Benzodiazepines

Michigan Detoxification Center

Benzodiazepines (benzos) have had great success in treating patients with anxiety disorders. Unfortunately, some patients have been known to develop an addiction to this drug’s effect on the central nervous system.

Benzos are a sedative that can relax a person’s fight or flight response by activity-inhibitory neuron gamma amino-butyric acid (GABA) in the brain. When a person becomes dependent on benzos, GABA levels can fall to dangerous levels and result in even more severe anxiety and panic attacks. At this point, the only way to break your benzo dependency is to begin the process of detoxing off benzos.

What You Should Know About Benzo Withdrawal

There are many different types of benzos. Some of the most common include Xanax, Klonopin, Ativan, Valium, and Librium. Most addiction experts use tapering of a cross tolerant drug when helping their patients detox. When tapering, you will wean off the drug slowly over time rather than quitting cold turkey. This should help make the withdrawal symptoms easier to manage. Tapering should be done under supervision so that you can have a knowledgeable professional scheduling your dosages.

The following is a timeline of what most individuals experience during benzo withdrawal. Keep in mind that withdrawal is different for everyone and these are not applicable in all cases:

• The first three days: Withdrawal symptoms can begin as soon as six hours after you last took a benzo. The early symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, and difficulty sleeping.
• End of the first week: The most severe physical symptoms should be tapering off by now. Many people feel exhausted during this stage.
• The second week: This is when some of the psychological symptoms might start. Some people become more irritable and anxious. Insomnia and nightmares may also be a problem.
• The end of the month: By this point, the benzos should be completely purged from your body. You may, however, sill experience the physical and mental symptoms of your withdrawal from time to time.

Withdrawal symptoms may continue for months or, in rare cases, even years after your detoxification. This is called “protracted withdrawal” and occurs in about 10% of people who struggle with benzos. Anyone who experienced prolonged symptoms should continue working with therapists and mental health professionals.