Diazepam

[JD23]

Hi Everyone,

I have decided to take diazepam for my GAD, i am planning on taking it daily to keep anxiety at bay and perhaps up the dose if i have a particularly stressful day. I know you are not supposed to drink alcohol on Diazepam so i wont, but if you know you are going out drinking at the weekend can you just not take it that day and then drink or does it not work like that? As i am 23 and enjoy going out with my friends most weekends i would hate to have to give up alcohol completely.

Thanks!

[mikewales]

When you say you have decided to start taking it, has your GP prescibed it for you as most will only give a few days supply for particularly bad periods, it isn't used as a long term treatment as it is so addictive and the withdrawals are so bad.

[paranoidtree]

Hi, Have you spoken to your doctor regarding taking diazepam everyday? The only reason is that it is highly addictive and doctors don't normally recommend taking daily for longer than around 2-3 weeks depending on dosage. I would probably recommend speaking to them first before taking any action if you haven't already done so.

Regarding drinking on them, diazepam will stay in your system and if you drink on them it will make you feel a lot drunker than normal (hence you shouldn't drink on them) I would advise caution with your plan and again perhaps it is best to discuss with your doctor how to move forward so that you can strike a balance between managing your anxiety with them and having fun at the weekends too.

hope that helps!

[Anxious_gal]

long term use is not good, it is highly addictive, just like strong painkillers, it is both mentally and physically addictive.

It's like a band aid, yes it can help but it does not solve your anxiety problem, CBT can really help though and there's lots of therapies and antidepressants you can try.

oh boy, YOU cannot drink with them. It is highly dangerous, it also can take a few days for your system to fully 100% get rid of the entire drug from your body.

sorry if I am being too negative, just want to make sure you staying safe : )

[Dazza123]

Ive been taking them for 10 months, first 6mg a day, now 10mg. I can stop taking them for a week without adverse effects, but they just become less effective over time, meaning you need more. I have quite a serious problem which is why I have been on them for so long.

Id be surprised if your doctor allows you to take them daily, and as for then upping the dose, id be surprised if they let you do that also.

If you have GAD, you need longer term meds that help overtime, and maybe some CBT, which I have just started.

You do not want to be taking them long term, because when you really do have that bad day when you feel you need them to help you, they wont because you will have become used to them, and they will stop helping you.

Im back at Docs tomorrow to see if I can try a different Antidepressant, and as soon as that kicks in, I wont be touching the Diazepam unless I have a panic attack.

Do yourself a favour and dont rely on them to get you through the day, because it will do you more harm than good.

[JD23]

Sorry i didnt explain myself very well. I have been given the diazepam to take everyday for the next few weeks because of a bad patch. Will i be ok just to come straight off them after those few weeks (withdrawl wise)? Also is it then ok to take them continuously but only when i need them i.e before a speech or when my breathing gets bad.

Thanks

[Dazza123]

Withdrawal wise you should be ok, and taken as and when needed is what they're for so that sounds fine too :)

---------- Post added at 22:47 ---------- Previous post was at 22:46 ----------

Just not too often, don't rely on them because that's when it becomes a problem.

[lindadiana]

ive been on diazepam for 16 years this time ,im on nine 2mg tablets a day,im 54 now and i dont drink at all but when i first took them,aged 19 until i was 29 i was on 6 2mg tablets a day,i drank then and my gp told me that if i was to be having a drink about 8 at night dont take any after 2 in the afternoon,he said that was safe to me i also asked that same question about five years ago diffrent gp got the same answer.as for addictive yes they are very addictive,wish i had never taken them for that reason,the first time it took me a year by breaking a small piece of each tablet at a time,i was off them for nine years, this time around taking them is even harder as the effect of diazepam is short lived anyway,i need more to feel any effect reallly,as ive taken them for so long but if i run out boy do i know it.so my advice if you really can dont start taking them,but if you really have to then its life.i had no choice bad things had happeed i couldnt cope i had three small babies at 39 my husband had to go he was a bad man.id already raised my three other children alone from my first marriage all on diazepam and all through six pregnancies,diazapam has been around a very long time my grandmother took it.it was called in her day mothers little helper lol.just ask your own gps advice thats the best thing to do before you have any drinks. all the best x

[JD23]

Thanks Dazza, roughly though what constitutes as relying on them? If i took 1 or 2 a week would that be relying on them?

[Dazza123]

What dose are you on? Really what you need is an antidepressants aimed at anxiety Id say, but I'm not a doctor so can't recommend anything. Twice a week isn't awful, but sooner or later, dependency will come, occurring because they have a nice relaxing feel to them, and thats what gets you addicted.

---------- Post added at 23:07 ---------- Previous post was at 23:05 ----------

Also, if you had to take them before every speech, then that's dependency. You need to learn other ways of coping, like cbt.

