Fakeit's Success Story - Time is the ultimate healer

This is truly amazing! We have such similar stories! I can’t wait to get to this spot. 2 months on an AD and 14 benzos total in a month and a half. This gives me so much hope. I’m almost 7 months off now and I need all the hope I can get! Thank you for writing this!

 

I can't make promises.  I can only share my own experience and all . . . but my belief is that you are going to be just fine and will be "here" before you know it!!  Just keep taking it one day at a time.  It's SUCH a slow process.

 

HUGS!!

Hello fakeit

Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful message of recovery with us. I am currently 45 months out from a short term use of benzos and ADs. I’m not quite fully healed yet but I am well on my way. I still have a few lingering symptoms but they are way better than they used to be. Yes healing is definitely happening for me and it’s just a matter of time before I can write my own success story.

Thank you again for sharing your journey with us. Take care of yourself and enjoy life once again.

 

Badben.

Faking It:

A few words on that. On BB I am known to be the Queen of faking it. Because it worked SO well for me. Over the years some people here have "dissed" me because of this and I really dont know why. Faking it is a known way of actually changing how you think. Staying optimistic no matter what IS a wonderful thing and especially with benzo wd. There is just something about benzo wd that makes one feel so hopeless, so helpless. But in truth, you are not. Faking it is a proven way to change how your mind views EVERYTHING. And in time this can become permanent. It sure did for me.

Benzo wd has to be the most lonely thing one can do. You have no in person help. Just words on a screen. You know those words were written by a fellow human. But you cannot SEE them. Talk about "social distancing"........

And right now all of you are also worrying about covid  19. I am too. Add that on top of benzo wd, and you could have utter mayhem, unless you choose NOT to panic. Force yourself to be optimistic no matter what. That will be your way out of this huge mess.  Practice faking it every single day. Do it over and over until you want to slap east in the damn face! Believe me, I can take that. But if you  focus on faking it, over time you WILL change how you react to this weird world we live in now.

March on, soldiers. This world NEEDS you.

east

Thank you for the encouragement. I don't have a big support system. I have my husband who is great and very understanding but I don't have a single friend who I can talk to about this. So, my best thing is coming here and reading stories that ended well. Thank you for sharing. I'm at the halfway point in my taper! All the best!

Hi fakeit,

 

I missed your post somehow

So here are my congratulations to you!! I hope life will be beautiful for you

You deserve this!!!

Marigold

Our stories are very similar, both short term users on a mix of ativan and lexapro. What a horrible combo. And your descriptions of the recovery process match mine too. Every so often something reminds me of the worst days of withdrawal and it's like a quick shiver rather than a breakdown, light PTSD as you said. Very glad to hear you are doing so well!!

Hello everyone. 

It’s been a long time since I’ve been here.

I used to live here, especially here in the success story section.

Here is a link to my blog if you want to see my “back story”

 

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=203028

 

To say that I “lived” in the success stories is an understatement.

I would check multiple times daily for new stories.

I would re-read success stories that mirrored my experience 100 times in one day.

I honestly believe I read every success story here at least 3 times. 

EVERY SINGLE ONE.

 

I don’t want to go into all the details of my story again here, because this is about my success, not reliving the past.  I never want to relive that again… EVER.  You can go back and look at my posts and my blog to get an idea of what I went through.  The symptoms were, at times, unbearable.  I’ll never forget on Mother’s Day – I had to go to the front of the church to get prayed on because I wanted to go home and just end it.  Wait, let me rephrase that.  I NEVER wanted to “end it”.  My brain was telling me to though. Through this whole entire ordeal, I wanted nothing more than to LIVE.  In my heart of hearts and in the deepest recesses of my soul, I could remember who I was and I knew I had to make it out of the darkness somehow.  But on that day the darkness was convincing me that I didn’t have it in me.  BUT I KNEW I DID!!  My Higher Power would NOT let me forget that I am and always have been an incredible person with SO much love to give and SO much life to live.  In those days, it was just SO buried because my brain was SO damaged from the chemicals.

