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Online Support....Can it make things worse?


[KR...]

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Google first directed me to a diagnosis of pancreatitis (severe GI Symptoms) which turned out to be wrong, and as a result of , scared myself silly for a good day or two.  But it also directed me to a Celiac diagnosis, which turned out to be accurate and which my Gastro had missed entirely.  So aside from those two days when I thought I was terminal lol, I'm really glad for google.
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Google first directed me to a diagnosis of pancreatitis (severe GI Symptoms) which turned out to be wrong, and as a result of , scared myself silly for a good day or two.  But it also directed me to a Celiac diagnosis, which turned out to be accurate and which my Gastro had missed entirely.  So aside from those two days when I thought I was terminal lol, I'm really glad for google.

 

I recant my former comment.  Wow.  This is a very good thing.  WWWI hope you are doing ok.  HUGS.

 

Kian

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WWW... Awsome you were able to find that out!! Celiac is so painful

 

I think theres a difference here tho.. Being in our normal level headed and rational minds we can decipher whats what. And given when a person is haveing a sxs and not going thru a wild manic overflow of super unatural amount of sxs.It can bring a good amount of results when looking up a isolated problematic area .For sure google can be really helpful.

But for acute w/d and way to many sxs and no doctor can bring relief ..Searching Google can bring us a serious mind trip. Im mean rt now if I have a problem I can look up google and the problem get much info were I would find insightful..Sure I have my Brain back now.

But Noway not in acute w/d and not knowing what was up.. That was so not cool I felt like I had so many terminal illnesses and I ran with them.

Idk I just think what Rock said about google and allowing negitive stuff in our minds can have very negitive effects. Its so did for me. I think when u have ur brain .You have common sence. But when ur in acute you feel you have every terminal disease .Then Google confirms It ..

 

~Jenny

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I absolutely agree with you Jenn (and btw it's wonderful to see you after so long :) ).  When I called my sister (an MD) with my pancreatitis diagnosis in sheer panic she said to me "Get up, drop the mouse and slowly STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER" lol

 

Kian, ty for your wishes and as has been the discussion here and your comments, I agree caution should certainly be a part of googling symptoms.  Hope things are managable for you too :)

 

WWWI

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I absolutely agree with you Jenn (and btw it's wonderful to see you after so long :) ).  When I called my sister (an MD) with my pancreatitis diagnosis in sheer panic she said to me "Get up, drop the mouse and slowly STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER" lol

 

Kian, ty for your wishes and as has been the discussion here and your comments, I agree caution should certainly be a part of googling symptoms.  Hope things are managable for you too :)

 

WWWI

 

WWWI ..... LMAO. You just had me rollin with the "drop the mouse and step away from the computer" deal. I checked this thread a minute ago on my cell phone and started cracking up. I'm not laughing at you at all. But envisioning the way that all went down with your sister on the phone had me going. Thanks for the laugh.

 

Rock

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I absolutely agree with you Jenn (and btw it's wonderful to see you after so long :) ).  When I called my sister (an MD) with my pancreatitis diagnosis in sheer panic she said to me "Get up, drop the mouse and slowly STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER" lol

 

Kian, ty for your wishes and as has been the discussion here and your comments, I agree caution should certainly be a part of googling symptoms.  Hope things are managable for you too :)

 

WWWI

WWW...Lmao

 

Funny stuff.. Its so wonderful to see you to!!! I hope ur feeling good and getting thru your taper as smooth as you can. Yea not haveing chat kinda makes us loss touch on a day to day basis :(

 

~Jenny

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When i was having tolerance withdrawals, of course, i didn't know that's what it was, i would go to Wiki, and start to diagnose what was wrong with me.

 

According to my self diagnosis, I had pancreatic cancer, stomach cancer, prostate cancer, mouth cancer, burning mouth syndrome, diabetes.  The list goes on and on.

 

When i found this site and realized that all of my 'mystery diseases' were caused by  the Ativan and the Ambien i was taking.  I vowed to never look up any more diseases, and just let the chips fall where they may.

