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How long does it take for benzos to leave your system?


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this is really interesting - i don't think i read this before - ampersand - you are our lab rat.

 

i have a concern here - if this does hit you hard - that is not good.

 

i hope you make it finish ok - i am interested in the outcome.

 

there has not been enough research on this subject - i suspect most of the research has been done w/o a heart - ashton was the only person i felt had a handle on this issue.

 

but you may well open another pardyme for us to see gee i just hate it when google can't spell a word - you have to sound out paradym - to see what i meant.

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Hi Ampersand,

I read that you take advil pm. You know, unless you actually have a pain problem that is keeping you from sleeping, you would be better off taking plain benadryl or Unisom (that stuff is great! half a pill used to knock me out). There's no sense in taking the extra pain med of advil, As it can be hard on your kidneys if taken on a regular basis. Same goes for tylenol pm, which is hard on the liver.  Just a suggestion :)

Linda

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[93...]
I was having a lot of joint/muscle pain from taking the benzos it seems.  It followed me right into the W/D period.  Now that I am 20 days into it, I don't feel any more pain.  The Advil PM doesn't work very well anymore.  I need to take 2 of them with some natural sleep capsules that contain some melatonin just to get to sleep for more than 5 hours.  Insomnia is always a problem, thus the need to turn to meds which is what got me into the benzos in the first place.  I've taken Unisom in the past with not much success.  There is also Alluna which contains valerian and hops which doesn't do much.  Maybe Unisom plus Alluna would work, but neither one alone will do the job. 
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i find what used to work for me isn't working that well anymore.

 

i do better with liquid forms of stuffs - enters your system faster.

 

i have some real smelly valerian tea - Valerian hops is the strongest form of Valerian - it may come in a tincture somewhere.

 

i have gone back to smoking - i am smoking indian spirit filtered.

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It's true, anything you take for sleep, whether it's "natural" or otc, prescribed, will tend to lose effectiveness. Rotating, or carefully combining, I suppose might do the trick. I guess we have to experiment on ourselves. ::)

 

Linda

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  • 3 weeks later...

amper just thought i would come back and read this - wish it was in a blog so others could read it and it would be easier to access.

 

i know it is not politically correct but i just busted out laughing when i read how you took all your valium in a fit of determination and anger and then jumped in with both feet.

 

this is great stuff for those forced to go cold turkey - cause there are people that will not get another prescription - there are people who will be treated like it is all in their head - nothing to it.

 

so it is good to see the steps you took to deal with going cold turkey - what worked what didn't and how you dealt with it.

 

;)

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[93...]
Hey Silver... unfortunately, this is not the cold turkey board.  I won't advocate CT because it is dangerous... I just happened to get away with it.   If someone really needs to know anything about CT, they can PM me.  Otherwise, I can't stick my neck out and say "It's do-able."   After talking to kayjay, I realized how sick she is on just 2.75mgs of Xanax.   I had to be very careful as to what I said to her... I was very careful and I paid attention to what she said, how she sounded and I used my gut instinct.  :socool:
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  • 4 weeks later...

To Sandy,

Did you cold turkey off that much xanax and valium in October , or I was I reading something else.

 

New to this type of many layered discussion/forum and I am trying to focus on real solutions.

 

If so, how did you do it?

thanks , Peaches

 

Also how do I find the reply to my question? ???

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Also how do I find the reply to my question? ???

 

Hi Peaches!

to find the reply to your question, in the upper right hand corner of any page there is a link that says "Show unread posts since last visit. Click on that, then look for the thread you posted in "Re: How long does it take for benzos to leave your system?"  :)

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Peaches,

 

 It was Ampersand who did the CT, not Sandy.  If you want to read about his experience, go to the forum page, go to General Withdrawal Support (which is the section you are in now), and find the thread called "Ampersand is over the Hump".  

 

Peaches, what solutions are you looking for?  

 

The best way to have your questions answered is to start a new thread in the New Member introduction section.

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peaches - amper has had a lot of experience with this stuff - do not follow his example please.

 

he pretty much knew what he was getting into and has been on and off of these before.  i did not support his decision but i appreciated the experience of his adventure for the use of those that HAVE NO CHOICE.

 

it is not a cake walk tapering off benzos and the repercussions of a cold turkey can be very very very hard on someone.  so please do not even consider this option.

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Peaches,

 

  If you are considering a CT, please think again. I have had two disasterous experiences with CT. Once on my own, once in a detox clinic.  I was almost driven mad.  Please listen to Silver and me when we tell you this should not be an option for quitting your benzos.

