Why stop?

I want to stop bc I haven’t had an organic sleep in over ten years. I hate being in so many meds and the benzos have stopped giving me that relaxed feeling years ago.  But all this discomfort and HELL from WD and tapering, ect begs the question : is it worth it?

 

What are the benefits of not being on a benzo? I’m honestly curious.

 

I’m in the throws of major WD so my mind is racing and I just want to know the benefit of being benzo free. Aside from the obvious of being addicted to it.

 

Thanks.

I want to stop bc I haven’t had an organic sleep in over ten years. I hate being in so many meds and the benzos have stopped giving me that relaxed feeling years ago.  But all this discomfort and HELL from WD and tapering, ect begs the question : is it worth it?

 

What are the benefits of not being on a benzo? I’m honestly curious.

 

I’m in the throws of major WD so my mind is racing and I just want to know the benefit of being benzo free. Aside from the obvious of being addicted to it.

 

Thanks.

 

That is a good question especially if you have not had paradoxical reactions to the prescribed medication. Another important question that deserves consideration is: What are the risks associated with w/d'g from and ceasing to use the prescribed medication?

 

Best Wishes

Very good question as well.

A reason to taper down would be aiming to lower your benzo tolerance, in order to reinstate later effectively?!

Because long term Benzo use is linked to Alzheimers.  Plus eventually you build up a tolerance.  My feeling is if you

are going thru traumatic experience in life then you take them... then wein off.

I want to stop bc I haven’t had an organic sleep in over ten years. I hate being in so many meds and the benzos have stopped giving me that relaxed feeling years ago.  But all this discomfort and HELL from WD and tapering, ect begs the question : is it worth it?

 

What are the benefits of not being on a benzo? I’m honestly curious.

 

I’m in the throws of major WD so my mind is racing and I just want to know the benefit of being benzo free. Aside from the obvious of being addicted to it.

 

Thanks.

 

That is a good question especially if you have not had paradoxical reactions to the prescribed medication. Another important question that deserves consideration is: What are the risks associated with w/d'g from and ceasing to use the prescribed medication?

 

Best Wishes

 

For me the main reason is the fear that they could stop prescribing.

If you are not having significant problems on them, no to,etence WD or interdose WD and have been on them a long time without having to raise dose I would think very carefully before stopping.

 

I wish a I hadn’t tried to get off and now so sensitised can’t take any meds at all and have the severe muscle issues was on Benzos for in first place.

For me. I wanted to be off meds. I was in tolerance in a high dose and wanted to learn to be myself. I am. I’ll NEVER EVER take benzodiazepines again.

 

Personally I don’t take medications, vitamins. Nothing.

 

Also I do think they will take the prescriptions away at some point. So why NOT?

Another reason I want off is that I live in fear of being hospitalized for whatever reason and doctors in hospital could jerk me off as for many of them "there's no such thing as benzo withdrawal, just a little nervousness"

I want to stop bc I haven’t had an organic sleep in over ten years.  I hate being in so many meds and the benzos have stopped giving me that relaxed feeling years ago. But all this discomfort and HELL from WD and tapering, ect begs the question : is it worth it?

 

What are the benefits of not being on a benzo? I’m honestly curious.

 

I’m in the throws of major WD so my mind is racing and I just want to know the benefit of being benzo free. Aside from the obvious of being addicted to it.

 

Thanks.

 

France,

 

You answered your own question (where I indicated in bold).

 

You haven’t had good organic sleep in ten years and the benzos stopped giving you that relaxed feeling years ago.  When you reach tolerance with any drug, you need to increase your dose to get the same effect you got on the lower dose.

 

I know this is very hard.  Now that you’ve come off the benzo, your body needs to rebalance and you are getting symptoms you never had while on the benzo.  You find yourself questioning whether this suffering is even worth it.  That’s when you have try hard to remember the quality of life you had when the benzo started pooping out.  If you had stayed on the benzo, perhaps your sleep would have gotten even worse, or your lack of relaxation would have increased to anxiety and panic attacks.  That’s happened to many people on this forum.  They ignored the onset of moderate symptoms when on the drug, until those symptoms grew into raging forest fires.  Then they HAD to get off the drugs.

 

Maybe you can decide whether it’s worth it if, like Challis always says, you think about why you came off the benzo in the first place.

 

The decision to stay off or go back on the benzo is entirely up to you.  Just think about the quality of life you had while on benzos, rather than the symptoms of coming off the benzos, which are temporary.

 

Sofa

Wise words Sofa. Thank you

Why stop a drug that was making me sick?  That is an easy question to answer.

