POZ Community Forums
Meds, Mind, Body & Benefits => Mental Health & HIV => Topic started by: J220 on May 24, 2012, 11:26:03 am
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Just wanted to share this with everyone.
After several years of taking Lorazepam/ Attivan on a daily basis after my diagnosis to deal with stress and anxiety, I finally stopped. I gotta say, I feel absolutely great.
Yes, there is a very short window of mild-to-moderate withdrawal and feeling down, perhaps 2 days at the most, but once over that hump it's smooth sailing. And difference in mood is remarkable.
It helps I am now seeing a therapist, of course, but it's clear to me now how much the benzos where affecting my mood, outlook, energy levels, you name it. I feel so much better now it's incredible.
So if anyone is taking this long term, you might want to think about stopping, it's totally worth it- provided you have some kind of support system in place during the immediate withdrawal window, like being under the care of therapist or physician, or having your significant other aware of what you're going to do. Or even doing this in a facility perhaps, if available.
Important thing is that you don't do it alone, cause even though mild, it's still risky. It's not too bad, but yes, you will be very down for 24-48 hours after taking them (which is why you then feel like taking them again to "deal" with this, and then the cycle starts, etc). But once on the other side, it's like a new day.
Hope this helps!
Cheers,
J.
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I was on Lorazepam/ Attivan for almost 8 yrs. but it was a very small dosage 0.5mg PRN = As needed, I didn't have any withdrawals, and without them I 've never felt better :)
If if wasn't for the fine folks & members of this forum as well as my otherhalf,and a few therapy sessions, I don't know where I'd be today, and my PSTD = (Post-traumatic stress disorder) seems to be a non-issue now-a-days for me ;)
life is great for me now... It's so nice to think & see things clearly without the benzo's........thanks for sharing your benzo story , I hope it helps others that
wanna get off of them :D
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I have been taking ativan for a little over a month now. 1 mg daily. My prescription called for 1 mg daily twice a day. I, however, being the anxious wreck that I am, don't want to get hooked or dependent on them so I take just the one a day. I eventually want to wean off of them soon. I've heard a lot of stories from other people about withdrawals and I don't want to experience anything like that. I made it through one entire day without taking one and I did wake up in the middle of the night in a panic. I'm sure that was a withdrawal symptom because even though I have been going through anxiety for 9 months now, never have I had that happen to me. The next day I popped one and went on my way. I also see a therapist and let him know about my little sleep panic episode. He said that I should ask the psychiatrist about reducing the dosage to eventually quit altogether. So for now, I am stuck taking them. They do help, but I wish I didn't need them. :-/
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You'll know when the time is right. After all, it's much better to be able to handle all of our stress with the proper emotional and mental tools, rather than a chemical crutch.
There is no doubt, however, that benzos have a place, I will say that they did help get over the hump, as it were, when very bad thoughts were going through my head. But there came a time when that was behind, and I realized I was taking them simply as a habit (I was also on 1mg twice a day).
As far as the withdrawals, they are not that bad, at least in my perspective. But each person is different, and if you have outright panic attacks then that is quite another matter, and you should not take it for granted. Your doctor(s) can ultimately guide you safely through all this.
In the end, once you are off the benzos and have a better perspective on how to deal with all the mental crap we all carry, you will be feel much better, guaranteed.
But in the meantime, just go with the flow, and take it one step at a time. You'll get there. Good luck!
J.
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I just have to insert this here-some people, who takes larger doses every day, could be in danger of more serious withdrawals, and should only dc' these under their doctor's/psychiatrist's care. Most people who take benzo's regularly have to be tapered to avoid seizures during withdrawal.