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Crushing Fatigue Support Group


[Ma...]

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The crushing fatigue seems to be my worst symptom in this Benzo tolerance and taper. Since it seems that fatigue is certainly a symptom, it does not seem to be mentioned as much as the sleeplessness, electrical sensations, etc.

 

So, I wanted to start a support for those of us that spend our bad days in bed or on the sofa.

 

Can anyone describe they’re fatigue and has anyone found relief for this horrible symptom?

 

My mornings are full of trying to get up, then I’m on the sofa. I seem to be cold most of the time as well!

 

Please tell us about your fatigue and anything you have learned about helping!

 

Thank you,

Mark

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  • 1 month later...

Same here. Crushing fatigue. Three months off. Got a bit better for a month after getting off v. The past two months have been hell.

 

sila

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  • 4 weeks later...

Really, really severe fatigue here - like a dementor had sucked the life out of me and can barely sit upright. Stuck on the couch all bloody day just cruising the internet.  Also very, very weak and feel heavy and can barely walk up the stairs --- and  I am 22 months off and no break from this half dead feeling.

Ceejay.

 

I have even resorted to taking some organic guarana and it hardly helps....

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I’ve come to believe that sleep apnea is a critical contributing factor to the extreme weakness and fatigue. I’m already diagnosed with mild sleep apnea. Seventeen days ago I raised the minimum pressure on my APAP machine. Lo and behold, I started getting deep and real sleep for the first time in many years. My apnea-hypopnea (AHI) score dropped well into the normal zone too.

 

Yesterday morning I woke up feeling normal. Yes, normal. I was able to go for a two mile walk on the nearby beach bluffs. It wasn’t easy, but I was able to do it. This morning I woke up feeling pretty good too. I’ve been on the couch glued to my phone for months prior.

 

The effects of successful sleep apnea therapy are cumulative.

 

I think that anyone coming off benzos and experiencing crushing weakness and fatigue should consider getting sleep apnea testing. This may well be an underexplored phenomenon. Just saying.

 

sila

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This is one of my worst symptoms. As soon as I open my eyes, I feel the severe exhaustion crushing me. It’s not regular tiredness or sleepiness, but more of a sick exhaustion. I feel it in my shoulders. Sometimes it feels like I’m wearing a backpack full of rocks. I push through and exercise and work.

 

Sila, interesting regarding the apnea. My fiancé says she sees me choke and wake myself up sometimes. I don’t want to spend the money on a sleep study if it’s just benzos, but you make me wonder if an apnea machine could help.

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I carry my fatigue in my clenched shoulders as well. Neck too.

 

Got cortisol bloodwork results back yesterday. Bottomed out. Not quite Addison’s disease, but lower than the lowest normal in the reference range. Mid morning blood draw rather than the usual early AM cortisol draw which shows reasonable cortisol numbers. Another link to the fatigue and weakness. This shit hammers adrenals.

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I carry my fatigue in my clenched shoulders as well. Neck too.

 

Got cortisol bloodwork results back yesterday. Bottomed out. Not quite Addison’s disease, but lower than the lowest normal in the reference range. Mid morning blood draw rather than the usual early AM cortisol draw which shows reasonable cortisol numbers. Another link to the fatigue and weakness. This shit hammers adrenals.

 

Interesting. I’m sending off a saliva test this week. Apnea and adrenal fatigue are what I wonder about, but always just chalk it up to the benzos. Interested to see how my cortisol test comes back.

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Seems to me that sleep apnea, adrenal fatigue and benzo withdrawal synergistically promote each other. I wonder if getting one of them under control spontaneously causes remission of the others.
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Should we give in to the fatigue and rest, or should we fight it? I’ve been fighting it. I workout and do manual labor all day. It’s tough, but I can’t just stay in the sofa all day. I have had days off where I rested all day. Not sure it does anything to get me “caught up” on rest. What do y’all think?
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Right now I’m getting my DHEA and pregnenolone levels tested. Likely both of these are depleted in withdrawal. Deficiency in either causes fatigue.
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I’m experimenting with oral pregnenolone, 30 mg. Started yesterday. It’s making a positive difference in regards to energy. I’m impressed.
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So far so good. Within minutes of taking 30 mg pregnenolone, solid energy with minimal weakness and fatigue. Walked two miles on beach bluffs yesterday; two miles on beach today. It’s not perfect; still dealing with energy crashes. Hell of a lot better than living on the couch.
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That’s great! Glad it’s working for you. I get my cortisol results back on the 18th. Took the day off today and skipped the usual crazy Saturday CrossFit workout. It was nice to relax. Felt decent this morning. Got some sun and moved around a little bit, but mostly rested. I think I’m going to tone down the exercise. It’s hard for me because I love it, but might be necessary.
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I just hiked...hiked...up a local mountain trail today, three days into pregnenolone. Hopefully you won’t have to cut back on exercise much, if at all! 
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How’s everyone in the group doing? I had adrenaline surge and 4 am wake up today and it’s crushing my soul. Can’t even express how done with this sh*t I am. Extreme and sickening exhaustion and now I have to live the entire day. No such thing as weekends in benzo wd. Total insanity.
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  • 2 weeks later...
[5a...]
I have nerve crushing muscle exhaustion and severe chronic fatigue. My legs, arms, throat are so weak that in feel as if I have ALS/a motor neuron disease, yet doctors find nothing wrong with me. The lower I get, the less I can walk or even eat. I can sometimes manage to get myself to my car so my husband can drive me to appointments but otherwise, I'm laying down, unable to do more than surf the internet on my phone. My weakness is so bad that I was put on disability. Anyway, this is all because of nervous system damage from benzos.
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I wish this thread was more active.... Has anyone found anything helpful for the morning fatigue?? (Aside from coffee) Vitamins and minerals? Teas? Certain foods? Exercise? Yoga?
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Pregnenolone: 

 

please be careful using this.  It is a steroid and all steroids bind to GABA receptors.  This is probably why the pregnenolone gave relief from the WD fatigue.  Be sure to carefully taper (just like a benzo) when/if you discontinue.

 

I am having a helluva of a time with fatigue and body ache from a steroid shot (1 year now), so steroids are not an answer ... sorry.

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