I'm worried about the topics about diazepam

[Allie]

The topics in the Medication forum about diazepam are worrying me.

I am currently withdrawing from the drug and was looking on there for advice and support.

I know that benzos are addictive I was shocked to see how many people who have recently been put on the drug are on these forums asking for advice on how addictive they are, only to be told by other members that they are not.

I am no doctor or expert but I feel that these people are being misinformed and would appriciate some sort of proper information to be put up on these forums about benzodiazepines by the modertors or links to reputable orgainazations that deal with such drugs!


Kindest regards

Miss AE Price

THE VOICE INSIDE YOUR HEAD IS NOT THE VOICE OF GOD. IT JUST SOUNDS LIKE IT THINKS IT IS! Cheri Huber

[darkangel]

i totally agree - benzos are VERY addictive and should not be taken lightly. the withdrawals after long term use can be horrific.

on the plus side they are effective in VERY SHORT TIME use

you have a right to be concerned - but one thing i will add is slow down gradually and with support from your GP

Allie you will get off them, just take your time and well done for raising this VERY important issue.

Take care

Drakangel

........life is for living not just for surviving

[Allie]

Thanks for your support!

I've been addicted (and I don't use that word lightly) for eighteen months.

I was on 9mg diazepam and have am currently on 8mg, dropping 1/2 mg every three weeks (next week I drop to 7.5mg and am actually looking forward to it!) . I have already completely withdrawn from a 2mg daily lorazepam succesfully and am doing it under supervision from a CBT therapist and my GP!

I really think this bad advice on here needs to be stopped and people must realize that tranqilization is not a cure, merley a mask.

THE VOICE INSIDE YOUR HEAD IS NOT THE VOICE OF GOD. IT JUST SOUNDS LIKE IT THINKS IT IS! Cheri Huber

[nomorepanic]

Allie

I agree - I would never tell anyone to be on these for any length of time atall.

I am not sure who said they were ok but I would never personally say that it was ok to take them long term

Nicola

[darkangel]

Allie

You are doing so well and you are cutting down gradually and with the correct supervision.

I was on diazapam 10mg a day for 3 years together with various ohter meds - i was totally addicted and watched the clock till the next one - this will prob sound familiar to you.

Like you I cut down over a long period with support from my CPN and psychiatrist and have been fully off for 6 years now.

It will take a while to get completely out of your system but you will see improvements.

Allie, the fact that you recognise that benzos only mask the symptoms means you are so on the way to getting better and coping with anxieyt by more effecitve methods.

Well done to you and keep going

Darkangel x

........life is for living not just for surviving

[Paddington]

i apologise if you feel i have misled any one ,I can only speak of my personal journey and do not claim to be a doctor,just an individual who has been taking diazapam for 19 years on and off and have never felt addicted or had withdrawal from not taking them!!Perhaps it is because i only took them as and when not3xdaily every day??I answered a question put to us on the forum,my opinion and my experience.I have been told ,by a health proffesional,that they are more psychologicaly addictive than physicaly..a bit like nicotienne.And boy i suffered when i gave those thing up,5 years ago now!!Weare all different i guess!I would not encourage drug dependancy in any form ,but sometimes it is the only thing that keeps us sane at the time.I am so happy for youthat you are gettingoff your meds and sorry it has been a hard road,i wish you continued success.Lovemary rose.xxx

we are all in the same boat and can guide each other ashore

[Allie]

Thank you for your support. It is much appriciated!.
I am making good progress with my withdrawal and hope to be free of them in a few months.

[Oops!]I did not mean to cause offence with my comments, but every health professional I have spoken to has told me that after just a few weeks your central nervous system becomes used to the dose and frequently has to be increased to have an effect.

I also feel that psychological addiction is as hard (if not harder) to overcome than physical dependency. I must also stress that you should NEVER go COLD TURKEY or attempt a withdrawal without your GPs advice and support.

Although I am not a doctor, I felt that it was important to raise this issue as many people were asking if you could become tolerant to benzos and the answer is to that question is yes. Although the length of time and dose that you are on may determine your level of dependency.

Speaking from my own experience I find that cognitive behavioural therapy is far more useful in dealing with anxiety than drug based remedies as you are enabled to get to the core of your anxieties and face them head on and render them harmless. In my opinion and from my point of view CBT is a cure whereas benzo drug therapy is merely provides short term relief. Again I reitierate, I am just offering my opinion.

May I recommend that you visit the MIND website and visit their page on Benzos and their related drugs. It is most informative.

THE VOICE INSIDE YOUR HEAD IS NOT THE VOICE OF GOD. IT JUST SOUNDS LIKE IT THINKS IT IS! Cheri Huber

[Paddington]

No offence taken .I agree with you that cbt is the way foreward,sadly if id asked my doctor for this he would have said..'what is that'?Mmmmm not very good at all is it??!!I think i must be very lucky not to have become addicted!I rarely need then since joining this site[6months now ,not one tablet!]So, any one else need help coming off?point them in this direction!Love mary rose.xxx

we are all in the same boat and can guide each other ashore

[Allie]

It took me two years, two psychiatrists, a misdiagnosis (I was told by my first psychiatrist that OCD was my primary problem, and panic disorder/agoraphobia secondary when all along it had been the other way around!) and a change in health authority to get the proper CBT treatment!

While all this was going on I remained on diazepam, doses kept being upped and when I went to A&E after a severe episode they'd just tell me to take an extra dose and send me home! To be honest I was scared about comming off it, the psychological addiction was very strong, but now when I take a drop and take less tablets I see it as a very positive step! My psychiatrist has also prescibed a low dose of a non addictive sedative to aid me in my recovery! Its all going well!

More awareness and research about anxiety disorders and treatment on the NHS's part is needed methinks!

Again I highly recommend CBT treatment, apparently it works in 80% of cases! I hardly recognise the person I was two months ago when treatment began!


Good luck with your recovery!

THE VOICE INSIDE YOUR HEAD IS NOT THE VOICE OF GOD. IT JUST SOUNDS LIKE IT THINKS IT IS! Cheri Huber

[Ma Larkin]

Hi Allie, I was on 5mg Diazepam as and when needed. I stopped taking them completely 3 weeks ago and feel so much better for it. I'd been on them for 2 years and thought I was addicted to them, but I think it was mind over matter with me. I also think that I got palps because the Diazepam was wearing off. I haven't had a palp since I stopped taking them. I was a bit jittery for the first couple of days, but determined not to take them. I'm so glad I stuck with it. I'm struggling a bit with sleep, but apart from that I have no symptoms at all. I'm also on Prozac, been on it for about 5 months now, hopefully, I'll reduce that soon. Most professionals says that Diazepam is addictive, yet they prescribe them to patients for years. My GP told me that he would give it me short-term. I was thinking a couple of months, but he would still give them me now if I asked for them.

Les