What is happening in your brain?

when i was benzo free the first time around. i went to one healer and health care practitioner after another.

i started doing these foot baths. the first foot bath i noticed a calming just like i had taken a benzo. i told the practitioner that i felt like i just took a valium and i've been off them for years!

 

she said that all the drugs that get stored in the fatty tissue and the bone marrow can come out physically and energetically when you do these ionic foot baths.

 

i don't know for sure--i hope so! i also wish to do many infrared and regular suana's as that is suppost to be another way to release old drugs in the bodies tissues. i think it most likely has to manually be done. along with anything else just like heavy metals, pesticides, etc...

when i was benzo free the first time around. i went to one healer and health care practitioner after another.

i started doing these foot baths. the first foot bath i noticed a calming just like i had taken a benzo. i told the practitioner that i felt like i just took a valium and i've been off them for years!

 

she said that all the drugs that get stored in the fatty tissue and the bone marrow can come out physically and energetically when you do these ionic foot baths.

 

i don't know for sure--i hope so! i also wish to do many infrared and regular suana's as that is suppost to be another way to release old drugs in the bodies tissues. i think it most likely has to manually be done. along with anything else just like heavy metals, pesticides, etc...

 

Very Very interesting!  I want to get foot bath and go into more saunas to get the toxins out of me.  I'm sure there are a-lot in me from my teen years. 

Parker

Thanks so much for your post,I have to say I resemble that remark is a understatement. I had my husband and mom read it. My husband read it and its finally clicking for him what I am going thru. Its so hard to explain to ppl why you haven't come to church in a year. or why you have essentially fallen off the face of the earth and pretty much live in your bedroom but this all pulls it together. Thanks so much.

I want to be healed now I need to get off my ambien next.

Thanks again

Tanya

Parker, THANK YOU!!  For a nerd like me I need to hear the benzo brain explanation with this kind of tech structure.

 

I GET IT NOW,

 

Thanks for your writing work.

Bird

 

:smitten: :smitten: :smitten:

Parker,

 

do you know why aspirin seems to be a natural relaxant? is it okay to take excedrin in BW? it really seems to help me with that band and tight feeling.

 

thanks,

pretty

Hey Thread!

Best read on the internet!

Parker,

 

do you know why aspirin seems to be a natural relaxant? is it okay to take excedrin in BW? it really seems to help me with that band and tight feeling.

 

thanks,

pretty

 

I too would like to know this, when I take aspirin it seems to relive the W/D for a bit.

Parker,

 

do you know why aspirin seems to be a natural relaxant? is it okay to take excedrin in BW? it really seems to help me with that band and tight feeling.

 

thanks,

pretty

 

My theory, Pretty, would be that aspirin is causing you to feel a bit better because it reduces glutamate levels.  This has been proven in studies. It's a short-term effect, obviously, but it has neuroprotective properties for this reason.  In our case, we dont' have enough GABA and we have too much glutamate, and this imbalance takes time to correct.  So, if you have too much glutamate, the aspirin may help calm that down for a bit.  That's my guess.  If you google "aspirin and glutamate" you can read scientific studies done with groups of stroke patients treated with and without aspirin and their glutamate levels of cerebro-spinal fluid.

 

:)Parker

thanks Parker,

 

well, that totally makes sense. i can feel my brain start to relax, feel warmer but not this fire ice numbness and feel a little more calm after one excedrin.

 

i wonder what my brain did to my right shoulder? i cannot move or lift it for about 2 months now and i just was making my bed and i moved it too much and the pain was so excruciating i could hardly bare it. i don't know what happened? i know it's from my brain because i can feel pressure from whatever my brain is doing on my left side of my teeth, my right shoulder, sometimes my whole body and upper torso. i don't feel like having it x-rayed just yet. i did start a new topic about this but didn't get too many replies and that was about one month ago so i thought i would ask you since i just moved it too much and the pain was so bad i almost threw up. blaaeeckk.

 

thanks, pretty

Hi Prettydaisys

 

I have been following the thread off and on, I too have been getting quite a lot of pain,  especially in my groin and thighs, stinging pains. I wonder if this is too from the Benzos? I am 62 and expect some pains but these seem out of line. Also I had stinging on the soles of my feet and toes, the dr. said it was nerve damage and proscribed Vits.  for it. But I think it was benzo related as the pain has no gone and I was told I would have to constantly take the Vits. which I am not. Is it true that benzo can be found in all tissue of the body?  Thkx Dd.