[han76]

Thanks Dazza, roughly though what constitutes as relying on them? If i took 1 or 2 a week would that be relying on them?

diazepam can be addictive after only the second dose. pill number 2. regardless of time or dose. doctors cannot predict who will react to the drug in this way. I went through a bad patch with my GAD and diazepam was a short term fix. I was dependent from day 1. if you can't give up your weekend drink don't start diazepam you have an addictive personality. I am in withdrawal at the moment. side effects are worse than the Aniexty that got me on it. if you don't need it weekends you don't need it weekdays

[Anxious_gal]

I guess you never know what you might get addicted to, but daily taking sedatives daily can up the risk.
When you come off them you usually slowly reduce the dose, rather than stop all at once.
I used to get sedatives, I wouldn't take them every day, and sometimes I'd take a half instead of a whole one. This was over a number of years. I didn't get addicted and haven't taken a pill in maybe 2 years now but I HAVE to have a pill in purse "just in case". It makes me feel safer I or I get comfort from the thought that it's there if I really need it.
Also I know a person who was on sedatives, every day for at least a 4 weeks and had no problem coming off them, so every one is different really.

[Bill]

I've just posted the following on another thread regarding coming off them and I thought I ought to copy it here...

"""I was prescribed diazepam but I wasn't warned that it is addictive. I think I took it for around 2 or 3 years but when I decided to come off them it took me 6 months before I managed it.

It sounds like you're really having problems so you have to be very careful to reduce slowly to avoid withdrawal symptoms. The important word to remember is "percentages". For instance, if you reduce from 30mg down to 15mg it mans a 50% reduction so you'll almost certainly get a bad reaction.

Therefore, I found the only way to safely come off them was to reduce by small percentages no matter how small the dose was. Even reducing from 2mg down to 1mg gave me a bad reduction because it was a 50% drop.

My advice to you would be firstly, it's very important that you tell your doctor/psych what you're attempting. If they say it's ok, then draw a medication chart so you know how much you're taking each day. To give you an example...

If you're starting on 25 mg, try reducing by 10% or by the smallest amount your mg size tablets will allow...

After 1 to 2 weeks, reduce by another 10% or smallest amount possible again...and so on.

If you get a reaction, it'll mean you're reducing by too much too quickly in which case go back to the existing dose for a week longer or reduce by a smaller dose than you originally attempted. The withdrawal symptoms will ease.

Your body needs time to adjust each time you reduce and it'll notice ANY large percentage reduction even on the smallest doses so Always remember to reduce by Small percentages and Only reduce after a week or two to allow time for your body to adjust. Any bad reaction, just go back up and reduce by a smaller amount after another week or so.

If you don't, you'll be going cold turkey and your anxiety will shoot through the roof as I found out so you Must be careful to avoid the symptoms.

This is why most gp's are so reluctant to prescribe diazepam because it's very easy for sufferers to want to take them every day and get addicted to them. Diazepam works best as "one offs" because of their sedative qualities and when used in such a way I think they're better than modern ad's which were designed to tackle depression.

Nothing bad will happen if you reduce too quickly. You'll just "feel" ill but the symptoms will quickly ease if you follow what I've said above.

As I say though, it is Very Important you tell your gp/psych to make sure they agree to coming off them.

Hope that helps. Be patient and don't try to rush it and you'll be ok."""

[Dazza123]

I cant believe anyone could be addicted after taking 2 tablets. If you have really severe GAD and use it to get you through a normal day then you are addicted to the relief of anxiety that it gives to you. This release can be gained from other medication. Ive been taking it for 10 months, and I know how easy it is to become dependant and rely on it. You get scared when you are running low, and fight your doctor tooth and nail to ensure you have a fresh prescription before that happens.

JD is talking about ocassional use, for when he has to do a speech etc, once or twice is fine, but when he needs it before every speech then he is dependant, because he will feel he cannot do his speech without them.

Demonising Diazepam isnt the answer, its good for what it is meant for. Its the person taking them thats the problem, if you rely on them to get through the day without exploring other medication then thats what makes you addicted.

After 10 months im neither addicted nor dependant, I went a week without them and felt as good/bad as I normally do. Also addiction doesnt happen to everyone, its how you handle and use the drug thats the problem.

Also I wouldnt say having a drink on the weekend meant this person had an addictive personality, I used to have a drink on the weekend at that age, and I do not have an addictive personality, it was my age, I used to go out and enjoy myself.

JD, ocassional use can be ok, but only ocassionally, you will be better off finding other ways of calming yourself before making a speech, maybe speak to your doctor about this. Diazepam for this isnt the way to go, breathing tecniques would work better. You need to learn to cope, rather than pop a pill, because pill popping is too easy, and thats what gets you addicted.

[mikewales]

As with any drugs, take your GP's advice. He may be happy to prescribe them for the rough patch you are in now, but not give you a long term prescription even for a couple a week, and can probably suggest something much better for long term treatment.

Taking them for a couple of weeks should be fine as far as withdrawals go