Silk Road forums
Discussion => Drug safety => Topic started by: Holly on September 01, 2012, 03:19 am
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Is it possible to take benzos for the rest of your time with the dosage ... 'as needed' such as..... picking up a really huge drug shipment, new anxiety causing social eventsm etc,
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Yeah it's possible. The main point is self control and not letting it turn into something more than "as needed". Benzo's are PHYSICALLY addictive and that's a big deal. It's not just in your head anymore, your body NEEDS the stuff so it doesn't shut down. The withdrawals are painful, and can possibly be deadly.
I think that is more of a question you have to answer yourself. I myself probably use benzo's no more than 3x a year (for some of the same reasons you stated) and have no issues. YMMV
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The only thing that is a problem with me that I've noticed (Been actively using benzos EVERYDAY for the last ten days, this is unlike me) is because 'business' is getting really stressful, and expanding. You feel me Trinitronz? =/ Some nights it is impossible to sleep thinking about all that cheese coming to the fridge.
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The only problem with long term benzo use is that even if you are taking an approriate clinical dose they can and WILL actually cause anxiety AND depression.
Weird to think an anti-anxiety med can cause anxiety lol. There's nothing wrong with taking them regularly but at the first sign of a change in your demeaner (sp) or anxiety, it's best to taper yourself off them completely (every other day, or slowly reduce dose every day until you feel you can take them every other day, then every third day etc, until you are completely clean of benzos).
Stay clean and don't touch a benzo for at least a month and then you can go back to using them, but do so sparingly and only when you really feel you need them. It actually takes about 6 months of being completely off benzos before the depression and anxiety effects go away.
So I just pray for you holly that you're not one of us benzo user's who end up with depression or anxiety from them (i'm sure there's people who take large amounts every day for years, but everyone's brain is different and benzo's really do put a new user at risk of depression/anxiety and there's no way to know until you find out first hand :( )..
I say all this from personal experience because they have ruined my life (i've spoken in private with you before about some of my crap after you sent me that free hit of LSD, much of that crap was either induced or strongly increased by my benzo use. I'm on a so far succeeding regiment of tapering myself off benzo's but the depression and anxiety still remain and will for quite some time).
Just be careful and responsible yo (and i know you are a careful type of person), and send some of that chedda this way, my rent needs paying :D
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ehh dude. fuck benzos. Just analyze what is causing the anxiety and fix it. :P it's good
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^I'm gonna have to agree with 'lookinurmind'
There are natural ways to address and manage anxiety. Benzos are great, until they fucking suck. Just what someone else said above, even if you take the exact same small dose at the same time everyday, enough time on that schedule and you will be so physically dependent that WD will cause severe anxiety, insomnia, depression like you wouldn't believe. The insomnia is the worst. I've had a week of Xanax withdrawal hell, when I had only been using Xanax daily for about 1.5-2 months. I have serious anxiety issues, and have since realized alternative methods of addressing them are far better, although I still indulge in a benzo or two occasionally. But if you are trying to rationalize how you can continue to use them for the rest of your life? Then you should rethink your relationship to benzos entirely. Simply put; they ain't nothing to fuck with.
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If you can stick to therapeutic doses only and are.aware of the risks, then yeah, you can use them long term. Its not always recmended but some folks simply have a better quality of life with them, period.
If you.decide to go that rout, I highly.recommend clonazepam. It has lower abuse potential and is the easiest of all benzos to wean off of, should you decide to.
If possible, you should really consider talking to your doctor about it.This will save you money and ensure a regular supply, as well as cover your.ass in the event of drug testingtesting.
I started taking clonazepam 0.25-0.5 mg daily a few.months ago. I.started taking it for similar reasons and I feel its improved my.quality of life in a big way. I've yet to discuss getting a prescription from my doctor yet, but do intend to.eventually.
I pay out the ass for it here (i really.wish somebody wouldboffer powder clonazepam!) and have ran out several times. But because I take a low therapeutic dose, ive never had any issues with withdrawal. Actually, if you can find.the 2 mg roche rivotrol version its not so bad pricewise. I can sometimes find it.for ~120 +\- for 50 2 mg pills. I breal them into.1/8ths or 1/4s (which is all i.need) and that makes them stretch prettty far.
I know people IRL that have been prescribed it.daily for many years. One of.them.has tried to discontinue it but couldnt do it. In my opinion, that is because they NEED it, rather than pure physical dependency.
Im considering trying Olivers xanax powder but I'm reluctant to.do.so because.clonazepam has worked so.well for me.
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It depends on what you use benzo's for really.
You will develop tolerance against the hypotnic effect within several weeks, so if you are taking them only to get sleep long term use really isn't a good idea.
