Etizolam to Valium (Diazepam)

Hey everybody. I'm currently on a ~50 1mg (though they may be variable dosages) etizolam addiction

Taken from a negative review of a buyer: "NOT 10MG DIAZEPAM IT IS ETIZOLAM MINE 5 I SENT OFF AVERAGED FROM 0.62MG TO 0.96MG OF ETIZOLAM OUT OF A SAMPLE OF 5 PILLS DO NOT BUY"

This would mean best case scenario I am on a 31mg etizolam addiction - but I would estimate it is closer to 40 if these pills are underdose like this guy says.

I should also be receiving some pharmaceutical diazepam tomorrow, and was wondering what my best taper plan would be.

What should my taper plan be? I've only been abusing these pills for about a month now, so I'm hoping I can taper a little bit faster than usual with some caution. I was only on 25 pills a day, but I rekindled hard by substituting some of them with alcohol.

Thank you in advance. I'm really keen to get clean as soon as fast possible, but understand the taper needs to be a slow and steady process. 

My current plan is to take a few etizolam before the valium arrives, and then take around 80mg of the valium, using the remaining etiz whenever anxiety worsens, then go to bed on 80mg more of the valium. I don't know if this is way too low a dose to start with, and I know that I need to stop using etiz altogether at some point, but I figure this is a good starting point.

The first step is to get serious, which is good because that seems to be what you're doing by posting here. If you need any more motivation, take a look at the withdrawal support forum to see what people are going through. Even though your doses are sky high, you've only been using for a month. It's not necessarily the case that you have fried your brain to the same extent that someone who has been taking benzos for longer has, even though you are taking more.

It's difficult to give specific advice when your situation is so chaotic. What jumps out to me is that you need to focus on taking less immediately and cut out the booze. You can expect to feel uncomfortable... get used to the idea if you are serious about getting off.

Your situation is not very typical so the advice that I am going to give is not typical either. Can you try to take half of what you're currently taking in a day, either by taking ~25 etizolam tablets or an equivalent dose of diazepam (I think about 200mg), for the next few days? If that's manageable, then you can make another sharp reduction. If it's not manageable, you've got a monster journey ahead of you. The usual advice is no more than 10% per week reductions but this is for long term users on smaller doses. I suspect that if you are disciplined and prepared to take some discomfort, you can quickly move to a much smaller dose and taper from there.

Don't worry about seizures at this point. You're on that much benzo that you're not clearing it before you dose again. You almost need to put yourself in some discomfort to understand how dependent you are.

 

Your situation is not very typical so the advice that I am going to give is not typical either. Can you try to take half of what you're currently taking in a day, either by taking ~25 etizolam tablets or an equivalent dose of diazepam (I think about 200mg), for the next few days? If that's manageable, then you can make another sharp reduction.

 

Don't worry about seizures at this point. You're on that much benzo that you're not clearing it before you dose again. You almost need to put yourself in some discomfort to understand how dependent you are.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to manage that, though I do understand discomfort is a big part of the taper. I'm drinking alcohol free booze now and feel mostly normal on about 40 etizolam. Some days I have panic attacks where I need to take about 20 to get back to normal, but I will see if I can push through it. I'm also going to start taking my pills at regular intervals - at the moment I've just been taking them when I don't feel particularly well.

I made that suggestion to get a better idea of just how dependent you are. From what you say, it sounds like you have some idea already. So if you need 40 to feel normal, perhaps you can take 30 and feel less than normal but not like you're going to die.

Not knowing anything about your situation other than what you post, I was accounting for two possibilities. If you're not yet dependent as in your neurochemistry hasn't adapted to the presence of benzos, then getting off them ASAP is a priority so you don't develop that dependency. Alternatively (and with the extra info you gave, this seems more like you) you are dependent on benzos but you don't know what amount exactly. So it's about trying to take less and seeing what the effects are. You're aiming to discover what the minimum amount you need to take so that your symptoms are tolerable. If you're aiming to be comfortable, you will never get off them. So if you took 20 or 30 per day (if you really think 20 is a terrible idea, you know better than me) for a few days, then you will have a better understanding of where you are. Say you took 30 and you're ill but you can manage, take that as your starting point. Keep taking 30 and soon you will adjust to that dose and you can reduce from there. If you literally can't cope as the symptoms are painful or feel dangerous, then perhaps 35 or 40 is your starting point. I can't say what the magic number is for you, you have to figure it out, which requires a degree of experimentation and in all likelihood some significant discomfort. But once you figure this part out, it's in your control to reduce at a level that you can manage.

It sounds like you could use some help dealing with whatever has driven you to take such large amounts of pills. I don't know how to help with that but I do know that if your supply is not limited and you haven't addressed those issues, they are very likely to resurface and that will make getting off them practically impossible.

I've had the breakthrough that I need to push through the pain to get clean, so I'm going to lower my dosages and start taking them at regular times instead so it feels more like a schedule. I was indeed popping pills just to feel comfortable - but I still ended up in bed all day. I think I can finish today on 30.

What got me onto so many pills is that I came into possession of 1000 pressed valiums (etizolam), so I started popping them like candy just because it felt good. Things got worse when I started drinking alongside them. I've managed to get clean from codeine surprisingly easily so I think my brain is just wired to seek out anything that will stimulate it. I'm not even a month away from etizolam usage so I really think a fast taper is the best way to do this.

Side note: I told my doctor I was having bad insomnia and he gave me 7.5mg Zopiclone pills. Should I avoid taking these at all? I know they act the same way benzos do and may ruin my taper.

It looks like you were completely right, e-bam. It's 5pm where I live, I've only taken 20 and am not even craving more. Will probably get into bed on just around 30. Looks like I was just using the pills out of boredom and to feel "normal" without a healthy coping mechanism.

Side note: my doctor JUST prescribed me zopiclone for my insomnia (wish this valium would hurry up). Will this have any adverse effects or reactions or just add to the taper count?

I only have 14 7.5mg pills, planning to use them as prescribed; and the Ashton manual equates 10mg of zopiclone to 15mg of zopi, so it will essentially be like taking 2 valiums to go to sleep.

Since I'll only be on them for 2 weeks (even less once this valium arrives) I'm confident I won't have any cross-tolerance or addiction issues, but tell me if there's something I should be concerned about.

Okay, the Zopiclone did pretty much nothing except make me feel floaty and happy before I fell asleep. Might try taking 2 tonight if the taper goes well today.

Can you try to take half of what you're currently taking in a day, either by taking ~25 etizolam tablets or an equivalent dose of diazepam (I think about 200mg), for

This worked perfectly. I stuck to a strict schedule and didn't even need my last dose. Planning on staying around this point until my valium arrives.

UPDATE: I took 3 zopiclones (22.5 mg) and basically feel nothing. Not even that drowsy. Going to use 120mg of DPH and lots of cannabis oil to try and keep me asleep.