Withdrawal from multiple prescription medication

I am being withdrawn from lamictal, gabapentin, and valium. The valium withdrawal has been at a halt for several months due to several other mental health problems. It was hard coming off the gabapentin, but I used cbd oil to counteract that. The CBD oil, though it had a minimal amount of thc in it was very effective. However, after using it everyday, it stopped helping me. From last summer to winter break, I had tapered down from 4500mg of gabapentin to 1800mg of gabapentin and my lamictal dropped by 200mg. I was doing pretty well during winter break, mental health wise, I was having some anxiety but my mood was worse. However, starting this year, things started going downhill. I am depressed to the point where I can barely think and move. My body has no energy whatsoever, and I am having the weirdest phobias which have completely consumed my mind. Could it be a result of the CBD oil I have used or perhaps the effects of reducing dosages in gabapentin and lamictal? I am not sure if I want to talk to my doctor about CBD oil since my last doctor treated me like a drug addict after, and I don't want my current doctor to feel like I betrayed him and as a result cut me off my prescriptions (especially valium because unfortunately I am dependent on him for that). What is your opinions on my sudden mood changes/phobais? Could it be the CBD oil, reducing my medications, or is it the valium withdrawal catching up to me? Please let me know your thoughts. I appreciate it.

I don't think it's CBD oil. It's normal that you developed tolerance so it stopped working for you. But, you should check CBD interactions with the other drugs that you take because metabolism could've been affected, resulting in higher plasma concentrations of the drugs. So, when you quit CBD it might have had similar effect as doing a rapid taper. But these are just my thoughts. Perhaps it's simply from reducing drugs plus the valium tolerance has developed.

I am tapering Lamictal at the moment and got these symptoms, too. I highly doubt that the CBD is causing any of this.

You should taper the valium first and get off that before tapering other drugs.  Tapering the other drugs first can make things worse than they need to be.  One of those websites that sells supplements for benzo withdrawal says this and it's helped me but right now I can't remember the name of the site.  Oh, it was  www.theroadback.org  I don't use their supplements but they gave some helpful advice on generally how to taper.

Aqua

It sounds like you have a lot of determination.

I would definitely get off the benzos first —- you need your gaba receptors in better shape before you reduce the rest.

Good luck. Please let another poly user ( thanks to my doc) know how you get on!

Dick 

We can't assume that CBD has no interaction with other drugs. Check this out:

 

CBD is a potent inhibitor of CYP3A4 and CYP2D6.

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As CYP3A4 metabolizes about a quarter of all drugs, CBD may increase serum concentrations of macrolides, calcium channel blockers, benzodiazepines, cyclosporine, sildenafil (and other PDE5 inhibitors), antihistamines, haloperidol, antiretrovirals, and some statins (atorvastatin and simvastatin, but not pravastatin or rosuvastatin).

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CYP2D6 metabolizes many antidepressants, so CBD may increase serum concentrations of SSRIs, tricyclic antidepressants, antipsychotics, beta blockers and opioids (including codeine and oxycodone).

 

It's from this site:

 

https://doh.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/doh/publication/attachments/Medical%20Cannabis%20Adverse%20Effects%20and%20Drug%20Interactions_0.pdf

 

I was searching for the reason that I was having such a g**awful time with my Lipitor and then I read an article about how CBD mj hijacks the drug elimination system called the Psychtochrome P450 system, basically making the s/x of (in my case) Lipitor about 20X worse.

 

So . . . the takeway from this (and other articles about the interactions of drugs and CBD . . . just google the two terms together and you'll get many articles) is that CBD has significant interactions with many drugs, including benzos.

 

I know many on here will not want to hear this, but . . .

 

I was shocked.

 

Hope this helps someone.

 

Katz

Taper off the Valium first. Gabapentin will make sure you don’t seize when you taper off the Valium.