If you take them mainly to deal with anxiety, the evidence indicates that the anxiolytic properties of something like xanax are not likely to induce tolerance, meaning you can take them against anxiety on the long (years) term despite their function as a sleep aid will diminish. In such cases you may find it more effective to take xanax in the morning instead of at night.
Its also important to know tha ift you choose to be on these drugs for a long time if you do, since withdrawal is a pretty unplesant experience. There is plenty of supply on the market to fill your needs at affordable prices, but you should still consider if you want to depend on a substance in the long term.
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The only thing that is a problem with me that I've noticed (Been actively using benzos EVERYDAY for the last ten days, this is unlike me) is because 'business' is getting really stressful, and expanding. You feel me Trinitronz? =/ Some nights it is impossible to sleep thinking about all that cheese coming to the fridge.
10 days in a row isn't likely to produce any sort of physical or psychological addiction. how long does it take? i don't know, but i suspect it's on the order of months of continuous use, although it's probably also different based on individual brain chemistry. i frequently take 0.5 to 1.0mg of xanax to help me sleep. i've been doing it for i don't know how long - at least a year. but what happens if i don't have any? nothing. i might have one night of difficulty sleeping, but after that, no big deal.
that said... someone very close to me has been through xanax withdrawal a couple of times, and it is really not pleasant. so as the others have said, avoiding the physical dependency is something to really watch out for. only take the minimum dose necessary. 0.5mg of xanax gives me a nice 6-8 hours of sleep. 1mg and i'm out for 12-14.
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Clonazepam is the benzo i've been prescribed for therapeutic use over my duration of benzo use (about 10 years), I agree with the other poster that it's the best benzo for the reasons you mentioned you needed benzo's for.
It will not make you sleep, in fact it will make you talkative as shit and whirl away the day in a nice relaxed state of I DONT GIVE A FUCK ABOUT ALL YOU OTHER PEOPLE'S PROBLEM's. It's a beauty in the workplace :).
If you take enough it will make you drowsy, but that's talking recreational usage, not therapeutic. 0.5mg is the standard starting dose, it is a very low dose of clonazepam though (I take 2.0mg pills), so as long as you're careful it can be effective.
If you're not a benzo user but have some huge presentation or social gathering to go to clonazepam is you man.
I stand by all the statements I made in my other post though, but that's referring to regular use.
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Most benzos are known to cause depression as side effect especially clonazepam and diazepam.
Xanax can have some anti-depressant effects, but all chronic benzo use will likely result in depression.
My best advice for you is to combine beta-blocker like propranolol and Xanax in situations that exacerbates your anxiety.
However, I would limit the use of Xanax only 2 to MAX of 3 times a week. Also, detox every few months for a week to make sure there is no physical dependence.
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Yeah I feel you Holly.
And sometimes analyzing the issue cannot help with one who is inexperienced. If the cause is irrational, and even logically determining that yourself, sometimes it can still persist. Practice makes perfect, but sometimes you need it NOW.
(Also +1 clonazepam, easily my favorite benzo. I hate xanax. Never tried propranolol, but have heard it works wonders for stage fright and amusement parks)
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Most benzos are known to cause depression as side effect especially clonazepam and diazepam.
Xanax can have some anti-depressant effects, but all chronic benzo use will likely result in depression.
I don't agree that long term benzo use is a certain recipe to develop depression. It can be a side effect, but there is no reason to assume this will present in all patients for all benzos.
As far as the effect of 'not giving a f about other peoples ploblems' (apathy) goes, this is a more common side effect of anti-depressants like SSRI's.
Personally I advocate using benzo's to treat problems like anxiety over starting on some srri regime as the first choice of treatment. Dependence/addiction may certainly be a problem, but considering the side effect profile of ssri's on many people it is a hard choice to make. Also, ssri's usually require tapering off over a long period of time to prevent the initial symptoms fron returning, making the whole treatment route as unattractive as benzo's even without considering the side effects.
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Most benzos are known to cause depression as side effect especially clonazepam and diazepam.
Xanax can have some anti-depressant effects, but all chronic benzo use will likely result in depression.
I don't agree that long term benzo use is a certain recipe to develop depression. It can be a side effect, but there is no reason to assume this will present in all patients for all benzos.
As far as the effect of 'not giving a f about other peoples ploblems' (apathy) goes, this is a more common side effect of anti-depressants like SSRI's.
Personally I advocate using benzo's to treat problems like anxiety over starting on some srri regime as the first choice of treatment. Dependence/addiction may certainly be a problem, but considering the side effect profile of ssri's on many people it is a hard choice to make. Also, ssri's usually require tapering off over a long period of time to prevent the initial symptoms fron returning, making the whole treatment route as unattractive as benzo's even without considering the side effects.
+1 for knowing what you are talking about. Same for Quinone.