 

A little knowledge in the hands of the untrained, ME, caused many worrisome days, and sleepless nights.

 

I guess the only good that came out of this crapola, is that i became educated about benzos, and now i know, to never, ever, take another one!! 

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I completely agree, I've read far too much stuff in the past couple of weeks on here that have made me feel defeated.  Its too easy to focus on the negative when its all you read about. 

 

also Jenny I was wondering if you could let me pm you I have some questions, need help and I  trust you :-\

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Hi SurfUSA..

 

Im so sorry I shut down my Pm system and cant recieve any Pms at this time.I think if anyone pms me it says Ive blocked them. I actually didnt block anyone in perticular I just can only recieve from admins.

 

If you feel comfortable to ask here Ill do my best to help :)

I hope your ok. And I know how bad these sxs can be Mine were straight up off the Charts torture..

O thank God it ends ..Yay

 

~Jenny

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I've come across something very important. At least in my world that is. I was reading the back of the bag of my favorite potato chips. Nacho Cheese Doritos!! Yum!!  And what do you know. I see that it has MSG (Monosodium glutamate) in it. I was like OMG!! I was very taken back by this due to the RUMORS that Ive heard on line on how it can effect your withdrawl. LOL. I've made SURE that all the Chinese food carry out that Ive been eating throughout my cold turkey has been free of it. I've pretty much lived on this stuff. I always told the Chinese dude on the phone "NO MSG!!!" bahaha. The problem was I couldn't stop eating the Doritos. I found NO difference in any of my symptoms. Go figure. LOL.  I made sure I licked all the cheese off every chip and my fingers as well. Still NO revving of symptoms. I ended up finishing off the bag without any seizures or GI problems. :yippee: Ive decided that I'm NOT going to Google how MSG effects benzo withdrawl because I don't want to ruin a good thing. I'm sure if I did that I would be scared to eat them. It might even say I could end up in the hospital. :stretcher: Who knows. Not a chance I'm willing to take. I'm eating them NO matter what.  :thumbsup: 

 

Rock

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I've come across something very important. At least in my world that is. I was reading the back of the bag of my favorite potato chips. Nacho Cheese Doritos!! Yum!!  And what do you know. I see that it has MSG (Monosodium glutamate) in it. I was like OMG!! I was very taken back by this due to the RUMORS that Ive heard on line on how it can effect your withdrawl. LOL. I've made SURE that all the Chinese food carry out that Ive been eating throughout my cold turkey has been free of it. I've pretty much lived on this stuff. I always told the Chinese dude on the phone "NO MSG!!!" bahaha. But as I kept eating my Doritos I just couldn't stop. I found NO difference in any of my symptoms. Go figure. LOL.  I made sure I licked all the cheese off every chip and my fingers as well. Still NO revving of symptoms. I ended up finishing off the bag without any seizures or GI problems. :yippee: Ive decided that I'm NOT going to Google how MSG effects benzo withdrawl because I don't want to ruin a good thing. I'm sure if I did that I would be scared to eat them. It might even say I could end up in the hospital. :stretcher: Who knows. Not a chance I'm willing to take. I'm eating them NO matter what.  :thumbsup: 

 

Rock

 

Hi Rock,

 

The reason why you did not end up on a ventilator in ICU after eating Doritos is because of the enzymatic action stimulated by the release of endotrophins by the pituitary gland in response to licking your fingers.  Even I know that!  ;) KL

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Ok, I'm really suffering here cause I had so much trouble trying to cross to K and having to go back to X. And when my mind can function I may get around to updating my sig. I'm so distressed cause of what I'm going through that I am not calm.

 

So I can just say that I know benzos are bad for all of us and I want desperately to get off of them, but I don't know if that is possible for me. And there's another  article about Whitney Houston having taken Xanax and how it contributed to her death. And while I think an article like this and the many others are necessary for public consumption, it's very much preaching to the converted here or is it for me for sure.

