Anyone Here With Minor Or No WD's After Fast Real Fast Taper or CT?

Sometimes I'd like to have a dialogue with someone like myself.  I know I have submited a few posts telling of my experience and one lady responded

that she CT off many yrs of benzos and had only 1 wk of wd's and that was all. I think I just read about another lady that ct and seem to think she is doing great!

 

I know about 99% of those here are having some bad wd's but was wondering if there's someone that may be reading that had an experience similar to mine but just haven't posted.

 

3 mos and 1 wk then tapered or call it a cut back, the next wk.  Barely had wd's other than the ones I have already mentioned a few times.

Off now 47 days.

If there is anyone similar would be nice to talk with you.

 

Thanks,

Solstice

My girlfriend just quit zoloft and lorazapam after a yr on and didn't suffer anything.  Lucky i guess and this was about 10 yrs ago.  Linder

I took 2mg of Valium for over 10 years and don't remember how I got off...it seemed to just have pooped out ...had I been educated about benzo at that time I would have never sought them out again. I just didn't have a problem stopping that 2mg Valium at all.

 

Thanks for your replies. I think it was Cupcake that gave a few instances of people she knew that ct or came off very fast with no problems whatsoever.

Then again I guess people like that won't come to a forum like this.  I'm here because after I found out about Clonazapem and stopping so quick, I started searching even more and found BB's.  I didn't come on because I was having wd's, it's just that I so afraid I was going to any minute.....Some mentioned I still could have more later on.  I would have thought after 47 days off I should have gotten more than I was having. The only bad sx is the anxiety but I will blame that mostly on reading the horrible stories on a couple of sites. Anxiety can heighten symptoms I believe. Anyway, this has caused me to breathe shallow. When I get my mind off it, it gets better.

 

Solstice

Hello,

 

Great question.

 

I am not a professional in the field by any means,but I have done some rather intensive investigation into benzodiazepine withdrawl,withdrawl syndrome,and protracted withdrawl syndrome,and after literally hundreds of hours of reading,it appears that the experts,(and I use this term loosely in some instances),all seem to agree that only a small minority of benzodiazepine users will develop protracted withdrawl or withdrawl syndrome,and that anywhere from 65% to 80% of benzo dependant individuals can simply and smartly taper,walk away,and never develop protracted withdrawl symptoms.

 

Sounds like you are one of the lucky ones.

 

Unfortunately,(and obviously,due to the very nature of this forum,others like it,and my own personal experiences),we arent all so lucky.

 

Some people suffer for months or even years with protracted withdrawl symptoms even after small doses of benzos,and in many,after only several weeks or months of usage.

 

47 days out with no withdrawl symptoms is a good sign that you may be part of the lucky majority.

 

Count your blessings.

 

Until more doctors and psychiatric professionals learn more about how to manage patients with protracted withdrawl symptoms,the unlucky minority suffers with little or no help at all.

 

Benzodiazepines are banned in many countries due to their addictive and harmful potentials. Of course,here in the US,the drug companies own the FDA,and therefore,many of us fall victim to these dangerous substances.

 

 

In 2002 I had no trouble at all.  Maybe 3 months 3mg/day Xanax, started just cutting out doses as I forgot to take them, no w/d that I noted.  Right now I think I have been on them much longer, at a higher dose at times, and a different drug so I am having to take it slower.  Plus the underlying stress that caused my anxiety to flare in December in the first place didn't really end until two weeks ago, so there's that.

I do have tinnitus which bothers me when it's quiet but had some before this. The thing that bothers me and most of the people here is the anxiety. In the mornings it's  worse and as the day go on it gets better and better and at night I am the most relaxed. Today I kept thinking about my breathing and  almost hyperventilated then I do the breathing exercises.

When you have anxiety, you don't like to leave home either.  Yesterday I did so many things and was more relaxed that I have been in months. Today I keep gasping for air so if I can get my mind off it,  it this does get better. Like I keep saying, mine is mostly nerves from worrying about being on this drug and was afraid I might get more wd's.  I have to keep reminding myself that there's many people that ct or did a fast taper with no wd's and if any very minor.

