cold turkey less than two weeks. hospitalized once already.

I would think you could use the ashton manual and look up your K equivalent in valium and add your 5 mg valium dose and start there.  If you can keep getting rx'd both benzos, then you could do a slow crossover over a period of months.  I think the erratic way you are dosing cant be helping your brain.  You really need to make a plan and go forward with the reinstatement or CT.. whichever you chose.

So I am out of the hospital and I am reviewing everyone's posts and advice. Thank you for your input. I was thinking, instead of reinstating on both klonopin and valium, to just simply take the valium.....I mean, I might experience some discomfort but I am not going to have a seizure from ceasing one benzo while I am still on another. What is the worst that can happen?

Ok so I have not yet reinstated. I have taken a few rescue doses until I figure out what to do. I am once again pushing through today without any medication with my head about to explode, pressure and tension building, muscle tightness and twitching, electrical currents, bouncing thoughts and fears -- but this is all typical withdrawal as I have come to read. I saw a doctor today who basically said, 'well you're here alive and talking coherently to me since cold turkey so that means something". Someone had to drive me to that doctor, however, because I was shaking too much to drive and my perception seemed detached from concrete objects so I didn't trust my visual capacities.

Remember right now you are in the acute phase of withdrawal.  As miserable as your symptoms are they are part for the course. This horrible phase on average lasts 4 to 6 weeks with noticeable Improvement felt after.

 

Remember right now you are in the acute phase of withdrawal.  As miserable as your symptoms are they are part for the course. This horrible phase on average lasts 4 to 6 weeks with noticeable Improvement felt after.

 

Thank you for the reassurance. The reason why I am panicking is because I need to return to work soon and I am running out of excuses as to why I cannot continue at the present moment. I am thinking I am going to need at least another 2 weeks of rest during this, right? I have like two weeks behind me with a short two day reinstatement and tiny rescue doses.

Can you go on short term disability.. and stay out for a couple months if you need to?

Can you go on short term disability.. and stay out for a couple months if you need to?

 

No it is not an option with my career, unfortunately. I am seeing my primary care doctor tomorrow finally to figure this all out.....I am scared about what she will say since she is anti-drug and I am so afraid she will really cut me off.

"rescue doses" are no longer rescue doss if you continually do them. Your ct is bringing about symptoms that you are unable to tolerate hence your continual rescue doses. If you are unable to tolerate symptoms without rescue doses then you need to do a valium taper. Do the lowest dose possible of valium to where the symptoms are tolerable and then taper from there. Its really that simple. I played the "rescue dose" game for six months ie doing one or two ativan per week but i literally HAD to take them to lower my spiking bp-not because i couldnt tolerate the symptoms although they were hell. I WISH id have done a reasonable valium taper because i know my symptoms have been made worse by detoxing with weekly rescue doses vs. a reasonable taper. You must make up your mind whether you truly wanna do this or not-realise it aint gonna be "fun", at all, then just do it. It will be the most difficult challenge of your entire life. And i can guarantee you that it will be all the more difficult if you stop for a week or two and then do a rescue dose vs. doing a tolerable taper even though the taper- wont be like disneyland it wont be double the hell of a cold turkey either. Good luck!

Unfortunately the so called acute phase after cold turkey does not always last 4 to 6 weeks it lasted 6 months for me before I did the best thing and reinstated which literally saved my life. Some people are non-functioning for years after cold turkey. How anyone can recommend you remain in a non-functioning state rather than consider reinstate renders me lost for words.

I need to read the last two posts but i have to say that my medicine is no longer working! I take it and nothing happens on! What is going? Do i have to take a whole load of it, more than ever??? How did i develop this resistance to ti?!how can i taper with this resistance?? The electric current, anxiety,  and muscle tension used to go away when i took my medicine but it now remains. How much do i need to take for it to go away? This is so weird!!!

I need to read the last two posts but i have to say that my medicine is no longer working! I take it and nothing happens on! What is going? Do i have to take a whole load of it, more than ever??? How did i develop this resistance to ti?!how can i taper with this resistance?? The electric current, anxiety,  and muscle tension used to go away when i took my medicine but it now remains. How much do i need to take for it to go away? This is so weird!!!

 

You may may reached tolerance where it is no longer effective. it is a tough place to be in. Even with a updose you may not be able to truly stabilize, and tolerance to a higher dose could be reached quickly.  Those are both risks when reinstating. Had the rescue doses brought you relief I might think differently. I wish I had an answer for you. I hate to see anyone go through this.

 

I need to read the last two posts but i have to say that my medicine is no longer working! I take it and nothing happens on! What is going? Do i have to take a whole load of it, more than ever??? How did i develop this resistance to ti?!how can i taper with this resistance?? The electric current, anxiety,  and muscle tension used to go away when i took my medicine but it now remains. How much do i need to take for it to go away? This is so weird!!!

 

You may may reached tolerance where it is no longer effective. it is a tough place to be in. Even with a updose you may not be able to truly stabilize, and tolerance to a higher dose could be reached quickly.  Those are both risks when reinstating. Had the rescue doses brought you relief I might think differently. I wish I had an answer for you. I hate to see anyone go through this.

 

How can you reach tolerance during a cold turkey?!