 

In a nutshell, I was given Ativan for insomnia.  I was a very short term user.  A few months.  But when I tried to stop (cold turkey), my entire world flipped upside down!!  Everyone said “Oh, it’s such a low dose (.5), it can’t POSSIBLY be the medication that’s making you feel that way.

I was told I was “depressed” and suffering a huge depressive episode.

Sooooo, enter the anti-depressant (Lexapro).

I was instructed to “continue taking the .5 Ativan “until the Lexapro kicks in”.

HUGE mistake!! 

Ultimately, I took my last Ativan on February 10, 2018. A few months use.  I never took more than .5 in one day.  Sometimes I only took it every other day or every third day.

I took the Lexapro until July 10, 2018.  Again, only months, not years.

 

The anti-depressant TRULY made things worse for me.

I didn’t know which way was up.

 

I had to make the decision for myself to stop ALL medications. My gut told me that if I stopped all the medication, I would somehow find my “base line” and then I could figure things out from there.  Finding BenzoBuddies truly contributed to this decision.  I don’t even want to THINK about where I might be right now (on how many medications, etc.) had I not found this website and realized the answer was NO medication.

 

I wish I could, by memory, tell you month by month how things got worse then better.  But again, you’ll have to go through my blog.  I remember at one point I thought the Lexapro was helping me.

 

It’s all just truly a blur.

 

But what I CAN say is that now, over 2 years since my last Ativan and almost 2 years since my last AntiDepressant, I am SO SO SO SO SO much better!!

 

I went to SO many doctors.  I tried SO many supplements, meditations, books, activities, you name it.

If someone came to me today and said "what prescription would you write for me to heal me?". I would write a prescription for TIME.

 

Time is the ultimate healer.

 

I still look back in awe at having survived it.

 

I know with absolute certainty that I would NOT have survived it if it wasn’t for the handful of people who stood by my side; never wavering in their belief in me. Yes, I had some family members that tried to help and understand.  One or two even believed that it was the medication that messed me up so bad.  A few of them were ADAMANT that I continue to TAKE the medication (because they themselves take Benzos and antidepressants and it helps them).  I don’t blame any of them for their personal views or beliefs.  Everything they said and did was out of love and concern and their wish for me to get better.  If there’s one thing this experience has taught me it’s DON’T JUDGE.  And until you’ve experienced something yourself, and even THEN – what works for you doesn’t necessarily work for everybody.  Everybody is different!  Everybody’s brain is different.  If ANYBODY on this forum decides to try Anti-Depressants or other medication to help them through – that’s THEIR choice.  It’s not MY place to try to convince them otherwise.  All I can do is share my experience and what worked for me.  I know a lot of people that truly need to take medication to help them through life.  These are people I love and respect.  Never again will I look at someone who suffers from depression and anxiety and assume I know what would work for them.

 

Because of what I looked for in success stories, I will try to describe some of my major symptoms.

 

I could not watch television. I remember for the first couple months the only thing I could watch on television was the winter Olympics.  Even then, I couldn’t even watch ANY event where a person might get hurt (like downhill skiing).  I couldn’t watch the news, game shows, nothing.  If I did turn on like “The Price is Right”, everything just seemed “off”.  I’d look at the audience and think “how are they all acting normal?”.  They’d announce a prize like a trip to Belize and I’d think “who would want to go to Belize???”.

 

I would almost have a nervous breakdown if I saw a commercial for ANY kind of prescription medication.

 

I couldn't work. I couldn't eat.  I couldn't plan a vacation.  I couldn't grocery shop.  I couldn't plan one day ahead.  My daughter would ask "can friends come over Friday night" and my mind would FREAK OUT - I would think "I might be dead by then!".  I just couldn't put pieces of time together.  I couldn't think of the past and I couldn't think of the future. 

