Users of short-acting benzos (valium) may experience withdrawal symptoms sooner and with more intensity. The safest way to stop taking Xanax and alleviate withdrawal symptoms is to taper your dose. Tapering allows your body to slowly get used to smaller doses and can prevent symptoms.
Acute withdrawal
Long-term treatment after benzodiazepine withdrawal will depend on your reasons for taking them in the first place and your reasons for quitting. If you have a psychiatric condition that was managed by the benzodiazepines, you will need an alternative plan to manage your condition. Typically, this is a combination of therapy 4 ways to pass a drug test and pharmacologic support. Benzodiazepine withdrawal can be risky, so it is best to work with a doctor. Depending on which benzodiazepine you are currently taking, your doctor may want to switch you to a different one before your taper begins. Short-acting benzodiazepines complicate withdrawal with too many ups and downs.
- Protracted withdrawal is a long-term withdrawal syndrome that may come and go for several months.
- Even if you only take Xanax for a period of several days, you may develop a physical dependence on the drug.
- Benzodiazepines (benzos) are prescription drugs that treat anxiety and panic attacks.
- Doctors usually only prescribe these drugs for short-term use because of this risk.
- Emerging research also suggests acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) could also have benefits during benzodiazepine withdrawal.
- Weaning from psychiatric medications is a marathon, not a sprint, but it is possible if done skillfully and carefully.
Taking Care of Yourself While Tapering
You can also taper off benzodiazepines while attending an outpatient drug rehab program. Although, an acute inpatient stay may be recommended if you have severe drug dependence. First, a clinician will ask you questions about your drug use history. They will also perform both a physical and mental health assessment to determine a suitable tapering plan. Tapering off benzos can be safely accomplished with a primary care doctor or through an addiction treatment center.
Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Tied to Serious Long-Term Harms
If you’ve taken benzodiazepines at high doses for an extended period, you may experience long-term withdrawal symptoms, also called post-acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS) or protracted withdrawal. If you plan to or have become pregnant, you will need to discuss your options with a doctor. Part of that conversation should include reviewing the risks and benefits of continuing versus tapering benzodiazepines during your pregnancy. Some people continue taking benzodiazepines throughout their pregnancy while others follow a dose tapering schedule. Withdrawal symptoms can worsen by the second day and improve around the third day.
Overview: Benzodiazepine Withdrawal & Detox
Getting off them completely may take some time and may require what’s known as a tapering process. The key to achieving this goal is to follow the tapering schedule to the very end. By the end of your taper, you might be cutting pills into halves or quarters. Fatal overdoses can occur when benzos are mixed with alcohol or an opioid.
Developing a treatment plan before you stop taking Xanax may help minimize the severity of any symptoms you may experience. An effective treatment plan for benzodiazepine addiction will typically include both medical and behavioral health treatments. clinical experience of baclofen in alcohol dependence Tapering the drug by slowly reducing the prescription strength may help make withdrawal symptoms much easier to manage. Additionally, medical supervision allows doctors to respond much more quickly to potential side effects and withdrawal symptoms.
Quitting cold turkey can increase your risk of extreme and dangerous withdrawal symptoms, including delirium and grand mal seizures. Withdrawal symptoms from short-acting benzos begin to taper off around this time. For those using longer-acting benzos, symptoms will continue for approximately three to four weeks. The first withdrawal symptoms begin during this period for people who use longer-acting benzos. Severe addictions can result in withdrawal symptoms that last up to three months. This is due to the slow tapering process of the drug, which helps prevent potentially fatal withdrawal symptoms.
The easiest way to lookup drug information, identify pills, check interactions and set up your own personal medication records. You should never try to quit taking Xanax, or any other benzodiazepine, alone. Here’s what to expect during Xanax withdrawal and what you can do to reduce uncomfortable symptoms when you stop taking it. A 2018 analysis also revealed that drug misuse accounts for about 17% of benzodiazepine use among adults in the United States. Withdrawal usually comes with powerful cravings, and willpower alone may not be enough to carry you through. Protracted withdrawal is a long-term withdrawal syndrome that may come and go for several months.
If withdrawal symptoms become severe, doctors may prescribe other medications. They will make this decision on a case-by-case basis, depending on the type and severity of the symptoms affecting the individual. A person’s withdrawal symptoms often depend on the half-life of the drug. Withdrawal symptoms from short-acting drugs, such as Xanax, may come on faster than withdrawal symptoms from long-acting drugs, such as Valium. People looking to get off benzos should do so under the guidance of a healthcare professional, who may recommend coping strategies and other tools to make the withdrawal process more comfortable.
As a culture, we need to be careful to minimize our use and prescription of benzodiazepines and Z-drugs, using them only when absolutely necessary. Doing so will save lives, reduce morbidity, and lessen costs to healthcare systems. These medications work by activating benzodiazepine receptors in the brain. If they are used for brief time periods, they can be very helpful for the problems they are designed to treat, like insomnia or panic. In severe cases, benzodiazepine and Z-drug withdrawal can be life-threatening, causing seizures and hallucinations. It’s no wonder that many people who make an attempt to stop quickly give up the fight, resigning themselves to being on them long-term.
The content of this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, examination, diagnosis, or treatment. You should always contact your doctor or other qualified healthcare professional before starting, changing, or stopping any kind of health treatment. First, the frequency (10 of 11 patients) of new symptoms or signs soon after withdrawal. Fourth, associations between socioeconomic factors and alcohol outcomes pmc a slower onset and subtler development of this syndrome than that from meprobamate or barbiturates….If large doses of chlordiazepoxide are used, the drug should not be abruptly discontinued. A detox program, or treatment facility that offers detox, can also help create a tapering schedule, based on your substance use history, overall health status, and other relevant factors.
It’s important to note that a doctor can help you taper your Xanax dosage even if your Xanax wasn’t prescribed to you. More severe reactions or withdrawals may also be more likely when taking strong drugs either for long periods or alongside other types of medications. Withdrawal symptoms may begin after as little as 3–6 weeks of use, even when a person uses the drugs as the doctor directed.
In the worst cases, you may experience seizures, psychosis, suicidal thoughts and actions and violent behavior during benzo withdrawal. The benefits you’ll experience when you quit using benzodiazepines are substantial. You’ll be able to live outside of the cloud that the medication causes. You’ll be able to start repairing relationships damaged by addiction. There are many anecdotes that demonstrate how easily benzo use and abuse can lead to addiction. There’s the teenager who realizes he can skim some Xanax from a parent without being noticed.
As soon as you remove this substance from your system, the resulting period of benzo withdrawal can be extremely uncomfortable. A 2018 study found that 12.6% of American adults had used benzodiazepines over the year prior (psychiatry.org), both legally and illegally — over 26 million people total. Of that number, 17% were estimated to misuse (abuse) these prescription drugs, meaning around 4.5 million American adults had abused benzos that year.