Hi David, I think it at least partly comes back to the excess glutamate triggering nerve signals that were suppressed by the benzos. With benzos, the threshold to trigger an action potential, (the flow of biochemically generated electricity which causes a neurone to fire), is raised so many less signals are transmitted. In withdrawal, the reverse occurs & the threshhold is lowered that many more signals get through than occurs with a balanced nervous system.

 

Hopefully, you will find that these twinges ease off as you heal & glutamate levels come to be balanced out by GABA levels again.

Hi David, I think it at least partly comes back to the excess glutamate triggering nerve signals that were suppressed by the benzos. With benzos, the threshold to trigger an action potential, (the flow of biochemically generated electricity which causes a neurone to fire), is raised so many less signals are transmitted. In withdrawal, the reverse occurs & the threshhold is lowered that many more signals get through than occurs with a balanced nervous system.

 

Hopefully, you will find that these twinges ease off as you heal & glutamate levels come to be balanced out by GABA levels again.

 

Thanks Ihope

 

That's a very good explanation.  Be well,  David

 

Hi Parker,

 

What an amazing post. A wonderful way to explain the strange sensations. 

 

It has quelled some of my anxieties I just hope I can sleep now.

 

Thank you so much for sharing.

 

Peace and healing

 

 

towardsthesun

Thank you for such a wonderfully encouraging GIFT to the community. You put a lot of time, and thought into your post and, as a newcomer to this ordeal, I am grateful.

 

David

klon 1.3125

halcion .48

 

Though I am in pain.  :'(

i'm still baffled why i can't lift or use my right shoulder and why it is so painful for 2 months now. i know it's from my brain--i hope it is just another bizarre sxs from benzo withdrawal but the pain is unbearable! how could i have done anything to a shoulder by laying in bed all day long day after day for 10 months?

 

i am glad to hear that your pain is now gone David. are you totally off the benzo's and are you still tapering?

prettydaisys (nice name),

 

I'm sorry to tell you that you must have misunderstood my post...I am still very much IN PAIN and just starting to taper.

 

I hope your shoulder feels better.

 

David

klon 1.3125

halcion .4375

thanks David! i like the name too. it's from a song from one of my favorite Artist.

i am so sorry that i got that wrong and that you are still pain. i really hope that it subsides for you.

i didn't see your signature--are you totally off the benzo's? did you taper? or do a cold turkey?

this is a pretty ravaging  withdrawal isn't? everyday seems to be a long fight! i'm still waiting for that perfect window where i feel blissful physically, mentally,, emotionally and spiritually--to me that is what constitutes a window--although it does feel good when you feel a little better and have a little bit of respite from that on-going fight!

I have two questions --

 

1.  What causes lack of motivation and agoraphobia?  What part of the brain is driving this and why?

 

2.  Is agoraphobia and lack of motivation a result of the drug or a withdrawal symptom.

 

My agoraphobia and lack of motivation has not gotten any better as I have tapered and maybe even a tiny bit worse.  I am down to about 6.5 mg of klonopin so I would have thought it might be getting better.  Does the rate of cut have any impact on this?

 

I would love to understand this better.

 

Thanks,

 

Golden

I have two questions --

 

1.  What causes lack of motivation and agoraphobia?  What part of the brain is driving this and why?

 

2.  Is agoraphobia and lack of motivation a result of the drug or a withdrawal symptom.

 

My agoraphobia and lack of motivation has not gotten any better as I have tapered and maybe even a tiny bit worse.  I am down to about 6.5 mg of klonopin so I would have thought it might be getting better.  Does the rate of cut have any impact on this?

 

I would love to understand this better.

 

Thanks,

 

Golden

 

Hi Golden,

 

I have to preface this by saying that anything I mention here is an educated guess.  I can't know the exact answer - but I am just going off the brain structures and my knowledge of how they operate.

 

First off - congratulations on tapering.  It's hard, I know.  And you're doing great.

 

I was only on .5mg of Klonopin, but once I hit tolerance, I was getting very depressed and anxious.  Even though I hadn't started to taper, my body was experiencing the equivilant of a taper just being in tolerance. So, first off, I don't personally feel that the dose you're on or the taper or the dose IN the taper has NECESSARILY much to do with how we experience symtpoms. Some people taper all the way down and feel better along the way. Some people report the taper being hell the whole time.  And there are in betweens with people reporting tapering and stabilizing and feeling good for awhile and tapering again. Our bodies and brains are all different, so there is no "correct" way - and if your symptoms are the same or different as someone else in tapering, that is no reflection on your progress.  Your own body's reaction is relative to just you. 