 

Everyone has a different story, a different history, a different withdrawal.  I look back now and see just how ill I was on the drug, almost right from the start.  Stopping was the best thing I personally have done for my health.

 

pianogirl 

I want to stop bc I haven’t had an organic sleep in over ten years.  I hate being in so many meds and the benzos have stopped giving me that relaxed feeling years ago. But all this discomfort and HELL from WD and tapering, ect begs the question : is it worth it?

 

What are the benefits of not being on a benzo? I’m honestly curious.

 

I’m in the throws of major WD so my mind is racing and I just want to know the benefit of being benzo free. Aside from the obvious of being addicted to it.

 

Thanks.

 

France,

 

You answered your own question (where I indicated in bold).

 

You haven’t had good organic sleep in ten years and the benzos stopped giving you that relaxed feeling years ago.  When you reach tolerance with any drug, you need to increase your dose to get the same effect you got on the lower dose.

 

I know this is very hard.  Now that you’ve come off the benzo, your body needs to rebalance and you are getting symptoms you never had while on the benzo.  You find yourself questioning whether this suffering is even worth it.  That’s when you have try hard to remember the quality of life you had when the benzo started pooping out.  If you had stayed on the benzo, perhaps your sleep would have gotten even worse, or your lack of relaxation would have increased to anxiety and panic attacks.  That’s happened to many people on this forum.  They ignored the onset of moderate symptoms when on the drug, until those symptoms grew into raging forest fires.  Then they HAD to get off the drugs.

 

Maybe you can decide whether it’s worth it if, like Challis always says, you think about why you came off the benzo in the first place.

 

The decision to stay off or go back on the benzo is entirely up to you.  Just think about the quality of life you had while on benzos, rather than the symptoms of coming off the benzos, which are temporary.

 

Sofa

 

"which are temporary" I'm curious can you provide peer reviewed scientific evidence that benzo w/d symptoms/damage/changes to CNS receptors are temporary, or is that opinion?

Developed tolerance.  Also wanted to live in my own little cotton sox and not depend on a pill. 

 

I could also see the writing on the wall that the pin was going to be pulled on prescribing. 

 

It has been hard and horrible but am still so very glad I stopped.  Things are improving at 8 months off. 

 

Benzo belly wasn't a good look either. 

 

Dee

I am with Ajusta on this>>

If you are not having significant problems on them, no to,etence WD or interdose WD and have been on them a long time without having to raise dose I would think very carefully before stopping.

<<

Was/am on benzos  over 3 decades and no probs, altho, true, they did not work.  But never took more and was tapering off myself since I am very very stubborn.  It was an AD that threw me into acute.

Got bad advice from drs. (who did not believe me) and a FB group (which told me I could not possibly be in acute and to switch benzo and keep tapering in the face of horrendous CT withdrawal from the 6 week AD.)

 

Kind of wish had never started to think of coming off benzo.  DEFINITELY wish had never taken AD at low dose for 6 weeks. 

 

That was 3 years ago and been sick since.

 

 

Maybe you can decide whether it’s worth it if, like Challis always says, you think about why you came off the benzo in the first place.

 

The decision to stay off or go back on the benzo is entirely up to you.  Just think about the quality of life you had while on benzos, rather than the symptoms of coming off the benzos, which are temporary.

 

Sofa

 

"which are temporary" I'm curious can you provide peer reviewed scientific evidence that benzo w/d symptoms/damage/changes to CNS receptors are temporary, or is that opinion?

 

https://www.benzo.org.uk/ashbzoc.htm

 

This study from Ashton indicates that most people get better 3.5 years after the last dose (70% are "much better"). But there is a chance of a poor outcome (6-22%, depending on your definition). That is only after 3.5 years though. There are people who've healed after much longer than that.

 

It's possible that long term usage can induce a neuropsychiatric disorder (ie depression, anxiety) that will continue to slowly worsen. It might be difficult to tell how impaired you are from the drug, since the changes would progress very subtly.  You can develop memory problems, problems with attention, problems with motivation etc.

 

If you want to look at all the possible side effects, they are here. These are only the rates for a short trial. We don't really know how much these rates increase with long term usage.

 

Wikipedia has a list of symptoms associated with long term usage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_long-term_benzodiazepine_use#Symptoms

 

This is from the wikipedia and the Ashton study: "A study of 50 patients who attended a benzodiazepine withdrawal clinic found that long-term use of benzodiazepines causes a wide range of psychological and physiological disorders. It was found that, after several years of chronic benzodiazepine use, a large portion of patients developed various mental and physical health problems including agoraphobia, irritable bowel syndrome, paraesthesiae, increasing anxiety, and panic attacks, which were not preexisting. The mental health and physical health symptoms induced by long-term benzodiazepine use gradually improved significantly over a period of a year following completion of a slow withdrawal. Three of the 50 patients had wrongly been given a preliminary diagnosis of multiple sclerosis when the symptoms were actually due to chronic benzodiazepine use."

