Hi historyteach,
Thanks for the post. I should have made clear that the withdrawal program is done on an out patient basis with a psychiatrist from a local psychiatric hospital. We meet every 2 weeks to review the medication, and work within the withdrawal schedule laid out in the Ashton manual, which gives a lot of scope for the individuals ability to handle the graduated withdrawl. I hope no one here would attempt to go it alone on this course of action. Without the guidance of the Psychiatric services and the support of my family, I would not have attempted it. I did once, and that nearly cost me dearly.
Shalom (I love that word) to you and everyone here.