 

People told me these were symptom of depressions; which I can see why they’d say that (not interested in things you used to be interested in).  But the thing was, I WANTED to WANT to go on trips.  I WANTED to WANT to book a vacation.  I’m not sure if I’m explaining that well.  It’s like, I knew I WANTED to live and enjoy these things again.  I hadn’t LOST interest in these things . . . my brain just couldn’t fathom DOING them.  Like work.  It was impossible to sit down and check e-mail.  Not because I didn’t WANT to do it, but because my brain couldn’t function TO do it.  I WANTED to fix my family a big fancy meal… my brain just couldn’t wrap itself around the idea.

 

I went through the phase(s) of things being worse in the morning and better at night.

Rainy days felt horrible.

Talking on the phone was difficult.

Hearing sirens in the distance FREAKED me out.

 

I could not close my eyes in the shower without freaking out.  I had to have a radio with music or an audible playing while I showered.

 

Oh my gosh, the paranoia was the WORST!

 

I remember calling a fellow BenzoBuddy from the movie theater once asking “do you just feel like you’re going INSANE when you’re in the movie theater trying to watch a movie?”  His answer was “always!”.

 

My family does family movie night every Friday night and I remember always having to convince them to see the most lighthearted genre of movie with no sci-fi, definitely no horror, no “twisted” plot, etc.  I remember so many times just laying in the reclining seat in the theater staring at my feet not even able to watch the movie.  But staying home alone was NOT an option!  No matter where they went, I wanted to be with my family.

 

I could not be alone.  I hated being alone.

 

Naps were toxic.  I remember missing my Sunday afternoon naps SOOO much!!

I still don't nap much, but that's just because now if I nap I don't sleep as good at night and I'm sleeping pretty well at night and don't want to ruin it.

 

Month after month after month after month of waking up with the “groundhog day” feeling.  Opening my eyes and realizing I was still in withdrawal and wondering if it would ever end.

 

That GOD AWFUL fear of it being permanent.  Yes I had it.  Yes, I was convinced that my life would never be the same again.

 

Please, trust me when I tell you, it’s a LONG process.  It’s a SLOW process.

 

But you heal.

 

Ever so slowly.  Ever so gradually.  Life begins to glow again.  Love returns.  Anger fades.  Anxiety lessens.

 

That feeling of being “comfy cozy” laying on the couch watching a favorite movie returns.

 

There are moments of absolute pure bliss when the realization strikes that you haven’t “thought about it” in a few HOURS.

 

The joy when you suddenly hear yourself laughing and you FEEL it, not just hear it.

When you find yourself singing in the car to a song - when months ago you couldn't even turn the car radio on because it "bothered" you.

 

I truly thought back in the day that if I ever got to write a success story it would be filled with a recollection of all the horrible symptoms . . . Yes, I had insomnia, ear ringing, depression, anxiety, body aches, paranoia, anger, all of those things.  But I want to emphasize what is in your future:  JOY, HAPPINESS, HEALING!!! 

 

Okay wait, I will share one more bad memory, just to solidify how horrible my experience was.  I used to have to drive my teenager to a “Renaissance Fair” that she was participating in.  Not only could I not walk through the event (it totally creeped me out!) but when I would pick her back up and we had to drive home in the dark, I had to keep my focus straight ahead on the road, because if I looked to either side I thought the houses on the side of the road were haunted and that demons were going to jump out of the woods!!  This is how my brain worked for a LONG time!  I don’t know how I survived Halloween.  I truly don’t!!

 

I want to discuss the importance of finding support through this.  Family, friends, etc. are good – but they truly do get tired of hearing about it over time.  I reached a point where I just stopped talking to my husband, family, etc. about it.  I know they were sick of hearing me talk about it, and to be honest, I got tired of feeling like a burden to them.

