Benzo Withdrawal

I am on my 4th weeks of benzo withdrawal. I took Ativan and was put on valium to taper off. A month ago, I biked around 5 miles every day. Now, I'm too anxious to go outside, too scared to talk to the mailman. I get hot flashes, nausea, headaches that don't go away, and a feeling like I'm dying. I was only on Ativan for one month for a hypomanic episode. 1mg 2x day. I'm down to 6 mg valium a day. Which I was told 20mg Valium is equal to 2mg Ativan. I will feel fine for 3 hours, bad for an hour, good for two hours, horrible for 4 hours. It changes so much. I wish I would have never taken the Ativan. It's not as much anxiety as it is a sense of doom and mild paranoia. Right now I feel very overheated, with the air con on full blast. I feel like I'm dying, sick, slowed down, "jumpy" at car horns and dogs barking. I also feel like I want to punch a mirror. I hope this is over soon because my quality of life is very bad right now.

Hi, For me, benzos are a really rough situation. They are so amazing while I'm on them, but try to go off and...wow. Life kinda falls apart. I've been on Klonopin for over 20 years and every time I try to stop taking it, no matter how slowly I go down, I wind up an anxious mess. Sense of doom and sensitivity to every tiny noise and feeling. I haven't found anything amazingly helpful, except to just live with it.

I am so sorry you are dealing with this. It sounds very frustrating and terrible. My anxiety is horrible too and I relate to feeling "jumpy"

It amazes me how differently people respond to medications. My mom took 2mg of Ativan for years and stopped cold turkey a few months ago. I warned her she'd have withdrawal symptoms because I'd seen so many people on psych boards complain of them. She was off them for months without a single side effect. She's had extreme stress lately so is back on them temporarily and when she takes them you cannot tell at all. My husband takes a baby dose of .5mg occasionally and looks like people on TV who shoot heroin when he does. He drops his cigarette while passing out smoking, has an unsteady gait and wakes up the next day and is hung over all day. Cheap drunk is what we call him around here. I've been on 2mg daily for several weeks at a time and never any withdrawal other than a return to my normal anxiety.

I hope these symptoms clear up for you soon because that is just too stressful to be expected to deal with long term. Please stay safe and in contact with your doctors about what you are experiencing (((hugs)))

You have my sympathies. I have been on Benzo's (mostly Clonazepam) for 7 years and whenever I try to taper down past a certain point my anxiety sky-rockets. It is hell. I too wish I had never taken them in the first place but now I am here I cannot go back in time. Next time I have been stable for a while I will again try to taper. Right now I am IP and on 6 mg of Clonazepam plus 2 mg of Ativan to deal with my anxiety, agitation and mania. My stable dose is about 1mg but I can't seem to go below that without the symptoms becoming unbearable. One day I will get off this.

I wish you all the best. One thing is that the withdrawals do phase out over time. I hope you find that peace without Valium.

I'm sorry you're having such a tough time. When I try to go off Xanax or klonopin it's like descending into ****. I haven't successfully done it yet and thankfully my doctor isn't asking me to. It's a hard withdrawal. I hope you feel better soon. Sending big hugs.

I'm truly sorry for what you're going throuh. I too take Ativan. 6 mg a day. Last session my pdoc said she wanted to start weaning me off the Ativan. I take a high dose and it will take awhile. I'm scared. I hope you have better reactions .

I know exactly how you feel and I am you have my sympathy. Like a few other people on here, I have been taking Klonopin for an extended period of time. I had an issue at the pharmacy recently and was without it for 4 days, I couldn't even drive my car because I was so scared I was going to hit something.

Is your doctor insisting you stop taking benzos completely or was it your idea? Every new doctor I get wants me off the benzos but they are all that work for my anxiety. Right now I am on a lowered dosage from 3mg a day to 2mg a day because I just got a new doctor, I told her I would try it. I am a little edgy but nothing terrible, but then again I have had a very calm last few weeks.

Good for you. You will succeed in this. I too has to do the same. I'm on 6mg Ativan.

Best of luck as you deal with the withdrawal. I've been on and off Klonopin at various times, and thankfully have not experienced withdrawal. I hope you're feeling better soon.

The doctor does not believe in benzos at all, just for emergencies, but I feel much better when I take them. Before I took benzos I was actually fine, just manicy. I don't deal with severe anxiety because of the Seroquel. I am laying on my bed watching Netflix all day since I'm coming off of it.

Everyone feels better on benzos. That's why they're so addictive.

Ugh. Benzo withdrawal is the worst. I now won't LET any doctor prescribe them for me because of the horrible time I had with being addicted to them and the hellish withdrawal. I don't want to go through that again.

My benzo withdrawal lasted four months. One of the worst experiences of my life.

I got terrible akathisia from cold turkey Ativan withdrawal. This was done by a pdoc while I was in hospital for a broken hip.
Anyway I wish the pdoc had even the slightest idea what akathisia is like.