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Benzos are often given short term- 3-5 days on a taper schedule to someone in detox. It is not recommended to give a script to an alky. Benzos are not as danger

by zafka 5y ago

Benzos are often given short term- 3-5 days on a taper schedule to someone in detox. It is not recommended to give a script to an alky. Benzos are not as dangerous to withdraw from as alcohol but are horrible to detox from as they are fat soluble.

ChrisMarshallNY 5y ago
> Benzos are not as dangerous to withdraw from as alcohol That's not been my experience (and I've seen this play out for quite a while). I'm interested to know why this is the case.
- zafka 5y ago
  Hi Chris, Not sure if you are asking a question or not. To clarify, my understanding is that there is a greater risk of death when detoxing from alcohol,although it is possible to die from benzo withdrawal it is not as common. My information comes from registered nurses who worked in Rehabs, and years of interaction with a lot of ex-drunks. I did a very light search last night, but did not find anything that gave good comparisons.
  - ChrisMarshallNY 5y ago
    Well, I've known a lot of ex-everythings (over the last 40 years). I have never personally known anyone that has died from detox of alcohol, or anything else. However, I have listened to many, many horror stories (and seen them, acted out, in front of me). In all cases, the benzo withdrawals took forever (like months and years), and included seizures, hallucinations, and neverending insomnia.
    - zafka 5y ago
      Ok. I think we are on the same page. I have never seen a detox death either. I have heard that benzo's are the hardest to withdraw from, and it does sound pretty frightening. For a lot of alcoholics the hardest thing to quit is nicotine. The really scary cases are the folks who start taking Valium to keep from shaking until they start drinking.
      - ChrisMarshallNY 5y ago
        > The really scary cases are the folks who start taking Valium to keep from shaking until they start drinking. Knew someone that came off a 17-year Valium addiction. Took them a year and a half to stop hallucinating, and three years, to get a full night's sleep. They're still around (40 years later), and doing great.

by zafka 5y ago

ChrisMarshallNY 5y ago

> Benzos are not as dangerous to withdraw from as alcohol That's not been my experience (and I've seen this play out for quite a while). I'm interested to know why this is the case.

zafka 5y ago
Hi Chris, Not sure if you are asking a question or not. To clarify, my understanding is that there is a greater risk of death when detoxing from alcohol,although it is possible to die from benzo withdrawal it is not as common. My information comes from registered nurses who worked in Rehabs, and years of interaction with a lot of ex-drunks. I did a very light search last night, but did not find anything that gave good comparisons.
- ChrisMarshallNY 5y ago
  Well, I've known a lot of ex-everythings (over the last 40 years). I have never personally known anyone that has died from detox of alcohol, or anything else. However, I have listened to many, many horror stories (and seen them, acted out, in front of me). In all cases, the benzo withdrawals took forever (like months and years), and included seizures, hallucinations, and neverending insomnia.
  - zafka 5y ago
    Ok. I think we are on the same page. I have never seen a detox death either. I have heard that benzo's are the hardest to withdraw from, and it does sound pretty frightening. For a lot of alcoholics the hardest thing to quit is nicotine. The really scary cases are the folks who start taking Valium to keep from shaking until they start drinking.
    - ChrisMarshallNY 5y ago
      > The really scary cases are the folks who start taking Valium to keep from shaking until they start drinking. Knew someone that came off a 17-year Valium addiction. Took them a year and a half to stop hallucinating, and three years, to get a full night's sleep. They're still around (40 years later), and doing great.