 

But I had friends from here.  Momof3boys – there just aren’t any words to explain what a God send you’ve been to me.  We will be friends for life and I will ALWAYS be here for you.  Hundreds and HUNDREDS of days in a row that we spent on the phone for HOURS talking each other through this.  I remember when we couldn’t even leave our houses to go check the mail!!!  Every day I would put my sneakers on and walk that path around my neighborhood with you in my ear telling me we’d get through this together; comparing symptoms – somehow finding humor in the fact that our symptoms that day mirrored each others.  YES!  YES!  We’d say.  “That’s exactly how I feel”.  Knowing we weren’t alone in our struggle; that we weren’t crazy.  We hadn’t lost our minds.  We’d be okay.  The other thing I really appreciate about our friendship is the focus on the positive. We knew we were both struggling and suffering; but we always at least tried not to wallow in the symptoms.  We always looked for a way to pull up our boot straps and FIGHT for what we wanted; healing, joy, happiness.  Yes, we'd discuss the symptoms and talk about how they made us feel, but then we'd put our heads together and think of ways to overcome it or at least TRY to overcome it.

Thank you for that.  Thank you for all of it.

 

There are so many people from here that helped me through this.  Some of you I don’t even remember your user names because we ended up texting and talking on the phone once I stopped coming here (it was triggering). 

 

“H” (I don’t remember your user name here and I don’t want to use your real name):  You rank up there with Momof3boys.  In fact, how many times did we conference all three of us in together through the worst of it??  To this day, when I get in my car and start driving, my instinct is to call you and check on you!  Friends for life Sister!!  I can’t wait until the three of us can be floating in my pool talking about how awesome life is.  Keep hanging in there.  Your healing is right around the corner!!  Stay positive! 

 

Boomboxboy – So many phone calls at all times of the day – just to help each other get through the next hour – to ask a question about symptoms.  That need to just “talk about it” seemed to always help.

 

T1D – Thank you for always being there for me to reassure that “yup, that’s normal!”.  I’d text you the craziest questions about symptoms and you’d never make me feel like I was nuts. LOL!!!  You always let me know I hadn’t lost my mind.  You gave me the ability to seriously just shrug and say “no worries” when my brain would start to run away with me.

 

Abcd.  You gave me the power of “acceptance”.  Learning to live with withdrawal on a daily basis for what it was; realizing it was out of my control and do the best with each day as I could.

 

Freida8 – Wow… I remember every day just HOPING there was a PM from you because your encouragement, understanding, and your sweet gentle soul just calmed me.  I would drink in your messages like a tonic.  They gave me SOOO much hope and faith!!!  THANK YOU for loving me when you’ve never even met me.

 

“M” – another one I don’t know your user name here but somehow we became phone friends and talked on a daily basis forever! I wouldn’t have survived this without your daily pep talks and positivity!!  Always positive.  Always optimistic.  You always helped me set down my fears and pick up my hopes.  I hope we remain friends for life as well. 

 

Riddles2 – I don’t even remember how we first ‘met’, and I have NO clue how you put up with me for all this time. If I had $1.00 for every time I couldn’t even see the numbers on my phone so I’d have to say “Okay Google, call DBB” so it would dial your number for me.  Your voice on the other end saying “Hey Chickie” would always set my heart at ease in an instant. You’ve been a true true friend to me.  Never judging.  Always encouraging.  Thank you!!

 

My real life family and friends - although none of them know of this site or will ever read this - I just feel like I have to say it.  My kids, who loved me unconditionally through it all - a son who called me every single morning (and still does) to check on me.  Sisters who called me every day and had the love for me to TAKE my calls every day; always looking for reassurance and answers they struggled to find for me.  Some family and friends had NO clue what to think or how to help.  Some actually withdrew.  Did I lose friends through this?  Absolutely.  MY HUSBAND - holy cow where do I begin?  We had some really really rough times when I went through this but we're out the other side stronger than ever!!  I appreciate his unconditional love SO MUCH.  Remember, our family and friends are only human too.  They honestly have ZERO clue the pain and suffering you're enduring.  Remember that.  Withdrawal makes you think you hate your spouse or don't need friends. WITHDRAWAL LIES!!  Don't believe the lies!!