I need to read the last two posts but i have to say that my medicine is no longer working! I take it and nothing happens on! What is going? Do i have to take a whole load of it, more than ever??? How did i develop this resistance to ti?!how can i taper with this resistance?? The electric current, anxiety,  and muscle tension used to go away when i took my medicine but it now remains. How much do i need to take for it to go away? This is so weird!!!

 

You may may reached tolerance where it is no longer effective. it is a tough place to be in. Even with a updose you may not be able to truly stabilize, and tolerance to a higher dose could be reached quickly.  Those are both risks when reinstating. Had the rescue doses brought you relief I might think differently. I wish I had an answer for you. I hate to see anyone go through this.

 

How can you reach tolerance during a cold turkey?!

 

rescue doses that are not effective makes me think that if you may have reached tolerance to the drug. By reinstating you could reach tolerance quickly even with a higher dose. Am I correct that you have reinstated with no luck? You talked about resistance to it??

Nevermind. I just took quadruple my dose and its kicking in. Welp.....looks as if I'm back on the benz! Feel better than ever reinstating on 4 times what i used to take. Euphoria!!!!i wish this amazing feeling could way forever and ever. I've never felt so happy in my life. It's like being drunk and i don't even drink. Haha...yea. I know it's not funny....but then again, it is. I'm officially a drug addict and benzos will probably kill me in the end!!! Benzo binge from here on. Luckily i have like 4 bottles extra since i always took less than prescribed. Screw this tapering add cold turkey crap. I want to feel good again and a whole load of benzos make me feel AMAZING

You know what heightens the effect of benzos? Tums and antacids! I took a huge dose of antacids before my dinner totally forgetting that they do this.

You know what heightens the effect of benzos? Tums and antacids! I took a huge dose of antacids before my dinner totally forgetting that they do this.

 

I did not know that. I am sorry.

You know what heightens the effect of benzos? Tums and antacids! I took a huge dose of antacids before my dinner totally forgetting that they do this.

 

I did not know that. I am sorry.

 

Don't be sorry. I feel absolutely fantastic. Never have been better.

We all want to feel better but that is not the way.  You are making yourself worse playing around like this.  It's not fun and it's not a joke.  Please stop...

We all want to feel better but that is not the way.  You are making yourself worse playing around like this.  It's not fun and it's not a joke.  Please stop...

 

I am just some random benzo girl on the internet. There is no way you could possibly care, ha. But really I am going to taper beginning tomorrow. I have a plan set up with my doctor. I just wanted one blast of feeling better (which I haven't felt in forever) before I dive into pure hell: the hell of not eating, of not being able to give a crap about anyone else but my own suffering, the hell of trying to fake comfort while I am working (if I even make it) when all I really want to do is go home and curl up in a ball and stare at a wall, the hell of becoming like a disabled cripple: unable to go grocery shopping, do regular errands, or take care of myself; the hell of being a pathetic girl begging my doctors to ease my suffering, counting pills, watching the clock for the next dose; the fear of dying because I might actually have an underlying medical disorder which requires benzos to live. This all begins tomorrow. I believe she is doing a fast taper that will bring me down to nothing within 3 months. But she promises me I wont die!!!! Ugh. If I do die, I told my family and friends to sue her.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Tapering from reinstatement does not have to be hell but I wouldn't recommend starting to taper right away you need to stabilise on aset dose for a while before starting well that's what Pam Armstrong advised me to do sadly she is no longer with us. You need to be in control of your taper as well not your doctor and cut based on symptoms not a date in the diary. It took me three doctors before I found one that said I have no plans you're in charge as long as you make progress it's a marathon not a sprint he is awesome. I do not cut before day 21 as I often get some withdrawals towards the end of week 3 (that is also advice from bataid from the British national formulary and nice guidelines Ashton though setting the way is woefully out of date I wouldn't show it to any doctor. Sometimes I have cut on day 28 it varies. But having reinstated and taking a long time to stabilise which was semi hell this advice is allowing me to be back at work and look after my 2 kids and continue my doctorate. So in a nutshell beware of a doctor led plan. Good luck.

We all want to feel better but that is not the way.  You are making yourself worse playing around like this.  It's not fun and it's not a joke.  Please stop...

 

I am just some random benzo girl on the internet. There is no way you could possibly care, ha. But really I am going to taper beginning tomorrow. I have a plan set up with my doctor. I just wanted one blast of feeling better (which I haven't felt in forever) before I dive into pure hell: the hell of not eating, of not being able to give a crap about anyone else but my own suffering, the hell of trying to fake comfort while I am working (if I even make it) when all I really want to do is go home and curl up in a ball and stare at a wall, the hell of becoming like a disabled cripple: unable to go grocery shopping, do regular errands, or take care of myself; the hell of being a pathetic girl begging my doctors to ease my suffering, counting pills, watching the clock for the next dose; the fear of dying because I might actually have an underlying medical disorder which requires benzos to live. This all begins tomorrow. I believe she is doing a fast taper that will bring me down to nothing within 3 months. But she promises me I wont die!!!! Ugh. If I do die, I told my family and friends to sue her.

 

Actually I do care and I am hoping all the best for you.  Yeah its sucks and its scary...I really do understand that...good luck with the taper...