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Post by robinhoodlym on Jan 28, 2005 17:59:45 GMT -5
I really wish there was some statistic out there but I would really like to know just how many MMT'ers have been at one time or another dependent on benzos... Anyone ever thought of that? I sure have while I was going through withdrawal and also when I was surprised to find out so many with the same problem...
Do you think it is something in the methadone that causes us to take benzos? Are we just fried and have high anxiety levels?
This forum has the ability to do a poll - I will toy around with that and think of some neat questions to get some unscientific statistics...
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Post by skye aka tweety on Jan 29, 2005 11:23:38 GMT -5
Hi Robinhood,well for me ,ive taken benzos alongtime even before i was on mmt ,but i do beilieve alot of people are either underdosed or overdosed ,not at their right dose,which imo causes insomnia,the need to get a good nights proper sleep affects us so much for the next days daily living,I also think that with benzos the addicts in us figure that benzos arent an oppiate so where ok to use them,or just plain need to have the need to take away everday day stress,good question though...
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Post by robinhoodlym on Jan 29, 2005 13:53:20 GMT -5
True to both points - I suppose everyone has different reasons but I am sure there are common threads... I used benzos prior to being on MMT or prior to being addicted to opiates but I did not abuse them and could be off them for months at a time.
I suppose what happened was when my life started to stabalize on methadone, I missed the euphoric rush and thought that bnezos could bring me that and on occasion they did, but not like I wanted, So I think I chased the idea until I became addicted... It would be interesting to poll that as well maybe
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ROCK
Full Member
Posts: 5
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Post by ROCK on Jan 30, 2005 8:00:52 GMT -5
Frist of all hello to all ,and I hope this site is a success ,because this is a subject that needs to be addressed ! I started taking valiums while I was still in active addiction with pain pills .I would take one 10 mg blue everynight ,mostly because I liked the relaxing feeling it gave me.Actually is amazing I lived thru those days ,I would take 6-8 vicodins thru out the day ,then I would get a package of coke and drink about 12 beers and then top it all off at the end of the night with a blue ! Well I dont touch coke anymore and have'nt for several years and the same with drinking . However even thru out my switch to stronger and stronger opiates I continued to take that one benzo per night ,not even thinking about becoming addicted to them .It was a ignorance thing ,I just did not believe taking only one benzo 10mg valium ,that I would become addicted .Well just like with the opiates I would find a stroger form of the drug ,in the case of the benzos it went from the blues to the 2mg xanax. Soneone told me if i could get a doctor onboard to help me with a proper taper that I can get off the benzos ,something I need to do . However Iam willing to bet that it would be very hard to find any Dr. willing to slowly taper you off benzos ,once they find out you are also on a 150mg daily dose of methadone .They would be much to afraid of a dangerous combination and being held responsible if you where to take a fatal dose. With all of this I also suffered with severe sleep apnea, a condition where you stop breathing during your sleep ,you can die in your sleep ,it also increases your chances of stroke or heart attack .I went to a sleep clinic and now wear a nasal mask attached to a CPAP machine ,which blows oxygen down your throat keeping your airway open. Iam 47 years old and had this condition probably since my early 20's. I had it bad ,my wife would wake me up thru out the night because of the weird sounds I would make , sometimes I could actually hear her trying to wake me up however I was like frozen ,unable to respond ,finally she would have to actually roll me out of the bed to get me to come out of this strange state I was in ,kind of like suffacating and not being able to move. One time my beautiful ten year old girl wittnessed this and was crying out of fear for my life .Thats when I finally got off my butt and went to a sleep clinic. It was well worth it ,I found out there are 4 levels of sleep and untill you reach level four you do not get the REM sleep your brain needs to be rested .That means for 20 years plus I was walking around sleep deprived , the CPAP has taken care of that no more wall rattleing snoring or apneas. Now Im have only a 1/2 dozen other health probs left to deal with benzo abuse being next in line and smoking also ! I'll come back to post agin and read the stories of others also ! Thanks to all,
ROCK
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Post by robinhoodlym on Jan 30, 2005 12:48:23 GMT -5
HI Rock - I know there is a list some place of dr.'s that support the ashton manual as far as withdrawal goes... Are you abusing benzos, or just taking a certain dose every day? I am not clear where you are with them... One thing at a time ... don't try and tackle all at once like smoking too, that may come once you are off of benzos w/out even trying.