 

My best advice to whoever is reading this and still strugging:

 

Healing will happen. For me, it was really really slow.  But like so many people say – if you look back, you can truly see the progress.  Think of old symptoms you had that you suddenly realize are gone or are not as strong.

 

Fake it til you make it!!  My username was not a fluke.  It was God given.  Faking it and trying to live my life as normal as possible I TRULY believe helped me heal faster.  If you lie in bed with the covers over your head, it impedes healing.  It’s HARD!!  SO HARD!!  That’s where a buddy comes in . . .

 

Get a support system in place!!  SO many mornings I would call Momof3Boys and say “I cannot get out of bed!!”  I would be bawling and could not imagine sitting up and putting my feet on the floor.  She would stay on the phone with me and, despite going through it herself, she would literally yell at me that I could do it!! 

 

HELP OTHERS:  Even when you are struggling harder than you ever have in life, you have it in you to help others.  If you find buddies here on BB, THEY NEED YOU just as much as you need them.  You will find healing in helping.  It reminds you that you have reserves of strength you never knew you had.  It gives you a sense of purpose when everything else seems pointless.

 

Take a break from the internet!!  Find something (distract distract distract).  Coming here on a daily basis (in my opinion) only feeds the issue and makes it first and foremost in your mind.  At one point, I convinced myself what I was going through was related to Menopause and it actually helped a few months go by where I didn't think so much about "withdrawal", and I focused on exercise and eating better.  I got involved in painting, gardening, organizing my house . . . all great distractions. 

 

PRAY:  I can’t write this whole success story and not give ALL the credit for everything I’ve typed to God, and my Savior Jesus Christ.  He placed all these people in my path.  He is the Creator of the light that refused to go out in my soul.  He is the Great Physician that put me through this journey to show me how strong I am, how loved I am, and how incredible life is.  I don’t take anything for granted now.  He is my Father who did not stop me from experiencing pain because (just like good earthly parents) he knew that fixing my problem wouldn’t teach me anything.  He knew I had to experience it, learn from it, and become the best person possible because of it.

 

Love and peace to you all.

 

Fakeit

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord , “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

 

 

P.S.  As of today I take a multi-vitamin daily.  Because of Covid-19 I take extra Vitamin C some days.  Through this experience I tried a lot of different supplements and stuff.  The only thing that helped (towards the end) were CBD patches.  They helped slow my racing brain down.  Ultimately, my brain stopped racing so much.  That was a big symptom towards the last few months - the inability to stop "thinking" about it.  Again, go look back at my posts.  That was a huge symptom for me.  I was obsessed.  LOL.

 

P.S.S.  For as long as this is, there's just so much more I could write about or more symptoms I could describe.  If you want to know if I had a symptom or what I did to help with anything, I will try to check on this post for a couple weeks or so.

 

Addition:

Speaking with Baylissa helped.  It gave me reassurance.  But her book was a LIFESAVER at the point in time I read it.  I would read certain chapters over and over again because they reflected what I was going through.

 

Hi. im brand new. i jist posted my intro as now what. Im a mom 41yrs old and my mind and life turned to dust in the last 2yrs. glad to know you are doing well. im in the obsessed cant stop thinking about it stage. of course my story involves hospitals and psychosis so thats fun. anyway im happy you are so well!!!💗

Hi fake it!

 

Your success story is one of my favourite, I will read it over and over again bc its gives me hope.

Our story very similar... I’m a short time user too, got Clonazepam for sleep in peri menapouse time. (5 years ago)

Took it only for 2.5.months then anxiety came and thingling head.... CT recommended by doctor bc I took it only for short time low dose. .....so sad ....then my hell  begin

 

Got remeron after....then got worse then back to benzo for 2.5 months then I got even worse

 

Back to remeron up and down 3 more times ...Huge mistake!

Then CBD oil.,(4 months)..did not help...then projesterone cream.(1.5 years)... omg was horrible I didn’t know projesterone  acting on a same reseptors like benzo. Many people call it a natural benzo.