 

Now- on 6.5mg of Klonopin as you mentioned, it is VERY normal to be experiencing lack of motivation and agoraphobia as you taper.  Even once I jumped off the last of klonopin, I had both of these symptoms for close to a year.

 

There are many answers as to "why" this happens. I personally feel that the strong agoraphobia many of us feel has to do with the amount of overexcitability of the amygdala - which is the fear center in the brain.  Those that have experienced this have felt supernatural fear of anything and everything. Fear of the walls, the floor, the bathtub, leaving the house, driving - anything. That's because, in my opinion, FEAR is just registering for no reason. There is no stimulus causing the fear - it's just fear because that part of the brain is being overstimulated.  There isnt' enough GABA and there is too much glutamate, so that part of the brain is firing - fear fear fear.  So, it's an AWFUL feeling. But it's normal.  And it has gone for me, so I know that's all it was.  I was not afraid in my MIND - I was registering fear in my BRAIN.  The brain structure that is responsible for fear was being hyperexcited. And that is all it is.  In those circumtances, a lot of self-talk is helpful -but in my case, it coudln't overcome the fear.  The mind is usually what causes the brain to fear something.  (I notice something that scares me, so the amygdala in my brain starts firing.) But in this case, the brain is firing on its own, and there was nothing causing it in my mind.  All types of true fear, including agoraphobia, are related to this IMO. And the good news is that as GABA returns and glutamate calms down, this goes away entirely. It may take some time, but it is normal, and the situation is hopeful. It will happen in time.

 

Lack of motivation can have multiple brain originations in my opinion, and I cannot say at any one point in time what is causing this, but I can say that I, too,have experienced it over and over and over again in withdrawal. When I was still on klonopin, I couldn't even bring myself to clean up coffee that spilled on the carpet.  It sat there for weeks and smelled, and all I could do was cry. I couldn't even move to clean it.  I couldn't make myself do it.  Why?

 

Klonopin and benzo make EVERYTHIGN in our brains slow down (great for anxiety, but awful for the other things that you need to function correctly).  Many of our neurotransmitters are made in much-too-low amounts because of this. (This is my theory.) This is why many folks become depressed while still on benzos and even for a time after their last benzo. The nervous system must be in balance (or mostly so) to adequately make serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine and all the other smaller neurotransmitters responsible for our mood and motivation and normal functioning. This doesn't happen until the GABA and glutamate find a correct balance.  As healing occurs, balance occurs here and there and neurotransmitters are made here and there - and we have "windows" and then "waves" when the balance falls through while more healing continues .

 

Suffice it to say, I believe we are missing serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine - and we are also missing some of the ability to generate these neurotransmitters. I believe the process to "Getting back to producing these" is a combination of a resolved GABA/glutamate balance, but also the ability to get the right balance of nutrition and having the ability to absorb it.  For example, we need certain nutrient building blocks to adequately make serotonin and dopamine - even within a NORMAL nervous system.  So, I believe that as we heal, the best we can do is to take good care of our bodies the best we know how, including eating healthy.

 

I'm almost 17 months now, and i notice a HUGE difference in my symptoms if i sit in the sun for 20 minutes with arms and legs exposed. Just that much vitamin D makes a huge difference for me.  I also take vitamin D now - on the days there isnt' sun or it's too cold - and I can FEEL it kick in. That's how deficient I believe I am due to months and months and months sittting inside during healing. Vitamin D is key in the production of dopamine, which is the "reward" chemical, and I can FEEL it when I am in the sunlight - almost as if I took a drug!  So,as time goes on, and as I can tolerate it, certain building block nutrients and sunlight and exercise seem to make a huge impact. At this point, exercise makes a tremendous impact on serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins (but earlier, there is NO way I coudl exercise).  Some of these things just didn't help at all until I had healed the GABA/Glutamate balance "enough" for the other healthy things to make a dent.  All in all, TIME is what makes it happen.  But then, as the healing occurs, other healthy choices seem to make a bigger and bigger impact on restoring brain chemistry.

(So if you're 3 months off of benzos, exercise might not seem to help you feel better yet - or it might. But if not, it's nothing to worry about. REST is key to healing, too.  Exercise can wait until you feel able. Supplements, too. They may or may not help you at your point in healing.  The only way to know is to try them and see how you respond.

 

Remember that NO TWO PEOPLE are the same in withdrawal and healing. Some people are 2 months off of benzos are are already to where I was at by the time I was a whole YEAR off benzos. So, they could do things at 2 months off that I could NOT do when I was 2 months off.  I just wasn't there yet. That is just a reflection of how my body had adapted to the drugs, and how my individual chemistry was re-adjusting.  Some people exercise throughout withdrawal - and I was unable to until about a year off.  Things like that CAN make a person feel insecure if you're comparing yourself to someone else - It might make you feel you aren't healing because someone else is doing things you can't do yet. That isn't true, though.  You WILL be able to do those thigns, but maybe just not at the same time. That's all normal.   It takes time, but you will get there just like I did. 