 

So in this way, today, I can truly debate ( if my brain could function, and of course making Peter Breggins point) whether or not online support is helpful or hurtful. Right now, it is not supportive for me at all. We must suffer individually the real pain these drugs cause, and I am suffering individually, feeling alone, in pain, so good for Breggin pointing out for the umpteenth time that benzos are bad.

 

I actually read the Huffington Post regularly, but not so much lately. Hard to see those articles here on BB on repeat basis as if it proves something we all don't actually know or believe. Or maybe we don't know. Why are we all here? Or am I missing something here? Ok, im shutting up.

 

Intend

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You should be here if it helps. If it doesn't or if it makes things feel worse, you shouldn't be here.

 

For some, I know this type of support is a lifeline. For some, it's a place to research and often just the understanding they glean from that research is enough to help.

 

For some, spending more time here, being in contact with other people who are going through the same thing is what they need.

 

For some, being part of an online support group, doesn't help at all.

 

For some, being part of an online support ground causes more problems than it helps.

 

You need to decide which one of these people you are and go forward in your recovery in a way that suites you.

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Hope,

 

I agree with you.  That article did not help.  It is discouraging to read the article in its entirety.  Breggin does go into some fairly discouraging stuff.  But I replied directly to the original posting thread of the article as I am now replying to you.  I did go into more detail an analysis of the article, so its probably  unnecessary to repeat that.  This forum is often a great source of information without doubt.  That is primarily what I have gleaned from it, and I consider that valuable.

 

There are also many helpful and supportive people here.  I am fully aware that I should not have read that article because most of them with any science based info will not be fun to read.

 

And the topic of this thread is whether or not online support can make things worse.  Obviously, I have replied in the past and that it has been helpful as the post shows up.  Today was a contrary answer, perhaps too powerful for the thread.  But it was exactly how I felt at that time.  I do not want to be negative and generally am not.  At that point, I was negative.  It is always good to be informative, positive, and even humorous when posting.  Today, I was hit by a tremendous wave of negativity.  What else can one say?  I dont know that it is possible to be one consistent person all the time as you described in your answer to my post.  But I agree that today, I made a decision to post negatively as I felt so upset.  It is better to stay offline during these times.

 

Intend

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Hope,

 

I agree with you.  That article did not help.  It is discouraging to read the article in its entirety.  Breggin does go into some fairly discouraging stuff.  But I replied directly to the original posting thread of the article as I am now replying to you.  I did go into more detail an analysis of the article, so its probably  unnecessary to repeat that.  This forum is often a great source of information without doubt.  That is primarily what I have gleaned from it, and I consider that valuable.

 

There are also many helpful and supportive people here.  I am fully aware that I should not have read that article because most of them with any science based info will not be fun to read.

 

And the topic of this thread is whether or not online support can make things worse.  Obviously, I have replied in the past and that it has been helpful as the post shows up.  Today was a contrary answer, perhaps too powerful for the thread.  But it was exactly how I felt at that time.  I do not want to be negative and generally am not.  At that point, I was negative.  It is always good to be informative, positive, and even humorous when posting.  Today, I was hit by a tremendous wave of negativity.  What else can one say?  I dont know that it is possible to be one consistent person all the time as you described in your answer to my post.  But I agree that today, I made a decision to post negatively as I felt so upset. It is better to stay offline during these times.

Intend

 

I disagree. I think many people feel negative and it can be helpful to know that this is a common feeling while going through a difficult w/d.

 

My point wasn't so much pointed to you, Intend as it was a general comment for the wider membership.

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Intend... I'm glad you posted what you did here on this thread. I didn't think it was negative at all. I also don't think you should stay off line during these times as stated. If something you read is bothering you let it be known. Maybe you will prevent someone else from reading that garbage. What I see is you learning what is GOOD for you to read and what is BAD for you to read as you go through this process. :thumbsup: This is the BEST thing that can be happening to you right now. Your identifying the Do's and Dont's of withdrawl.  :yippee: The further you go along and the more honest you become with yourself the STRONGER you will get. BE true to yourself and how you feel about things. Express yourself! Don't be fake and tell people what they want to hear just because you dont want to upset them. Holding things in and letting them manifest is not the way to roll. Always speak your mind and be yourself. I know I do.