 

4 years off benzo and 18 months  off everything still suffering greatly.

But here and there I have some 50% better days. Very few. Giving me some hope my brain able to feel better

 

I will try to fake it more harder... I truly believe it will help me too

Is just hard when you feel you paralyzed with fears and anxiety and pain..

But have no other choice. Is life or death ....I choose life.. and I will fight for my life until my heart is working.

 

Thank you again you wonderful success story. I will read it every day for encouragement.

Wishing you all the good health and happiness!!! You made it and with GOD  help and lots of positive self talk I will too.

 

Only one question.. did you had anxiety or headpain ? If you did how you able to overcome anxiety? Supplements dos not work for me.

 

Vica

 

 

Hi fake it!

 

Your success story is one of my favourite, I will read it over and over again bc its gives me hope.

Our story very similar... I’m a short time user too, got Clonazepam for sleep in peri menapouse time. (5 years ago)

Took it only for 2.5.months then anxiety came and thingling head.... CT recommended by doctor bc I took it only for short time low dose. .....so sad ....then my hell  begin

 

Got remeron after....then got worse then back to benzo for 2.5 months then I got even worse

 

Back to remeron up and down 3 more times ...Huge mistake!

Then CBD oil.,(4 months)..did not help...then projesterone cream.(1.5 years)... omg was horrible I didn’t know projesterone  acting on a same reseptors like benzo. Many people call it a natural benzo.

 

4 years off benzo and 18 months  off everything still suffering greatly.

But here and there I have some 50% better days. Very few. Giving me some hope my brain able to feel better

 

I will try to fake it more harder... I truly believe it will help me too

Is just hard when you feel you paralyzed with fears and anxiety and pain..

But have no other choice. Is life or death ....I choose life.. and I will fight for my life until my heart is working.

 

Thank you again you wonderful success story. I will read it every day for encouragement.

Wishing you all the good health and happiness!!! You made it and with GOD  help and lots of positive self talk I will too.

 

Only one question.. did you had anxiety or headpain ? If you did how you able to overcome anxiety? Supplements dos not work for me.

 

Vica

 

Meditation, breathing exercises, and most of all faith.  I also cried a lot to release the stress.  It's ok to cry! Let it out!

Affirmations also help "I'm okay", "I am strong".

I also listened to Claire Weeks a LOT.  I mean a LOT.  Knowing the science behind anxiety also helps.

There's not one single magic trick; I think it's understanding anxiety, learning techniques, time, a good diet, EXERCISE . . .all of it combined together help.

 

Thank you for sharing your story! Which Baylissa book helped you? I just checked her website and there are so many.

Congratz on your recovery. I am currently 7 months off C/T from 4 months use of Klonopin. I wish I had someone to call and talk about withdrawls becouse I feel like I might have Brain Damage. I can't think clearly hopefully I will heal completely like you did. I just can't imagine I will. Everything seems so weird right now and the tinnitus makes me feel like I am broken inside!

Good morning everyone!

I had to stop in because today is my 2-year anniversary of not being on any medication whatsoever. When I stopped the Ativan cold turkey, they tried to tell me I had depression and started me on an antidepressant which made me so much worse.

So while today is not the anniversary of my last day since a benzodiazepine it is the 2-year anniversary of my last day with any kind of medication.

I'm actually in Pennsylvania visiting my summer home.

So many dreams have come true through my healing.

I just want to tell everybody to hang in there.

If somebody would have told me it was going to take 2 years for me to heal I would have completely freaked out.

But the truth is, I've healed in so many ways beyond just the brain damage that the benzos caused.

Because of the journey I've grown both emotionally, and spiritually. I used to read all the time how people would save life was so much better once they healed and it's true.

I'm sorry I don't come back very often and I'm sorry right now I'm not ready to become anybody's mentor.

I have a few people that I connected with throughout my journey and a couple of them aren't completely healed so that's about all that I can handle at this time.

I do hope that changes sometime in the future because I want to pay it forward more.