 

I will also say that I benefitted from the motivation of other buddies. I didn't personally have much motivation, but I had interanl DRIVE in my mind.  I WANTED to do many things I just didn't have the brain chemistry to do! But over time, as I healed, other buddies encouraged me to "just walk" - and when I was really able to finally - I did - and it helped.  Until I was able to, it was too hard to start. But at some point, while walking didn't SOUND fun still, I MADE myself do it - because I realized that I was ABLE to at that point.  And that was the best thing I could have done. It is much like how things happen in rehabiliation from surgery - They get you up and on your feet as soon as possible - even if you don't feel like it - because you need to get the blood flowing - and you need to get up and doing.  And so - even though I wasn't able to do that for a long time, I was able to separate my drive from my ability at some point - and once the ability was there - I took the advice of other buddies and pushed myself to achieve just a short walk.  Now, I'm running a few miles in the evenings.  And I have a huge improvement in symptoms from exercise. Again - I'm almost a year and a half off benzos! So this doesn't happen overnight for many of us - but in time, it happens.

 

I hope this helps a little. 

 

:)Parker

parker...you are completely BRILLIANT!!  I can't tell you how much this has really helped me!!  I shared it with my Mom who was amazed as well.  It will help her to help me!!  Thank you so much for taking the time to create this post!!  I was my Dad's caretaker after his stroke...so I knew something was going on in my own brain..just couldn't put my finger on it!!  LOTS OF LOVE AND HUGS TO YOU!! 

What is happening up there?... A mess!

Hi Parker

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to provide such a thorough write up.  I have to say that I find it frightening to think I might have a year of healing once I am off but I guess moving forward is the only choice.  I just go to work and try to get through the day.  I haven't missed any work yet.

 

But the symptoms, all of them, and especially agoraphobia and lack of motivation are extremely challenging.  I hang on to my job and go to work because it provides a forced distraction.  On the weekends I am lost because of the agoraphobia and lack of motivation.  I do get out my iPad and read the news and my sister and I started reading Al Gores book but that is it.  I just can't bring myself to play the piano or guitar, both of which I use to love.  So it is just one step at a time and hope foe the best.

 

Tomorrow I will be at 6.42 mg of Valium.  I hope I see some light as I go lower.  My strategy is to stay disciplined.

 

Thanks again Parker.  I can't tell you how helpful this.

 

Golden

Hi Parker

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to provide such a thorough write up.  I have to say that I find it frightening to think I might have a year of healing once I am off but I guess moving forward is the only choice.  I just go to work and try to get through the day.  I haven't missed any work yet.

 

But the symptoms, all of them, and especially agoraphobia and lack of motivation are extremely challenging.  I hang on to my job and go to work because it provides a forced distraction.  On the weekends I am lost because of the agoraphobia and lack of motivation.  I do get out my iPad and read the news and my sister and I started reading Al Gores book but that is it.  I just can't bring myself to play the piano or guitar, both of which I use to love.  So it is just one step at a time and hope foe the best.

 

Tomorrow I will be at 6.42 mg of Valium.  I hope I see some light as I go lower.  My strategy is to stay disciplined.

 

Thanks again Parker.  I can't tell you how helpful this.

 

Golden

 

Golden  - PLEASE don't think that you will have a year of healing just because I did.  That is not at all related. You may taper all the way down and hold and manage VERY well.  Please do not use my example to project what might happen. Remember that we are all different and that my organism had a very tough time, but yours may very well not. 

Focus on a slow, steady taper and use your body as the compass.  Be as gradual as you can and go with what feels best.  I was unable to taper that well - long story - but my experience is different and my healing is only my own experience.

I wanted you to know that you are normal IF you experience what you had mentioned, but that does NOT mean you will be at this a year later.  Many buddies are done in a few months or less.

The best thign to do is take one day at a time and not to project to tomorrow.  THis experience has taught me that, too.

 

Parker

Parker,

 

Once again I am compelled to express my most profuse thanks for the wondrous GIFT you have given to the community by articulating in such understandable, laymen terms more information on our common suffrage. Your writing is so informative and helpful.

 

I thank from the bottom of my heart, you are truly knowledgeable on this subject.

 

David

klon 1.3125

halcion .4375