 

There is also peripheral neuropathy from the neurotoxicity, along with the neurotoxicity itself.

I am with Ajusta on this>>

If you are not having significant problems on them, no to,etence WD or interdose WD and have been on them a long time without having to raise dose I would think very carefully before stopping.

<<

Was/am on benzos  over 3 decades and no probs, altho, true, they did not work.  But never took more and was tapering off myself since I am very very stubborn.  It was an AD that threw me into acute.

Got bad advice from drs. (who did not believe me) and a FB group (which told me I could not possibly be in acute and to switch benzo and keep tapering in the face of horrendous CT withdrawal from the 6 week AD.)

 

Kind of wish had never started to think of coming off benzo.  DEFINITELY wish had never taken AD at low dose for 6 weeks. 

 

That was 3 years ago and been sick since.

 

I'm so sorry Barbara. I hope time brings you the relief you deserve.

 

Maybe you can decide whether it’s worth it if, like Challis always says, you think about why you came off the benzo in the first place.

 

The decision to stay off or go back on the benzo is entirely up to you.  Just think about the quality of life you had while on benzos, rather than the symptoms of coming off the benzos, which are temporary.

 

Sofa

 

"which are temporary" I'm curious can you provide peer reviewed scientific evidence that benzo w/d symptoms/damage/changes to CNS receptors are temporary, or is that opinion?

 

https://www.benzo.org.uk/ashbzoc.htm

 

This study from Ashton indicates that most people get better 3.5 years after the last dose (70% are "much better"). But there is a chance of a poor outcome (6-22%, depending on your definition). That is only after 3.5 years though. There are people who've healed after much longer than that.

 

It's possible that long term usage can induce a neuropsychiatric disorder (ie depression, anxiety) that will continue to slowly worsen. It might be difficult to tell how impaired you are from the drug, since the changes would progress very subtly.  You can develop memory problems, problems with attention, problems with motivation etc.

 

If you want to look at all the possible side effects, they are here. These are only the rates for a short trial. We don't really know how much these rates increase with long term usage.

 

Wikipedia has a list of symptoms associated with long term usage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_long-term_benzodiazepine_use#Symptoms

 

This is from the wikipedia and the Ashton study: "A study of 50 patients who attended a benzodiazepine withdrawal clinic found that long-term use of benzodiazepines causes a wide range of psychological and physiological disorders. It was found that, after several years of chronic benzodiazepine use, a large portion of patients developed various mental and physical health problems including agoraphobia, irritable bowel syndrome, paraesthesiae, increasing anxiety, and panic attacks, which were not preexisting. The mental health and physical health symptoms induced by long-term benzodiazepine use gradually improved significantly over a period of a year following completion of a slow withdrawal. Three of the 50 patients had wrongly been given a preliminary diagnosis of multiple sclerosis when the symptoms were actually due to chronic benzodiazepine use."

 

There is also peripheral neuropathy from the neurotoxicity, along with the neurotoxicity itself.

 

I would not classify the "Ashton Manual" as peer reviewed scientific evidence, and to accept it as such may be detrimental to one's very existence. By extension, to accept the "Ashton Manual" as a path to one's "healing" may be detrimental to the well being of one's family & loved ones. best wishes

I had this nagging feeling that something was deeply wrong, and that my life was not what it could/should be, but at the time I did not fully appreciate the extent of the damage Valium was doing to me. I had reached tolerance years ago, was suffering paradoxical reactions (increased anxiety and depression), and had no motivation/interest in my life. I was just going through the motions while I stopped leaving the house unless I had to, neglected family and friends and my marriage, and gradually lost cognitive function. I couldn't read a map. I had terrible back, joint, and muscle pain from years of inactivity. I had somehow convinced myself I wasn't capable or deserving of a better quality of life.

 

I crashed my car and realized "I'm not well." Then I started doing some research, found this website, and realized the pills were doing this to me. I had to get off. I knew it would be really hard, but I didn't comprehend just HOW hard. (Who can in the beginning?) I just knew I wanted my life back. I wanted my mind back. I wanted my SELF back.