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Post by BILLIEJEAN on Jan 30, 2005 22:36:28 GMT -5
hello, cong. on the board, it's nice, i first starting useing ben's on meth. because i liked the high, i did not know it was addictive until i was fully withdrawing in the hospital almost facing deatgh or should i say facing death. after that i have not picked up another kaladopine(?) or valium. billiejean  |
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Post by skye aka tweety on Jan 31, 2005 9:23:44 GMT -5
Welcome billie jean,im so glad you found us here,this site is wonderful,i didnt realize that you had experienced this trama ,thats so awful ,but at least you came through it,feel free to ask away at any questions you may have about benzos ,someone sure here should be able to help out ,take care my friend!
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Post by mythoughts on Feb 17, 2005 2:35:37 GMT -5
Well, I am benzo niave, but I think it's 2 fold:
Many people on MMT are dually diagnosed with other issues - including anxiety, etc.....
Also, they tend to give a nice buzz with Heroin so many patients continue using them with their dose - either for the buzz or cause at that point they are dependant.
MANY people I know do both. I've never been inclined, but I used Heroin - no pills. Obviously people who are into pills are more likely to use & be able to get other pills like benzos.
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Post by skye aka tweety on Feb 17, 2005 12:04:09 GMT -5
I tend to agree with that!,the pill people if ya will, i feel tend to stick with more pill usage! skye.aka tweety
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Post by Holly R. Overbaugh on Feb 21, 2005 6:13:11 GMT -5
Hi, I started over on narcotic board, I am doing something and I think that I might get better advise here. I have had chronic pain for 9 years. I tried all the narcs. and I could tell it was a dead end street. I have been on methadone for 6 years and I went through U. of WA. "structured Pain Program". For years I wanted of off narcotic, but had no other coping skills for the pain. Long to short: I tapered from 160mg a day to 60 a day, in the program I went down to 32 mgs in two weeks and then did an out patient taper of 16 mg a day the first week, then 12 mg, 8mg, 0mg per day for a week each. But once I hit 8mg a day per week, I started going through w/d and its gotten worse daily. The last 4 days since I was supposed to be "done" have been the worst. In the day, I just pretend I have the flu and will get better, but at night, I can't sleep and my antsy crampy legs are driving me crazy. I fould any old xanax prescription and started taking it to help me sleep . .5mg used to knock me out, but now I have to take 2 or 3mg and some benadrill, just to get some sleep. Can I get away with this small amout for afew days, or am I trading one drug for another? Any and all ideas, advice etc. would be appreciated, Sincerely, Holly O ps. I couldn't find any button any where that said "New Thread" I only managed to send my message to my self. Am I losing it? Where is the "Start New Thread" icon as mentioned in the help notes. Maybe if it was easier to find your awesome site might get more use  |
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Post by skye aka tweety on Feb 22, 2005 7:46:18 GMT -5
Hi holly o..my advise and in my oipioin ,leave the benzos alone...go back up in your dsodes that last bit was way to fast of a taper!!..yu need if you are still feeling that crampy leg feeling and ansty panysty feeling to get back up in the methadone...you will if stay with the xanax now just becoming addicted to another type of ill!!!,ur mmt is it a forced detox or can you get an increase? Y ou need to get an increase and stay longer there a bit ,then taper slow ,slow ,slow until your at zero....i hope this has helped!! skye aka tweety
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Post by robinhoodlym on Feb 22, 2005 10:20:29 GMT -5
The sleep thing takes a while to normalize especially since you did a rather jump off from the methadone, but if you have not used by now, stick to it... for sleep, you may want to ask your dr. for a prescription of seroquel which is an antipsychotic but used in small doses will knock you out... It is non addictive and a non-benzo... You can take like 25 - 50 prn for sleep but try and skip a few days here and there with it since you do build up a tolerance - but again, it is non addictive so walking off of it after taking it for a week or two wont cause any real abstinence sybndrome and it just does not for some reason have any appeal for abuse...
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Post by skye aka tweety on Mar 16, 2005 18:49:57 GMT -5
this benzo thing is real hard on family members as well for the children, i also find theres a type of hangover with valuims the next morning ..
anybody elese?
skye aka tweety
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Post by skeet on Apr 19, 2005 4:59:33 GMT -5
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