- safely, I hope.

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[3f...]

I meant to say, "I'm aware...." I can blame lack of sleep and dizziness for typos like that. :-(

 

Ha! I think it was back in May or June when most of my posts didn't have capital letters. Took too much effort to push the "shift" key!  :crazy:

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Yes, and look at you now! You've got capital letters, punctuation and some very good sentence structure. You're making progress!
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[3f...]

Yes, and look at you now! You've got capital letters, punctuation and some very good sentence structure. You're making progress!

 

Yes, and I can actually feel the progress in my brain. Not sure how to describe it.

 

For a long time, I kept mixing up words like "why" and "way" and my brain just couldn't process the difference.

 

Lapis, your write like you didn't have cog fog. I really wish I could get rid of it. It takes forever to post a few lines.

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