 

XXXXX

Christine/BlueMoth

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and peaches amper did a rapid withdrawal - not a cold turkey - although a rapid withdrawal could have some very devastating effects - we do not advocate it - amper does not advocate it.
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[93...]
Yeah, I guess it was like a rapid withdrawal, but as I think back on what I was taking and how I was taking the benzos, there was alternation every month or so between the alprazolam and the diazepam.  I finished with the diazepam and felt that I could jump off that at 40mgs.  Not a great thing to do, but a necessary one for me.  I still find myself in addict behavior, looking for some kind of pill to take to escape.  When I went back east to visit family for the holidays, I think that it was too soon after stopping the diazepam because it was a really raw experience and I almost lost my mind.  I put away a lot of bourbon in a very short period of time and it was necessary thing.  Not a pretty story, but it is the truth.  :o :o :o
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so you didn't really do a cold turkey - there is a distinction - some people see you as this big success story of a cold turkey and my try to emulate your success.

 

so amper did you make a fool of yourself?  i benefit from travel - i sleep better in just about any bed but my own - and i actually get out and run around a lot to.  wish i was like that here. :-\

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[93...]

Well, it was cold-turkey because the amount of alprazolam equalled the amount of diazepam.  I took 40mgs of diazepam to equal the 8mgs of alprazolam.  I did stop cold at 40mgs of diazepam per day, but because of the longer half-life, it took almost 4 days to get sick.  I was breaking down with crying fits with the alprazolam (yes, girls... men DO cry!) and the diazepam never had that effect on me, so I knew I could take the plunge from the diazepam rather than the alprazolam.  8)

 

I didn't make a fool out of myself.  After being a benzo addict, getting loaded on alcohol is like child's play.  Besides, now when I take a drink or 2 or 3 or 4, I never drink anything cheap, so the effect is more pleasant and there is rarely a hangover.  I'm a pro.  :angel:

 

I slept in a beautiful soft bed that my aunt passed away in a few years ago.  We had some good talks at the house about aunt apparitions and a stuffed toy of hers that often goes off (plays music) when her grandaughter enters the house.  :angel: :angel: :angel:  Lots of running around in the cold and grocery shopping, plus an afternoon at the unheated (because of water in the basement) spiritualist church where mediums gave me 2 messages from the beyond... we even barbecued steaks one night in 30-degree weather. :crazy:

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sounds like you had a very interesting trip - i went to wisconsin and had a good time being with my son - his lady friends family even christmas eve and fixing dinner at my friends house - it was a different kind of holiday but it was fun.

 

i am recreating so much right now - must of it from my desk - but sometimes i jump feet first into reality.

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[93...]
Crying is a good release.  I wish I could allow it to happen more often because it is very therapeutic.  I figure when one cries that it means you are very close to the real truth and are just about as open as you will ever get.  :'( :laugh:
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi all,

 

I'm started to get the hang of this forum.

 

I spoke to a lady today, a mother of my friend, she did a cold turkey off xanax 19 years ago after severe xanax abuse. She said she was taking like 300 pills a week. :idiot:

 

She said she was in a de-tox center and given phenobarbitol and had protracted withdrawal symptoms FOR 14 MONTHS :crazy:

She runs a re-hab program now for women. She said she just "dealt " with the withdrawls.

 

Sounds terrible to me. She never heard of the Ashton manual, or a taper program. I explained my situatiion, am in taper, down from 3 mgs a day to 1.75, direct slow taper.

 

The first part, going down from 3-2 i did 2 years ago without consulting, my previous psychiatrist,he was kinda weird and wanted to increase my dose. ???

 

My current psychiatrist is kinda working with me, me doing most of the research and planning. I found a couple of recovery centers, near Atlanta, that sound promising. one does an out-patient taper and the doctor is a psychiatrist/addictionologist. They have a very compassionate philosophy, and I'm hoping to get a second opinion from them .

I am not sure if they will accept my insurance. however.

 

Actually they seem to hod out the most hope and seem to have the expertise, that my kind, local psychiatrist doesn't seem to have. She is rather young for one thing.

 

Another of the recovery centers, which does take my insurance, uses Tranzene to de-tox/transfer. The counselotr I spoke to said that it was not an uncomfortable process.

 

Does anyone know about Tranzene? She said it takes away xanax cravings and I would get out-patient support after I did a week or so of in-patient.

 

I really appreciate you folks. Am open to any and all suggestions.

Thanks, Peaches

 

Sorrry i got the Sandy and Ampersand names mixed up. I am a little mixed up right now

 

 

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