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Feel stuck in a taper


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I am getting better doctor support with my Valium taper but my WD symptoms are bad. I can't go back to my regular dose of Clonazepam because of the tolerance and Diazepam still hasn't stabilized so I don't know if my systems agrees with it. What do I do?
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Like others, in so many other threads, I suggest you hold or updose to stabilize. You appear to be taking a minuscule amount of Valium compared to the K dose where your body became overwhelmed with repairs.

 

Personally, I would have never gotten on this drug (for headaches!) had a more knowledgeable doctor been involved; looking at over a year of continued tranquilizer dosing, and of careful and painful tapering, I just want to off this medicine as soon as possible. But from all the research I've done and the rapid taper experiences I've had, there's a very real risk of making myself psychotic and bedridden if I rush this recovery process; not to mention lasting and possibly permanent nervous system damage.

 

So while the goal I think we share is to get off the medicine, I do not seem to be sharing your severe withdrawal symptoms nor experience of stagnation, perhaps because I've done three things differently:

 

1) I reacted quickly when my doctor encouraged me to continue a taper rate that was causing severe symptoms. I reacted by calling other doctors, I reinstated at my previous dose, and visited the ER for a CAT scan and to speak with a psychiatrist. This psychiatrist says he NEVER prescribes clonazepam to anyone any more. Other doctors said the same thing, many wondering why I was given clonazepam as a script for headaches before trying other non-addictive medications. Once I joined BB and learned about tapering, I changed to a new doctor who promised to NOT rush me off the medication, and to let me lead the taper at my own pace.

 

2) I have paid close attention to my tapering symptoms, and I've only tapered at a rate that my body can keep fully recovering from. I get waves of depression, anxiety and pain throughout the day, but I had these before taking benzos; when I get new symptoms or increased severity, I hold my dose until I stabilize. Instead of declining in functionality during my taper, I've actually been regaining functionality I didn't have before I started this medicine; I can now walk farther and drive myself in the car (on good days). I owe some of these improvements to my careful taper rate, and some to my third approach...

 

3) I don't consider benzo tapering to be more than just one variable in my health journey. I do developmental trauma therapy, I do positive affirmations, I exercise gently, and I work on developing new skills to address the trauma, anxiety, depression, and body pain that the benzo represses. I am also working with a functional medicine doctor to investigate any underlying methylation, inflammation, gut imbalances or other issues that have developed as a result of surviving the traumas of my childhood.

 

My hope is that my time spent slow tapering gives me the opportunity to practice changing my life in such a way that both the taper and my future without the medication is as healthful as possible. While I'd rather this could be done without the added hassle and suffering of a benzo taper, the die have been cast.

 

I hope this doesn't come across as pretentious. I'm not saying my approach is possible in your situation; I just want to share how there are key differences between someone stuck in a taper and someone who's taper is slow, but fairly comfortable and almost always advancing. These three elements of: self-advocacy and taper control, slow symptom-based tapering, and adjunct therapies, are the best I could come up with to handle this unfortunate situation. So far, I'm managing!

 

I hope you can stabilize. Patience is required of all of us.  :smitten:

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