Hi Beth,

Do your new therapist and psychiatrist have to receive your records from that pdoc? It's possible that my old psychiatrist kept either alcohol dependence or alcohol abuse on mine (with bp1), but I've since started afresh with a new slate. Certainly my old psych hospitals still have that in their record systems. For my earlier hospitalizations they would put me in dual diagnosis programs, but then I demanded I go to regular psych wards. My past addiction issues were that. In the past, in my case. As long as it doesn't affect my present or future I don't care what there is in my record. It could say "Googly Eye Syndrome" for all I care. I wouldn't even mind if the called me "George" (reference to a Looney Tunes/Bugs Bunny cartoon).

I've certainly encountered pdocs who were fine prescribing benzos long-term. My last one was, but my new one is reluctant. Luckily I did wean off it a while ago, but any rational pdoc knows it can be mighty challenging. In my view there is a huge difference between simply being chemically dependent on a benzo and abusing it. It doesn't sound like you fit the latter category of being an "addict".