After quitting benzos anxiety will increase, and it will pass as withdrawals from any drug does. I’m very sensitive to Benzos and I got addicted only after 2 weeks of using them. I started getting really bad anxiety when I didn’t used them so had to quit. The anxiety returned to normal after a while.
When you say addicted, do you mean you took more than prescribed?
I take it everyday, I am dependent on it but I don’t think I am addicted as the medication still works for me. When addiction happens, does the medication stop working?
Yeah, I started taking more than prescribed as the anxiety got worse and worse in between the doses. I took it mainly for akatishia as I got that when starting zyprexa. One night after laying in bed when I had taken more than prescribed I was laying in bed to sleep, and suddenly I had this intense feeling of electricity going through my body, it was such an unpleasant expereience that I knew I had to stop. When I quit, I went through a month where sounds was really intense. I had to lay in bed and close my ears as just subtle sounds was really loud and jarring. This went away after a month.
I’m probably an extreme case… I haven’t heard of anyone reacting like that. You might have a different body chemistry but I’m gonna guess everyone will experience withdrawals to some degree from long term use of benzos.
How long have you taken it for? I read about people that take the medication for long periods wihtout problems. Different body chemistries.
I had PTSD.
They put me on benzos for a year. No informed consent about the bad sides. At all.
Stopped them. Cold turkey. Not told to taper.
First psychosis.
I’m off benzo’s now, and will not go on them again. Except for maybe single day emergency use. They are too addictive and damaging. I’d search for other methods rather than go back, if you can avoid it.
The anxiety is the worst in the first period after going off. It is rebound. It does slowly get better.
@Kxev I didn’t mean to scare you with my story - Like I said I haven’t heard of anyone reacting like I did to benzos and you are probably not one of them.
edit: I just realised it’s @Jonathan2 who is the original poster. Correction - I didn’t mean to scare anyone taking benzos in this thread, I’m probably alone in experiencing this.
There is a lot of information on the internet about benzo withdrawal and what helps and doesn’t help. But you have to kind of zigzag around the dramatic stories, to not freak out. Is my experience.
Benzo withdrawal is horrible. I know. I hope you two can come up with a good plan. Sometimes slower tapering and putting all sorts of coping-with-anxiety-techniques in place first, helps one come off. Good luck. Hope you start to feel better now you re-instated them.
Don’t give up. Benzos can cause Alzheimer. It is a terrible drug really.
I am 4 years off benzos and rebound anxiety was the least bothersome side effect. Stranger things happened. They are hard to explain. I still get withdrawal symptoms. .