In the circle of friends that I made here there's still a couple that haven't healed and maybe once they are completely healed I will be able to mentor someone.

In the meantime hopefully my words here will help for you to know that you will definitely heal.

I can't emphasize enough how faking it helped me beat this thing. I honestly feel like every morning that I got up and just face the day as best I could and acted like I was completely normal it retrained my brain to think positive thoughts. It taught me to always look for something good in my day and be grateful for it.

I think above everything else it taught me to love myself. then when you physically heal from everything suddenly emotionally you're on top of the world. It's hard to explain.

I will try to find the baylissa book that I read.

I honestly thought at the time that it was the only book she had. All I know is it breaks down all the symptoms and explains it. The beginning of the book is kind of a  journal of her story. But then the subsequent chapters are the different symptoms you can have and how to overcome them. I would sit by my garden for hours everyday reading that book over and over again in certain parts.

I'm on my mobile phone so it's hard to type so I will leave this here for now.

Love to you all. You've got this!!

Breathe.

Accept.

Pray.

The best medicine is time and it just needs to pass.

 

Fakeit

 

Greetings from Ohio!  Thanks for sharing.  I hit five months this week.  I too have grown because of this difficult journey.

 

Thanks for remembering us and stopping by.  We need to hear these success stories.

 

 

Thanks so much for come back to update us with your story, so full of hope and encouragement! 

Thank you Fakeit,

Your success story is so helpful to me. You put some of the more difficult aspects of all of this into words I could have never cone up with, especially with brain fog:) I read your success story over and over, and I share it with others who don’t understand what we’re going through. It gives me hope and helps me keep grinding out the difficult days.

 

Thank you again for sharing and congratulations on your healing!

Thank you for sharing your story. It definitely gives me hope in dark times. The only thing that makes me feel sad is that I don't understand how you found so many helpful friends on here? I keep reaching out but get nothing. I haven't had that helpful experience at all. A few of the mods have been kind with replies to my posts but to be honest, people will barely even answer a question. It makes me wonder if I'm just not good at making friends. I feel completely alone in this journey.

My experience has been exactly the same. I reach out and get no answers.  I don’t understand how people can say they got so much help from this site.  Not my experience at all.

@[cb...]

 

Why do you say you get no answers?  I perused some of your older posts and see quality replies. 

 

I only have experience tapering off of Lexapro, Ambien, and Ativan so not sure I can help you much, but I can try.

 

What kind of help are you both looking for? 

 

 

Fake it:..thanks so much for the update! Your story just keeps on giving. Its a wave day for me so it was helpful to reread your success post - I need that friendly reminder today.

Be blessed!

@cberg and SRR,

 

Why do you say you get no answers?  I perused some of your older posts and see quality replies. 

 

I only have experience tapering off of Lexapro, Ambien, and Ativan so not sure I can help you much, but I can try.

 

What kind of help are you both looking for?

I didn't say I didn't get answers. I said I have not made friends here. So many people go on and on about all the phone calls and friendships and texts and all of that. People talk about all the real friendships they have made. I'm like, how?

SRR: I will PM you about this:)

I have had posts go with no answers.  I don’t know what you looked up but several times I even complained that I was getting tons of views but no answers.  People’s reply to that was “they didn’t know what to say.”  I thought my questions were pretty straight forward. 

Cberg:

 

I know when we post sometimes we don't even need an answer - just validation that we are heard and someone gets it...

 

I think sometimes it depends on where you're posting. I know I'm not on the taper threads much bc I was not a classic taper so I cannot comment or advise from experience. I tend to "hang out" on the post WD board or ct/rapid taper.

 

Many times when there are views or no responses it is bc that "reader" could be hurting just as bad as you, therefore maybe not even having the emotional energy to respond and are just looking for something hopeful on the site. Don't take it personal..keep reaching out. Try different threads. PM people if you feel a connection.

I am so happy I found your story. I’m in tears. Thank you for the gift of hope ❤️

Bump. Good story