 

Rock

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Hi Intend,  :)

I agree, it's better to stay off line at these times.  I know exactly which part of the article you are talking about and it's been bothering me since yesterday when I read it.  Unless I'm at a place where I'm feeling stable in my stability I've decided I need to stay away.  Even now writing this, I can feel my adrenaline rising and it feels overwhelming.  Need to focus on something else.

Take Care.

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Krock,

 

Thanks for your reply. I am a pretty straightforward and plain spoken person. I do think we've seen enough of Whitney Houston articles posted here on BB. But just like I can say that, others are also free to continue to post them. And you are right about me knowing what to read and what not to read. I knew at the start of the article that I was going down a troubling path, but I went there anyway. And it is tiring to hear over and over how damaged we may be from all the experts. And aren't the many other experts also denying that there is anything like benzo w/d? I'm tired of the experts and tired in general.

 

I admire your enthusiasm and energy. Perhaps you are young and resilient. I'm not getting any younger and I'm losing any resilience as my problems have escalated. At the heart of my earlier post was true fear and frustration about my present situation and then seeing a post that basically is all about Warning Everyone, but in no way is very helpful to me or anyone else in this situation other than to affirm what we supposedly already know. I will not read this stuff until or if I'm in a better place if that ever happens. It definitely doesn't help and actually is frightening. It's hard to understand how that is productive when people are already scared. But the answer is to Not Read It cause it is unproductive. It just really up to me. I posted what I felt at the time. I still feel that way, but I'm calmer now. And I don't need to read anymore Breggin stuff for a good long time.

 

Intend

 

 

 

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Can someone tell me where the article can be found, please. I am not a Breggin fan. I believe him to be a zealot who has actually left (or been kicked out of) the foundation he started. I doubt he has many in his own profession believing the radical stuff he says. However I haven't read this article people are referring to so I can't comment on that. I read his book on Prozac many years ago.

 

Some googling in order for me I think!

 

Xana

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Benzohno,

 

Thanks for your reply. I've read this stuff before and my heart just pounds with anxiety. I won't do that again cause I'm not anywhere being in a good place right now. And it's just not very self affirming or anything else to hear it or read it multiple times. I actually did stay off line most of the day and then happened to see it and just kind of had to speak.

 

I actually was surprised to see that much of an article come out of the Huffington Post. You'll never get that much political analysis out of them. Believe me, I know. Anyway, no more of that for me.

 

Intend

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Xana,

 

I read it earlier on the Benzos in the News forum. I commented there also. I was just kind of worked up today. It's still there.

 

Intend

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Was it 'Xanax Facts and Whitney Houston'? I just skimmed through that after being nauseated by the introduction about him and his wife, 'Ginger'. Blah, blah! What a way to start a scientific article. Who cares if he wants to sing to his stupid wife?

 

It is a supposition that Xanax was the cause of the singer's death. She was probably taking heaps of other stuff. Why not wait for the autopsy to give evidence before trying to scare people. But this is Breggin's style. Scare first and prove it later. I have read this 'spellbinding' crap before when someone accused me of suffering from it back on TRAP. I did not suffer from it. I will try to find my post from my printed thread.

 

I was bad BEFORE I took Xanax. It gave me some normalcy in my life. Something went wrong in my brain at the age of 41 when I developed fibromyalgia. I am off it now. My cognition was never affected and neither was my judgement.

 

I should read his stupid book. He's making as much of a profit as the big pharmaceutical companies by the looks of it on the 'Huffington Post'. Nothing sells better than scare mongering.

 

Will be making him a bit of a project and finding professionals who don't agree with him.

 

Xana

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