am i in withdrawal?

[nicola1980]

Hi, I've been slowly reducing my diazepam since September last year from 10mg a day to now 6mg a day, I've done this without any problems and after being stable on 6mg for a while i decided last Wed to drop to 5mg and since Saturday I've been awful, panic struck, vivid dreams, dry mouth, sweating at night and constant anxiety, i felt so bad today i couldn't cope anymore that i took one of my emergency 5mg tablets and now i feel so guilty as that's 7mg I've took today now and it didn't even help :weep: could a 1mg drop really cause this much withdrawal? I've been doing so well recently xand now i feel like I've failed x x

[SarahH]

Hi Nicola,

You support so many others on here so I hope a few little words from me will help:hugs:

Dont beat yourself up about the little extra dose you know more than any of us that there are blips in recovery and withdrawal....this is just today and tomorrow you can try again!!!!

Can you cut the tablet in half to that the reduction is less??????

Take care....you cab do it!!!!!

Sarah

[steveo]

Hey Nic.

There is a huge psychological dependance with this drug. I tried stopping at 1mg and instantly I felt awful. As long as you reduce by 10% at LEAST every 2 weeks you should be OK.
You shouldn't really feel any effects for at least 3 days due to the long half life of diazepam. It really builds up and up in our systems.

You're doing great to come off it! I've dropped from 8mg a day to 0.5mg a day this year and it's been horrible amongst everything else.

xxx

[nicola1980]

Thankyou both of you, Im sat here in floods of tears, going to try and reduce by 0.5mg instead of 1mg starting tomo, Im so cross at myself for taking my emergency 5mg but i just wanted some respite and it didn't even give me any :-( thankyou again x x

[nicola1980]

Well i feel alot calmer tonight, going to try again reducing after the weekend as got alot on this weekend x x

[SarahH]

Glad to hear that Nicola:)

have a great weekend xx

[steveo]

How are you getting on Nic? Grit your teeth with this one! Diazepam is a HORRIBLE drug to come off of but when done nice and slowly, it can be very easy indeed!! Thinking of you ! xxx

[nicola1980]

Hey Steve, I've gone back up to 6mg to stabilize again and going to stat to reduce again next week but only by 0.5mg this time, Im determined to get off it but need to do it slower i think, its a nasty med to get off and wish id never started it in the first place :-( x x

[steveo]

Been there, done that, got the musical socks etc haha!

Oh Nic I really do know how you feel! This has been most of my year and as you know more than anyone, my year has been hell!

Just take your time! There is no rush! Set yourself a chart like I did with dates of when you are due to drop down a dose! Stick with it as much as you can. I can't count the times that I've had to grit my teeth and bare it for a few days while it settles. I'm so thankful that I'm just down to 0.5ml a day now and have been for 7 days. In a strange way, I can feel some side effects lifting completely! Diazepam tolerance and withdrawal can just be so nasty!

Remember to get yourself the liquid diaz when you hit the 2mg stage. At 2mg, you really need to be dropping doses slowly and in very small amounts.

Also - http://www.btpinfo.org.uk/ - These people are excellent! You don't need to live in Bristol to use their services! I don't live anywhere near Bristol but I still rang! They have a helpline open 10 - 4 monday till thursday for any concerns you have with benzos and withdrawal, plus the website has a ton of great information. They will suggest 0.5mg drops every 2 - 4 weeks. I have rang them many times, even once whilst I was here in hospital!!

Stay real strong! Watch and listen to this video over and over and over again! -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1g1MK9OhLkg&list=TLgmrjPZw6Tqc


Steven xxx

[nicola1980]

Thanks so much hun, I've reduced successfully down from 10mg to 6mg no problem but just can't seen to crack getting below 6mg but Im determined to do it, thanks for all the info x x