 

Thanks for responding

Solstice

 

 

 

About 12 yrs ago i quit cold turkey and had NO withdrawl at all. I was on ativan and clonopon at differant times 10 yrs at the time 3 a day 1 mg....Pryor to that i had differant doctors at various times in my life giving me benzos..I was doing alot of reading on positive thinking and listening to Wayne dyer Cd's when driving.I look back and wonder WHY i had no problems.At the time he did not want me to quit them he didn't mention withdrawal he thought i was manic,which i never had a problem with that before in my life....After 2 months and some stress in my life i went back on them and now here i am 10 yrs later.I tried for a couple yrs going from 4 day to 2  and lived in severe withdrawl for several yrs....I didn't know and thought it was my hormones and didn't want to go on synthetic....There were so many times that i was gonna do away with myself, but would think what it would do to my kids,grandkids and husband and i would wake up each day and think MAYBE today will be better.....I thank the universe that a good friend said it could be the benzos and that lead me to google and found the forums and the rest is history.....I was able to find a doc that got me back up to 3 1mg a day for a week and then started the ashton taper......The doc is costly, we have no insurance but so worth it because i got my life back and was doing things again and felt really good UNTIL last week.He had me on 2 amino acids and 1 of them were a liver detox and my chiropractor that i saw on mon. found out i was detoxing WAY to fast and it was bad....3 days off the amino acids and today was a better day for me so I'm hoping it will get even better.....I still wonder why no withdrawl symptoms back then.Could it have been the positive thinking and affirmations that i did threw out the day,who knows.

I did a w/d from Lexotanil in a rehab center. It took three weeks. I had only minor w/d symptoms during the withdrawal. Like walking around with a wool blanket in July because I was freezing, and my feet sweat so much I was swimming in my shoes. My blood pressure also went up to 170. But that was all and it was really bearable.

 

The problems began when I got home though. I thought I was going nuts until my T said it was w/d symptoms.

 

Btw I think its great you started this topic, because not ALL people going through hell for years like I have been reading on here. Sometimes it scares the hell out of you. thx.

Yea, I could hardly find someone like myself. For the past 3 days off and on the only thing that bothers me is the breathing problems and I know that is coming from worrying about all this and the horror stories I have read as well. You wouldn't believe how many time I wanted to go back on if it would help this problem.  I know it would because one time while on the med I was going to church and had started hyperventilating and my husband asked if I want to go back home and I said no, and that I would take a pill.....05mg and less that 40 sec. I felt totally relaxed and breathing good..  I didn't want to take a pill unless I absolutely thought I had to.  So now when I feel this way, I take nothing other than Buspar which is a very weak med. Don't think it ever helped.  Other than this, I would feel normal.....

 

Hope you heal fast......

About 15 years ago, I was using diazepam recreationally in complete ignorance of dependence and withdrawal. I used them fairly regularly for about 5 months with no prior benzo history. I enjoyed them and they helped me. I never got beyond 20 or 30 mg. After I ran out, I missed them with a pleasant nostalgia but went on with my life as usual. I don't remember any withdrawal symptoms and I didn't expect any, back then. There may have been some minor ones but I probably just blamed them on something else.

 

I think for me, I was young and my brain had not altered to the point where it was reprogrammed to expect and depend on benzo's. I just forgot about them. Currently it is a major trauma getting off benzo's after years and years of continual use. In fact, my first experience with them, I think, set me up to see them as something harmless and helpful that weren't a problem for ME. Boy was I wrong.

 

If you had an easy time getting off them. Stay off them. The next time may not be so easy.

 

Mahalo, INY

I have known several people to be on Benzo's and drop it, nothing happened..

I had a friend who was on Valium and Cymbalta a year, he c/t both of them; and nothing.. he says.

Also I know several other people who have dropped medications and nothing happened, I'm not encouraging it or sat cold turkey.

If you are off and got off quickly or c/t and doing better, you're lucky; dodged a bullet, don't take another Benzo again.

 

Keryn.

Good idea. If you are off, stay off.  Count your blessings while you are at it.  A lot of folks plain give up.

Yea, I could hardly find someone like myself. For the past 3 days off and on the only thing that bothers me is the breathing problems and I know that is coming from worrying about all this and the horror stories I have read as well. You wouldn't believe how many time I wanted to go back on if it would help this problem.  I know it would because one time while on the med I was going to church and had started hyperventilating and my husband asked if I want to go back home and I said no, and that I would take a pill.....05mg and less that 40 sec. I felt totally relaxed and breathing good..  I didn't want to take a pill unless I absolutely thought I had to.  So now when I feel this way, I take nothing other than Buspar which is a very weak med. Don't think it ever helped.  Other than this, I would feel normal.....

 

Hope you heal fast......

 

Not for nuthin, but 40 SECONDS???  Um, what kind of pill was that?  could it have been that you just felt in your head that the pill would relax you, so you just relaxed?  In any event, you are among the lucky ones, so good healing to you