Benzodiazepine Use Disorder: Common Questions and Answers
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This is especially concerning in the elderly, who are at increased risk for psychomotor impairment, car accidents, and cognitive impairment such as anterograde amnesia-diminished short-term recall, and increased forgetfulness 11. Some additional side effects of concern include aggressive behavior and expressing anger towards others in between 1% and 20% of users 17. The main driving factor for dependence is the development of tolerance, causing users to need increasing doses for the same symptom relief 18. Following alcohol cessation, alcohol withdrawal syndrome typically presents as minor symptoms such as mild anxiety, headache, gastrointestinal discomfort, and insomnia. This syndrome can further progress to severe manifestations, such as alcohol withdrawal delirium, which poses significant diagnostic and management challenges. Mild symptoms may progress to alcohol hallucinosis, characterized by visual or auditory hallucinations that usually subside within 48 hours after alcohol cessation.
How do people take codeine?
Benzodiazepines (BZDs) are among one of the most widely prescribed drug classes in the United States. BZDs are a class of psychoactive drugs known for their depressant effect on the central nervous system (CNS). They quickly diffuse through the blood–brain barrier to affect the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA and exert sedative effects.
How do people take methadone?
However, studies like these are important as they establish that what we do works. People wanting or needing to stop benzodiazepines can do it with appropriate help—and it may just take a handful of visits with a trained primary care provider or mental health provider. Stopping suddenly can lead to symptoms similar to those of alcohol withdrawal. Current treatment for withdrawal is through tapering with clonazepam, and overdose should be treated with flumazenil 67.
What to Know About Benzodiazepine Withdrawal
Research indicates that physical dependence may begin in just a few weeks, even while taking the drugs in low therapeutic https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/heroin-addiction-treatment-full-recovery-is-possible/ doses. Withdrawal symptoms may begin after as little as 3–6 weeks of use, even when a person uses the drugs as the doctor directed. People who have been through acute withdrawal often say that this phase is the most difficult. During the early stages of withdrawal, the person may notice the symptoms of the condition that the drug was treating start to return, or rebound. For example, symptoms of anxiety or insomnia may come back or get worse without the drugs.
In fact, the write-in comments providedprofound insights into benzodiazepine-related adverse effects and how patients dealwith them. Several particularly relevant comments have been selected and are offeredhere. The authors identifiednine broad themes and selected relevant comments to represent each.
- It is an opioid designed not to enter the brain, which prevents it from causing the same effects as other opioids However, taking large amounts and combining it with other substances, may cause it to act in a similar way to other opioids.
- After as little as two weeks after someone starts using them daily, tolerance and potential for withdrawal set in.
- Going through detox and withdrawal with medical support and supervision can make the experience as safe and comfortable as possible.
- Some studies in the past have shown that there is a correlation between chronic BZD use and a decline in cognitive function, including the development of dementia and dementia-like diseases.
- Catatonia presents in populations suffering from bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or a variety of medical conditions.
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. Some people use benzodiazepines as recreational drugs, potentially with hazardous consequences. Some people use benzodiazepines for several months or longer, but the longer you use them, the higher the risk of dependence or addiction.
What makes benzodiazepine withdrawal so dangerous?
A few said that their physicians ‘abandoned’ them as theystruggled to discontinue benzodiazepines. Over 92 million prescriptions for benzodiazepines are dispensed in the UnitedStates annually, yet little is known about the experiences of those takingand discontinuing them. Protracted withdrawal is a long-term withdrawal syndrome that may come and go for several months. Now, a research team led by Virginia Commonwealth University and Columbia University has gained novel insights into a protein suspected to be involved in benzodiazepine-related inflammation. Tramadol is a prescription opioid pain reliever used for mild to moderate pain.
Benzodiazepines are some of the more commonly prescribed medications in the world. Lorazepam (Ativan), diazepam (Valium) and alprazolam (Xanax) are examples of medications classified as benzodiazepines. Z-drugs are similar in their pharmacology—they also bind to and activate the brain’s benzodiazepine receptors±and include zolpidem (Ambien) and eszopiclone (Lunesta). Other studies have assessed different methods of counseling on BZD dangers and alternatives to patients alongside a gradual taper off the drugs. One study compared the mainstay of treatment with a standardized interview/counselling approach to treatment 72.
Regular use of BZDs has been shown to cause serious, harmful psychological and physical dependence, leading to withdrawal symptoms similar to that alcohol rehab of alcohol withdrawal. Regular use of BZDs can lead to tolerance, which is the physiologic dependence on the presence of BZDs in the body’s system. This can be linked to addiction as the patient is not just psychologically addicted to the substance, which can be seen with cravings, and physical addiction.
Benzodiazepines are misused when they are taken in a way or dose that’s different than prescribed or taken without a prescription. Benzodiazepines are depressants that are most commonly used to treat anxiety, panic disorder, seizures, insomnia, and muscle spasms. Barbiturates are misused when they are taken in a way or dose that’s different than prescribed or taken without a prescription. Anabolic steroids are misused when they are taken in a way or dose that’s different than prescribed or taken without a prescription.
Their CNS depressant effects potently reduce anxiety and abort acute-onset panic and anxiety attacks 4. Benzodiazepines are also incredibly effective at rapidly aborting convulsant activity in those with epilepsy or other seizure disorders 5. No one should attempt to get off benzo drugs without the supervision of a healthcare professional. Severe symptoms and reactions can occur, and working with a professional can help a person avoid or manage these symptoms.
This is particularly true if you are also giving up other substances, like alcohol or opioids. During your taper, you may still experience some of the symptoms of withdrawal. Symptoms will be milder than acute withdrawal and they can disappear for weeks at a time. Withdrawing from benzodiazepines can be a difficult, even dangerous process. During the first week, you can also expect physical symptoms like headaches and hand tremors. People may use illegal synthetic cathinones on purpose—sometimes as cheaper or more accessible alternatives to other drugs—or unknowingly, as contaminants in other drugs.