 

My whole life has changed in this journey. I am not yet fully healed, but I am already healthier than I ever was when I was sedated. I can't have those years back, but I can make the most of the future I have fought so hard to reclaim. I am not the same person I was before. For me that's a good thing. Those pills were slowly killing me, and getting off them has (literally) saved my life.

 

Maybe you can decide whether it’s worth it if, like Challis always says, you think about why you came off the benzo in the first place.

 

The decision to stay off or go back on the benzo is entirely up to you.  Just think about the quality of life you had while on benzos, rather than the symptoms of coming off the benzos, which are temporary.

 

Sofa

 

"which are temporary" I'm curious can you provide peer reviewed scientific evidence that benzo w/d symptoms/damage/changes to CNS receptors are temporary, or is that opinion?

 

https://www.benzo.org.uk/ashbzoc.htm

 

This study from Ashton indicates that most people get better 3.5 years after the last dose (70% are "much better"). But there is a chance of a poor outcome (6-22%, depending on your definition). That is only after 3.5 years though. There are people who've healed after much longer than that.

 

It's possible that long term usage can induce a neuropsychiatric disorder (ie depression, anxiety) that will continue to slowly worsen. It might be difficult to tell how impaired you are from the drug, since the changes would progress very subtly.  You can develop memory problems, problems with attention, problems with motivation etc.

 

If you want to look at all the possible side effects, they are here. These are only the rates for a short trial. We don't really know how much these rates increase with long term usage.

 

Wikipedia has a list of symptoms associated with long term usage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_long-term_benzodiazepine_use#Symptoms

 

This is from the wikipedia and the Ashton study: "A study of 50 patients who attended a benzodiazepine withdrawal clinic found that long-term use of benzodiazepines causes a wide range of psychological and physiological disorders. It was found that, after several years of chronic benzodiazepine use, a large portion of patients developed various mental and physical health problems including agoraphobia, irritable bowel syndrome, paraesthesiae, increasing anxiety, and panic attacks, which were not preexisting. The mental health and physical health symptoms induced by long-term benzodiazepine use gradually improved significantly over a period of a year following completion of a slow withdrawal. Three of the 50 patients had wrongly been given a preliminary diagnosis of multiple sclerosis when the symptoms were actually due to chronic benzodiazepine use."

 

There is also peripheral neuropathy from the neurotoxicity, along with the neurotoxicity itself.

 

I would not classify the "Ashton Manual" as peer reviewed scientific evidence, and to accept it as such may be detrimental to one's very existence. By extension, to accept the "Ashton Manual" as a path to one's "healing" may be detrimental to the well being of one's family & loved ones. best wishes

 

Fi Addendum, as per the Ashton Manual: of course that was revolutionary and the benzo sufferers would have been much worse if Dr Ashton hadn't written that book. However, I don't think there's enough warning each time that manual is recommended, that the taper speed Dr. Ashton established in her taper schedules could be fine for some people but could lead to months of disability to others. One example of that is Baylissa, to name a well known person, and another example is myself. I was doing alright with my taper when I decided to buy the ashton manual kindle version on Amazon, plus followed all the Ashton manual advocates on Facebook, telling me that the Ashton manual was the Bible. So I thought Oh God I might develop tolerance withdrawal if I go this "slow". I started speeding up my taper not as fast as Ashton recommends but much faster than I was doing. I crashed big time, went into acute withdrawal and the rest is history. I had to updose to be able to keep supporting my family and paying the mortgage, and I'm stuck holding waiting to stabilize which is taking a while. I could have avoided all this if I had just continued with my tapering speed BEFORE reading the Ashton Manual. I am severely kindled from previous CTs and previous tapers, so maybe this is why I can't do the Ashton speed. Still, I see everyone who joins BBs is encouraged to read the Ashton Manual with no mention to the fact that the taper speed Ashton recommended might be too fast for some. Then you go to any thread and everyone is recommending 10% a month or a fortnight at the most. I don't understand this contradiction between recommending the Ashton Manual on the one hand, recommending a much slower taper speed on the other hand, and all these recommendations being made often by the same people. In fact, I've seen people who've been here for a while thinking that Ashton recommends a 10% reduction a month, which is absolutely much slower than what she recommends.

I would not classify the "Ashton Manual" as peer reviewed scientific evidence, and to accept it as such may be detrimental to one's very existence. By extension, to accept the "Ashton Manual" as a path to one's "healing" may be detrimental to the well being of one's family & loved ones. best wishes

 

That study was published in the British Journal of Addiction and has been cited 180 times since. Ashton's work is cited in modern, high circulation psychiatry journals like JAMA Psychiatry, and not simply to be dismissed. She was an underrated scientist and did the best she could with few resources.

