Jump to content

Hello-Trying to Taper Valium - Tinnitus Gone??


[vi...]

Recommended Posts

Hello! I am new here and glad to be here where I can get support and hopefully offer support.

 

I successfully tapered off of Xanax a LOONNGGG time ago with the help of an amazing psychiatrist.

 

More recently, I have been taking Valium for about 3 years, and started Lexapro about 1 1/2 year ago due to extreme lethargy which I though was depression (I am now pretty sure it was just the Valium).

 

I started tapering the Valium from pretty erratic use - some days I would only take 10 mgs at night, some days it would be 10 mg pills throughout the day going as high as probably 40 mgs a day. So finding my baseline is a bit hard. BUT I started trying to taper (I'm not exactly sure when), maybe a couple of months ago to only taking 10 mgs at night. That seemed to be OK, although looking back I can see that I was experiencing extra sensitivity to sound. Ive kept my TV really really low for over a month and have been extra sensitive to sound at work too. I had no idea this could be related to reducing the Valium, so I just thought maybe it was in my head or that my TV (I only watch through my Roku) had like - readjusted the sound level or something.

 

Then I about 2 weeks ago serious brain fog hit me and I started googling. I stumbled across posts about Valium causing Alzheimers and got totally freaked out, was convinced that was what was happening ( I am 48 years old), and impulsively and frantically reduced my valium down even more to 2.5 mgs. THAT WAS A MISTAKE. Within a few days I was experiencing extreme muscle pain, serious serious brain fog, difficulty with memory, TINNITUS ( UGGG), insomnia for 3 days straight, my shoulder popped out and would not go back, headaches.... all sorts of weird stuff.

 

SOOO, this all seemed to hit a peak last Monday night. Oh yeah, Muscle Spams that made me think I was going to have a seizure. THIS IS NO GOOD.

 

I was reading and reading and finally realized this was all probably the result of tapering off of the Valium too quickly. I don't / didn't know what my actual baseline was, though, since I've been so erratic in how much I take every day. So I started slowly increasing my dose back up trying to find my baseline. I finally just upped to 30 mgs yesterday, and can say that 90 - 95% of all of the crazy withdrawal symptoms have gone away. Even the tinnitus, which was really freaking me out, seems to have gone away over the last day after adding the last 5 mgs back.

 

So, Im here at 30 mgs. And I think I want to stay here for a bit until I feel confident that I am stable here before I even think about starting to reduce again. And I want to follow the Ashton protocol and take however long it takes to not have, or to at least to minimize, any protracted withdrawal symptoms. Especially the brain fog and the tinnitus.

 

My main question at this point is, even though the tinnitus went away over the past day after adding in the last 5 mgs, once I start to taper is it likely to come back?? That was pretty awful. It had lasted close to a week before resolving in the last day. Is it possible that I permanently damaged my ears and that it will come back once I taper back down? Sorry if I'm repeating myself I am just pretty freaked out about that, and also just realizing how screwed I am taking Valium and having no idea how much it was affecting my ENTIRE BODY. This stuff is evil and I want nothing to do with it anymore!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Vivian,

 

Sorry to hear that you have had such a terrible time with valium recently after those huge cuts. It's good that you have found your baseline now and can do a slow taper.

 

On your main question about the tinnitus. Please don't worry about permanent damage. Your tinnitus resolved when you updosed so its just a withdrawal side effect and a very common one. I had constant tinnitus towards the end of last year when I had a crash with all the symptoms you describe. I had the same worries about it too. Now I have very little tinnitus. None at all in Windows and a little low level tinnitus when going into a wave for like 2hrs only. I am right in a wave now and nothing at all so it does go away. Valium is a spiteful drug but we can beat it and we are not permanently damaged.

 

Sending good vibes :smitten:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Vivian,

 

Sorry to hear that you have had such a terrible time with valium recently after those huge cuts. It's good that you have found your baseline now and can do a slow taper.

 

On your main question about the tinnitus. Please don't worry about permanent damage. Your tinnitus resolved when you updosed so its just a withdrawal side effect and a very common one. I had constant tinnitus towards the end of last year when I had a crash with all the symptoms you describe. I had the same worries about it too. Now I have very little tinnitus. None at all in Windows and a little low level tinnitus when going into a wave for like 2hrs only. I am right in a wave now and nothing at all so it does go away. Valium is a spiteful drug but we can beat it and we are not permanently damaged.

 

Sending good vibes :smitten:

 

Thank you Roxy!

 

When you crashed and had all of the awful symptoms hit you, did you just stop and hold, or did you re-up back to where you were before? How long did it take before the tinnitus went away/how long did the tinnitus last for you?

 

Thank you for your feedback, it really helps me feel less anxious... The last week had me thinking all kinds of crazy things about what was going on with me and imagining how it was going to affect my life and my job... I did a lot of praying in the last week and I don't pray very often.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just held at the 1mg.

 

I didn't find BBs until the end of last year and didn't know what I was doing before that. All the fast cuts caught up with me and I was too afraid to cut again for 10 weeks but am working on tapering the Last 1mg now.

 

The tinnitus started early in my taper but infrequent and at low volumes. As my taper progressed through summer it became more regular and louder. By the time I crashed it was 27/7 and annoyingly got louder at night which made my insomnia even worse. I had it constantly for about 2 months. It just faded out after that. I started noticing not having it for longer and longer periods and it just faded out to the point where I wouldn't even include it in my list of symptoms anymore.

 

I completely relate to the medical anxiety thats what I was put on valium for in the first place. In the past few months I have convinced myself seriously that I have 3 different cancers and heart disease. I have had many panic attacks and sleepless nights over each. It's all the valium playing tricks on me. The fear is crippling. It has got better though since I read a post by Parker that Pamster sent me a link to when I reached out for help about my crippling medical anxiety. I have a hard copy print out beside me now as I am in a bad wave today. I keep reading it to remind myself that things aren't real, just benzo symptoms.

 

I will try to send you that link. This is the first time I have used a forum so my navigation is not the best but I will try as I can't recommend this post enough. It taught me why I am thinking and feeling this way.

 

Stay positive, Roxy :smitten:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you so much!!!

 

Edit: I just read that post and it is soooo helpful! So well written and helpful with anxiety. That's a great post!! Thank you for sharing. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...