Stopped diazepam 18 days ago. Need some support .............

Thanks. Yes your right I am doing the right thing. It's just so damn hard!!! It's not so much the anxiety that's bad today it's the physical symptom and so much pain.

Hard to do normal everyday things like shower and dress. Housework extra, feel so drained. Getting next to no sleep not helping much but I try not to look as these as bad symptoms but more as signs my body is adjusting itself for not having diazepam and healing.

Today better than yesterday so that's a bonus

Day 20 off diazepam
Slept better last night. About 7 hrs. Haven't done that in so long!!!!!
Feel a bit brighter today, no anxiety or depression.
Going to venture outside today and make the most of feeling ok.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Michelle1

Thanks SLA that was a lovely message and surely brightened up my day ��. Yesterday was so far my worst day (due to diazepam long half life side effects can happen a lot later than when you cut/taper down.
Side effects seem to constantly change too, what can be bad one day can go the next but be replaced by something else. Now got tinnitus, never had that before! Muscle twitching and spasms seem to be my worst side effect right now with nerve pain and benzo belly!
Hi Pulisa hope you are keeping strong. Helicopter pylori on the last sample was clear so hopefully it is gone. Lots of stomach issues now but not entirely sure if withdrawal has messed up the gaba receptors in the gut too. Still taking a good quality probiotic each day.
Hi Mojo 61 I did a lot of research into the half life of diazepam online. Found this useful:-

Benzodiazepines like diazepam can stay in the system a pretty long time. It depends on how much you take and for how long. Also your health, age, weight and metabolic rate play a part.

How long a drug stays in your system depends mainly on it's elimination half life - the time it takes for plasma drug levels to fall by half.
The elimination half life of the active metabolite of diazepam (N-desmethyldiazepam) is, on average, 100 hours.

It takes 5.5 x elimination half lives (hours) for a medicine to be cleared from your system, therefore diazepam or it's active metabolite will be in your system for 550 hours (5.5 x 100hrs) i.e. approximately 23 days.

---------- Post added at 07:53 ---------- Previous post was at 07:44 ----------

Scary..... 1 tablet can stay in your body that length of time, the positive benefits when I first started taking the drug only lasted 2-3hrs but it can stay in your system weeks! Another article I read was about a young guy only ever took 1 tablet to trial it. Never took another but due to an interview he had to take a drugs test and the diazepam still showed up 21 days later.
Please weigh up the negatives of the drug before starting on the path I ended up on. No DR should prescribe these without fully explaining the potential very distressful withdrawal process.
Pulisa yes I don't know how my gps got away with putting this on repeat for 7 years. I was getting 56 tablets every 28 days but only using half. Wish I had the energy to sue somebody. Anyway onwards and upwards...... day 19 without diazepam let's see what today brings x

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Unlikely to be your pills. I was put on antidepressants myself and the withdrawal wasn't even that bad. It took about a week for the symptoms to go away. I can, however, relate to the h pylori infection. I got food poisoning back in February last year and started experiencing the same exact symptoms you're experiencing. I have a feeling that there's a new strain or a difference between contracting h pylori from someone else and directly ingesting it. I'm still trying to deliver a sample to my doctor but the constipation is killer. Get rid of this bug! And get rid of it for good! I've been taking sublingual b12 and the dpdr goes away somewhat. Also, take vitamin D as well. You will feel 1000x better once this bug is gone! Trust me!

Hi Lakme, h pylori is an awful bacteria. I can sympathise with you if you have it also?
I got food poisoning too, salmonella in Egypt. Had h pylori almost all 2015/2016, 2 endoscopy and 1 colonoscopy later it's gone!!!! Yey
Very hard bacteria to kill. Erradication therapy never even killed it!!!
Mastic gum did thou.
This is very much diazepam withdrawal I'm afraid. Been on a low 2mg daily dose for over 7 years........ a very hard med to withdrawal from worse in my experience than antidepressants

Today marks 3 weeks off diazepam. I think I'm turning a corner on my insomnia.
Last night slept 10pm till 730am without waking once!!! 9 and a half hours.
Mood seems to be ok. Slight anxiety upon waking but goes after 10 mins.
Hope this is helping others either reducing diazepam or thinking of coming off after long term use. You can do it!!! And it does get better.
I'll report in again when I hit the month off mark and report how I'm feeling then.
Good luck to those of you going through withdrawal from diazepam xx

Really pleased to hear this, Michelle! Sometimes we fear that we will never be able to sleep normally again and it becomes such a big mental hurdle to overcome.

Psychologically you will feel better for getting rid of the diazepam dependency. You no longer need it to function normally. The h.pylori will have taken its toll on you as well-I'm sure the combo of drug withdrawals and gut infection and disturbances will have made your physical symptoms very difficult to cope with but you are winning the battle now!! xx

4 weeks off diazepam!!!!!
Reckon it must be all or almost out of my blood now.
Won't lie the last few days not been good. I expected to feel bad then slowly start feeling bettter, but diazepam withdrawal is very strange. I've read about windows and waves from benzo buddies website and that is exactly how it goes. At the moment I seem to be having a awful soul destroying day (yesterday), followed by a day where I feel more human (today).
The bad days are terrible stay in bed with the covers over your head, sobbing my heart out, the better days like today I'm up, dressed hair and make up on and I've been to the cinema. So weird how things change from one day to the next. Yesterday was the first day I was thinking it would be so easy to go back on the diazepam and bring some relief but soooo pleased I didn't as today much better and I would of been so annoyed if I had after a month off. Praying every day that things will get better and I will get more Windows and less waves. Be strong others going through diazepam withdrawal.

From my limited experience of diazepam the relief it brings is very short-lasting anyway and you're certainly better off without it now, Michelle. Maybe not all your symptoms are down to the withdrawal but those that are will surely be tailing off soon.

Thanks Pulisa, hope you and your family are keeping well. Yes first month over now so hoping and praying month 2 off diazepam will be better. So far familiar patten has been one bad day, followed by one better day.

Things that have helped me during this time:-

A clean diet.
Being with people (try not to isolate yourself)
Drink plenty of water
Try gentle 20 min exercise each day (even walking)
Meditation and Youtube relaxation exercises
Breathing properly (very important when anxiety hits)
Each day telling myself it will get better and I will heal
Realising it's the drugs which have caused this and the brain can heal itself
Not being impatient and realising time is needed to feel well again.
Laughing and being thankful every day for 3 things.

Things that don't help when coming off diazepam:-

Vitamins and Suppliments (spent a small fortune and some make it worse)
Get your vitamins from food instead. Eat clean and organic where possible.
No alcohol
No caffeine
Don't try to push yourself on bad days, listen to your body
Don't push people away. Be honest with people about what your going through.
Benzo forums are insightful, but don't become obsessed on them.
Try to avoid negative horror stories. Everyone's withdrawal is individual to them,
Don't substitute one drug for another. Ride it out instead.


Hope this helps others coming off diazepam. It will get better.... time is a great healer.

Well it's been 3 mths off diazepam now and feeling worse since stopping not better!!! Not sure what's going on so many physical and physiological symptoms. Not sure if this can still be withdrawal after 3 mths or my anxiety is now worse, or something else physical going on? Really hoped stopping diazepam I'd feel better but the last 3 mths been hell