 

I don't know what your own experience is, but I can say I tried to taper at least 5 different times and failed and gave up until years later when I was finally able to get all the way off. The consequences were pretty extreme, but I'm very happy with the decision, nonetheless. I didn't realize how badly I was impaired by the drug because the disability had proceeded so slowly and insidiously. I suspect the same is true with many people.

 

The fact that doctors have never bothered to find out the long term consequences of benzodiazepines despite widespread prescribing and use is a pretty good indication of the true level of responsibility and ethical duty the medical profession actually possesses (ie close to zero). The idea that there needs to be a disclaimer at the bottom of the website for people injured by the medical profession that we should let them have the final word on health advice is a disgrace. The only reason that exists is because they eliminated the competition and monopolized the market for healthcare through legal threats and intimidation. Now we face the prices of a monopolist, the unchallenged propaganda of the healthcare industry masquerading as science, and the moral self-righteousness of a profession that clearly has no idea what it is doing, but is convinced that, whatever "care" they are providing, it must be good.

I would not classify the "Ashton Manual" as peer reviewed scientific evidence, and to accept it as such may be detrimental to one's very existence. By extension, to accept the "Ashton Manual" as a path to one's "healing" may be detrimental to the well being of one's family & loved ones. best wishes

 

That study was published in the British Journal of Addiction and has been cited 180 times since. Ashton's work is cited in modern, high circulation psychiatry journals like JAMA Psychiatry, and not simply to be dismissed. She was an underrated scientist and did the best she could with few resources.

 

I don't know what your own experience is, but I can say I tried to taper at least 5 different times and failed and gave up until years later when I was finally able to get all the way off. The consequences were pretty extreme, but I'm very happy with the decision, nonetheless. I didn't realize how badly I was impaired by the drug because the disability had proceeded so slowly and insidiously. I suspect the same is true with many people.

 

The fact that doctors have never bothered to find out the long term consequences of benzodiazepines despite widespread prescribing and use is a pretty good indication of the true level of responsibility and ethical duty the medical profession actually possesses (ie close to zero). The idea that there needs to be a disclaimer at the bottom of the website for people injured by the medical profession that we should let them have the final word on health advice is a disgrace. The only reason that exists is because they eliminated the competition and monopolized the market for healthcare through legal threats and intimidation. Now we face the prices of a monopolist, the unchallenged propaganda of the healthcare industry masquerading as science, and the moral self-righteousness of a profession that clearly has no idea what it is doing, but is convinced that, whatever "care" they are providing, it must be good.

 

Amen.

It really depends on what you take it for.  If you take it for anxiety and panic attacks the for me the answer is very clear.  Don’t stop taking them.  My doctor says the same thing if you come off then you’re just going to have panic attacks again and who needs that?  His words and he is correct.  Plus I know how hard it is to come off.  I will not be coming off I’m planning on staying on until I’m dead because I guarantee if I come off I’ll end up in the er and have them put me back on them.  They help me live a better life and that’s why I take them.  Panic attacks and anxiety are a very real thing and can be very debilitating.

A very touchy subject.  I can only think that a drug that has this much potential to cause harm while on it and even more coming off it should never be prescribed in the first place.  I know it has legitimate uses in emergency situations and extremely short term usage.  Thats where benzo usage should have stayed.

I know, first hand, the desperation to find some kind of relief from emotional pain.  No easy answers here.  But to provide an answer that ends up worse than the original problem is wrong.

Why come off?  I would rather live with the real me, even struggling as I am, than with the numbed and disconnected me from before.

For me, personally, I had been considering discontinuing before my doc brought up the subject.  My reasons were...and are, quite clear. 

I have a 40 mile drive to see my doc.

I am uninsured, so I pay cash for office visits, and my medication.  $$$$$

My anxiety was getting worse after 20 years on the medicine.

I have no social support, because my family members think “mental and emotional illness” is just an excuse to take drugs.

I’m not going to allow a tiny pill to dictate my daily life anymore.

As per the wd sxs, we were all taking these benzos to ease the SYMPTOMS of anxiety, muscle pain, etc. 

Since these drugs don’t actually CURE the illness, like an antibiotic would kill bacteria, it has seemed to me that we should expect some rebound anxiety, insomnia, and any other symptom that our benzo was originally prescribed. 

If you, and your doc are in agreement that he/she will continue to prescribe....and you benefit from the medication, then a good working relationship with doc, meds, and you are always an option.  You know what makes your body and mind feel best.  For me, I just want to know ALL people are comfortable in their daily lives.  We only get this one life.....let’s make it the best one for each of us!  🌹