Benzo Induced Swelling

Hi,

 

I hope everyone reading this is doing well or as well as they possibly could be given the circumstances! I know I have brought this subject up before. The top of my left foot, above my left ankle, and above my right ankle have edema that has been persistent for two years now. They have never went down completely since it first appeared which happened all of a sudden one morning. I have been diagnosed with primary lymphedema due to the lack of any other obvious causes. I have researched old posts that mention swelling that went down after they got off of Benzos and also someone diagnosed with Lymphedema that went away three weeks after getting off Benzos. I'm wearing compression and I'm about to go to a physical therapist so I'm taking care of it as if it were Lymphedema and will continue to do so. I was just kind of hoping to get some feedback from those that did have the swelling that went away after they got off of Benzos. How long after they were off did it take, how long were they stuck with the swelling, etc? I would just be comforted if anyone had this type of story or have read such a story on benzo buddies in the past. Maybe I should just accept that it's Lymphedema but I have no family history of it nor have had surgery to remove lymph nodes. I love hiking and nature and if I do have something that is chronic and can only get worse and that keeps me from doing what I love then that would be depressing. I have so many withdrawal symptoms and I can deal with them because I think they are Benzo related but is this swelling one of those symptoms, just not a very common one? Thanks for listening.

I'm so sorry about your edema!  Benzo can cause all the weird health problems.

 

All my joints are swollen during tapering but got lots worse after jumping along with muscle, joints and bone pain every where. I'm 6 months off now.

 

 

I believe yours are benzo related like mine. I hope someone who healed from this can chime in and provide some hope.

 

4mom I hate to hear you are going through these issues and are in so much pain. I hope your and my issues are benzo related and something that will remedy itself down the road! I can't stand the thought of this being something permanent.

Although benzodiazepines do cause a long list of odd and unusual symptoms, I think I’d continue to explore other potential causes for the swelling you’ve described. It doesn’t sound like something necessarily related to benzodiazepines to me.

I have had edema in both of my legs since about 1 month after my last dose of lorazepam (right worse than left). I had a DVT in my right leg many years ago, so I went to the ER to make sure I didn't have another one, but it wasn't a DVT. Swelling got worse, so I had another ultrasound done a few days ago, but not a DVT. Have also had benzo belly and facial swelling. I really hope the swelling is benzo-related...

Kit, My stomach bloats a lot so this can be from Benzo. I had my gallbladder taken out in May and didn’t know if that could be causing it. It’s weird that it just seems to stay bloated.

Hi Everyone,

 

I'm bringing this post up again hopefully to catch new eyes that might have more to add to this subject and to check in on those that said they are experiencing swelling. I am finally off benzos after my multi year tapering journey. It has been about a month now. The swelling has not improved but it might just not have been long enough. I am wearing compression and treating it as if it is Lymphedema but I am still hoping it is not and that maybe it will go away on it's own when whatever is out of wack heals and corrects itself. I've noticed my belly is also staying extra bloated lately. I wish everyone struggling with these types of symptoms and all the other symptoms the best and hope everyone has a pleasant memorial day!

Congratulations of being off the Benzos. Well done. Sorry to read the lymphedema hasn't resolved, but I would offer there may be metabolites ( by-products of drug break down) still in your system. Anytime we take a med, the liver is the primary engine to break it down into parts that can be excreted. Some drugs are even designed to become active after the first pass of liver enzymes. The liver rules.

 

Although off the drugs, this study may help shed light on how Benzos are known to dilate blood vessels.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3203915/

 

If the vessels are porous, then lots of fluids seep into tissues. The lymph system produces it's own "milky substance" and channels it through the body to pick up bad things, neutralize them, and again eventually excrete them. Lymph channels also work passively from muscle movement. If the tissues are flooded with fluid, it follows that the lymph channels are not normally moving. In fact if bad  like an infection present, etc. lymph flow can be compressed completely and stagnate.

 

*Not medical advice: If it were me, I'd look for things that could cleanse the liver and strengthen the vessel walls. I tend to use natural things like vitamins and try to see what might be lacking. Up to you. Even though finished with the taper, likely you still have some excess glutamate hiding out. Although a good neurotransmitter, too much of it wreaks havoc. Excess glutamate destroys nerve tissue in stroke patients. The blood accumulation facilitates this. Glutamate's effects are ubiquitous, and it even directly affects the insulin cells of the pancreas. Good to try to clean it up. The supplements taurine and NAC can help this. * Careful with taurine as it drops blood sugars. See my other posts.

 

Excess histamine will also cause edema.  High glutamate seems to go hand in hand with higher histamine levels. Might want to lower any histamine foods or exposure to external irritants.

 

Vitamin C actually helps produce collagen, and all vessels are made with collagen. (Large arteries have 3 muscle rings but still use collagen.) It can strengthen vessel walls.  Vitamin C can also draw fluid back into the central circulation and help denature metabolites. Vit.s C and A help cope with histamine. Milk thistle is good for the liver as is vitamin A. Molybdenum helps some of the liver enzymes when overwhelmed by irritants.  If you could locate an orthomolecular medicine person, they could run some enzyme tests to see what's working and what's not. Could be helpful.

 

These are ideas based on physiology. Hope there's something useful in it for you.

hohot,

 

I appreciate all the good info you have shared with me! I am willing to give it a try. Cleansing the liver and keeping the veins in order cannot hurt. I hope the swelling does clear up, it kind of makes the being off benzos feel anticlimactic when you have this scary thing going on that if lymphedema doesn't go away and only gets worse. I'm trying to keep positive that it will go away. I hope you are doing well and appreciate your reply.

I’m 5 weeks clean but have numbness, pain, and swelling in my extremities. Thoughts on using Theanine as a mitigant to high Glutamates? This sounds promising -

 

https://blog.bioticsresearch.com/soothe-the-central-nervous-system-with-l-theanine

 

Since Theanine doesn’t come with major side effects, I’m going to give it a try to see if it speeds up recovery from this detox hell.

I’ve used many supplements during this process and thiamine is a good one to help relieve some discomfort but be careful because it does act on GABA in some way. I took too much at first and when I stopped symptoms came right back. My advice is to wean yourself of it if you do decide to take it

Please let me know if the Theanine helps, I am very interested. I guess I would start out slow based on what Koopa is saying, I've always been a little leery about stuff that messes with GABA receptors. I hope it works for you!!

Benzos don't cause swelling.

Why do you say that? I'm looking for other non-benzo related causes because that is what's awful about this drug withdrawal can mimic a lot of things, I just know it did start as soon as I tapered so hard to rule it out.

Hi,

 

I was curious if any of our new visiters were experiencing swelling they believe is the results of benzos and if anything helped reduce the swelling or even if another cause was found not benzo related? Hope everyone is staying safe!